I don't have the cheek plates touch the floor so the boat can flex. They would make a stiff point on the bottom of the boat which could potentially cause problems if you hit something hard.

I also like to store stuff behind them.

: I am considering putting cheekplates in the Spring Run I am building. This is
: because I use the handy space between the hull and the cheekplates in my
: Chesapeake to store a pump, paddle float and other stuff that I don't like
: on the deck but may need to reach in a hurry. The cheekplates in the Ches
: are epoxied and glassed in from the deck to the hull. I see in many
: cockpit pictures posted on this BB, and also in Nick's book, that some
: cheekplates are just suspended from the deck and do not actually reach the
: floor of the cockpit. Is there a reason for this? Is there a good reason
: why I shouldn't add "ceiling to floor" cheekplates in my new
: boat?