Hi Ya Bully
You can always sail without the floaties but having the sidekicks reduces the possibility of going upside down when sailing in gusty winds and waves. Like anything else there is still no substitute for using good judgment , common sense and caution (not that I have much
) when conditions become rougher.
I used the well nut anchors that came with the sidekick kit because they can be an easy simple way to do a blind side attachment in thin materials just be sure to crank them down good and tight .
However I wanted to remove them once to add a riser/spacer under the mount clamps and found out the hard way that they could not be reused once they had been tightened up.
I then completed my remount with stainless screws , lock nuts, rubber sealing washers on both sides of the hull to prevent water leaks and large fender washers to spread the load, while reaching back under the opened hatch and through bolting the clamp brackets to the hull. I am certain they are now securely mounted to the deck and can feel confident that they will hold under any conditions while out on the water
....Have fun out there
.........kepnutz