Steve, that's a very nice looking boat. I'm not sure if American Dads have time to do all the work of putting it together, especially if they are new to cat sailing and don't understand what the end product is supposed to be. But maybe if it were sold as a kit with a DVD on how to properly assemble it.

One thing I've never understood is why parents will spend $3,000 for a new "Racing" Opti for little Billy or Sally, but the parents can't sail with them! For the same $3,000 they could buy a Wave and both of them could sail, or put Billy and Sally on the Wave together. And with the Wave, they won't outgrow it as quickly.

I have always thought that Hobie should take a truck full of Waves to a big Opti regatta (like the Opti Nationals, 300 boats) and GIVE them away to the top finishers in each Opti class, rent out the rest, then have a Wave regatta the next day with Mom or Dad on board and the kid driving. Once the kids see how much faster the Wave is, (and maybe they could add a trap and teach them how to do it) I think Mom and Dad would be more inclined to pony up a few more bills for a larger version, like the Dart or Getaway.

I expected the Wave to do for Cats what the Opti has done for mono's, but it never caught on as well. Why? No racing class for kids? No Kid promotion from Hobie? Both? I used to teach kids in Optis and the single biggest complaint I heard from the kids was how slow they are. the second most heard complaint was they could only go out alone. My 4 kids tried a rental Wave at a motel and they were hooked on cats immediately. We sold their Opti and bought a used Hobie 14 for $500, added a trap for $50. Why any kid would rather sail an Opti is beyond me but look at how big their class is!


But when it comes to building a boat at home, not too many American Dads have the time or desire to stick to it. If they can buy it ready to go, online, then maybe they will.