[Paddlewise] Deck Reinforcing

Continuing on the subject of deck reinforcing, I bought a kayak (an
Eddyline Calypso) a few years ago that had a rod holder/sailing mount
already attached to the deck in front of the cockpit -- however with no
reinforcing other than a couple of fender washers under the deck.  Despite
the wimpy attachment, surprisingly it held up through a few years of
sailing until it finally broke away one fateful day, leaving a couple
fender washer-sized holes in the deck (but fortunately, fairly easy to
patch).  Since I'm thoroughly sold on sailing, I plan to reinstall the
mount.  My question is -- is there any general agreement on the best way?
The options I'm considering are:
(a)  lay down a few layers of fiberglass cloth and resin on the underside
to reinforce it, then mount like before (any recommendations for how many
layers would be appropriate for this option?);
(b)  same as above, except use epoxy resin (I hadn't thought of this till I
read today's post -- is this a lot stronger?);
(c)  same as above, except attach (somehow, I imagine with epoxy??) a piece
of stainless steel sheet metal (which I already have) to the underside for
reinforcement.  The problem I see here is that stainless is such a pain to
try to mold or cut, and I'm concerned that the bond between the fiberglass
of the deck and the stainless steel may weaken in time.  (Any comments on
this?)
(d)  same as (c), except substitute aluminum, which I don't have, but would
be much easier to work with; or
(e) drill a sailing mast-sized hole in the deck, insert some type of sleeve
plus gasket through the hole, glue a shallow cup onto the bottom of the
boat, then slip the mast through the upper deck hole until the bottom of
the mast rests inside the cup.  When the sail is not in use, I could put a
stopper in the deck hole to keep water out.  The problem I have with this
option is I don't like the idea of having the mast between by legs while
paddling/sailing (it seems like it'd be in the way).

I'd appreciate any suggestions!

Evan


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