Hey Mike -
Where do you sail? I'm not familiar with the Sun Coast of Florida - thought I knew this state upside-down...
First off, let me say that I think your fleet's decision on how to deal with each boat that sails should be the final word. Here in Pensacola, there are a lot of different kind of boat and crew combinations, and we spent a lot of time at the beginning of the year trying to decide what modifications should be used and what shouldn't and how we would deal with special cases. It seems like a pain, but it will save you some brain sweat later, maybe at a time when you're just trying to get your boat on the trailer and the beer into your belly.
That said, it looks like the US Sailing modifications would decide how the single-hand Dart would be rated. If there were one sailing here, I'd first look for the Class Rules since the D20 isn't listed in the Multihull Tables with a crew weight or number. A quick search took me to the Canadian Dart Catamaran Association where the specs listed crew as one or two people, and a righting weight was listed, but no minimum crew weight. It looks like a single-handed Dart doesn't take a hit. The specs DO say that one trap is standard with a second being optional - you might take a hit sailing with two people and two traps. The Mystere 4.3 is similar - I don't take a hit while single-handing, but I do if my wife is with me and we have a second trap wire on the boat.
The Mystere 6.0, on the other hand, does list a minimum crew weight and number of crew (two). If you single-handed that boat in a regatta here, you'd apply the appropriate Light Weight modification. As Rick notes below, there is no longer a "single-hand" modifier on the books.
That's how I see it, but I could be wrong - still it's best to get your volunteers together and decide how to handle the boats in your fleet. The Portsmouth Numbers are diligently maintained and constantly scrutinized, so I strongly encourage their use, but I recognize that some of the permutations can be a pain. For example, should the sailor or the committee be held responsible for claiming/applying modifications? Are you going to weigh every team and boat, measure all the sails, and check all the class rules before every weekend get-together? It's a tough balance. At soime point, you just want to get back to the fun of sailing.
Good luck - hope to meet you at the Area Qualifier next month. Didn't mean to write a novel, here... got kinda the long-winded answer, didn't you?
John
