I would like to give one of these a try sometime but what happens in
shallow water? How resistant are the flippers to damage? Also it seems
totally strange that the flippers don't have a retracted or stowed
position.


I know someone who uses one routinely on Pine Barrens Rivers here in NJ. In
shallow water I've seen him go over logs without incident. Evidently those
fins Do fold back under that kind of stress. Actually, I can't imagine that
Hobie would have designed a system that couldn't do that.
One disadvantage that might come up is that without a paddle you can't
easily brace so I would expect that you might be more prone to flipping...
FWIW, I should mention that that kayaker has only one arm so paddles aren't
the best option.

Joe P.