We are new to Cat sailing and have a '77 H16 and we are noticing that it has a frequent tendency to want to pitch-pole on us. We try to distribute are weight back as much as possible. I see that Hobie sells an "Anti Pitch Pole Hydro Foil". Would those help? Any thoughts?<br><br>

have them on the '85 cat that i just bought and it sure saved my butt last weekend in heavy wind and waves. i would definitely recommend getting them, they really work<br><br>

I have not ried the foils but here are some tips. It does take a little practice to stop the boat from pitch poling. H16's are known for this. Have both you and your crew sit as far back as possible. If you are on the wire your foot should be on the hull next to the rudder with the other on the tramp. I often have my crew place their rear foot between mine. That way they are also way back. Make sure you also have lots of mast rake. If you ever want to race the foils are not class legal.
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Hi, I suggest you reduce your sail area, my boat was always trying to sail to the bottom of the river. Raking the mast back will help, and the boat will sail better to winward. Can you reef your main?<br><br>

Sounds like the mast needs to be racked back more. Try moving the forestay up a couple of notches and moving the shrouds down a couple on each side.<br><br>

Don't forget you may need to add another chain plate so you can move the forestay up the correct notches. This is a big mistake people make when racking the mast, they assume they can not rack the mast any further back and go out and have pitchpoling problems. The fact is you need to add an extra chain plate to race in heavy winds and when this is accomplished you should be able to sheet block to block (on the main sheet) when it is racked all the way back for the big bad winds or the max. heavy winds you can sail in. One thing is for sure sailing in heavy winds is a blast, literally.<br><br>