Well, I agree with Mark that the Open class didn't help Hobie; it probably helped the local fleets with turnout and manpower, though, and banning it has definitely hurt the local fleets and divisions for the same reason. Somehow the idea of "let's get all the cats togther for a bigger event and have more fun" turned into an issue of "participation is declining; let's not have anything to do with other boats and that will save us." Well, my dates may be off, but seems like the 17, 18, and 20 have all been killed since we went Hobie-only. Too little, too late, and addressing the effects and not the cause. Probably shouldn't have even brought this up, because it's all been said many times before, but is cetainly is ironic at the least. Clearly we're on the path for Hobie-only to be Hobie 16-only, and a lot of us saw that coming. I'm betting that Hobie 16-only is not going to improve participation...

Last week I did an all-Hobie open class regatta with a 14, 2 16s, 3 18s, and a 20. It was surprisingly competitive (all sizes won at least one race on handicap), although clearly not as competitive as the 15 boat A-Cat fleet at the same event. Is this the future of HCA events? When is HCA going to encourage and promote a Getaway class?