Open water

Surfskis for downwind

Downwind rewards a hull that accelerates onto a bump and then stays there. That is mostly length and a fine stern, which is why almost nothing short appears here.

These craft rate 6 or better for speed. The stability figures beside them are the ones that decide whether you spend the run linking bumps or remounting, and the honest answer for most paddlers is to take a point or two less speed than they think they need. A boat you can brace in while looking over your shoulder is faster downwind than a boat you cannot, regardless of what the hull would do under someone else.

Conditions matter more than the rating. A ski that is composed in a clean 20-knot swell can be a different animal in short, confused chop, and no single number carries that.