For the areas that I fish it is great! I had the HD bottom option installed when they built it - this is an extra .250 inch thick section that is about two feet wide and runs the length of the boat. Lots of impact resistance in case of the unexpected impact with a rock or log.
I have used it on lakes in Canada this past August and there it is serviceable but it is out of its' realm. I had cavitation problems when the wind picked up and produced 1' or larger rollers. Where this boat really shines is in shallow rock infested waters. It will run in 3- 4 inches of water. Top speed is right at 50 mph but it sucks gas at this speed. It will cruise all day long at about 30 mph. Actually at 30 mph it uses less gas than my Tracker with the 90/65 jet. It will remain on plane at about 12 - 15 mph. The holeshot is unbelievable, it gets up on plane immediately!
Granted given the price tag on a fully optioned RiverPro is fairly high, this isn't a boat for the casual fisherman. But it fills the niche quite nicely for what it is made for. There are very few Jet boats that will run where this one will. The only other boats I can name are the Rockproof RiverRocket and the Snyder custom made boats that are capable of running where this boat will and they are priced in the same range.
How do I like it thus far? You should see the silly grin on my face every time I punch the throttle!
Dave
