This article comparing the hydrodynamics of kayaks and canoes with the new W boat is of interest to anyone interested in understanding the priniciples of kayak design and hull speed.
Call me an unbeliever, but I have some doubts about the “Wavewalk” twin hulled paddle craft advertised on the above site. They seem to be trying to market the boat as a performance craft, equal to a kayak in the surf, in whitewater, or for dead ahead cruising speed. There is likely a niche for the Wavewalk among recreational paddlers, but I can’t see how the Wavewalk could equal a good whitewater boat for slaloming between rocks or going over a drop. And what about paddling it into a 20-knot headwind? — standing up or kneeling, there’s still a lot added windage there over a kayak. Call me a purist, but I’ll take the sleek lines of a 17 foot composite kayak any day. And maybe it’s because as a kid I got told too many times to never stand up in a canoe or rowboat, but I’m not sure I could get used to the standing up part either.