i am thinking about getting the wave hooter system and was wondering a couple of things

- I already have the spreader bar that comes with the (pretty useless) wave jib from hobie - am I right in assuming that this is the same as what is needed for the hooter so I dont need to buy another one?

- What tools/skills do I need to put it on myself? My boat lives on the beach in front of my house which is on a cliff over it. Major pain to get it to a dealer. I do all kinds of construction work on my house but never did much metal work. I am not afraid of doing stuff like this but have no idea what is involved.

- I remember reading somewhere that there may be a new bigger hooter coming soon - if so, what are the pros/cons of waiting vs. getting the one already available?

- My current hobie jib already had some cleats/blocks etc. that were installed for it - which of these can I use as-is for the hooter?

thanks very much for the answers to any of these questions

steve

When you order the kit on line, just tell us at the checkout that you already have the spreader and we will immediately credit that amount. Here is the link for the kit:
http://store.catsailor.com/tek9.asp?pg=products&specific=jmnrkomnk0

Simple stuff. Just check out the article on it and how to install it at http://www.catsailor.com/waves/superwave_overall.html and all its links.

The new one will be a while.., lots of problems so far, although I was able to stay with a Hobie 20 for a about a 1/2 mile before the bow sprit exploded.

The hHobie stuff won't work.., I would suggest the blocks, cleats, etc. that come with the kit.

Thanks,
Rick

thanks for the answers - one more question after looking at the pictures - it looks like the wave in the pics has inspection ports installed - will i need to do that first so that i can put some sort of hardware on the inside of the hull when i attach the blocks?

Mine came with rear inspection ports. You definitely will need to have them to put on the saddles for the turning blocks. They need to be backed with very large washers.
Rick

bump!

Could please post a few pics of sailing Waves with new sail system up and running?

Thanks

Hmmm! I don't think we have any. I was always by myself on open water with no cameras around.
There are some pics however on the beach in this story:
http://www.catsailor.com/waves/superwave_overall.html
Rick

Rick,

Have you done any more sailing with the Hooter rigged Wave? Have you added the traveler to the same rig? I have the SE model and can't use the traveler, but the hooter looks good. Have you done anything like it for a H 18?

Dan

Rick is on the road covering the Tybee 500, so I don't know if he will get a chance to answer you until sometime next week.

Here's a poor man's version of Rick's Hooter system. A six-foot beach umbrella! It actually worked very well in light breeze. I kept pace with Lightnings and Interlakes with their spinnakers up!

I LOVE it! And do you have a way to "furl" it from on deck?

Pretty inventive. Probably costs less.
How about sending a large jpg copy of that pix for the magazine to rick@catsailor.com
Rick

How about an asymmetric umbrella that you can just spin around one way or the other if you want to tack downwind sometimes?

Rick, I have asked the photographer for permission to publish it. I'll email it as soon as he confirms it's okay.

Mary, With the pole fully extended, it was pretty far out in front of the boat; so it worked pretty well in the same position on both tacks.

I need to work on my furling technique. I used a big carbiner to clip it to a loop of rope on the bridle junction, and stuck the base into the downhaul loops. To unfurl it, I stood up, shoved it under the bridle, clipped the carbiner and pulled the pole backwards to "pop the chute", then pushed it back forward to extend the pole and set the base. Furling it was basically reversed, but clumsier. I'm not real sure I like having a pointy umbrella base loose on the tramp.

how many people are using the hooter?

Question, what exactly is a club version hobie wave?

Rick,

How fast would you say you have had the wave with the hooter?

how big is the hooter sqft?

The Hooter is 88 sq ft

thanks, for comparison purposes that makes it slightly larger than the 86sqft hooter on the 14ft weta tri

With the Hooter you can use it on all points of sail -- upwind, reaches and downwind. Upwind, if the wind gets over 12 mph you might have trouble holding it down.
With the Hooter I have raced a lot of events and have outsailed almost all of the H16s and some of the H18s.
Don't know the speed as I am not much into electronic sailing.
Rick

The club version has a fully laced up tramp like the 14, vs the classic 'SE' which has a one-piece tramp set up for easy disassembly, portablilty (car-topping). Also, some minor differences in attachment hardware, and shrouds, classic employs snap clips. Club is more or less set up for more permanent 'dry sailing'(stored all set up and ready to go on beach). Either one can be taken apart, just more time to do so on club version.