Well, to be frank, and I'm not sure why, it does appear that the Hobie Fleet in that area does not seem, at least from what I've observed, to have an active board or schedule of activities. However, several who hail from the area do race in Hobiecat regattas. It could simply be that they don't care to maintain a fleet for get togethers of people who sail Hobiecats recreationally. If she is the same Karen I know, she does crew for at least one, or more, elite Hobiecat racers. That would probably be the extent of her partipation in the sport. Recreational activiity seems out of effect on much of the So. California coast when it comes to chartered Hobie Fleets. This probably renders Fleet 3 defunct, unless a small group of Hobiecat sailors were to reactivate the charter and begin an active fleet. Your word 'odd' is the way I've thought of it many times as well, since I am associated with a very active and functioning fleet in Southern Nevada.
If I were to guess why the state of affairs there are as you see them, well, could be largely due to the closing off of much of what was great catamaran sailing venues. Also, the high cost of permitting venues out for events. It could also be due to some stigma attached to Hobie sailors from the early days when the culture was pretty rambunctious. There are probably too many causes to mention. Over here on the Colorado Lakes there is much less control and lots of places to put in and have a great time, but one thing is for certain. The catamaran sailing community has dwindled very dramatically over the past 15 to 20 years. So has sailing in general. I think the Hobie Class Association does a fabulous job of managing one of the largest one design racing organizations in the world. That is something to think about and if you want to be around other like minded, well, sort of like minded as we are all different, then you'll have a predictable and stable list of events and venues to join in the fun. I did that in 2002 and though year by year a few changes occur, it still remains a solid group of dedicated Hobie sailors. For the event schedule, you can see hobiedivision2.com, or look on hcana.hobieclass.com. Most of the schedule should be up soon. Division 2 starts out with events here in Arizona (Lk Havasu), Nevada (Lk Mohave), Rocky Point, MX (Cinco de Mayo), Utah (Sand Hollow Reservoir), then moves to Alamitos Bay Yacht Club (several events), San Diego Bay, Santa Barbara and final events in Arrowhead, Big Bear and back to Rocky Point for the Pinata Regatta. Kind of brief, but anyway, hope to see you at some of them.
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