Hobie Cat Forums

I'm rereading the racers posts too. I really gotta hand it to Capt Chaos for suiting up and doing his best, but realizing it wasn't enough. Despite his alter egos's name, he's got a very good head on his shoulders.

He did a great write up on his blog, where he honestly came face to face with every challenge and analyzed his equipment failures and personal shortcomings.

We guessed something was up as we tracked him on his last leg, but had no idea what a sequence of misfortunes was testing him.

Once again - Good job, Jim.

That is a great story, Jim. Those of you who haven't read CaptnChaos (aka Jim Quinlan) ought to do it. http://captnchaosec.blogspot.com/

You know, Jim, I can't help but feel that your experience, while very personal and heartfelt, was that of a first-timer: over-tired, hungry, cold, everything possible is going wrong, and rotten weather. Tough to continue in those conditions. But, don't rule it out for next year. You now have a ton of experience. You shouldn't let that go to waste. Sit on it awhile. My only suggestion: think of it as a "challenge," not a "race."

NOHUHU & I will put money on you next year for sure.

Great story. Thanks for sharing such a personal experience.

Keith

CaptnChaos underway

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I sail: S FL, Key Largo, Everglades, 10,000 Islands, Cape Romano, Cedar Key

"Any intelligent fool can make things bigger and more complex ... It takes a touch of genius and a lot of courage to move in the opposite direction." A. Einstein

Thanks guys. I'm just (impatiently : ) looking forward to seeing The venerable Dog's life 2013 EC Videos .. hint hint.

I probably won't, but If I did another EC, it would have to be with someone else on a heavily modified TI with super hakas and a jib system. That way I could have my occasional catnaps and another set of eyes that work to see the charts.

I ran into Chief the other day and he was telling me how cold he was the whole trip and how he always slept in his dry suit. That last night on Florida Bay he curled up on his hakas and wrapped himself into a space blanket like bag while the wind beat him up. What a night. He did great for only sailing the AI several times before the race.

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Jim

hello all, just read this thread, great reporting by all. My wife and I were in this years EC in a Vanguard Nomad and had a great time. We finished on our first attempt but conditions favored a boat like ours. We were able to sleep onboard as well and that made a huge difference for us. Not having to find campsites really simplifies things. So know that we have done it on the outside, my wife wants to go for the inside Wilderness Waterway route and has her eyes on a TI. Anybody think it will fit? I don't know, but I was shocked when she said we should get one, this to the guy with 11 small boats! She should know better. One thing that might be influencing her decision was that we sailed a good portion of day 1 alongside Penguinman. We were especially close together in the Venice canal, trading places back and forth. She was really into the mirage drive as a workout/ way to go faster/ way to keep warm. Penguinman looked great zipping along with us, headphones on, peddling and grooving out to the tunes. Big smile the whole time. Eventually his little spinnaker got him out in front of us by about a 1/2 mile or more. We caught him right at the cp though as a slight navigation error had him aground just a few feet from us and yards from the docks. We saw him again as he headed into the WW at CP2 and he was still having a blast. The next place we saw him was the finish, still grooving to the tunes and looking great. So who knows, we might be lining up in 2015 with a TI. Time will tell.

vtwave--yes, you could probably do the WW in a tandem, BUT WHY? I'm not sure why PenquinMan did the WW including nightmare. I assume he just wanted to show that an AI could do it, but, again, WHY would you do that when you can be out on the Gulf with its beautiful beaches, straight-lines between points, etc?

People do the WW because they are afraid of the weather on the Gulf, but these boats, the AI & tandem, are made to handle the Gulf. It is beautiful. If you had winds in the 20-30 mph range, then I might consider going inside for a bit (but probably not), otherwise, never.

Check out my last post on my "expedition" thread to see how beautiful traveling the coast can be. http://www.hobiecat.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=70&t=7276&start=255
Scroll up/down until you come to "Flamingo to Chokoloskee: A Trip of Firsts."

Jim C is a great guy. Tremendous attitude; great PR for Hobie.

Congratulations on finishing the EC on your first try--that is an achievement!

