I thought it would be a good idea to share our "long weekend" vacation adventure last Dec 5-9 with you all. However I need to set the stage. To do so I have started our story with the E-mails traded at the Beachcats Mailing List that led to this story.

Bill Cash" Date: Sat Nov 9, 2002 9:01 am Subject: Re: Charters
Katherine and I are planning a vacation around our 30th anniversary in February. One thought is to go to Belize and do the "Under the Sun in Belize" trip. Sounds like a fun trip... 8 days on an 18 going from Cay to Cay and lodge to lodge, BUT its expensive. $1950 each plus 750-1000 each for airfare. And since we don't know anyone who has done this trip we have some reservations about dumping 6K on a vacation.

My second thought is to do a bare boat charter, BUT the vast amount of our sailing experience is on beachcats or very small monoslugs. IM not sure a charter service is gonna allow us to bareboat a 30+' catamaran with beachcats as the backbone of my sailing resume... Can anyone point me to a "more relaxed" charter service, in the Keys of the Islands?

Bill
From: "Damon" Date: Fri Nov 8, 2002 9:08 pm Subject: Re: [beachcats] Charters
Do it! Do it! Take lots of pictures and write an article for TheBeachcats.com, you can be the reporter for the Central America desk while your there. <grn> The pay will be low (0), the work will be hard, but the honor will be great!
Damon

Katherine & I raced in the area C Eliminations for the Alter cup, October 26 & 27 2002. This was only our 3rd race since we began sailing beachcats.

I knew when we decided to do this race that we would be out of our league, “Sailing with the BIG BOYS”. However, it seemed like a good way to end the sailing season. For those of you who may be new to the list, Katherine & I started sailing beachcats in June of 2000. Our first boat was a H16 that we rebuilt and named the Purple People Eater.

By: Keith Chapman

Hobie-18 rudder castings come in two flavors: Pre-1987 and 1987 on. They’re easy to tell apart, as the newer systems use a plastic cam to hold and release the upper casting, while the older systems use a metal one. Both are supposed to work the same way, with the rudder kicking up when an obstacle is encountered or when the skipper wishes to beach the boat. However, the pre-1987 Hobie-18 rudders have an annoying habit of not releasing or kicking up when you want them to. I’ve even busted a tiller arm or two yanking up on them to try to get a rudder to release. I always had to keep a tool with a long end that I could insert from behind the release cam in order to trip the mechanism whenever things would stick – not very convenient or even safe under some circumstances.

Many Hobie Cats have a rather crude tiller connector mechanism. By tiller connector, we are referring to the point between the rudder arm and the rudder crossbar. This article will illustrate the steps to retrofit other Hobie catamaran models with the advanced Hobie 20 (Miracle) style tiller connection.

The Hobie 20 sports an advanced tiller connection with features of easy disassembly, accurate turning, no binding, and reduced or eliminated slop. All other models, however, have a bolt with spacers, a spring, and a nylon lock nut. The same kit (part number 1953, $104) from Hobie will add these features to the 14, 16, 17, 18, and 21 cruiser.

After purchasing a 1992 Hobie 18 with a white vinyl tramp, which was discolored to the point that it looked beige, I went on a mission to find the right cleaning solution to lift the nasty stains.