When I'm on my cat, I gotta wear a hat. I gotta wear that hat when on that cat. While sailing that cat, I wear that hat. If not for that hat, there'd be no sailing that cat.

If you don't understand what I'm talking about, you must still have a full head of hair.

The problem is: What is the best hat to wear for cat sailing?
I usually just wear a farmer hat, also known as a seed hat. They are usually free, but commonly fly off in a gust of wind. It's good practice for a "man overboard", but I don't need that much rescue training. I could wear my old Roy Rogers hat with a string, but that would look silly. What do you think makes a good "cat hat" ?

Take any adjustable hat in the comfortable fitting, tighten up on it a bit more, and pull it on so its nice and snug. Worked for the Tybee.

I like the "Original" Ultimate. Waterproof, ventilated, protects your ears from the sun, adjustable under-chin tie, and, in the unlikely case of it ever blowing off, it floats. But expensive.

Gill has a similar hat that is available in our Online Store, for less than half the price.

i have been wearing a Wal-Mart pseudo marine desert hat... cheap, vented, wide brim, looks real stupid to boot.... but it works for me...

BTW Brett,

I found your Audi hat.

It was shoved in my lines bag.

So, you need a 'cat hat' you say?

You could wear it on your head,
you could wear it to bed.

So, you say it falls off your head,
that is so dread.

you could tie it with a string,
you could tie it with just about anything.

you could wear a hat like Phil,
you could wear one with a bill.

You could wear it on your cat,
what do you think about that?

(sorry, I was bored before work today and liked the original post)

Well, you said it so now we won't have to tell you!

Thats my GF you Fockholepunkter!!!! Shut your pie-hole

Trust me,.. she has no extra parts...

Clearly, she had all the right parts to prove gender. Mistake in my translation...actually it was Hottie.

HOWEVER...getting back to the thread, you did not supply her with a hat.

And you need to get her a trap harness!. It was impressive to see her diligently trying to trap out by just hanging from the trap handle. First get her a harness, then a hat. (and not a matching set with your hat.)

I love my Tilley hat! Adjustable chin strap, it floats if it does blow off, has a brim all the way round AND it has a life time warranty so if it wears out you get a new one!

The problem is: What is the best hat to wear for cat sailing?

"Best" is always, to one degree or another, subject to personal preference. I for example think the Original Hobie 18 is the "Best" Cat, altho there are many here that would disagree. But hey, I won't come to your front door and try to convert you either.

That having been said, MY favorite sailing hat is an old cycling hat. You remember them? The short brimmed cloth hats that cyclists used to wear before they all switched over to helmets.

The are not all that easy to find anymore because cyclists, both professional and recreational have almost universally gone to wearing helmets.

The one I wear is several years old and my significant other has had to patch it and put new elastic in it but it is still my absolute favorite.

One of my old sailing buddies used to prefer an old railroad engineers hat for the same reason I like the cycling hat, the small brim that is easily turned up so that you don't have tilt your head back so far to see all the way up the mast when looking at the sail.

I've tried using a "do rag" and it works well for improving the upward sight line, but it also provides NO protection from the sun for the rest of my face.

Anyway, there's a couple of thoughts for all ya'll to consider.

Stephen

That's a jinx if I ever heard one. You might as well start looking for a new(er) one.

BTW, I might have a couple similar ones I could "donate" to your cause.

jeeze, doesn't everyone already have one (or more) of those red Mt. Gay Rum hats? They're everywhere!

Funny you should put it that way, I forgot to pack it one year for a regatta in Dallas.

The whole regatta was a comedy of errors. The hot stick came off of the tiller crossbar on the way out to the racecourse, we got t-boned while trying to start on port, totally my fault, sailed the wrong course on the last race of the weekend, and flipped on the way back to the beach after the racing.
I NEVER leave the house for a regatta unless I can SEE the hat on top of my gear bag.

All that having been said, I would gladly accept a donation for the day when this one will have to be retired.

Stephen

Thanks for the correction!!! you fockenpunketer!...

She has a harness... she just wasn't wearing it when we left the beach... she was trapped out all day!

ditto (and talk about goofing looking!)
tilley th4 has the widest brim available of all the tilley's, but it's hell reshaping the brim (it wont look like that for long)

If you like that kind of hat you should go to a welding shop and look at the caps that welders wear under their helmets. They are very similar to the old biking caps. You might have to put elastic in. I wear a ball cap with the little clips and string retainer that attaches the hat to my PFD. I have not lost it yet.

I've got a what I call a bucket hat. Brim all the way around, it actually looks a lot like the hat bill murray wears in Caddyshack.

My kids bought me a hat made by Columbia (the outdoor sports wear company) that looks like the Tilly but is made out of a very light weight fabric with a ventilation type weave all around from the flat top to the brim. It also has an adjustable elastic headband pull cord (for those 20 knot days) and a chin strap.

The nice thing about it is when going upwind in a good breeze, the upwind side will fold up so you can see the puffs comming. It's very light, keeps the sun off your ears, neck and out of your eyes, and dries quickly. I don't know what it cost, I'm guessing about $20? (Maybe on sale at Dillards?)

I have the same columbia hat great for sailing.