Cat Trax

Hi all !
I just purchased a 1982 H16 and want to buy a Cat Trax. Do any of you have pictures or link to how the Trax works ? where do you tie it ? how do you balance it ? how hard or easy is it to pull your boat on the soft sand ? Can one person handle it ? I've searched but unable to find any kind of instructions or how to. I am planning to do a lot of sailing on the north west Florida beaches (Panama City - Pensacola) and some of the places that have beach access to sail requires a good hike to the beach. I definitely don't want to drag a boat in the sand that far !

Thanks for sharing.

Newbie Hobie.

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82 HB-16

Get the rubber wheeled version. Cradles are nice as they prevent the boat moving on the tracks. You can tie off on the side shrouds or the dolphin striker. The boat balances off and rolls very easily with the rubber wheels. The plastic ones work but are harder to use as they tend to bury in loose sand and push it, the rubber ones just roll over anything.

Lift, roll, drag the boat up on the trax until the axle is directly under the shroud anchor point so that you don't have any slack in the tie-line. This will balance the boat pretty well. Take a few turns around the shroud with the tie-line, then make a slip knot. Sometimes by yourself, it's easier to just get one side close, secure the line, do the other side right then get the first side right.

As stated above, the rubber air-filled tires are a MUST for soft sand. If you're dealing with much elevation, it's still going to be a bear by yourself.

Jerome Vaughan
Hobie 16
Clinton, Mississippi

P.S. There are a lot of Hobie 16 sailors in that area...Fleet 178 in FWB and Fleet ??? (contact Brad at Sunjammers) in PCB. Great area to sail. Come see us at Juana's in Navarre the weekend of Sept.12. http://www.juanaspagodas.com/RegattaNews.htm

The actual balancing point is about a foot and a half behind the shrouds on the H16 and your wheels will only settle there if you're using cradles. Having the boat centered there makes it a lot easier to move, especially solo. I can pull or/push my boat solo up a slight incline as long as it's balanced.

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Happy Sailing,

David

Looks like the rubber wheels are what I need ! Is it possible to pull the H16 hull off the trailer and on to the Cat Track on land ? with the mast stepped ? I'm a solo sailor and I'm looking for ANY advise on DIY launching tips. Thanks everyone for the responses ! What a great group of Cat Sailors !

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82 HB-16

Yes, and it's much easier that way.

Jerome

http://www.thebeachcats.com/classifieds ... 2053/cat/4

some for sale above

Hey, these are very new or have not been used much, well worth $300 unless shipping cost is going to be an issue. Cradles will cost another $100 (new) if you want them.

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Happy Sailing,

David

Thanks for the heads up on the cat trax.

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82 HB-16