Several months ago I posted regarding completion of my third race kayak, a Yukon by Nick Schade.  That LONG post is here: A tale of three wooden race boats. :: Builders' Forum (clcboats.com)

Over the last several weeks, I have finally gotten the Yukon out in some waves and I can say that I am very pleased.  

The boat goes upwind very well when it is rough. It tracks much better than either of my surfskis but pounds a little more due to less rocker. The bow rides over most waves but I did take a little water over the top on a couple of big ones.

Downwind the boat is pure joy! It surfs well with excellent stability and control. Given how strongly the boat tracks in flat water, the boat is surprisingly maneuverable when the waves shorten the effective waterline a bit. I find that my 4" weedless rudder does quite will in 3' waves but switch to the 6" in bigger conditions.

Here is some video in winds 15G25 with 3' whitecaps. The first minute of the video is paddling upwind, then I make the turn to start surfing downwind.  

https://flic.kr/p/2k8kNNu

I spent 50 minutes in these conditions without a skirt and with the bailer closed, and only accumulated about 1/4" of water in the cockpit. About 10 sec with the bailer open eliminated that.

I really am looking forward to racing this boat in rough conditions. I expect it to be very competitive with boats like the V8.