Well...

Next thing on my agenda is to drag the cat to the lake and toss the mast in the water. I meant to ask Performance Cat if the 2001 Nacra 450's have a sealed mast. If they don't, or if mine leaks, I'd probably get a 'baby bob' hobie mast float. I've heard of stuffing the mast full of foam, but that seems like a lot of work.

Any suggestions to do before or during my maiden voyage? I'm still cutting my teeth in sailing in general; a dozen times out in a Force 5 earlier this summer.

In case of capsize, I've got a righting line that's tied to the rod underneath the mast step. Swim bows to wind, throw line over hull, sheet out, lean out until upper hull hits water (not head), climb onboard and sail away, right? Maybe I'll get a righting bag first.

Danno

The mast should be sealed. All catamaran masts should be sealed. If not, you can seal it youself with a nice bedding compound (NOT 3M 5200!).

Doubt you'll need a righting bag for the 450. Purposely capsize it near the beach with an onshore breeze and try righting it a couple times. You can also capsize it in waiste-deep water and have someone hold the bow to keep the boat from drifting around while you try righting it.

Danno,
Just because a mast is sealed, doesn't leak, doesn't mean the boat won't turn turtle. There are production catamarans
in the publics hands that turn turtle with sealed masts because the mast is too small in section; not enough cross section area per unit length in the mast to stop the boat from turtling. In your turnover tests, have a few empty and sealed gallon jugs available to tie onto the top of the mast and add jugs as necessary until the boat does not turtle. Then you know what it takes to stop the boat from turtling. I hope you are lucky and it does not turtle at all.
Here's the easiest way to right a turned over catamaran laying on its side. Throw a drough chute off the bow tied to the bow to hold the bow into the wind. Sheet in the mainsail. Push the main traveller car down to the water. The mainsail will inflate as the leech approaches the water. The lift generated by the mainsail will right the boat. The drough chute off the bow will hold the bow into the wind. When you are ready to continue sailing, retrieve the drough chute and store it in a tramp pocket.
Good Sailing,
Bill

Thanks, Bill

Danno

Having a sealed mast is so important, I don't understand why the Hobie 18 has an internal halyard. It makes it impossible to seal the mast. I miss the halyard system that is on the 16. It makes the mast water tight and is easier to replace. Its also easier to lock. The locking system on the 18 is realy a pain in the neck. Other than reducing windage, are there any other pros to internal halyards?

The TheMightyHobie18 does not have an internal halyard - unless you've got something that's been modified. The Hobie 18 halyard should run in the luff grove behind the main sail and it should be possible to seal the mast. The halyard shouldn't actually enter the closed extrusion of the mast.

The TheMightyHobie18 locking system can be a bit tricky but once you figure out the right ring and knot combination for the sail hook, it actually works quite easy. Almost all catamarans use the same style mainsail hooks now.

Hey your right. Can't believe I haven't noticed before. Well thats one less thing I don't like about the boat. Maybe I will learn to like her after all.

I'm glad I could be of service!

Seriously, the TheMightyHobie18 is a great boat. You might want to look around at some other boats to see how they handle the mast hook thing. Even something as simple as tying a different kind of knot at the ring could make a huge difference. While I too wrestled with my 'sky hook' on the one I had, I know plenty of folks that don't give mast hooking and unhooking on their H18s a second thought.

Oh...and another thing to look for. The older TheMightyHobie18's had a latch on the top of the hook that was supposed to make unhooking easier (probably did when it was new and moved freely). It is a piece of metal that's held in place to the hook with a rivet (or screw). It's designed to get in the center of the ring and cover the hook if you raise the ring above it. This is 'supposed' to cover the hook and let the ring slide right down over it without rotating the mast. However, everyone I know took their 'latch' off because it made hooking the main almost impossible at times. If you've got one of these, you might try to remove it and see what happens.