Hey folks! glad to find this forum again. I've got a problem. I have been sailing for a few years but i seem not to be able to get my Hobie 16 to sail fast enoughm to be competitive in regatta's. Not much fun to finish last every time i go. Enjoy the beer though. I have a 1987 hobie with a crew wgt. of about 350. i have read the books and have lots of knowledge but no sailing 'feel' Can anyone help? Is there a trick or just experience. Are newer boats lighter? Seems we never can point as high as other boats and we are dragging anchor. Any help from you salty hobie 16 sailors?<br><br>

Wow. That's the same question we were asking after 1st day of a regatta last weekend, 9th of 11 boats. Almost every boat could point and move upwind better. Fortunately, the A fleet was pretty large and we took a walk up the beach. Best setup education around, talk to the other crews and look at their boats. A Fleet is ready with answers if you ask nicely.
<br> We'd been running with the sidestays at midpoint on the chainplate, but all the A boats were at using the sidestays at 1-2 holes up from bottom. DOH! Shorter sidestays mean more mast rake. (You might need a 2nd forestay chainplate to get enough length to move this far down on the sidestay plates.) More mast rake means better upwind performance, specifically pointing ability. End result? Next day, a bullet and a 3rd, pulling up to 4th overall for the regatta.
<br> And while I'm at it, Rick's seminar gets some credit too. Winning a start gives a psychological boost that's worth as much as the tactical advantage. A port tack start from the favored end with speed rolled over everyone starting on starboard at the committee boat and led to the best finish. Rick would have been pleased, that move came off his chalkboard! And if you want some fun, make some buoys and try some drills. When we tried that on a free weekend, we soon found half a dozen other cats joining in. That's fun, and you get better too!
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The Class wt. of the IHCA H-16 was reduced from 340 lbs to 320 lbs. somewhere around 1987. The way to check a boat of your vintage is to look at the glue seam under the deck lip. If it is reddish in tint then you have a light boat if not then it will be 340+.
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<br>Another very important factor is rudder rake. Take a straight edge down from the front of your rudder pin. There should be about 1 1/8-1 1/4" in front of that point at the widest part of the rudder forward. Good cams, Reduce rudder slop, and keep the system lubrcated with lithium grease, all contribute to a proper rudder system.
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<br>We have a very competitive group of 16 Sailors here and also have a great group of new 16er's. We watch them and the best way to achieve that feel is to sail with and against the best people you can. Don't hesitate to ask questions of the top guys/Girls in A Fleet. Get one of them to get your boat into the "Ballpark"
<br>Where do you sail? Maybe I can put you in touch with an experienced A Fleeter to help you out.
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As per Korz's post - agree - only 1 FYI - 1984 were the 1st light "Red Glue seam" boats.<br><br>

you should adjust your mast rake to the rear until with the downhawl were it needs to be you are almost able to go block to block with your main blocks. also your jib tension needs to be as tight as you can make it when checking for block to block on the main blocks. <br><br>

How are you balancing the boat? We have a new local H16 sailor in our fleet that just didn't couldn't seem to get his cat going, sometimes he would even cross the start line well behind everyone. When I am sailing up wind I have one hull weighed down more then the other, always the leeward hull and have our weight up by the front cross beam corner casting on the weighed down hull. Down wind we do the same and when the wind is strong we do less of this and move our weight back. We currently sail against several I14's, a top notch 49er team, several Lasers, several TheMightyHobie18's, and several other H16s. Last week we took second out of all the boats in very light wind and in stronger winds we are usually first with PN number time and finish in front of the I14 and barrely behind the 49er with its spinnaker. This is a short course so its not ideal for H16 sailing but fun anyways.
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<br>Also don't forget to pop up the rudder you are not using as it creates extra dragg. Don't point to high and go to slow and don't point to low from the mark and then have to cover to much ground. You want to find the grove and maintain good speed up wind. I find if we loose more ground up wind than down when we are not in the grove. Of course don't forget to properly tuning your boat and pay attention to mast rake as mentioned in the other posts.
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<br>Hope this helps. <br><br>

Wow, are you getting a lot of information! There are a lot of factors in the speed of a boat. If it’s a 1987, is the sail a 1987? Is it crisp? If not borrow one from a friend on a practice day.
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<br>Where do you sail,? Are there others around you? Is there a Hobie Fleet near you? If so see what the “fast” people are doing.
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<br>The shrouds post is a good one, but they are all different. Yours may be stretched and thus the mast too far forward.
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<br>This will not be a complete list but:
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<br>Assume moderate wind: under 15 knots.
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<br>1) Get the mast rake in the ball park - Check mast rake by taking the main halyard and, using the markings on the halyard (the little lines in the halyard) measure the rake by rigging the boat then, take the Halyard to the bow and place you finger on the spot of the halyard where it touches the bottom of the bow lip. Now (keeping this spot on the halyard referenced with your finger), got to the bottom of the rear of the hull and find the spot where the halyard touches the rear most point of the keel. Count the lines between your two points. If it’s 11 – 14 lines, you’re in the ball park (mark the jib halyard with a piece of electrical tape where it reaches the black band on the mast for reference). If not, change your jib halyard tension to achieve 11 – 14 lines. If your main is too blown out, this may be hard to achieve.
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<br>2) Also, while achieving this, the jib and the main should be set so that it will not quite two block in shore.
<br>On shore: Pull in the main tight, now pull in the jib tight. Do they come in too easy? , too hard? With the 11-14 achieved above, you should be able to adjust where you tack the jib to the chain plate (on the bridle) to change the amount you can pull in on the jib and its’ relationship to the way the jib two blocks. You should have about two inches between blocks on shore.
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<br>3) Assuming you did 1 and 2 to satisfaction – set the down haul. Do this by taking the wrinkles out of the main (more down hull for heavy air – but many things change in heavy air and we are just trying to get you in the ball park). Too much down hull and you de-power too much.
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<br>Follow other’s suggestion about rudder rake and points of sail too. AND - Practice - Practice - Practice - .
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<br>If the sail is too blown out – borrowing another sail will be quite a difference. Even borrowing a boat can make a few lights go off. Find a Hobie fleet in your area and join. They should be able to help.
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<br>Also – Being a 1987 boat – you should have a “light boat”, the weight change was 1984, but 350 is a “healthy” crew weight. Min., weight is 285. That doesn’t mean you aren’t competitive in B and C fleet however. In B & C fleet, it boat rigging and handling. You can do it. Good luck.
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I'm intrigued by the use of the main halyard to determine proper mast rake and the using line markings on the main halyard for measurement. Checking my stock '99 halyard, the line has stipppled cross hatches which may or may not be the same as deq204's lines! I haven't rigged the boat to check this method, but was first curious if you could translate the "11-14" lines on the halyard to an english or metric unit measurement. How many inches or cm does "11-14" lines translate into? THANKS!<br><br>

I believe the markings you are referring to on your halyard are the same as mine. Mine’s a ’98. I don't know the measurement in inches (or cm) but I'll check one of these times. If you have a stock halyard - we have the same markings.<br><br>

the 11" to 14" is measured in inches<br><br>