Keith

PenquinMan at EC2013 start:

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I sail: S FL, Key Largo, Everglades, 10,000 Islands, Cape Romano, Cedar Key

"Any intelligent fool can make things bigger and more complex ... It takes a touch of genius and a lot of courage to move in the opposite direction." A. Einstein

the why is, because it's there! We sailed the outside and I loved it. Actually I would love to back and do a cruise or some such thing to actually see everything. The best view we got was after leaving CP2. It was daylight heading out Rabbit Key Pass and then we had a great sail along the outside of the islands, about a mile out at first. The rest of the outside was a bit too far off to really see. We were between 2-4 miles out that day. Chief puts that alligator tooth award out there because the inside is harder, and scarier! At a tribe event the people walking around with shark teeth necklaces get respect, but the gator tooth puts people in a whole new level. It's bigger deal at awards too. To me the heros of this even are the stand ups, the 8 foot prams, the kayaks and the AI/TI's. We were a cruise ship by comparison. I am a sailor, not a kayaker. Same goes for the wife so a TI would be as close as we get to paddling this whole thing. Who knows, I might test sail a TI and hate it, but I doubt that.

vtwave--the WW was originally developed, a long, long time ago, so that power boaters could avoid the Gulf. The only reason the WW is "harder" than the Gulf is that it is longer, winding all over the place as the originators worked to find deep enough channels for power boats. A kayak can often just cut across a bay, rather then following the marked WW route. The one "tough" part of the WW would be Nightmare. It hasn't been maintained and power boaters can't use it any more. It can be tight, and there can be trees down. It can also be difficult to follow because at flood tide, water is everywhere, and it may be hard to follow the channel. Nightmare is actually a beautiful stretch, but it is the one stretch that might be difficult for a fully loaded tandem.

After a day or so on the WW, it won't be scary. There are alligators, and when you spook them when the bow of your boat rounds a point, and they hit the water in a big splash & cab-boom, that can get your adrenalin going. But, if you could see all the things swimming under and around you boat on the Gulf, that might raise a few hairs on the back of your neck also.

In the WW, you have to be very aware of tidal currents in rivers and passes, which can be tough if you have to paddle/pedal against a strong an incoming.

Well, to each his/her own. Good luck!

Keith

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I sail: S FL, Key Largo, Everglades, 10,000 Islands, Cape Romano, Cedar Key

"Any intelligent fool can make things bigger and more complex ... It takes a touch of genius and a lot of courage to move in the opposite direction." A. Einstein

All that guy needs is a peg-leg and a glass of Capt Morgans.

(I'm told they all look that way at the start,..)

Kayakman7,

I'd love to see your rig! I built a pair of Tamanu canoes I'm currently using as a cat. I have the bulkheads and other stuff built for another as a solo or tandem tri that I am considering doing something like yours. I'll be driving down for Spring break--could I look at your ride? You can check out my Tamanu cat over at http://wikiproa.pbworks.com/w/page/1459 ... u%20Canoes

and http://wikiproa.pbworks.com/w/page/1459 ... 0%20report

I PM'd you my contact info.

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Dan St. Gean
'82 H 18
'96 H Wave

What boats will fit? Will let you all decide.

Here's a good perspective of the nightmare from this years race: (check out the 3:00 mark)



And some of the damages from last years race:



I'd go with the TI over a SUP, that's fer sure.

Dumb question: I'm having trouble figuring out how the Islands fared overall in the E.C. this year. How many AI's finished? How many TI's? What were their placings? How many dropped out?

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According to this website, it looks like all the AI's and TI's finished. I'm not sure if that's correct, but I just clicked the Results tab near the top of the page, and chose from the drop down menu under the title "Select Scope" to check out the Hobie AI and the Hobie TI.

http://www.watertribe.com/Events/ChallengeResults.aspx

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I think it's right, but pelicans TI info was deleted after his disastrous DNF.

Yes the site is correct showing 8 hobie ai/TI 's starting, add pelicans ti,that makes 9. I counted 9 of them on shore before launch
Pelican and captnchaos did not finish
Bob

The results seem to indicate 5 AI's finished and no TI's, much the same as last year. Is that right?

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