Greetings, I'm looking at buying my first boat. Have never owned a boat but I have paddling experience in open boats and in a
Chinook sea kayak. I want to buy one boat for dual purpose - flat water rivers (an occasional class 2, but primarily flat water
floats), lakes and occasional intercoastal waterway - day tours, or the occasional short overnighter. I'm 6'2"/185 and prefer boats
with larger cockpits, which is why the salesman showed me the America. The size at 13.5 seemed just right, and has a nice cockpit
without being too big. Does anyone have any experience with this boat? How is the hull speed and tracking in open water? How well
does it turn on rivers? How is the initial stability/paddling stability? Does it have sufficient storage for a day tour or short
overnighter (making do with just the basics). Thanks very much.
Lance

Lance wrote:
Greetings, I'm looking at buying my first boat. Have never owned a boat but I have paddling experience in open boats and in a
Chinook sea kayak. I want to buy one boat for dual purpose - flat water rivers (an occasional class 2, but primarily flat water
floats), lakes and occasional intercoastal waterway - day tours, or the occasional short overnighter. I'm 6'2"/185 and prefer boats
with larger cockpits, which is why the salesman showed me the America. The size at 13.5 seemed just right, and has a nice cockpit
without being too big. Does anyone have any experience with this boat? How is the hull speed and tracking in open water? How well
does it turn on rivers? How is the initial stability/paddling stability? Does it have sufficient storage for a day tour or short
overnighter (making do with just the basics). Thanks very much.
Lance

It's wide, slow and the large cockpit makes it unsuitable for anything
other than flat water, since you cannot brace yourself in the boat
adequately and a spray skirt will not stay in place if it gets dumped
on. The intracoastal waterway can be quite rough at times due to boat
wakes, so don't underestimate your need for rough water handling. Sudden
storms can also whip up unexpected chop. The America doesn't come with
adequate floatation (the bow pillar is a farce), so you'll need to add a
split floatbag set to the bow.

Like most rec. boats, the America is a boat that you will grow out of in
a heartbeat if you find that you really enjoy paddling. In the long
run, it's cheaper to spend more money up front to get a boat that's more
capable and which you'll keep for some time. I suggest that you look for
something in the 15'+ range with a beam of 24" or less, two
bulkheads/hatches and a cockpit length of no more than 33".