fusioneng:
There are a couple things I want to say about what you wrote. First is that I appreciate your passion for your TI. Hobie make great products that work really well, and it's easy to become extremely loyal to the Hobie brand. Understand that the passion you have for your TI is the same passion we have for our catamarans. The longing that you have to see an even more modern "Super TI" as you call it, is the same longing we have to see a new generation of cat, and is what this discussion is all about.
I think you need to realize that 'sailing' is a broad term. Sailing on a kayak is not the same as sailing on a beach cat, as sailing a beach cat is not the same as sailing an AC72 or a Volvo open 70.
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Hobie is already promoting through social media with their Adventure series of boats which are hugely popular in the markeplace. If you go to their main website you will see the link to the Hobie Island club.
I agree with you - Hobie is promoting their kayak range, however they are not promoting their catamarans with the same vigor.
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for HobieCat company to get enough revenue to play in the elite racing market,
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I'm hoping HobieCat company will be able to finance Hobies next great fast catamaran "one design" for that world class elite group that want to go fast as lightning, and compete on the world stage, which as we all know takes major money.
Where are you getting all this 'elitist' vibe from? I'm really sorry that some cat sailor somewhere said or did something to you to make you feel bad, and made it seem like we are 'elitists'. If you believe that racing Hobie Cats is for the elite, then you just don't understand Hobie's roots, history, or the 'Hobie way of Life'.
We want to race our catamarans because it's fun, thrilling, builds community, camaraderie and makes us better sailors. Through racing we can hone our skills and teach each other. It's a gathering for like minded people who share the same enthusiasm for being on the water.
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Such a boat I think would capable enough to satisfy more advanced sailers need for speed, yet remains versatile enough that it can be used for family outings and excursions,
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In addition as sailers get tired of rebuilding over and over their vintage 70's and 80's H16's, H18's, such a boat would be technical, and fast enough to peak current cat sailers interest as well, which obviously the current TI does not.
A faster TI with a spinnaker sounds like fun, and will be more challenging, but as Matt said, it still will not be comparable to a cat. Plus it will be missing one huge the thing - the ability to trapeze. Refer back to the picture I posted... Try to imagine the sensation of flying above the water like that. It's not just about speed Bob.
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because of this large influx of new age Loyal Hobie sailers and families just getting into sailing now.
I think the idea that AI's and Ti's will feed potential sailors into the catamaran market is a nice idea in principal, but I don't think it's working. I don't know if that was the intent? I certainly don't know all the facts and figures, but I don't think there has been a huge surge in sales of cats due to the popularity of the AI and TI. I stand to be corrected though...