Hello i live in Jackson, MS and new to cat sailing. I have lots of time on monohulls from 21 to 42ft all over the Caribbean. I have recently been looking at a 2004 Hobie Tiger F18 or a new 2014 Hobie 16. I have been told however that the H18 can be very difficult to right if capsized. I will be sailing primarily solo and mainly for pleasure, but may get into racing. I weight 185lbs and any advice would be greatly appreciated.

~~ Hobie 16........ The Tiger is alotta cat. With yer weight you'll have lots of trouble rightin the 16.~~

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~ Vietnam Vet 69-71~ 17 Hobie w/big jib, ~18 Hobie mag,~DN Ice sailor,
and other toys.......
~~ I live in NY state on the north shore of Oneida lake in
Bernhards Bay. ~~~~~~
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i am 185, i single my 450lbs mystere 5.5 (just about a f18) 150 days a year - not a problem

you are talking about 2 very different boats... apples to bananas

you mention an h18 - that would be a better starting boat in my oppinion - not as limited as the h16 and not as many controlls to adjust as the f18.

all boats are hard to right until you get the system down
carry a righting bag and practice - you can do it!

Would love to see another F18 in Jackson, MS, but that's a lot of boat to solo with lots of strings to pull and lots of rigging time. If you are not racing, why bother?

From the boats you mention, the Hobie 16 or 18 would be a better fit or check out the Prindle 16 or 18.

There's a Cat Club on the Reservoir called the RSA, you may want to check them out. Over by Madison Landing.



Edited by nacra55 on Sep 18, 2013 - 03:40 PM.

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Ron
Nacra F18
Reservoir Sailing Assn.
Brandon, Mississippi
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MN3

you mention an h18 - that would be a better starting boat in my oppinion - not as limited as the h16 and not as many controlls to adjust as the f18.

+1

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Sheet In!
Bob
_/)_____/)_/)____/)____/)_____/)/)__________/)__
Prindle 18-2 #244 "Wakizashi"
Prindle 16 #3690 "Pegasus" Sold (sigh)
AZ Multihull Fleet 42 member
(Way) Past Commodore of Prindle Fleet 14
Arizona, USA
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Just to clarify.....

H18 is the symbol for a Hobie 18 which also bears little resemblence to the Hobie Tiger (which is Formula 18 compliant). So now we're talking about apples, bananas, and pears.

And (in the interest of ruffling feathers, creating general discourse, and unnecessarily cluttering this thread) all you really need to know is.....

Hobie 16s Rule!

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Jerome Vaughan
Hobie 16
Clinton, Mississippi
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Beachcats are oceans different in almost every way from the monohulls you sailed.
Weight, balance, sailtrim will give you almost immediate feedback... what you do right and wrong.

Hobie 16 - Great boat. Simple, timeless, classic, manageable by one person, LOTS of folks have these boats and it's a great community

Did you confuse the 18 foot Hobie Tiger with the Hobie 18?

Hobie 18 - Great boat. Slightly more complex, and slightly faster, than the Hobie 16. Handles weight and waves easier, also heavier and more powerful. Still very timeless and classic. LOTS of folks have these boats too.

Hobie Tiger - About as complex as it gets as you're now in the "Formula 18" category of boats. This is the state of the art category, and the Tiger is more or less at the bottom of this group. It has the same weight as the Hobie 18, plus or minus a few pounds. Similiar upwind speed to the Hobie 18, but points higher. Downwind with spinnaker it smokes the other boats. You could jump into a Hobie Tiger, but the learning curve is much steeper. Dare I say you'd break things and get hurt, quite probably. I'd recommend getting a year or more on a 16 or 18 first.

The 2014 Hobie 16 is timeless and the boat everyone (mostly) cuts their teeth on. Some keep their's for 30 years. Recommend you go with the 16 for a few years.

signed - Baby 16 sailor (Hobie 14 Turbo), Openly Sail the daylights out of the Hobie 18, and in a secret love affair with the Hobie 16... (in fact was sailing one last night down on the coast...) -Rob.



Edited by robpatt on Sep 20, 2013 - 07:02 AM.

I never owned a H16 but as a first entry boat into catamarans I would highly advise it with the stipulation you look for a lightweight crew member for the wire. If you want to sail solo then you would certainly be better off sailing a H17 or I17 or F17 Nacra. Made for a single sailor but can handle two people and with a lightweight crew member. H17 have been out of production for a while so the later might be a better idea when looking at wear n tear on the hulls. Good luck and welcome to the wild side

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2007 Nacra F18 Infusion
www.fleet250.org
Facebook: Sandy Hook Bay Catamaran Club
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BTW - the older boats are in the flat part of the depreciation curve. After a year or two, you can probably sell it for close to what you have in it, and then use the money for the upgrade.

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Jeff R
'88 H18 "Jolly Mon"
'10 C2 USA1193
NE IN / SE MI
cramsailing.com
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ravenstein

I have recently been looking at a 2004 Hobie Tiger F18 or a new 2014 Hobie 16.

I would not buy a brand new H16 as a first cat. Chances are, you will breaks/scratch/trash something in the boat as a part of your learning curve. There a plenty of used H16 in good shape out there for a fraction of cost of a brand new one.

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Jack B
Hobie 17
BC, Canada
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Good point and they are readily available

rehmbo

BTW - the older boats are in the flat part of the depreciation curve. After a year or two, you can probably sell it for close to what you have in it, and then use the money for the upgrade.

--
2007 Nacra F18 Infusion
www.fleet250.org
Facebook: Sandy Hook Bay Catamaran Club
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