If that is a yes-or-no question, I guess I would have to say yes -- at least for the United States. Probably the last thing we need right now is another boat in the mix.

It is going to be tough enough to try to get some acceptance for the SL16 as the new youth catamaran -- and get people to buy it for their kids. People just don't have enough money or time to have their own boat and also buy an SL16 for their 16-year-old and also build or buy a 12-footer for their younger kids.

There is already a huge, national sailing network, involving thousands of kids. Youth sailing here just keeps growing. Why not take advantage of the existing infrastructure? As Jake said, kids like to be with a lot of other kids. <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

But, of course, I am more interested in just getting kids sailing -- and racing. I DO know that Chip and Barb Short are having great success with their sailing program down here in the Keys, using strictly Hobie Waves. But they allow the kids lots of freedom to just play on the boats and have fun with them -- and the kids keep coming back for more. They LOVE to capsize the boats and right them.

The Wave works great for the younger kids, because the boats are so indestructible and usually don't do too much damage to things the kids run into. <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> I hate to think what would happen to plywood boats going through all the "incidents" that happen in a junior program.