I've built two "Panache" boats by Laughing Loon. I'm 5'11", 215 (at least). This Fall my friend (who played quarterback at University) and myself took the boats out on the west coast of Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada for a week. We were both a little nervous at the outset since the swells we were experiencing were coming all the way from Japan.
The boats handled like a dream. The heavier the load the better they performed. We were pressed for time on the homeward leg and on the last day of the trip the seas were heavy (6 foot swell with about a 2 foot chop bouncing back off the cliffs on shore). Often we would bury the nose in a wave with water spraying us in the face.