This question is just such a gift.................

Based on what you've written Jack, the most obvious choice is NOT a Dart/Sprint 15 or a Hobie Max (or even a Dart 16).

No, the MOST obvious choice is a Formula 16! Go to the new temporary website at http://f16.beasts.org - http://f16.beasts.org for more info.

There are currently a couple of Stealths for sale in the UK - contact John Pierce at http://www.stealthmarine.co.uk - www.stealthmarine.co.uk or you could search for a Taipan or similar 16ft cat and bring it up to F16 specs. Boats like the old Condor/Hurricane 4.9, Hydra, Mystere etc would measure but be overweight compared to the new designs.

This is me sailng the Stealth F16 with my youngest (12 yr old) son

and this is with my oldest (19 yr old) son

I also sail with my wife and sail and race solo too:

When I was looking for a new cat last year, my priorities were virtually identical to yours. I spent four months researching and thinking and talking to people before finally going for this (very new) class. We held our first nationals in 2005. This years will be at Mumbles on 3rd-5th June. Our first Worlds will be in Singapore next February. The class is growing rapidly with builders in many countries. If I were you I'd seriously put an F16 at the top of my list!

I have to agree......  F16 fits the bill for what you want.

Also have a look at the Spitfire class.  If Spitfires are plentiful in your area, I would recomend getting into this class.  From what I have heard, they are very popular with some rock stars in the class.  Benifit would be a market value with greater longlivity and potential to learn more and quicker.  They are also granfarthered into the F-16 class.

    I would also agree the F16 suits your needs perfectly.

    as for racing if you are near the north of England or Scotland there is a great travelers circuit called Snecca (Scottish and north of England cat class association.) our first event of this year is at Keilder this weekend all classes of cat welcome we race on the average lap system. Great bunch of people and Scottish hospitality.

The Spitfire rates as an F16 !!!!!

I would thing the opposite as far as sailability goes.

Spitfire is heavier, but has larger sails to compensate!

The ONLY problem with the Spitfire is singlehanding. It is not particularly happy sailing under main only, and the jib is not self tacking. Therefore to be F16 compliant it can only really be sailed in two-up format. If you're racing other Spitfires then it's two-up anyway.

To address the original priority of lightweight family sailing AND singlehanding then it is really only F16 that hits the mark (as I found out).

F16s ARE NOT DIFFICULT TO SAIL!!!  Racing competitively is a different matter though as they respond very well to the slightest adjustment on downhaul/outhaul etc. (So it's actually very easy to be sailing slowly fast!!) - or should that be sailing fast slowly??? 

The proposed UK circuit for 2006 is on the F16 website, but at present it's just these events:

Jack,

You sail a Cherub, you will have no problems with the F16, yes, it will be a lot quicker and you will need to explain to the wife that speed does not = lack of control.  You will need to relearn some of what you know, but someone like John Pierce would be able to include this in a "new boat package"

Catsailing is just slightly different, not a new sport!

Jack,

Pitchpoling is not mandatory or even the 'norm'. The Stealth has T foil rudders and is therefore less prone to pitchpoling than other 16 footers including the Spitfire. However, in ALL cases, you have to be 'pushing hard''.

Jack

  As Simon and Jalani said cat sailing is not a black art and you will probably find that most cat sailors have their roots in wobbily boats I for one used to race Fireballs and ents before getting into cats. Tacking was the one area i had problems with at first but once you get the idea that you need to get your ( and your crews weight) towards the back of the boat to help it through the tack along with the smooth rudder movements then the rest is much the same as you now do just faster.

as for pitchpoling in the five years I have been sailing cats I have only done it twice both times in a F5-6 and pushing the boat hard.

A good book to get your hands on is The Catamaran book by Brian Phipps published by Fenhurst books the third iddition covers sailing with a kite this should dispell some of your worries.

Cats really are fun but challenging to sail fast. 

From the CatSailor Forum (posted by a flag officer of Datchet sailing Club):

"On the May bank holiday there will be an "On the Water" show at Datchet Sailing Club. See attachment). On display will be:
The Nacra Infusion.

Brand new Stealth F16 complete and for sale.

Also many second hand cats, including 16 month old Stealth, Hobie Tiger, Hobie FX1, Nacra Balst complete with kite, Inet 20.

Maybe Paul's new Blade will be on show?

