Paddler weight and boat weight

I am wanting to move up from my Epic V8 to a new V 10 Sport. I weigh over 200# and was wondering if it would be worth spending the extra money on a lighter boat since my weight is so high. I could see it if I was only 170# or less but at my size does a light boat really matter?
Thanks

one of he best parts of a light boat is how it goes off the water.
Carrying around and heavy boat and struggling to get it onto the racks on your SUV is not fun.

Easier to handle off the water if the wind isn't blowing ! Lighter boats generally are more subject to easy dings and IMHO overall less durable (again this is usually related to off water activities , loading , unloading ,storing , transporting….) . And , also IMHO if you are moving from a beginner boat to an intermediate boat you likely will not realize much difference on the water , except for perhaps a little more twitch with the lighter boats.Some will surely chime in about the weight vs. speed vs. stability and the nitpicking can go on and on. At an intermediate skill level it really won't make that much diff. , except , again. maybe slightly less stability or twitch with the lighter boats. The hybrid const. are getting to be stiffer than a few years ago so the lines are blurring a little more.

I recently acquired my V8, and I'm really enjoying it!

My strategy, as a fitness paddler, is to lose 10-20 lbs of my body weight (I'm down 7lbs from 185 already). This should make me more efficient on the water, as I won't be carrying extra ballast .

In my case a few pound differential in the ski that I'm paddling probably won't amount to gains achieved by getting more in shape.

I have the club layup in the v8 and that feels really light to me because I am used to 60# sea kayaks onto the roof of my SUV. My v8 is at least 15# lighter than I am used to.

I see the epic surf skis all come in super-duper light carbon at about 20# lighter being faster. I know that is the case with bikes. I have a carbon cyclocross bike and a 30# steel 29er. They both will go the same speed but the carbon one takes a lot less effort to get up to speed and can be peddled with less effort so therefore is less tiring and can go farther. But it is also more fragile.

I hear about the super light surf skis being more fragile and even breaking on occasion. The two boats I am considering are only 3# difference in weight but about $800 difference in price after shipping. Just wondering if the 3# is worth the extra price.

Light does not mean that the ski will ding or get damaged easier, not in my experience anyway.

G'day Shackleton. Your spot on in your last post. The difference is that t boat is quicker to react and u should find your able to hold a quicker avg speed. I've been fortunate enough to own Club, Performance, Ultra and Elite construction types from Epic and I've found the Ultra to be t most durable but I did love paddling my Elite! I'm sure it's t same feeling for other brands as well. I just found I had to be extra careful when loading it on and off t car racks in t canoe club etc. I'm probably somewhere close to 300lb and have probably fluctuated 20lb below and above that whilst paddling ocean skis and have always found t lighter t boat t bigger t difference compared to being lighter myself! Happy Paddling!

Kayaker Greg wrote: Light does not mean that the ski will ding or get damaged easier, not in my experience anyway.

Some of the early "light" constructions using foam cores were renowned for it.

At the end of the day what are the differences?
Pick Fenn
Glass - 17.5 kg $60% 140%kg
Vacuum - 14.5 kg $80% 116%kg
Hybrid - 12.5 kg $100% 100%kg

2 kg is a bottle of milk, yes it will make a difference lifting on to the car, but bugger all since half the challenge is the length and wind

The old carbon boats used to dent very easily; more modern materials and gel coats seem to have obviated the problem to some extent.

The material used has two major effects - weight and stiffness.

Stiffness seems to play a not insignificant role in the way a boat behaves. A couple of years ago we had a heavy carbon composite Red 7 and a light cork composite Red 7.

They were identical in weight and shape.

Dale and I took them out in Hout Bay on a choppy day. Each of us paddled both boats. We both found the flexible cork composite ski relatively stable and the carbon boat almost unplayable in the rough water.

In my opinion, comfort and stability are far greater factors in a paddler being able to perform in a boat than a couple of kg. Of course an 18kg boat (which used to be considered quite standard for a glass ski) feels like a barge these days. But anything under 14kg... does $1000 for 2kg less make sense? Not sure.