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I'm very pleased with this boat. I used to have a 14' Dagger, but I hadn't used it, and sold it maybe 3 years ago. My buddy and I decided we wanted to get back into kayaking, so we scoured the typical used sites. He did some extra searching, and found these on the Rural King site. After comparing the cost of travel, fuel and time versus getting two of these in town, we went with the Aruba.

I was skeptical about how well a stubby, wide boat would track. We promptly went to his place, since he has a lake, and I had to throw mine on the water. It was easy to board. Take off is quick, and it gets to cruising speed easily. With a moderate wind, on the flat water, it tracks pretty straight, and glides long. My 4 year old was able to grasp the paddling concept quickly, and had us moving easily from my lap. On his first ever water trip.

The following week BFF and I went on a 5 hour trip, 14 miles. (11 miles on Little Pigeon creek, 3 miles on Ohio river) On the calm water of the creek we had 4 hrs of travel. One log jam had us climb out and over, but I had no concerns of getting wet. Boarding once again was a snap. On either side of the seat was plenty of space for a camelback bladder and snacks. The rear storage box holds a fair amount of goods, but doesn't stay very dry. A spray skirt will be a good idea soon, because of timing issues on the swells of the Ohio river.

The seat has no cushion of any kind, so you'll want to get anything for bulk. I've got a gel seat cushion for my Ninja that I'm using next time. The included paddle is more than sufficient for us recreational types. I prefer the slight cant, BFF used straight blades, and we were running neck and neck. I'll eventually upgrade to a nicer one, but it's not a requirement.

I read a thread in the forums about speed. My GPS watch had us at an average of just over 4 mph. In the beginning of the trip we had a good sprint of just over 6, and later a solid mile at 5ish mph. I'll certainly repeat that trip. Despite having not ever paddled in about 3 years, we made the journey with only two short breaks disembarking. After I get a longer, nicer boat, I'll still keep this for a loaner, and for the kiddos. We're both thrilled with the purchase, and would recommend these for others.