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This is a great kayak perfect for smaller people and kids. You have to weigh less than 150 pounds and be able to fit into a cockpit that is only 18" wide and 28" long. Map this out on a floor and see if this works for you as it can be a tight fit. If you have long legs, this kayak is probably not for you no matter what your weight due to both the small cockpit and the fact that the ballast is pushed right up to the front of the cockpit - thereby forcing you to keep your legs apart all the time. The ballast can be removed, but it does seem to help avoid that tippy feeling.

This tight cockpit is what makes the kayak so great for small people - you finally know what it's like to become "one" with a kayak. This kayak has great features - a very comfortable, somewhat adjustable seat that basically supports your back (and does so well), easily adjustable foot pedals even while in the kayak on the water, front and rear bungee straps for dry sacks, and nice carrying handles with built-in holes which can also be used to lock the kayak with a thin locking cable. The ballast can be annoying until you get used to it and it's odd that Perception didn't put in at least one small cargo area, but the bungees work great with dry sacks. Due to the tight fit, there is no cup holder and the only good place for a water bottle is in the front of the cockpit, but you can get creative with the bungee straps or buy a cockpit cup holder, which will fit. There is no room to store your paddle in the cockpit when you shove off as your own body will take up all the room, but you can buy a cockpit paddle clip, use the bungee straps with some practice, or just hold onto your paddle carefully.

Even with these limitations, I rank this kayak a 10 because it is a full 10 feet long and, thus, tracks well. The best thing though is it weighs only 26 pounds due to its aerodynamic shape! Your kayaking friends will be envious at how light it is. Even better, in 2015 it costs $405 (everywhere - don't bother shopping around) and, as you may already know, kayaks that light weight usually cost much, much more.

I only weigh 112 pounds and I can lift this myself, push it in the bed of my 8 foot truckbed at an angle, wrap two basic bungee cords around the end, and I'm good to go with the tailgate down (the kayak sticks out only about 5 inches)! You can probably get more creative and fit it in an 8 foot bed with the back end completely closed. It's also easy to put onto any roof kayak rack.

I have tested this kayak out on slow to medium moving rivers (no rapids) and small to large lakes and am in love with it. I've endured wakes from motor boats and jet skiers as well as strong head winds plus choppy water with lake waves as high as the kayak sitting in the water and I have felt secure at all times.

In this kayak, I can finally keep up with other paddlers who can paddle standard kayaks due to the paddlers' heavier weight. People who are not small do not think about how a kayak that is 50 pounds is almost 50% of my weight (this is true too for biking!). For them to understand, they would need to feel what it's like to paddle a kayak weighing almost 100 pounds. I can also finally paddle upstream as this kayak is so light! I find it tracks well, even in strong winds, though it does sometimes move side to side, but nothing worse than I've seen and felt other kayaks do. It does have a nice keel, which helps the tracking.

This is a well-built kayak and I wish I could meet whomever from Perception decided to make this as I could kiss him/her! On top of all of this, it comes in a great choice of colors.

If you are a smaller person and love to kayak, but get tired of killing yourself trying to carry and keep up using a typical kayak that is too heavy for you, you will love this kayak. You really don't have to give up any features with it at all so it is worth every penny. Enjoy!