i just bought two hobies, with the mirage drive, an outback, and a revolution. only had them on the water once so far, but plan to go again this weekend. the peddle system is great, hands free opertion, can fish and peddle at the same time. my reasoning for going with the peddles was that my leg muscles are bigger than my arms so i figured i would not fatigue as easily. this seemed to bear itself out. the one day we did get out was windy, 25 to 30 knots, but i was able to propell myself with very little effort. the only draw back is the water depth required to operate the mirage drive, (peddles). my guess is probably 18" of water ,plus or minus. the peddels can be locked in an upright position close to the hull, and you can use a paddle to propell yourself in shallow water.