Had it out on our lake this evening for a couple hours and it really paddles nicely. Seems faster than anything I've had to date and it handles really well. It seems to weather cock fairly easily but straightening her out doesn't seem to be a big issue. She's very responsive to a little lean with a turning stroke and seems to glide very nicely. I haven't tried the rudder yet and don't really see that I will need it unless I'm on open water with a looming chance of weather or sailing.
I got an expedition 'light' version and although I haven't weighed it yet Mark put it on the scale and came up with 66 lbs. That seems about right to me as it seems just a hair heavier than my T9. The 'light' version has a lighter rubber on the hull and aluminum clips and horseshoe connectors instead of the stainless steel. The clip pins are still stainless as well as the #4 center rib connectors which connect to the coaming. I have a full set of keel strips below as I'm a little tough on boats. The Expedition hull comes with the two oval deck hatches, heavy duty bow and stern construction and the all around life-line. Mark also sewed in aluminum clips directly under the mast stay D-rings which connect to the gunnel on the inside of the boat, giving the stays additional support. The stringers are black fiberglass tubing with stainless ferrels and look good. I believe the frame construction is a little bit lighter as well, especially in the gunnels. It's still not a carbon fiber boat... but it's definitely lighter. I can carry it around the yard without too much trouble, whereas I cannot carry the Aerius II... or don't try to any more. I'll weigh the boat when she's dry and report back.
The boat came in two boxes which contained the three standard packing bags. The bags are top class constructions, black, and have the new Long Haul logo on them. There's plenty room in each bag for the boat pieces. The backpack bag that carries the hull can easily accommodate the rib bag, hull, expedition spray cover and skirt. I'm guessing there's still enough room in there to include my Life Jacket, paddle float, pump and bow and stern air bags.
All the rib pieces came wrapped in paper. The ends of the long pieces were wrapped and safely nestled in the included packing sleeve. I really didn't realize how top notch this whole package was going to be. It really is a work of art. All the wood has a thick finish of varnish on it and every piece glows. It's beautiful. I remember thinking it was a shame to have to slide the frame into the hull it looked so nice. The boat comes with an instruction booklet, CD, safety whistle and a few extra clip pins in a custom bag. There's also a cool LHFK bumper sticker for your car in the zip-loc bag that holds all this stuff.
A little more coming...
d