All can be sailed and purchased on the day. (Maybe not Paul's Blade!)

Also see the new Capricorn and the new Top cat range.

Should be a good weekend! "

Perceived wisdom has it that the 'optimum' two-up crew weight for F16 is around 130-140Kg.

I've sailed with a total all up weight of around 160Kg on a couple of occasions and had expected the boat to feel sluggish and underpowered but in fact in 15 knots of breeze we were still twin wiring upwind!

There are some quite heavy crew combinations in the F16 fleet but the boat seems to handle it better than many people would expect. However, I have to say that I wouldn't want to always sail with 167Kgs!

F18 may be a better option for you Suede, although, as you say, it doesn't give you the solo option..........

I can't imagine that a Spitfire would sail particularly well under main only. The Spitfire jib is large compared to a boat designed as an F16. Removing the jib would unbalance the boat much, much more than it does on an F16 design.

This doesn't mean it can't be done, it just means it wouldn't be competitive. Boats like the Stealth and Blade are just as fast solo with main only as the sloops are two-up. This has been demonstrated many times at F16 meetings, in all conditions, where sloops and unis race each other on elapsed time.

The only real differences between F16 sloops and unis is that if you know you are likely to sail solo most of the time, you order a uni mainsail (flatter). Whereas the standard for most people is to have a sloop mainsail and use loads of downhaul to flatten it for solo sailing.

I thought a stealth was a singlehanded spitfire, at least in hull shape?

No, you're thinking of a "Shadow".

Stealth hulls are nothing like any other cat that I know of. They are flat bottomed, with max buoyancy low down, max rocker aft, domed transoms and the hulls are canted at 4.5 degrees.

Jalani

What revision of the stealth are you sailing as John has made many improvements since the concept boat. I know of one stealth up here but i think it is an older boat and it was vastly different to the one John raced at Dalgety bay SC two years ago

My Stealth is 3 yrs old. There have been 4 generations of the Stealth since the prototype 6 yrs ago AFAICR. Mine is therefore 3rd gen or first full F16.

The essential piece of info though is that the hull shape has not changed. There were minor (cosmetic) alterations to the first boats and then the Stealth R. The R then became the Stealth F16 with just rig and width changes (hulls the same as the R).

Then in 2003 the moulds were damaged in an accident and so the new bow shape was developed (still using the original mould but repaired). So the basic hull shape is unchanged. In 2006 the mould has been changed again to do away with the domed transom which was causing rudder alignment problems, but the original hull shape is, again, unchanged.

Early Stealth F16:

2006 Stealth F16:

Note the straighter bow and flatter foredeck line. Also the stem has now been reversed in line with modern cat thinking. This is a function of the increased volume low down in the hull combined with the changed deck line. The 'old' boat got round this by having the deckline built up at the bow.

Blade F16 is very sweet.

Email Scott McCook at Pro-sail asia - he is allegedly exporting a few of the malaysian made ply & epoxy boats over to europe this summer.  Comes complete with a great big square top main too and you get to do Cherub style fiddling if you like.

The guy in Singapore with the Blade has virtually nil sailing experience and copes just fine.  Key thing is to get the righting technique learnt after a capsize.

(I still bought a 29er but that is another story)

John hasn't been up for the Four Inches since 2003 - and he had the F18HT up then which would explain why it didn't look the same as our little boats!  The three 16ft Stealths that I know of in Scotland are all older "R" models although one has had the hulls canted by the owner (and it has an F16 main now too).

I'd second what people have already said - the F16s are lovely boats to sail.  The option of sailing one-up or two-up makes it a perfect choice for me - although I do have to look for lightish crews!  Ignore the nonsense in the YandY boat list - they're definately not just for experts.

Originally posted by Isis Blade F16 is very sweet. If thats the one im thinking off I want one, badly..... I think there were pics of a red one a while back on here? beaut.

tissues at the ready again then...

Thanks GM I stand corrected

going senile in my old age forgetting its 2006 not been sailing yet

(slinks off eating humble pie)

You're not alone there mate!

That's Phill Brander's Blade F18 video from about a year ago.

The Blade F18 is the F16 version's newer, bigger sister and is proving to be very interesting to F18 sailors. If it goes as well as the F16 Blade does in F16 (and it should) it'll do very well in F18. Not many of them around yet though. I think one of the prototype's got wrecked around Xmas time.