: As Mike said the difference between light and heavy is just that,and what it
: primarily affects is your ability to lift something heavy or light. Given
: that the difference between a light kayak and and a heavy kayak might be
: on the outside 20lbs that amount could be a fraction of a 175 paddlers
: weight plus boat plus gear. 175+40(light kayak)+10lb(gear)=225. As gear
: and paddler weight increases then boat weight differences descrease as a
: percentage.

: Without getting into the significances in handling that might come about with
: different weights of cargo and kayak the heaviest , the paddler, has the
: greatest affect,,not just because its the cargo defining the problem but
: because the weights of people bring the greatest variation to the whole
: package thereby having the greatest affect on handling differences, which
: are the differences that matter the most.

: So for me in the end what matters is that a person is in a boat that they are
: not too light or too heavy for. What matters to you?

So how much weight does what to handling?