The First Challenge
Sometime late 1999, a small group of international Hobie 16 catamaran sailors
envisioned
an extreme sailing event that will take them to different islands in the
Philippines; six days in the open seas and camping in rustic areas.
Thus, the
Philippine Hobie Challenge had its relatively modest start in March 2000
with
five (5) regional teams making the 190 nautical-mile passage from
Lucena, Quezon
down to Boracay. Michael Scantlebury, who was in the group that
conceptualized
the event, eventually took the honours of winning the first Challenge.
Dreaming the Impossible
The highly
successful
inaugural event proved the concept of long distance racing in Hobie 16
catamarans to be workable and the Challenge had its repeat in March
2001. This
time, entries had more than doubled to twelve (12), including teams
flying in
from HK, Australia and Europe. Using experience gained during the first
event,
the organizers scheduled a 5-race inshore series and the Challenge
series with 5
consecutive daily passages, taking the teams 154 nautical miles from the
Batangas resort of Maya-Maya down to Maricaban Bay in Northern Palawan.
The team
from Down Under, Andrew Keag and Naomi Angwin, bested the rest of the
fleet to
win the 2nd Philippine Hobie Challenge. In 2001, the Challenge went
Northwest,
taking fifteen (15) teams from Sta. Maria, Ilocos Sur down to Subic Bay,
Zambales. Blood Red, the team of Chris Steilberg, Dave Harris and
Krishan George
took honors in this 230 nautical mile race.
Subsequent Challenges
In 2003 the offshore Challenge series started
from the
whale shark capital of the Philippines, Donsol, and ended down in
Cebu.
Peter Davies, with David Harris, finished first, and with 1 win at
Donsol
and 2 in Alegre, Haswell and Heider made up for their relatively
poor
offshore performance by garnering a first in the Inshore
series
2004 marked the 5th Hobie Challenge one of the
best
challenges ever, taking the sailors from the icing sugar sands of
Boracay
all the way across to Palawan. This marked the largest fleet of
Hobies yet
– 27 teams from all over the globe. This trip included a visit to
Amanpulo
and even an African style safari on Calauit Island.
A great success
Now
firmly
cemented into the Hobie Sailing schedules, organizers of The Philippine
Hobie
Challenge are pointing their sails towards a route from Malapascua,
around Bohol
and ending at historic Cebu. Set on promoting sailing as a means to see
the eco
and adventure tourism destination that is the Philippines, they can only
promise
another superb event.
Indeed, the Philippine Hobie Challenge is
fast
growing to be one of the most exciting and anticipated sailing events in
Southeast Asia.
Philippine Hobie Challenge Foundation
The
Philippine
Hobie Challenge Foundation (PHCF) is a non-stock, non-profit corporation
ran by
a group of catamaran sailors, all bound by their love of the sport of
sailing.
Our
goals
- To establish
the Philippine Hobie Challenge as an annual sailing event not only in
the
country but in the World sailing calendar, similar to Hobie
Worlds.
- To establish
and promote the Philippines, not only as a tourist destination but
also as
sailing destination within Asia and the World.
- To promote
and encourage environmental awareness in the different routes of the
Challenge
and make the Philippines an eco-tourism area.
- To promote
the sport of sailing in a country that offers one of the best sailing
environment in Asia.
- To ensure
that the Philippine Hobie Challenge events are ran in a professional
manner
and that all safety and security measures are
taken.