Mario Roberto Arantes Dubeux; Brazil
Since 1997 (HC14) I have attended all the Hobie cat’s world championship. It is the biggest hobie family reunion worldwide. My father (Mario José Dubeux Júnior in memoriam), was the Hobie Cat class’ pioneer in Brazil.
It is a great pleasure for the Dubeux’s family to have two of the pioneer Mario Jose ‘sons attending the upcoming Hobie Cat 16 world championship in USA this year. Wherever he is I am sure he is very proud of this. There is a painting signed by Frank Jardim. It portrays my father’s first two boats.
Wising you good winds and see you soon in Florida
Annie Gardner; USA
Daniel Bjornholt, DEN, current Hobie 16 World Champion
Having sailed the Hobie since I was 12, this will be my 4th worlds with the first being the 2010 China worlds. I sailed with my brother till 2013, which means we only did our first worlds together and accompanied by our grand parents as we were only 15 at the time, whereas our parents took us to the europeans every since 2008, so the the Hobie worlds and Hobie events have been a major part of our families freetime the past many years. At the 2010 worlds the whole setup was still very new to us, but we had some good moments in the open finishing 20th overall. With four more years of experience and a new crew the game had changed for the Aussie worlds, and I had to consider myself one of the favorites for the youth fleet, although I never sailed with my crew before, and only knew the competitors relatively well. The strong winds favored our slightly heavy crew weight, so the boat felt good all the way through the regatta, which secured us the youth title. A couple of bfd’s and some illness took away a good result in the open, but we could feel that the potential was there. The 2016 worlds were the first time and didn’t have to prepare for both a youth and an open series, which put some more pressure on us. However, having only improved since we started sailing together, Josephine and I felt pretty confident in both our boat handling and racing skills, which allowed us to start the worlds completely calm and focused, while limiting the mistakes to an absolute minimum. The strategy took us all the way, and is definitely the one I will try to copy for the 2019 worlds. Josephine has however taken 6 month off work to go traveling, so I will have to find a new crew, preferably someone danish I can train with for a couple of months to make sure we get all the boat handling skills in the body. The venue looks amazing, so I’m sure it will be a great event no matter what with a great line up of skilled teams, but I obviously go to defend the title, and with the right crew and some more hours in the boat, I’m positive we’ll have a good shot at playing the game as we want to.
Rod Waterhouse; Australia
Kerry and I met racing Hobie 14s in 1975.We have been sailing together on Hobie 16s ever since .Our children Jason and Bridget were brought up in the midst of the amazing Hobie family.Hobie bonded us as a family and importantly instilled in our kids the thirst for adventure .
It taught us how to meet and form great friendships.Hobie taught us how to compete.It taught us how to win and how to lose .It has been proven so strongly now that if you can do well in Hobie racing you can do well in any class.
But most important Hobie taught us how to love life.
Hobie sailing has been a true gift and we are extremely grateful for the life and opportunities that have come our way because of it.
And with this in mind we cannot wait to the upcoming Hobie Cat Worlds in Fort Meyers USA in November.
Mario Escobosa, MEX
Participating in the Hobie 16 World Cup, that is taking place in Captiva Island, Florida, represents my first time participating in an even at this level. I haven’t had the chance to participate to any of the previous World Cup that have taken place.Ir will not only allow me to see how such an event is organized, it will give me the opportunity to meet the people that are part of this Hobie Cat Family, for the main objective will be getting to know people, and have a great time.
The Mexican fleet members that are participating in the Worlds, we have been trying to train and participate in as many regattas organized by the Federación Mexicana de Vela, giving us a great opportunity to train before the event.
We are certain that it will be an amazing and unique experience.
Anthony Duchatel; AUS
“Surfing brought me to Hobies. My brother, Phil, and I surfed from a young age with Phil the first to move from surfing to Hobies. He found me the oldest Hobie 14 in Australia to start my journey. We loved how you could have a blast surfing a Hobie or competing with a one design boat – all in the same day if you wanted.One of the legends of the Australian Hobie scene, Kerli Corlett, taught me how to sail with another, Rod Waterhouse, refining that over many years. My first Worlds was in Plettenberg Bay South Africa in 1979 where I met a young Blain Dodds and an even younger William Edwards while at my 2nd in Fortaleza Brazil I met Carlton Tucker. This led to sailing around the Virgin Islands with William and three summers in Fort Walton Beach Florida and way too much fun and adventure. It was the start of a wonderful experience filled with new friends and adventure, cut short after the FWB Worlds with a dodgy back but reignited 25 years later, almost like it didn’t stop.
All of these wonderful people gave of themselves – perhaps little things to them but big things to me – Kerli went to the trouble a making a dolphin striker for my first 14 out of the stanchion of a very famous Sydney to Hobart yacht called “Ballyhoo”, Rod pulled me back into Hobie sailing after 25 years away and found me a crew for the China Worlds which we went onto win in our age category and who after a quite a few years went from being my best friend to my wife, Carlton inspired with what it takes not only to be a champion sailor but a champion person, Jim Tucker bought a new 16 and a great FWB mate, Larry Franzen, put it together so Evee and I could sail at the North Americans in FWB.
So Hobies gave me a love for “one design” competition and adventure but more Importantly it led me to the most wonderful lifelong relationships.
I am excited to be back in Florida for the next Worlds with friendships that were started over 40 years ago”
