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I acquired the Prodigy 12 on sale ($529), because I wanted a lighter 'play' boat for fun and camping, when the longer kayaks were too much trouble. I also tried the Acadia series kayaks, and I couldn't control them at all. Two other acquaintances also gave similar opinions as validation.

The 12 has a very large cockpit, this and the initial stability make it easy to get in and out of, high dock, low dock, sand bank, rock ledge, you name it. I could drop my butt in, wash off my feet by hanging them over the side, and keep the inside clean. The large interior space makes it easy to keep your water bottles and even a small cooler handy, either behind the seat or in front of your feet.

I paddled it 12 miles yesterday on a flat lake, calm to 8 mph winds. The easy seat adjustments made it a breeze to stay comfortable. The footpegs are also easy to adjust to my 6'0" 200 lb. needs, on the fly as required. It tracks well, and minor course corrections happen with a lean. The short size make turning around in inlets or creeks quick and easy.

It is a rec. kayak and is less efficient than a touring or sea kayak. I was very tired after paddling 12 miles. It has foam bow flotation and a rear bulkhead. I didn't test the 'secondary' stability since I wasn't sure I'd be able to do a wet recovery, with small rear deck and extra large cockpit.

I think it will be a fun kayak for shorter trips on lakes and reservoirs, and as a loaner to friends who want to try kayaking. It is easy to hand carry at 48 lbs, and the length will facilitate the storage, and the ability to take it along camping.

I recently obtained a Nantucket with rudder by cashing in credit card miles. It was the only choice offered by the card company.

I have had to repair both control cables, as the crimped connections popped loose, one as I was setting it up at home, and the second as I first put it in the water.

My first use was therefore without benefit of foot pegs or rudder, and that, combined with my lack of paddling skill, made the tracking reminiscent of paddling an inner tube!

Yesterday I was in it for about six hours. It tracks great with the rudder in the water, less so with it out of the water. It seems to be exceptionally stable, much more so than the craft used by the firm I took instruction from a few weeks ago. I exited and reentered several times for lunch and bio breaks, at either docks or up feeder creeks on the lake I was on, and the stability made me look as if I knew what I was doing.

I think this yak will be ideal for lake and bay/estuary travel.