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The good and the unfortunate:

THE GOOD: This thing is almost untippable. It is rock-solid in even very heavy and irregular lake waves & swells. I paddle a lot on Long Lake in Western Maine; 1-1 1/2 miles wide and something like 17 miles long, and overrun with way too many, too big, too fast powerboats that really belong out on the ocean. Their combined wakes generate an interference chop that looks like moguls made of water, and it can be two feet high when wind conditions are right. The Tupelo just bobs like a cork and dead flat, even when sliding down off one of those moguls, or getting slotted in between them It is more efficient than the venerable Walden Vista I am used to, and it tracks better as well. It seems well-finished and I like the opportunities offered by the four sections of track built into the top of the hull. (My son uses Jackson playboats, which he says are bombproof.)

THE UNFORTUNATE: Weighs a TON (well, OK, 50 lbs...) No fun for a 73 year-old single-handing it up onto a roofrack or shlepping it a uundred yards from parking to launch. When I bought it, I immediately ordered a kayak trolley and really can't imagine being without it.

I like the volume but would sacrifice some of that for a lower profile - it can feel like you're reaching across the hood of an old 50's Cadillac in order to paddle. This beast is so voluminous, it could lose a couple vertical inches and no one would notice.

I like the seat, but it is clearly built to easily accomodate someone with a doublewide butt (and this said by someone 6'3" and 200lbs). It would also benefit from a lumbar pad; there's a bit of annuncomfortable void between the bottom cushion and the seat back.

I should emphasize these are quibbles, not criticisms (except the weight). Overall, and especially for an older big guy mostly doing flatwater, this boat more than meets all my needs, especially that rock-solid stability. I'm glad I bought it!