Is the design hopeless as a general purpose
: short boat? Just for surf? Or does it have a bit of
: "generalist" in it? Thanks again.

: --Scott
This is a surf boat. It isnt going to paddle backward with a darn and isnt recoverable on the water even with split float bags forward and astern bag aft. I would get a good creek boat if you want to bang around. Be sure to do your homework. Some of the older used boats had a problem with the plastic splitting. The newest designs are awesome. Have fun with it all.