Hobie 17 Deck Rip

Not a nice feeling to have the mast lean 30 degrees to leeward , with the hulls still level and see the interior of the hull all at once as the windward shroud tore the deck open . Luckily I had the presence of mind to unlock the mainsheet , throw the helm hard down to bring her into the wind and to stand on top of the severed deck to slam it shut which brought the mast back upright . As soon as I could , I jibed over to put the broken shroud mount on the leeward side then carefully headed for the nearest beach . I was able to drive the boat up the beach without any further damage . After unrigging , my buddy Martin took me aboard his Hobie 14 Turbo and we sailed back to pick up my car and trailer to recover the broken Hobie 17 . Barry Sanders, Western Australia