Here's the Irish contribution
What about the fact that A sailors have to drop their masts after sailing (takes 2 people) - otherwise they risk delamination from the vibration in the wind, even if the the mast is tied off and the cat well tied down
Also, they are very good at drawing parallel white lines across the dinghy park if you leave them unattended on their launchers for even a minute

Oh - I'm really in trouble now I'm racing at the home of the Irish A Class this weekend !

Seeker'

Yea but can you take a Hot gal in a bikini and a cooler of beer and stay out for hours and not get a cramp or charlie horse!!!! Sailboards are fun, but I still take the cat.

Doug

I don't think I would ever buy an A cat for the simple reason that if I wanted to sail alone I would do it on a windsurfer, much "better bang for the buck ratio".

That said sailing with a freind beats the sad and lonely experience that is windsurfing hands down. And you don't get the feeling of the power of the wind on a windsurfer that you get on a cat.

Gareth
Sponsor me for the London marathon on Sunday
www.runfortheboat.co.uk

Dermot
Here's to ya boy.


My mother grew up on Thornback Road in Kilkenny.
Great little pub called The Rock at the end of the road.

"My mother grew up on Thornback Road in Kilkenny.
Great little pub called The Rock at the end of the road."

There is a great little pub at each end of every road in Ireland.

Jeez, I'll be locked after that lot
My grandmother was from Kilkenny, but I don't know the town very well.

And a few in the middle too.

Hey ! Get back on track You're all only jealous anyway
Tim will be over here next month and he will tell you about the pubs
BTW. Kilkenny is a City (I called it a town)

"Yea but can you take a Hot gal in a bikini and a cooler of beer and stay out for hours and not get a cramp or charlie horse!!!! Sailboards are fun, but I still take the cat."

The Hot girls in bikinis are out there shredding with you (keeps them strong and lean)...the drinks are on the beach in the cooler because you can launch right off the beach at places they would never allow a boat to launch.

Don't get me wrong I love cat sailing...it can be a lot more relaxing...but when it comes to pure performance there is no comparison.

I first sailed a Hobie and Supercat for about 8 years before I got into windsurfing...at the time my cats felt blazing fast. When I started windsurfing I sold the cat. Now that I have another cat (Supercat 17, newer model of the same cat I owned before) it seems like I am towing a string of empty five gallon buckets behind me in comparison to the speeds I regularly reached windsurfing.

Both have their place...it is just a lot easier (once you acquire the skills) to go much faster with much less hassle for much less money if all you want is high performance in a wide range of conditions. It is much more physical sport than cat sailing ...especially when out of the harness surfing and jumping waves. While each sport has its "moments", cranking a forward or back loop (like I am going into in the picture)is hard to draw parallels with...its like trying to describe getting "tubed" to someone who has never surfed...words just don't do it justice.

Regards,
Bob

LOL!... now there's someone with the proper spirit of the thread.

As someone so cogently pointed out, my hidden fear is that I *will* try one, then HAVE to buy one!

BTW, I was just about to try windsurfing, when this KITEBOARDING thaaang came along... what's the story on that? How close to the wind can you get with that wild rig?

One thing about windsurfers, racing them is a LOT more work than catamarans. I raced a Mistral One Design a couple of times. That was way more work than I wanted to deal with.

I'll agree with that statement. Still have my MegaCat with the 10.0 m sail. Tons of work raking that thing back and forth on a light air racecourse. Do they even still do that type of racing?

Broke lots of stuff at South Jetty in Ft. Pierce on big wind in the days of yore... Good times. Still keep my 4.5 m just in case I can drag my fat butt out there and remember how to loop and duck jybe.

Oh, and don't forget you can sail 60 miles to your next beach, even if it's upwind, on a cat a little more comfortably ...

Still like catsailing better, but that's just me... Still do both.

1) One person can put the mast up on their own and we are still quicker than an F18 to rig or de-rig (not that it should matter). 2) No Irish A class has ever taken off down the dingy park or has even attempted it, we leave our boats unattended every time at the top of the slip as we get changed with no issues.

Even if what you were saying were true, it would be a very small price to pay for sailing an amazing cat.

Also on the "Tradition" point raised on another post. Where would most classes be today without the development of the A. What class was the first to have Square top mains, what class was the first to have a Wing-masts, what class was the first to have Wave piercing/reverse bows, the list goes on.
What you see on an A-cat today, you will probably see it on other classes as time goes on.
I am not saying the A-Cat is better than any other, but it is definitely a necessary class and great fun.
For those of you who have never sailed one, you can not comment. Sail one then come back to me a tell me how terrible they are.

ReefedOne said this in the post that started this thread, and I did not understand that at all, because the A-Class has a much longer history and far more "tradition" than most of the cats we see on the water today.

a-cats were around before hobiecats. as were b and c cats.
cats are alot more work to rig and deal with than a winsurf, but you get to sit down whilst sailing.

Rigging depends on your situation. Some people are able to keep their boats on the beach or in a lot mostly rigged, with mast up and rudders on. At that point I think it is a toss up which is more convienient. If I am windsurfing, it will take me about 30 minutes from the time I think about it to be in the water. Board out from garage, board on car, drive board off car, rig. It is about 20 minutes time to sail the cat. Drive to club, put main up, launch. Either fine for me. I do need (prefer) someone (crew) to sail the cat(Formula 18).

Later,
Dan

(*FedEx pirate voice ON*) ARRRRGGGGH!... ha-ha...

A-cats are like 18-squares for women and childen

“A-cats are like 18-squares for women and childen ”

Sycho15 next you will be telling them... young men go standing up (windsurfing/kite boarding)…women and old men go sitting down….LOL...only kidding…sort of…LOTFL

BTW - What's the correlation between an 18-square and an A-cat anyway?