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This Friday, eleven years after purchasing my Curlew plans, I launched my kayak and enjoyed my first paddle on Lake Chickamauga. Weight as pictured is 23 lbs. She tracked straight with no weather-cocking in the strong winds. While initial stability seems low, it improved at cruising speed and secondary stability seems better. I'm working with Seals to get a skirt that fits the coaming and will feel more comfortable testing secondary stability and ease of rolling with a good spray skirt and dry top on. Special thanks to my friend Steve Rouse for his help, shop space, and photographs. In sitting in the kayak on land before launching I broke the right side coaming support as shown in the last photo. Checking other recent launch posts I noticed that this side support piece is missing so am wondering if I should just remove the supports instead of trying to replace them. After cracking the support I realized that I needed to brace on the back deck instead of the coaming when entering and exiting the kayak! Since I want to roll the kayak when I get a backband, seat, skirt, and deck riggings installed, I'm wondering what others have done about making and attaching thigh supports/hooks and side hip padding? The kayak frames are okoume marine plywood left over from another boat-building project and the stringers are Western red cedar scarved together from the clearest boards I could find at a local lumberyard. Fabric is dacron which is covered with 3 layers of Hunter green Rust-oleum paint. Since Steve has already carved a beautiful Greenland paddle, I hope to start work on my own paddle in the near future.