I had an '99 29WC with an HP500. It had a labbed 4 blade hydromotive (28'', IIRC). It normally ran 76-77mph at about 5300-5350rpm, the best I got out of it was 79 (on gps). The boat felt solid and was very good in rough water, it flew level too. It felt very stable at speed and never did anything scary. It's a good looking boat and it has a large cockpit. It doesn't have a lot of freeboard (though it's not too low), so if you're tall you may feel like you're hanging out of it a bit. Overall, it's great boat. I enjoyed mine very much. The only problems I had with it were: 1) a small piece of fiberglass bulkhead tabbing came loose way up in the bow (in the little compartment ahead of the v-berth). The boat was still under warranty, so I had it fixed locally and UW compensated me...eventually, lol. 2) the painted metal dash plate started to peal. IIRC, the company sent me a new one under warranty.

Have you considered a cat? Generally speaking, they handle rough water more smoothly and are considerably faster than v hulls with identical power and lenth. Oh yes, they can turn faster too.

Speed is everything!

They also have the disadvantage of usually less or none - cuddy space. However, the 31sxt has a nice cuddy.

Rick