When I was thinking about getting an A cat last year, one of the guys mentioned the possibility of a 200lb. class. The idea was to keep cost down and to keep the classes "home builder" roots.
Is that possibility still alive?
No, that will not happen ever. The class has proven that the boat can be built at the 165 lb weight with durable and strong platforms. If anything, as technology gets better, you might see the next generation consistently weigh about 5 kilos (~10 lbs) less as many of the new boats are already sailing with 4-6 lbs of corrector weights.
While the price of the Gel Tek is very expensive, US sailors seem to forget the excellent product that Matt McDonald is producing with the Vectorworks/Bim XJ. I recently delivered one for Charlie Ogeltree to sail this year. I let Don Brennan at DIVERSIFIED MARINE in Mobile take a look at it. Don is now the US SAILING team boatwright. He was extremely impressed with the boat and the finish. Matt is selling new boats with a sailaway price of less than $20K and has let some lightly used demos go for less than $17K. While still expensive, you have to look at what you think your usage versus expense ratio will be. A lot of us A-Catters justify paying the $$$ because it is so easy to get time on the water (lightweight, simple, one sailor) and there is no boat that will bring a grin to your face like an A-Class.
Bob Hodges
