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It's easy to get your money's worth out of this boat - a great boat for general recreation.

My purchase was based on four factors: quality of materials, back support, large cockpit at a good price and the Loon 111 scores on all counts. The quality of the hull seems far superior to anything else in this price range - sturdy, insulated and should survive more wear than most others. The high back seat can be adjusted fore and aft within the large cockpit - accomodating paddlers of various sizes - and well suited to life-long back problems - only the Phase 3 seating of Wilderness Systems exceeds this seat. The large cockpit allows plenty of room for my 7 year old daughter to ride with me. The salesman thought that she was near the top end of being able to ride there, but I think we will get 2-3 years of being able to ride together. The list price of this boat is currently $499, but is available through some sources at a 10% discount.

Finally, it has been mentioned that some 111s have manufacturing flaws. My model (2001) has no such flaws and tracks reasonably well. I rate the boat a 9 only because the highly stable design limits speed somewhat.