I thought 17's had centerboards?
and that really sucks about losing one; I hit a Hobie Getaway with my P-19 a couple weekends ago and got to buy him a new cover for his port wing, and to do a lot of unplanned duct taping that night. The boat looks funny now with the unpainted patch on the port bow (yeah, I was at fault, ducking him on a port-tack start, and my stick slipped.) Any, keep on having fun till the $$ is gone...