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Re: Hobie Cats
Murph #376341 05/16/12 05:09 PM
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Used to see lots of Hobie Cats around here but seems like most of those folks must have taken up windsurfing by the number of people doing that now. We've never owned a Hobie Cat but have used our friends a time or two, they are pretty stable and can haul the mail with a good breeze and are fairly easy to maneuver with a little experience.


Rick
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Re: Hobie Cats
Murph #376342 05/16/12 05:10 PM
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Hi Murph,

I've sailed since I was 9 years old and have owned various dinghies and monohulls, never a Hobie. However I've sailed Hobies and they're fast and exciting but in gusty winds, they can flip easily if you're a novice. My nephew flipped in one and had to be towed to shore. A Hobie is impossible to right by one or two people once it's flipped. If you dump in a monohull, you can lean on the centerboard and gradually right the craft and bail it out. I've never flipped in a Hobie, or in a Laser (I owned one of the latter for years and it's fast and fun but awkward for two people).

New sailors often make the mistake of putting up too much sail (I did that years ago with an Albacore) and a sudden gust of wind can cause upset if you don't react quickly enough.

You might be better off with a monohull dinghy that's not as "nervous" (as sailors say) in changeable winds.

Alan


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Re: Hobie Cats
Murph #376358 05/16/12 06:10 PM
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Hi Alan. Thanks for sharing.

I have to disagree with you on the "impossible to right by one or two people". As I mentioned, I've never owned one but I have sailed on one a few times when I lived with an Aunt for a couple of summers on a small lake in Nova Scotia. My cousin and I did flip it one day in some faster winds. OK, they weren't all that fast. I still maintain he did it on purpose for fun as although he was really pushing our angles, he was handling the mainsail by hand, not cleated, so 'maybe' he could have just let go.

He had righted the boat many times before and quickly showed me what to do. It was actually surprisingly easy with two people. He said it can be done with one person if they have enough body weight, something I wouldn't have had back then and maybe not now either as I'm not sure how much is required.

He had two lines rigged up just for this purpose. Once untied, they could be thrown over either side of the boat. He then put his weight on the bow of the boat and it swung itself so that it was sideways to the wind. We then stood on the leeward hull and pulled on the lines. It slowly but steadily pulled the boat over and I don't recall a whole lot of effort. It was actually surprisingly easy as long as you were comfortable leaning backwards knowing the other hull was eventually going to try and fall on top of you.

Again, I'm no expert but I think maybe the big difference was that he had a float at the top of the mast. This kept the boat from turtling so it was never totally inverted. I will definitely have one of these on my Hobie if I end up buying one. Both to have to work less hard to right it and also because of the shallow water I mentioned. If it turtles in some areas, it would undoubtedly bend the mast.


With great power comes Awesome irresponsibility.
Re: Hobie Cats
Murph #376367 05/16/12 06:31 PM
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Originally Posted By: Murph
It was actually surprisingly easy with two people. He said it can be done with one person if they have enough body weight, something I wouldn't have had back then and maybe not now either as I'm not sure how much is required.

Any time you need 200+ pounds / 90+ kilos, just let me know. smile

Re: Hobie Cats
Murph #376370 05/16/12 06:44 PM
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And he'll send me right up there....


::::::: No disrespect to Axiom, but my favorite woofer is my yellow lab :::::::
Re: Hobie Cats
Murph #376371 05/16/12 06:55 PM
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You guys are always welcome. I can't promise I'll have the boat for sure but I always need help righting my mother-in-law after a ceilidh.


With great power comes Awesome irresponsibility.
Re: Hobie Cats
Murph #376372 05/16/12 06:58 PM
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Oh, SNAP! wink


::::::: No disrespect to Axiom, but my favorite woofer is my yellow lab :::::::
Re: Hobie Cats
Murph #376374 05/16/12 07:23 PM
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Murph,

Interesting, and yes, having the float on the top of the mast would prevent it from turtling. The latter is what happened when my nephew was sailing one. I can't remember if he was sailing alone or not.

I now sail a fairly large monohull almost always alone, and it has 2,500 pounds of lead in the keel, so it won't go over. I also don't make the mistake of putting up too much sail--it has a furling genoa so I can adjust it from the helm if things start to blow. Frankly, it's exciting enough for me at my age, but there's nothing quite like the speed and excitement of a Hobie or Laser in a 15-knot wind. You really never get that on a large yacht, except maybe on those big racing catamarans.

Have fun. It's a great sport.

Alan


Alan Lofft,
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Re: Hobie Cats
Murph #376376 05/16/12 07:26 PM
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Are you guys proud of me for not once mentioning I have a little dinghy?


::::::: No disrespect to Axiom, but my favorite woofer is my yellow lab :::::::
Re: Hobie Cats
MarkSJohnson #376380 05/16/12 08:00 PM
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Bathtub toy?


Fred

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Blujays1: Spending Fred's money one bottle at a time, no two... Oh crap!
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