I know that this is not an 18 page but the F18 didn't seem quite right either. I have been wanting to sail a cat for a long time and there are very few where I live. I have the opportunity to own a hobie 18 (older) for a very reasonable price (gift) it is in good condition. I have a fairly good sized lake and the possibility to sail on the ocean off the beach. How hard is it to learn on an 18. I have a buddy who used to sail a 16 when he was a kid and he said he could help if I bought the beer. Knowing him it might not be a cheap deal. I live on the Oregon coast near Lincoln City Any feedback would be very appreciated
Can one person rig the boat?
Can one person sail boat with jib furled- or unfurled?
Can one person right the boat?
How does it pitchpole compared to a 16?
These are things enquiring minds want to know!!

You can learn to sail cats on an TheMightyHobie18 with a little help and good sense (feed him beer AFTER sailing). You can rig the boat solo no problem, with the possible exception of raising the mast by yourself. I'm, 6', 160 pounds, and I could just barely raise it by myself. I always recognized that doing so was always taking a risk, of losing control and dropping it (a gin pole and the trailer winch can be rigged to safely raise the mast solo). You can safely sail it solo in light winds (less than 12 kts maybe?) once you have enough skill to sail upwind and down, and control the boat enough to avoid hitting things you shouldn't. With skill, you can sail solo with the jib. Wear your PFD! Read books on sailing catamarans (which are different from monohulls).
You CANNOT right a TheMightyHobie18 by yourself. Seal the mast completely so it won't take on water, or the cat will turtle (mast straight down), which makes it much harder to right. Don't sail it overpowered solo without assistance available. And approach ocean sailing when you have more experience, the consequences of mistakes are much greater.
The 18 is less susceptible to pitchpoling than the 16, but it can(and will) be done. Learn to move crew weight aft, way aft, when the boat is being driven hard off the wind. The skipper keeps one eye on the lee bow the whole time he's powered up, being prepared to steer out of trouble or dump the main (and jib?).
Go for it! Be conscious of not sailing beyond you skill level. And feel free to ask this group questions, they're very generous with their time.

Dave Spokane, 509 276 6355

grab the boat with both hands. It is a neat thing and way better than the Hobie 16. Your buddy should buy you beer for the ride.
don't go out in big wind for a while and read the threads hear like it really matters.

"Gift" is good! Take the TheMightyHobie18, learn on it, and you can always transition to something else later on if you find it to be too much boat. Just take the advice given regarding staying in light wind until you're really comfortable, and always wear your PFD and appropriate clothing/wetsuit/drysuit for warmth. (How cold IS it in Oregon waters, BTW?)

I'm going to guess that if you're planning to solo often, you'll ultimately want to downsize a bit. (I just did.) On the other hand, some guys love the 18's and don't mind the gin pole rig to raise the mast, etc. It was just too much work for me personally, and it cramped my sailing schedule considerably to always have to line up w/ crew. But do take the boat, like I said, and you'll have plenty of time to work out your preferences in the future. You probably won't be soloing for awhile anyway if you're just starting cat sailing.

You can raise the mast alone, but why bother? If you have a friend, have him (or her) stand behind the boat, raise it to an overhead position and just walk it up until you're comfortable with the weight. It's more awkward than heavy. Be sure to manage all the wires so they don't kink or get caught. Shorter guys seem to have an easier time doing this. I'm 5' 8" and not particularly strong. It seems easier for me to step under the mast than it is for the six footers. My friend, at 6'6" 250 lbs always needs help, even though his bench press is well over 300 lbs.!

Keep your eyes and ears open for a set of "magnum" wings. They make the TheMightyHobie18 a primo party boat! <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> Later on, you can trick it out with a spinnaker to kick it up a notch!

WATCH OUT FOR OVERHEAD POWER LINES!! Electrocution is one of the few ways to die in this sport.

Keep us posted, let us know how you're doing.

The most important thing to know, when sailing an 18 for the first time is to know if your rudder system is old style or new style. The change was in 84 or 86 I don't remember exactly.
You can tell the difference by looking at the locking mechanism in the lower rudder casting. If there is a black plastic cam like on a 16 then you have the new system and they will kick up when they contact the bottom or etc.
If this cam is not plastic, but silver metal (usually only unannodized metal in the casting) then your rudders will not kick up when they make contact with the bottom or etc.
If you have the old style and your rudders hit something hard and try to kick up the rudder or casting will usually break. Either way the rudders can be very expensive and the castings can be expensive and hard to find as Hobie doesn't make them anymore. If you can't find a replacement casting then the upgrade to the new style is around $300.
If you have the old style simply come into the beach with your rudders up or part way up. The other option, which I usually did, was to pull one rudder up and hold the tiller crossbar up with the other rudder completley down so I had good steerage but as soon as the rudder hit it would come up.

Or do what I and several others do. Just keep buying or being given boats until you have one for all circumstances...

As long as the hulls are solid, the rudders updated, and you have someone to help drag that beast up the beach the TheMightyHobie18's a great boat that you'll have a lot of fun on. It's tough, fast, and fairly easy to sail. Get a copy of the "Sharing The Wind" video to see what those boats are capable of.