Thanks for the comments guys
I'd love a shorter square topped 35 - 40 sq ft sail with a suitable carbon mast and boom for less weight aloft and less heeling, of course, but couldn't find a suitable one. One day I hope to try a wing sail
My sail is only 35 square feet and furls down to about 4 square feet before you have to unclip it to furl it completely. Mast is around 14 ft but only 38 mm aluminium so quite light. Stability is fine as long as there
is some wind. As the mainsheet is only a 2:1 reduction, it's easy to balance the sail against the wind, and I actually find the secondary stability really good, but am used to relatively sensitive sea kayaks.
With no wind, I only notice the inertia high up in bad boat wakes coming from the rear quarter, where you need to use body English. Having said that, I've never capsized it due to boat wakes - in light winds I've got the Mirage Drive down and the faster you go the more stable it is, like all kayaks. (I've said it before, but I'm not crazy about the behaviour of the AI in kayak mode even without a sail in waves from the rear quarter, as it has a tendency to broach quite badly without peddling harder or rudder correction and leaning back)
Actually Bob, you
can hike out, just not so much when you're peddling. I sit where the rear cross bar used to be and put my feet under that strap you can see just in front of the seat base. It's not ideal as you lean back and out rather than straight out, but works for me in up to 15 knot gusts, when I've even dipped my head in the water a couple of times.
I've since removed the seat base pad as it scrunched up all the time under my bum, and surprisingly noticed it was no less comfortable when peddling. It makes moving around the boat easier too.
If I had a TI I'd be really tempted to try it in kayak mode with the AI mast and sail