Allow me to take care of the F16, Taipan related questions.
>>I am really impressed with the catamaran commumnity if you guys are representative
Well lets just say you've picked us on a good day !
-1- Nice boat that Hunter 170. Main point however is ; No trapeze. This does make things more complicated. If you start out singlehanding then you will have your work cut out for you. I believe trapezing is best learned as a crew on a doublehanded boat. This is wise anyway to learn the differences between the boats and the tricks on a catamaran. This can be done relatively quickly. Did you sail other High performance sailboats with friends. Like Lasers or 470's ? It is just liek driving ; not particulary difficult one you got the hang of it but the first steps are better made with an experienced person on the seat next to you. I don't think getting P16 or Nacra 5.0 instead of a High End cat will make much difference in this.
-2 a- Dependents completely on the design of the boat. Even in a class like the F16's one design is more of a cutter and another more of a bouncher. It dependents on the conditions which is faster. The hoppers are more noisy and often wetter. The cutters more smooth and silent. The Taipan is a cutter and I believe the I-17 is so as well. The FX-one, Stealth F16 and Blade F16 are more of a hopper. The latter three are intended to create a component of dynamic lift (semi-planing) at speed and go faster as a result. On the other hand a while ago we made Brobu's I-17 (normal, not the R) go as fast as the FX-one of his sailing buddy despite his much smaller mainsail. Different boats take different tricks to make them go fast. Some will tell you that this boat is always much faster than some other but that is mostly an emotional statement. (of which I'm also guilty off occasionally). I remember Eric Poulsen telling me about the differences between boats he tried and telling enthousiastically about the downwind planing of one and them choose another design because of the slapping upwind as a result of the same flat bottom. I trully think this comes down to what you prefer. Most catsailors fall into one of two categories : Cutters and planers. Cutters like smooth boats, planers like noise and spray. A cutter with a planing boat will sail as poorly as a planer on a cutting boat. So it is like putting the right bolt with the right nut. Get the combo right and the differences between crews seem to largely disappear. So what are you ? With respect to F16's ; Taipan 4.9/F16 is definately a cutter, Blade F16 and Stealth F16 are planers.
-2 b- I don't think you are overly concerned; it is a good question. About wing masts. Its meaning dependents on who you speak to. In refer to teardrop masts when the crossection is a teardrop. I refer to wingmasts when the front is an elliptical instead of part or a circle and when the thickness is much narrower than the width. A wingmast is much more like an aircraft wing than the teardrop mast. Hobie 16, Prindle 16, nacra's all have teardrop masts. Hobie FX-one has so to (but doesn't turtle in my experience and I've been out in 25 knots on my side) I don't know about the I-17 R (I-17 = teardrop) , Stealth is teardrop, Taipan = wing , A-cat = wing, Blade = wing. From the Taipan Wing I know it is as good as impossible to get the mast deeper than its hounds even when trying hard by hanging on. A well designed platform can be quite easily righted from a turtled position with the proper technic.
-3 a- I think we must take care not to overconcentrate on relatively minor issues. I think all boats under current investigations are considered competitive and will stay that way for years (except the H17 which is discontinued). So I think the choice it , do you want to spend a good dollar to get one of the newer once or do you want to get out on a cat and have fun / learn. All mentioned boats Taipan, FX, Stealth, Inter, Blade, A-cat will set you back some while the Prindle 16, Prindle 15, Hobie 16, nacra 5.0 can be had for a very attractive secondhand price. The modern ones are all comparable in controls and fittings. The same with the older ones. A decision on max investment will narrow down the choice and discussion alot. A design is almost never to new for a beginner although the learning curve to a A-cat for example will be steep. But than again all are steeper than that on a Prindle 16 or Prindle 15. Newer also means more sensitive control while a older design must be "handled". Both have pro's and con's. I do think there are some differences between the current list of boats. Some boats talk more to you than others but non are bad choices.
- 3 b - Bulletproof : none (don't let anybody tell you otherwise not even Hobie folk) except the older types like H14, P15, P16 etc
Ergonomics : pretty much all. Differences come down on personal likes and dislikes
Single handing - doublehanded : All with slight preference to : Taipan/Blade, then Stealth then FX / I-17 (reasons lightweight and the fact that the F16's have (been designed with) jibs and not aftermarket jib kits);
Getting back on : I-17 has a pretty high freeboard, FX/Blade/Stealth slightly less so and Taipan is easiest to get onto after capsize. (can anybody concur?)
Responsiveness : all are good some are better. Taipan does very well for its age. Apart from that I think newness is a good handle to list the boats on this aspect.
Rought Conditions : Freeboard is key here so I would say the list is in inverse to the one about geting on after capsize.
Excell- suffer : I think I will have to let this one pass. I can't indulge myself in this while being a F16 class official.
-3 c- geographical location of dealors and builder is definately a pro. However it is not the end of all things. Shipping a mast over land can turn out to be as expensive as having it cross the ocean. Hobie gives good product support via their local agent. On the other hand everything most come from Hobie. More than few sailors prefer to buy their own stuff and sails with other suppliers. Shipping a sail from Florida to Washington state isn't that much quicker or cheaper than shipping one from Australia. I can't really comment more on this; I have an Australian boat so I have made decision in this. Mostly because I was shipping in Prindle parts outside my local dealor anyway. So for me not much has changed.
Hope this helps
Wouter
