Hi Flyhull - I took one for a test sail when I was over in the UK in March, met the RS guys behind the design - a great team. I'm new to CATs (and coming at it as a windsurfer who wants to introduce his children to some Pacific Ocean time) but the RS Cat 16 felt ridged and with some pace, and given the roto-moulded construction it felt light and nimble. The RS team are confident the CAT 16 is night & day compared to other roto moulded designs currently on the market, such as from Laser, Topper, Hobie. It's also a very nice looking boat - striking design.
This is a very good video to show the boat at work: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YOxKwLyp6CM
It doesn't look as a dart 16 at all in the bow-section. it does in the
rear-section.
Roto-moulded hulls are great for sailing schools and kids, in France
there's a great amount of Dart 16"s at the training centers, and, they
get abused!!
Only a marketing major could make such a statement. I had a hands on look at the Topper Topaz 16. I'm not sure what could be done to make any roto molded boat better than the Topper. It is stiff, lighter than a Hobie 16 or Nacra 5.0, comes with squaretop & spin setup, & sells brand new for 12K CDN.
Night & day compared to a Hobie Wave yes, but not the others mentioned.
Edited by Edchris177 on Sep 24, 2014 - 02:49 PM.
-- Hobie 18 Magnum
Dart 15
Mystere 6.0XL Sold Was a handful solo
Nacra 5.7
Nacra 5.0
Bombardier Invitation (Now officially DEAD)
Various other Dock cluttering WaterCrap --