Damon…How about the new ARC 17?…You said you wanted something with 8’-6” beam about 18’ long…Well the ARC 17 has an 8’-6” beam and is just a foot short on length. It does have a lot more volume than any other 17’ cat that I am aware of probably as much as your Hobie 18…

I don’t know what the optimum crew weight is but I looked up in the PN table section and they had the old SC 17 at a crew weight of 280 lbs…Are you much bigger than that? When I had a SC 17 years ago, I sailed it in the ocean all the time with crew weight of 320, with great results…

Plus the new ARC 17 has 6” more beam and 23 sq/ft more sail than the retired SC 17, it has a self tacking jib so you wouldn't have to fool with that... I mean both the SC 17 and the new ARC 17 sloop are designed for a crew of two so it should handle you fine, it has a spinnaker available…they are talking a possible PN # of 65.9…It weighs in at 300 lbs just like you asked for...Throw on top of that the quality of construction that is second to none …what more can you ask for?

If I didn't know better I would think Bill designed this boat with you in mind for single handing.

Bob