: Rob,
: Congratulations on getting your kit from Redfish. My first strip
: boat was also a Spring Run kit and building it was one of the
: most satisfying projects I've ever undertaken. Joe Greenley's
: kits are excellent and he provides very good instructions as
: well. If you ever have questions, just put 'em out here on the
: forum and we'll help you out.

: I used the shipping crate for the strips for my strongback as Joe
: recommends and it has worked out well. I'm on my 3rd boat using
: this strongback. One recommendation, however is to cut some
: blocking out of 2x4's for inside the box beam. I found that it
: had a tendancy to twist just slightly so I glued and nailed an
: internal block about every 2' before closing up the box. Made it
: absolutely twist free. Also added casters to the legs I attached
: so I could easily move it around my garage/shop. I kept a log
: and the build took me about 230 hours. I'm on my 3rd strip boat
: now (also a Spring Run) and it is taking a bit less time since I
: have some experience and don't sweat the small things any more.

: The Spring Run is a great all round boat with excellent primary and
: secondary stability. It tracks well and also responds well to
: leaned turns. I liked my first one so well that I decided to
: build a second one from the forms that came with the kit (and I
: did pay Joe the royalty to build another boat) . This second
: Spring Run will be used for lakes and smooth wide rivers and I
: am building it with a large recreation sized cockpit (39
: 1/2" long) so it will feel open (go ahead and gasp!). One
: other note... The hatch's will hold a lot of gear and I've used
: my first Spring Run for camping numerous times and plan on using
: the second one for a week long camping trip next June on the
: Altamaha River in south Georgia.

: Attached is a pic of the first Spring Run on it's maiden voyage in
: the Florida Keys....

: Good Luck with your build.

: Bob Beaullieu

39" cockpit? Have to get a tarp for a skirt for that one .

Bill H.