Here I go butting in again.
Gerald and I have been doing a little point-counterpoint thing for many years, goes something like this: Gerald is well-known for stating that small boats are task-specific, and that a builder should consider outlining what he wishes to do with his boat, then come up with a design that best adapts to it. Good conventional wisdom. My counterpoint, which is unconventional, is that I pick the boat I want to paddle most, then adapt what I wish to do to that boat.
Example: The SOT is very nicely suited to fishing, hence most kayak fishermen use SOT's. They're not optimal paddling boats, though, but so the choice is made since you can't have it all. I, on the other hand, value an efficient paddling boat very highly, so I fish out of a sea kayak. I get a great paddling boat, but not the most convenient thing to fish out of. There's no right or wrong, or better or worse, just personal choices we make. My choice is decidely not a popular one, but it is still valid enough just the same. In any case, you can fish out of any boat just as you can race any boat; there are no rules (well, in fishing, anyway).
Flat bottoms are not the fastest hull shapes; if you want to know what is, just take a quick look at the race boats. But if there were a race to be held over a course of 6" to 12" deep water, I bet you'd see more flat bottoms than anything. Flat bottoms have two major strong points: They're best for real shallow water, and they make the easiest hulls to build. But one of the reasons I have always liked pirogues is because they're so easy to build and yield a surprisingly fast performer in general -- an excellent bargain. Plastic SOT's, as we know them today, are the worst hull shapes next to cheap inflatables because they're designed with primary consideration given to resisting turning over with a full grown wild gorilla aboard, and little else. In short, the manufacturers have had to give up on the notion of paddlers developing boat handling skills and so meeting them halfway.
In today's scene, I'd have to say you'd be extremely hard put to do better than one of Gerald's designs for a fast and stable "dual-purpose" boat.
Now, if you really want to paddle a race, you'd best start thinking about developing a forward stroke that uses your full body, and not just your arms. You'll never get anywhere until you start rompin' and stompin' and driving the boat with your feet big time.
