Hey Mark,

You have an interesting dilemma. The boat looks beautiful and I would personally hesitate to try and do this modification. Raising your back deck to have a higher camber may push water off more efficiently, but I think it is unlikely that this is where your problem lies. If it is taking an 18" wave to wash over your back deck, that actually means you don't really have that much free-board. I've seen photos of low volume paddlers that had their back decks awash in flat water. Low volume doesn't mean flat water. These boats were designed for paddling in the worst of all conditions. A boat that fits well with the paddler will often punch through a wave, rather than bob over the top. Oddly enough that is often more efficient.

Before modifying this boat, consider building a high volume SOF to test your theory. That will likely be less costly than modifying it and accidentally destroying the boat.

I would look for other causes.

1. It is possible that you are paddling with the wrong paddle for you. If the paddle is too large, you may be creating too much torque, causing you to fight the water rather than flow with it. Conversely, if the paddle is too small, you may not be getting enough bite.

2. Take a look at your baot. If you don't have enough rocker, you might be getting pulled under. You didn't mention beam or length. If the boat is too big for you, then it might be not be as nimble as your friends boats appear. If this is an 18' boat with a 23" beam, that's a lot of boat for us smaller guys. Adding weight might help.

3. Evaluate your technique. This is the most likely culprit. The water gets rough, friends get moving, you're awash and start pulling hard to correct the situation. This all adds up to in-efficient paddling. Have your friends evaluate your technique for you and consider trying a traditional paddle (ie West Greenland). These paddles give you immediate feedback to tell you if you are paddling poorly.

Just my two cents. I wouldn't throw out the baby on this one.

Eric M.