Of course, switching between the three "main" classes F18, F16 and A-cat is seen regulary depending on personal circumstances like local fleets or a change in family make-up. All three seem close enough in comparison to make switching easy.
The pricing/costs associated with these classes also runs from left to right with respect to getting more expensive.
And of course any cat design you can buy cheap and learn the ropes on is a good substitute for getting started on the Nacra 500 or Nacra 5.0
Brilliant comments, Wouter!
I love the graphic you put together. Realistically speaking, I'll be sailing Hobie 16s -- as old as they are -- a lot for relatively cheap as soon as I get to Dakar. The experience sailing them will be worth more than any boat I can buy right now. When I get back to the US in 2012, whatever sailing club I choose, I can pick any cat that fits the bill then. No hurry now.
I would decide if you want to pay for a club to keep the mast up or trailer from the back yard.
The thing to keep in mind is that you need to have a good time when there is no wind... So, a pleasant club to hang out on the beach on those days is as important as the boat to sail when you have wind. The WAF is usually dependent on the bathroom facilities.... port a potties don't cut it.
If the WRSA fleet boats don't grab you right now... There are other marinas which don't race but allow you to put any boat you want on the beach. (I keep my boat at Podickory Point YC near the bay bridge)
If you trailer sail, You can trek to Sandy Point to rig and launch, but few catamarans go there anymore and it's a public beach or you can go racing with the Hobie fleets at clubs and beachs in the mid atlantic. .... All are very different experiences and they come at different price points and with tradeoffs. Make this call first and then the boat flavor second.
Since you plan to go overseas...and I assume that they will ship your boat for you... buy anything and sell it over there when you are done with your tour... The EU diplomats that I know had a Hobie 16 that changed owners every two years for 16 years at my club at Podickory.
Wise words, Mark!
While I've thought of myself as a Hobie sailor for most of my life, I've come to realize that it's about more than brand loyalty. There's no way I am going to trailer a catamaran every time I want to sail. Absolutely no way! So a mast-up club is the only way to go for me. Mast-up is significantly more important to me than choice of boat. I'll sail a mast-up boat more -- regardless of whether I need to organize crew or not -- than anything I need to trailer and waste an hour setting up.
Also, I've just received word that I'm not going to be able to ship a beach cat in the container without extra cost, if it's possible at all. So I've decided not to buy a boat now. Instead, I'll sail whatever I find once I get to Dakar, i.e. Hobie 14, 16, and 21. If I still want a new boat, I'll just buy and ship something new from France.
So "make [the launch site] call first and then the boat flavor second" is excellent advice. Will definitely have to check out Podickory Point YC. Thank you!
-Roland E.
