Brian, it must have been at Quonset Point in 1999, since I've never sailed at New Bedford.

I lived in Maine from 1983-1985 and raced extensively in Hobie Division 12. I got to know a lot of people from Hobie Fleets 28, 448, 209, and of course my own fleet, 231.

I know many old faces are gone and / or have moved on to other brands of boats. It's happened in my own division. (Nearly everybody that races in CRAM started out on a Hobie.) People get burned out, they have other priorities (kids) and / or they develop other interests. Personally, if I was getting beat up in B or C fleet every other week, I'd soon lose interest in racing. At some point, a Fleet just has to say, "We aren't going to hold our traditional event this year. We're tired, and we need a break." There's no shame in that.

Mark's comments are right on for significant parts of the country, but to expand it to a broad generalization across the country is just not correct.

My current Hobie Fleet (276) lay dormant for several years. I had no interest in carrying the load - I was too involved on a regional level. Finally, a guy came along who became our "sparkplug" - he got us off our collective rear ends and back into Hobie sailing on a local level. Our emphasis is on having fun - not racing. There are a core group of us who take turns hosting fun sails and parties. The only thing that we all have in common is ownership of a Hobie Cat. I've made some great new friends and I really get into the "mentor" role of helping people get their boats working right and most importantly, out on the water.

There are fleets that are growing. Fleet 276 has gone from nothing to a paid membership of 20 or so in 2 years. Hobie Fleet 519 in Portage, MI has 5 new members this year. At least 2 of their existing members have sold non-Hobies and bought H-16's. Hobie Fleet 204 is a growth machine - we could all learn from them. They are working on their third and fourth generation of sailors.

These are just the fleets that I have personal knowledge of. I'm sure there are others.

Likewise, there are fleets that are dying or already dead (they just won't admit it). It's part of the natural cycle.

I don't know where the Hobie One-Design policy will lead us. I know that what has happened in the past (and I take responsibility for some of that past) has not helped the class grow.

There are some very encouraging signs of new growth. Hobie Cat Company will be supplying 35 boats for the 2005 Hobie 16 North Americans to be held in Southern California next July. They've made a committment to do this for three years. They haven't supplied boats for a regional event since 1989. The self-organized Rehoboth Fall Classic next week will draw over 25 Hobie 17's - and they're just racing for fun. No points, no titles - just a good time. Tigers are really starting to take off, admittedly at the expense of some of the other Hobie Classes (the 18's and 20's), but there is still net positive growth. Even the Hobie 14 is showing a resurgence - look at the Newport frostbite series. In what other catamaran class can you buy a 32 year old boat and trailer for $600, clean it up, put on a new sail and place 2nd in the North Americans (I did).

I know that there's a lot of anxiety about what going to happen next year. I'm confident that the new leadership of the HCA (Ed Muns, Bob Merrick and Rob Jerry) will carry us through. I'm just going to keep sailing, no matter what.

Matt Bounds
Hobie 16 108389
Hobie 14 32350
Hobie Tiger 1111