What to look for in a H17?

I'm looking to buy a 17 and would like to hear some tips of what to look for.

Are there good model years and not so good? Do certain models have feature advantages for racing?

I see that some have jibs and some do not. Are the jibbed models race-legal?

Does anyone know of a nice one spending its time as "garage queen" somewhere in the west?

Is there a general sense of what I should expect to pay for the various models?

Thanks for any advice.

Scott

I can't believe no one has replied to you yet! If you haven't bought a boat yet, see if you can register for Nigel's Hobie 17 group at Yahoo. I wrote a fairly lengthy list of things to check there. As far as years go, I don't know of any differences, except that at some point they started selling them with the Hobie 20 style tiller connecters. Prices very incredibly. I've seen great boats go for as little as $800.00, and as much as $4,000.00. These were both without Jibs. To race in the H17 Class, you don't want the jib. But for overall fun, the jib adds a LOT, and you can race "Open Class". Please feel free to contact me if you want more details, or can't find my posting on the Yahoo Hobie 17 groups site. Brian McCarter

Does this group still exsist?

Doug

There is a guide on this page. If has a section on Hobie 17.

http://www.sailingproshop.com/Catamaran.htm

Good boat I enjoy mine.

Doug Snell

Link doesn't work?

Is there still a 17 user group on Yahoo?

Doug