Soft-sided cooler for me as well. As a matter of practice I usually sit up front of the boat near the head. Yes I'm last in the water, but I'm also last out. No one has to walk by my gear heading to the water. In all liklihood you'll be the only guy on board with a beast of a rig. You can make friends by collecting email addys and sending folks underwater portraits. So being "that guy" is not all that bad.