Well, you just got yourself a heck of a first-ever boat. Congrats!
I got mine in '95 (my first solo) and its still my favorite canoe as long as I’m not venturing into much whitewater. The glide just won’t quit and it holds a heading well without being very difficult to turn. A sweep stroke turns it until you ease off on the paddle, and it just “clicks” into that heading and holds it. In a glide it tends to turn to the opposite side that its heeled on. I know of no canoe that is easier to paddle for long distances on flatwater without tiring the paddler.
But I’m considerably heavier than you… heck, I’m considerably heavier than I was in '95 (~180 back then). I don’t think it’ll be a big problem for you, though. In a perfect world an Ariel or even a Zephyr probably would fit you a bit better, but the Starship will let you carry lots more gear and the extra buoyancy of a bigger boat isn’t a bad thing at all in most situations.
It’s a boat that feels quite a bit tippier when lightly loaded (which some think hurt initial sales of Blackhawks in general back in the day) and might feel a bit uncomfortable in strong cross winds when empty, but it has plenty of secondary stability. The initial unease left me after the first half hour or so and, as the years went by, I find it amazing that I ever felt uncertain even in that first half hour. That really isn’t an issue once you get used to it and know what to expect.
Probably the easiest thing if you want to add a bit of ballast to help stabilize it a little is just get a couple 3 or 5 gal. water jugs to carry in the bottom. Day trip gear might be enough (and everybody has a different idea about how much gear to take on a day trip) but especially at your weight you’re not likely to come even close to overloading it with or without water jugs in the bottom, so why not toss 'em in and fill them if you feel the need to? I carry an “unhappy bag” (vic’s term) with a good first aide kit, a couple rain ponchos, fire staring stuff, TP, rope, knife, duct tape - all that sort of thing. It weighs about 30 lbs. and goes with me on every canoe outing. Carrying something like that might help your ballast situation as well.
I think Blackhawks are perhaps a bit more “trim sensitive” (quirky?) than many other solos canoes and since we’re considering ballast why not consider its placement? Trim so a properly placed draw or sculling draw moves you sideways without changing heading. If one end moves toward the side that you’re drawing on, move a bit of weight to that end. Properly trimmed a Starship can carry as big a load as anyone should want to carry, even in waves. If a wave is going to “get you” in that boat, it will probably be a breaking following wave, though the stern will shed quite a bit of water before the boat actually starts taking it on. Its a boat that is sensitive enough to really reward good paddling technique. A Grumman made me a strong enough paddler, but it took a Starship to make me a better paddler. I’ve heard of similar experiences from others.
I think it paddles best from a kneeling position with a longish straight shaft paddle, though some do sit and use a bent shaft with a hit&switch paddling style. Though a near-perfect fast cruiser (IMHO), the Starship is not a true racer (stern will hunker down and throw a huge wake if paddled too hard), so I personally don’t see the point in paddling with a short stroke and bent shaft as if one were racing it. But different strokes for different folks…
Enjoy! You got yourself a nice boat there. Maroon (with gold trim I presume?) is a great color for a Blackhawk too.
