After a really, really long gestation, the boat that sponsored our first Dinghy Anarchy forum has made its one-design race debut! SA’er “couchsurfer” has the news from Seattle, and be sure to check here for more photos, and here for a sweet little vid. Photo from Jan Anderson with more here.
The HOOT dinghy is now completing it’s final phase of proto-testing, and the race course is the best place to get feedback from a wide variety of sailors. We’ve had a number of young sailors take the opportunity to step into this kind of skiff; the HOOT is a perfect transitional boat between conventional dinghies and more complicated skiffs/moths/cats. With so much platform to hike from (8′ from rack to rack) and just a 31-inch waterline beam, the 14-foot HOOT is extremely responsive. But a bit like a moth, it’s got buoyant wings, adding forgiveness for those who’ve been relegated to keelboats for too long.
Next event for the HOOT proto-fleet will be the Columbia Gorge One-Design event in August – a great opportunity for the skiff-curious or the skiff-obsessesed to come from near or far to sail one of America’s best venues. Hit me via e-mail or check out our Facebook site for more info.
