Which F18 to buy

I had a good look at the Shockwave, Wildcat and Infusion at the East
Coast Piers Race. I have to say that having looked at all the F18's the
Infusion seems to have the highest spec fit out by a country mile and is
clearly the cheapest/best value, whilst I am disappointed by the build
quality of the Wildcat (very soft/flexible hulls).

Unfortunately given the very light winds at the East Coast Piers Race, I
don't think the results told me anything other than who made the right
decisions on the day!

Despite the Shockwaves great results in the fickle wind conditions at the
U.K. 2009 long distance races so far, I am not sure it can match the Ist at
Eurocat 2009, 1st+2nd at the Texel Dutch Cat Open 2009 and the 1st at
the F18 Worlds and Europeans 2008 of the Infusion-but time will tell. I
think I will wait till the Worlds have finished before making my final
decision-this should produce some final truths about the current
performances of the various F18's.

Edited by psymedic

Originally posted by fatbloke Originally posted by psymedic I had a good look at the Shockwave, Wildcat and Infusion at the East Coast Piers Race. I have to say that having looked at all the F18's the Infusion seems to have the highest spec fit out by a country mile and is clearly the cheapest/best value whilst I am disappointed by the build quality of the Wildcat (very soft/flexible hulls). Unfortunately given the very light winds at the East Coast Piers Race, I don't think the results told me anything other than who made the right decisions on the day! Despite the Shockwaves great results in the fickle wind conditions at the U.K. 2009 long distance races so far, I am not sure it can match the Ist at Eurocat 2009, 1st+2nd at the Texel Dutch Cat Open 2009 and the 1st at the F18 Worlds and Europeans 2008 of the Infusion-but time will tell. I think I will wait till the Worlds have finished before making my final decision-this should produce some final truths about the current performances of the various F18's. I beg to difffer! I have nothing but a fleeting interst in the F18 fleet but was also at ECPR and would  say  that the shockwave looked great. If you can imagine a big brother to the spitfire then your on the right track and we all know how pretty the spit is.

I am not sure why you are begging to differ! I believe the Shockwave,
Wildcat and Infusion are all good looking boat hence my careful research
into their individual merits

Thats very true,

I'd like to Eco those points

I don't think you can take any thing away from the guys who won ECPR. My friend was on one of the ribs and said that downwind there was a fair race and that though out the hole race the shockwave was clearly the faster boat.

Also Stuart Gummer won the Saturday series, and i heard he only collected the boat on Friday afternoon! That is seriously impressive for a first time sail. He was also 2nd F18 home! Shockwave 1 & 2, I'm sold on the Shockwave!!

 Ive had a look at the wild cat and i agree that the hulls don't seem very strong. I have heard rumors that 50 boats have been returned to Hobie after cracking at the main beam? and that it already has a nickname, Kitty Cat? can anyone confirm that.

 

 

 

Originally posted by Tornado413 Originally posted by psymedic I had a good look at the Shockwave, Wildcat and Infusion at the East Coast Piers Race. I have to say that having looked at all the F18's the Infusion seems to have the highest spec fit out by a country mile and is clearly the cheapest/best value, whilst I am disappointed by the build quality of the Wildcat (very soft/flexible hulls). Unfortunately given the very light winds at the East Coast Piers Race, I don't think the results told me anything other than who made the right decisions on the day! Despite the Shockwaves great results in the fickle wind conditions at the U.K. 2009 long distance races so far, I am not sure it can match the Ist at Eurocat 2009, 1st+2nd at the Texel Dutch Cat Open 2009 and the 1st at the F18 Worlds and Europeans 2008 of the Infusion-but time will tell. I think I will wait till the Worlds have finished before making my final decision-this should produce some final truths about the current performances of the various F18's. So your not convinced that a brand new design straight out the box that the crews havent got up to 100% yet that won Round Texel by a substantial margin, the Isle of Wight race by a huge margin and just won the ECPR by a good margin, not to mention winning the ECPR saturday series, Grafham F18 TT last year, Weston Grand Slam, Datchet F18 TT, 3rd Texel Dutch open aswell. Also Loday / White have only one Pro Team pushing the boat against the might of Nacra/Hobie who have thrown a huge ammount of resources in to the big events, yes im sure time will tell but you cant hide the fact the Shockwave is flying at the moment !!!

Hi Simon,
As you know I am looking at all the F18 options at the moment before I
make my purchase.

I don't dispute the Shockwaves flying at the moment, but do feel that the
real comparative test will be the Worlds. I have heard a lot of differing
opinions relating to the true validity of the results of the events you have
listed, so feel that the Worlds will give me the opportunity to look at the
performance of the various F18's over a large number of races with
hopefully consistent winds.

Long Distance races can be won or lost on a single decision as I am sure
you are very well aware-whether it be a bad tactical choice, a wind shift,
"the wind Gods leaving you", miscalculations about the position of
sandbanks, etc., etc.

Yes the Shockwave has had some excellent TT results, but so has the
Infusion and the Wildcat. These results again can sometimes be deceptive
as I am sure you know-sometimes a gear breakage, or an error in
counting the number of laps completed, etc. at a 2 day event can screw
the results for a leading team.

Obviously there is a huge battle between Nacra and Hobie on the
European scene, but in the U.K. there is as far as I am aware 1 Shockwave
pro team and an occasional Infusion pro team on the F18/Cat Open
circuit.

This is why I feel it is important to look at the "average" club/open event
teams as well as the known leading non-pro teams results rather than
the Pro Teams (you could put any of the pro teams in a bath tub and they
would probably come out on top!!) at the forthcoming World's to get a
better idea of the relative performance of various F18's.

What I do know at the moment, much to my surprise, is that the Infusion
is the cheapest F18 available in the U.K. by a considerable margin. Also, I
am very impressed with it's quality of finish and standard of "fit out".

Quality and price are as equally important as results to the average "Joe"
like me who will never light up the scoreboard on the ultra competitive
International F18 scene. What I require is a boat that I know is exactly the
same as the top teams use and doesn't require many, many hours of
changing and tinkering to make it fly and therefore gives me the chance
to concentrate on improving my skills.

So please Simon don't be offended that I am not going to go out and
purchase a Shockwave just on the basis of half a dozen great results.

I wish all U.K. F18 teams attending the Worlds every success and look
forward to reading the race reports and results.





Edited by psymedic

hi everyone,

if anyone was interested i am looking to sell my current nacra infusion and get a new one, so if anyone was would like any details about a second hand infusion send me and email.


dave_062@hotmail.com