I was recently sailing my TI (bought Feb 2013) on a small lake in France in a force 4 wind, when the mast broke.
There was no swell, and only small waves, so much calmer than conditions can be at sea where I live, which is Guernsey in the Channel Islands.
I was sailing with my wife, and we were on a reach, and had just turned further off the wind to be on a broad reach, when it broke with a loud crack. We were using the full sail, as we had not been over-pressed during the previous 40 minutes of sailing around the lake. It was very fortunate that this happened only 200m from the shore, as we could easily get back using the Mirage drives, and with my wife holding the mast and sail alongside the kayak.
The consequences of this happening in the seas around Guernsey would have been much more serious, so in a way, I am relieved that it happened on a small lake. But I am surprised and very disappointed that this happened at all. Surely a carbon-fibre mast should not break under these conditions, even if it is 4 years old, and therefore 2 years outside its warranty period.
I have reported this incident to Hobie UK, who have confirmed that Hobie USA will not replace the mast free of charge, as it was not under warranty. Presumably they also conclude that the mast was not originally faulty, and had not become faulty. So this leads to 2 further questions, which I hope Hobie USA will be able to answer via this forum:
1. Is the Hobie TI safe to sail in a Force 4 wind, given that the mast may be subject to a catastrophic failure, even in calm water?
2. Should Hobie be recommending the replacement of the TI mast every 2 years, in order to prevent a catastrophic failure such as this?
I would like to add that I have sailed my TI solo, and with my wife, around Guernsey and Herm, as well as the UK, France and Spain, on lakes and at sea, over the last 4 years. We carry it on the roof of our Fiat Ducato campervan.
It is a very important part of our leisure activities, and always causes great interest wherever we sail. I have often sailed it in a Force 4 wind at sea, so I am particularly concerned if Hobie regard mast breakage as being an expected event in a 4 year old Tandem Island.