A lot of peoople think that the pounds kayak manufacturers use are 20% heavier than the standard pound because they wish to mislead their customers, and some believe that car manfacturers use really small horse-power units for much the same reason.

Nothing could be further from the truth. The car horsepower figures are, as any engineer knows, based on the amount of energy used to create the fuel that the car's engine burns. Perfectly scientific and factual. You can verify this by simply comparing the fuel consumption of your 10 cylinder long-wheelbase duallie extend-a-cab truck to your wife's Nissan: they're not the same are they? The truck's your wife's? I don't see that's relevant . . .

The kayak weight? That's a bit trickier, but broadly the designers of the manufacturer cast 100 prototypes as light as possible until they get one that actually keeps out the water and then they weigh it. That test provides the weight of the kayak which is passed on to the marketing guys who need that information immediately because they have a lot of work to do. Then, for the protection of their customers, the manufacturer adds enough extra material to ensure the kayaks do not fail the first time they are used. What you people are weghing includes the safety factor that the manaufacturer delivers to you free of charge.

Much like health foods. They really are cholesterol-free: you don't see a charge for cholesterol on your receipt do you?
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So please, please be fair and recognize the inherent truth in advertising and stop being so nsty about these well-meaning folk and their efforts to please and inform.

Next week: the weight of your paddle and why it tore a hole in your wallet . . .