[Paddlewise] Paddler's weight

I'm looking to move up from my SOTs to a decked kayak. I've been looking at 
a lot of boats and  keep running into the same problem. That is that kayaks 
are small and I'm big...6'-3",  240lbs with size 13 feet. One of the first 
things I look at is the weight of paddler the kayak was designed for. I 
know about buoyancy and displacement and why a boat floats but don't 
understand some kayak capacity specs. Take the Northwest Synergy RM or 
others like it...a 16'+ boat with a load capacity of 340lbs but their specs 
say it's ideal for a 120-200lb paddler. I would assume a good kayak would 
have the paddler sitting at or very near it's CG. So except for all the 
effects that any weight would have on it...like riding lower in the water 
and maybe handling sluggishly...why would the boat care if the weight is 
the paddler or 100lbs extra pounds of gear?...assuming it's distributed 
evenly. Should I not even consider a boat like this and look only at those 
rated to carry a 240lb paddler? There are not many that do...I don't want 
to paddle a 20' double by myself.

dave 
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