So after spending all of my years in the south - NC, then to GA, then to FL and a brief stint here in Alabama, As of Aug 1, I'll be a "Maine-iac".

While our long term plans include cruising on something with a head, hot shower and a salon, if I'm on the coast I want to get back on a beach cat of some sort if for no other reason than to just keep in shape.

Problem is I don't think I saw a single cat anywhere in Portland all weekend and I drove all over the city. Not on a beach and not in driveways or boat parks. I don't blame them if they don't exist - while Saturday was absolutely gorgeous, Sunday was like, 53'F with a hard driving spitting rain blowing 25knots. I had to check my watch to make sure it was June.

For any kind of cat sailing am I looking at coming down to Boston where I know Todd is based out of?

Forget sailing, Buy skis.

+1. spend your time learning diesel marine mechanics, ABYC wiring and watermaker/refrigeration

then you can cruise in aforementioned boat with salon/hot water/etc. with little to worry about.

You already know how to bash up the coast on a teensy little beachcat. Now you need to learn how to keep a leisurely cruising cat in tip top shape.

Remember, a cruiser never has to bash into the wind. If he does, chalk it up to a deadline or bad planning.

CRANNE is your best bet. They typically have a schedule of fresh and salt water events in NH and ME.

The only thing left of Hobie Division 12 is Fleet 448 in RI. NENSA and the F18 fleet are also more southerly.

Hope this helps.

Mike

http://www.boattest.com/Resources/view_news.aspx?NewsID=3377 http://www.boattest.com/Resources/view_news.aspx?NewsID=3377

looks like you could put in somewhere here

Tad, you won't survive the first winter.

Hobie Fleet 207 is based out of St. Eiboh's Cove ("Eiboh" is "Hobie" spelled backwards) on Sebago Lake.

Launching anywhere in Maine can be a challenge, but there are some really nice beaches south of Portland (Ogunquit, Kennebunk). The water can be cold, but the scenery is unmatched.

Thanks everyone! I've gotten a bunch of contacts now and I'm looking forwards to getting back on the water again.

Karl - Can you instruct me in the proper operating procedures of a snow blower? Before this weekend I hadn't even SEEN one.

Snow blowers are all but useless with the amount of snow you're going to see. Get a Bobcat...

Mike

Flamethrower, maybe? Karl's probably experienced in that, too...

Tad they finally gave you the boot from the south huh? Ding must be running after you with a pitchfork!
There's a couple F18s, F16, Nacra 6.0 and a group of Hobie in Maine. If you send me an email todd dot riccardi at gmail dot com I will put you in touch with them.
Most of the racing happens in Rhode Island (3 hour drive from Portland) or various parts of Southern MA or CT. Generally we're all on F18s except a few open boats that show up to a few events like the New England 100 and one or two buoys races.

Not so much the south booting me out but the NE wanting quality doctors like my wife so they're willing to make her a deal we couldn't refuse.
Ding didn't use a pitchfork, he usually just stood there with that grin on his face shaking his head at me like "damn this kid won't ever get it." Something I'm sure you're familiar with

Thanks for the contacts Todd. I'll be in touch once I've gone through the relocation.

Funny, Tad, my bro-in-law is looking to move from Yale to here. No state income tax, better weather, easy livin'...

But big money buys bigger cats ... sooner. So there's that..

Believe me, Florida was in the mix but unfortunately for her particular specialties there aren't a lot of positions available for her.

We're still planning on eventually turning into cabbages in Florida, its just going to be a longer road to get there.

I don't know why you say things like that Todd I'm one of the nicest people I know.

That one made me laugh and yes Todd is very familiar with the look.

Having grown up sailing Lasers, 505's, and J-24's out of Portsmouth, NH, I feel for you bro. The ocean water north of Cape Cod never gets above 60 degrees, get used to sailing in a wetsuit, even in July!

The other problem for beach cats in Maine is, there's no beach! Most of the coast is granite rocks, even the few 'sand' beaches you can find are not made of soft sand like in Florida (crushed seashells) but is made of crushed granite rock, so it is a much more coarse sand. Oh, and the tides are huge, not uncommon to see an 8' difference between high-low tide, so be careful where you leave your beach wheels if you go out at low tide!

There used to be a big Hobie regatta at Hampton Beach (NH) in the summer, not sure if that's still going on. Hampton has a very nice, long, sandy beach, but there's very limited access for a beach cat, not sure if they would even let you set up unless it was for that regatta.

If you want to race Lasers, there's a good group at the Kittery Point Yacht Club in the Portsmouth Harbor area;

https://sites.google.com/site/kitterypointyc/

Good luck, but the long winters up there are why I moved to Florida!

You just missed the Hampton Beach regatta. It's held on Father's Day weekend. They normally get an F18 and H16 fleet.

Mike

Mike nailed it. You'll see a lot more snow than I do.
It's just barren, butt butt cold here in the winter.

Good luck man, I hope you acclimate quickly.

Weird.. Everyone I know up there seemed to indicate that they use snow blowers. In fact in the lease I just signed it says that I have to use the one provided by the landlord to remove snow from the paved areas.

Either way, I'm excited about the relocation - and the fact that this destination doesn't have an "expiration date" like the last three places we've lived. It's going to be fun getting to know the area, the beautiful harbor, fishing, and then all of the winter sports that I'm a noob at.