Donny, you need to cultivate a group of strong, physically fit, female fans/groupies that follow you around from gig to gig. Plus, there could be other benefits .

Seriously, I would never factor gear weight into my criteria for playing a gig. I just would only play the gigs where the money justified the set up/tear down (or long-term gigs where set-up/tear down was not a factor). My primary interest in gigging has always been about the music, never the money or the hassle (maybe that's because I never did it full-time, in which case I might feel differently).

chas