Tellallmyfriends go Catemeraning

I have never been sailing before, and it was a truly incredible experience. I hadn't expected it to be so extreme!
We did it in Newquay with a fantastic intstructor called Gary from Ocean Crest.
I got such a rush when I went on the trapeze for the first time.
We made a great film of our day out and broadcast it on teh web...check it out:

http://www.tellallmyfriends.com/videos/nicholas_higgins/hobie_cat_sailing_up_a_storm

Glad you enjoyed it! But, there are lots of cats besides Hobie's.

The H16 is an old and venerable design. There are many newer more sophisticated cats on the water.

Great video! You can tell that everyone is stoked. Do you remember the first time you REALLY trapped?

J

Great video! When is your next ride?

Doesn't look like that decreased the fun any........

That sure looks like one extremely well sailed H16 to me! I like how your video shows the contrast between the yacht and the cat without it all becoming too cliché.
Nicely done!

It would be even more fun with the spin out of the bag. But, one thing at a time!

looked great.. some nice swells to add to the ride

Great video!

great!, just the thing we oldies need to get younguns into the sport

will send it to a friend getting a h16 next week who seems to want to avoid traping

that 16 looked pretty new, but the for the reefable sail...

or is that a local mod for local conditions

haven't seen a video of a 16 with sail reefed tearing up a beach in a blow, anyone know of one?

The european 16s still come with the traditional reefable main, but nobody really uses it...

I reefed my H-16 twice when I went out in 40 mph wind. We where in the race one time and where in the hunt for first place. Made the boat more stable. DO they still have reefable sails?

Doug

Ive been in 30 plus winds and I dont think even a H16 could sail in that, not even reefed. I was on a monoslug with no sails and we were flying a hull with bare spar. 40 would be survival conditions, not sailable conditions for a small cat. Not that I dont believe you, just real skeptical that it was 40, probably felt like it though!

Now thats tough to do, fly a hull on a mono!

the motor was mounted on the left side of the stern and we couldnt keep it in the water, so it was like flying a hull

It was a tough day. We reefed the main. Got knocked between the tramp and hull about 8 times going to weather from the waves on the lake as we trapped out. Last time around the weather mark MET us half way up the course (broke loose from anchor) and they called the race. I was a LOT younger and tougher in 81.

Doug

1990 Single Handled Nationals in the Gorge, H-14 and H-17's. Sailed in sustained winds over 40, gusts to 50. You had to be there to believe it. We were.
Caleb and Tom Tarleton.
H17 6446
H17 6185

Caleb:

Only trouble I had on my 17 in heavy air was downwind. Steering got a little squirrely. It was a hoot though

Caleb, seriously, what RC in thier right mind what send you out in 40-50? I know its the gorge and that kinda wind is expected, but really Im having a very hard time believing it! Not that I dont, just doesnt make sense. maybe there were'nt as many lawyers back then!

Dave, like I said you had to be there to believe it. PRO was Doug Skidmore, Event Coordinator, Paul Ulibarri. We had 50 H-17's and 14 H-14's. In addition to the winds, we had waves up to 6ft on the Washington side. We had 13 races, I only missed one. Son Tom and I each went thru three travelers. And that was before we learned how to depower the rig.
By order of finish in the Gold Fleet, Hobie Jr., Alan Equsa, Jeff Alter, Wayne Mooneyham, WickSmith, Steve Leo, Bob Seaman, Randy Hatfield, and local sailor Paul Carter. Tom was 2nd in the Silver and I managed 7th. Other sailors you might know, Dan Kulkoski, Stephen Acquart, Bruce Fields, Al Leonard, Dave Baumgartner, Roger Jenkins..

At the Awards they had the Weenie Award for anyone that completed the week without turning over, only two winners.

Event of a life time, you had to be there.

Caleb

Caleb, Ive never heard of any of those people....jk
Like I said, I dont think RC's would send us off the beach in todays sue happy climate, but it must have been fun back then.
There was some video of a monoslug race on SA last week that showed them broaching in winds around 30. Any recent cat races in the gorge?

Dave:

Although this is a skiff, this is what it was like on the 16 in 40 mph winds. It was hang on for dear life. Granted I was 29 and in killer shape back then, but it was a hoot. We got knocked between the hull and tramp 6-8 times every weather leg from the waves. I was hanging with one cheek off the rear crossbar and crew damm near sitting in my lap downwind, sails ALL the way out.



Doug

I love it! i have a Ronstan video that this is on... these guys kill it! i would love to try a 3man skiff..

In the video there is skiff in Sydney harbor that "kisses" a tanker (or some huge ship). It doesnt fair so well

Dave, the Gorge can be interesting, and is not normally that violent. I think the A Cats had an event at Cascade Locks, down stream, last year. Check with Ken Marshack. Ken was also at the Event in 1990, placed 13th in the Gold Fleet. He can give you a first hand report.

Last year at the H-17 North Americans at Lake Harrison, BC, we had a squall blow thru on the last race. Not as bad as the 1990 Event, but we had fun. The H-17 is an amazing cat, it can be sailed in extreme conditions, due to the design and wings. Being over 200 lbs helps also.
Caleb

Thanks for all the great comments you guys! So glad you liked the video.
I am not sure when I will have a chance to go sailing again but I hope it's not too long!
Anyone know where else is great in the uk for sailing??

We are blessed in the UK with some of the best sailing locations in the world, if only it were a little warmer!

To answer your question better it would be best to know what kind of sailing you want to do and where you are based.

I will assume you want to go Catsailing, on the south coast there are a number of clubs from which you can sail to or around the Isle of Wight, such as Calshot or Stokes bay, another great location is Mumbles in South Wales.

A good resource is http://catamaran.co.uk/Club_Directory.html

All the best

Gareth

If you are London based DWSC is a great place for cat sailing.