[quote=Wolfman]The Prindle 18 should serve you well in those conditions and is a better choice than a Hobie 16. It sails well with higher weights, rigs easy and is pretty light for the size. It doesn't have daggerboards to worry about and doesn't need a lot of adjustment once it is setup so it is really good for close in sailing with unknown depths. They are also fast boats so as the kids get older you can probably keep them interested. It is not made anymore but parts are readily available from a number of sources. Overall a good choice for a family boat with lots of future upside.
Another boat to look at is a Hobie Getaway. It is really bouyant and stable with lots of room for the family and gear. Rotomolded hulls that are super tough and comfy wing seats. The only real disadvantage is that its not really a fast boat and doesn't have the performance characteristics of the Prindle and it doesn't have the best asthetics (IMHO).
Other than those two all the other boats that I can think of that would work have daggerboards or centerboards. Probably not something you want to deal with, with 3-4 people on board. The Prindle would 18 be a really good choice for a first cat![/quote]
No HTML tags allowed (except inside [code][/code] tags)
