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This was my first kayak purchase and it's worked out very well for me. I was looking for something that would track reasonably well but mostly be maneuverable for the small-medium rivers I prefer. This does that. It's definitely not as fast and straight as something longer and narrower, and I wore myself out trying to keep up with my buddy in his 16.5 sea kayak on bigger water. But it has enough speed for me and tracks pretty well at speed, although it really wants to pull to one side when I let it slow to a stop. It's very roomy and comfortable to sit in and has plenty of space for my long legs and size 12 feet, which ruled out some other boats I'd liked to have had. I also like the dry storage in the bow which is fairly rare in a 12 footer. There's lots of storage space for as much gear as I'll ever carry, and the lever locks are the way to go with hatch covers. I got the console with it, which is great for the small dry hatch (perfect for keys and quick access to my phone) but the cup holders are pretty much worthless for me. A drink in that area gets in the way of my paddling. I'd like to rig a bottle holder underneath it somehow and think CD would have done better to do something like that. Overall, a very good boat at a reasonable price that does what I need it to.