I'd choose the boat that sold 150,000 and is on the up!
Right !
300-200 = a 100 more others decided the other way.
Lets just see how will come out on top.
The only sales figures I can find support the H16 as the best selling boat, please prove me wrong, and its popularity is on the up for what ever reason.
Back to my VW beatle example; Most produced car in the world. The only surviving Brazilian builder report an increase in their sales last year. Should General Motors, The German, Frence and Japanese auto builders start to worry ?
And that new VW beatle is a heavily modified vehical, impossible to compare to the one that was sold several million times. Even that one has only a short surge in interest and is now slowly falling away.
Remember that F18 covers a multiple of manufacturers and models.
And that matters from a class perspective ?
And Hobie doesn't included multiple builders ? (Hobie USA, Hobie France, Hobie Australia etc)
I like all cats, F18's, F16's A cats are all great boats, but my favourite is the H16 as that is what I and all my buddies sail.
And this is your proof that the H16 has a bright future ?
I would not call any cat slow.
True !
Remember the speed difference between your "Hot" F16 and a 30 year old 150kg H16 is no faster than I can crawl.
You can crawl at 10 km/hour (on average) ?
When looking at downwind legs, you must be able to crawl at 15-20 km/hour just to justify that statement. And you will have to sustain that for long periods of time as well.
Sure a H16 on a reach in 20 knots is a fast boat, but it all disappears in vapour when heaving to go upwind or downwind.
And please Gareth don't make the mistake of assuming I don't know the H16. I sail on them and raced against them for years. I know how they are and I know the differences in speed between them and the spi boats. There is a reason why on a H16 it takes between 40 and 60 minutes longer to complete the 85 km round of Texel and that is typically a strong wind - alot of reaching race.
Why do some people insist on knocking other peoples boats? Wouter your support of your class is commendable but comments like
I'm not knocking the boat ! I'm knocking the faith-based community that has seem to sprung up around it.
I see alot more potential in offers like the Mystere 4.3 for example. And I have a problem with the "150.000 boats can't be wrong" attitude. Because that number doesn't seem to wield the power it ones did. I don't particulary enjoy putting myself up to be scorned neither.
All I'm saying, with some other apparently, is that the tectonic plates of catsailing are shifting. This means we all should be prepared to experience some shake-ups.
Wouter
