I sail a Taipan 4.9 with spinnaker (F16 class) and have sailed the Hobie 14, 16 and used to own an 18 (#135, I think it was). There aren't any Taipans in Utah yet, but a couple folks there have expressed interest.

I go to Bear Lake every summer, so you'll see me up there next year. There are a few avid cat sailors scattered about. There's a town called Fish Haven on the west side of the lake--my cabin is on the water side of the road right at the Fish Haven sign. The water level is a bit low due to the drought. But the up side is that there is miles and miles of nice sandy beach to sail off of nearly all the way around the lake. Another nice thing about Bear Lake is that it is, in fact, a natural lake that has been there for eons rather than a reservoir that was just created a couple years ago (like Jordanelle). So it offers a different kind of beauty.

Your area has plenty of nice reservoirs to sail on. Deer Creek always looks like it has a good breeze every time I go by, but I guess that's probabably an hour or so from Sandy. I never cared for sailing on Great Salt Lake, though--it's kinda weird floating so high and the brine shrimp gave me the creeps. I've never sailed Utah Lake, but it looks pretty big from a distance.

The Hobie 16 is just fine a your first cat. In fact, if you learn to sail it well, you'll find the newer designs that much easier to manage. In terms of cost, parts availability, etc, it's a great choice. Having said that, one of my favorite cats for off the beach fun sailing that is fast, forgiving, and easy to manage is the Nacra 5.0 (I used to have one of those too)--probably a bit hard to find there though. I've seen lots of cats up around Bear Lake just parked in fields neglected (Hobies, Prindles, Sol-cats, G-cats, and even a Supercat)--sad, and probably some good deals to be had. Regardless of which cat, prepare yourself for some serious speed compared to the Sunfish!!!

As you may already know, just about the only place in Salt Lake with decent rigging supplies and with knowledge about sailing is SidSports--I think its on about 39th South, just east of State Street. They'd be a good resource for getting your boat rigged properly. If you get an old, neglected Hobie, for example, it would be very wise to replace the standing rigging (all the wires that hold up the mast) because the cost is not much compared to the added safety and peace of mind in knowing your mast isn't going to come crashing down.