Getting back to John's original question:
Quote:
Why is this not an option for the 16 main? or used for the 17/20 sail?
This goes back to the origins of the Hobie One Design Philosophy. The intent was to make the boats as equal as possible, so that the skill of the sailors, not the thickness of their wallets determined the outcome.
From the very beginning, only Hobie Cat licensed or branded sails have been allowed for class racing. In the early days, sail quality was inconsistent, but in the past 15 years, the sails coming out of the Hobie loft have been very high quality and consistently shaped.
Another benefit to the process is the elimination of sail measurement.
Multiple-manufacturer one design classes allow multiple sailmakers, however, each sail must be measured and approved by the class - often an expensive and time-consuming process. Even these classes will put limits on the types of sail material used. For example, the Tornado class has a specific list of approved sail materials. Anything not on the list is not allowed.
For the Hobie 16, dacron has proven to be the fastest, most durable material. The jib takes a lot of abuse tacking across the mast. For whatever reason, the boat likes a flexible, somewhat stretchy (in comparison to Mylar laminates) main. The vertical cut laminate sails made in the late 80's / early 90's were more for marketing than anything else. Boat sales were crashing and Hobie Cat was trying everything to pump them up.
The Hobie 17's 2-layer laminate sail was designed in 1984, when laminate sails were just hitting the general marketplace. The horizontal cut was quickly abandoned in favor of the vertical cut, which, if you've ever sailed a 17, you can
feel the speed difference between the two. Will there ever be a new, class legal sail for the 17? Not for a while at least. Now that the boats are out of production, the owners may take a more active role in determining its fate. The material is harder to get, and colors even harder. It's more likely that it would change just because the material becomes prohibitively expensive.
Both the Hobie 16 and Hobie 17 are ISAF International Classes. That means that ISAF must approve any class rule changes. Not an easy thing to do on a major thing like sail materials / patterns.
The Hobie 20's main sail is a 3 layer laminate, while the jib is Dacron. It is not an ISAF class, but it's unlikely that the sail material will change. The mains are very durable. Change will only come at the request of the boat owners, and the IHCA Rules Committee would almost certainly not recommend a change in sail material or pattern.
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