This new Hobie cat concept is gearing up to be ready in time to hit the beaches this summer.
Forty years after the original Hobie 16 beach cat, this is the new breathed-on version. It's been given the Philippe Starck design treatment and is called the Hobie H+.
Starck is a Hobie owner himself, and it's not the first time he's been involved in yacht design - remember the ‘s' range Bénéteaus from the late Eighties?
He has redesigned it with a circular trampoline on which you can fit a range of seats, wheels that snap on to the hulls and can be levered to lift the boat and run it the boat up a beach. There's also a simple lever system for lowering and raising the mast, and a roller furling mainsail.
Most ingeniously can also a briefcase sized rechargeable power-and-propeller pack that slots into a special compartment. The propeller lowers into the water to drive the boat, a bit like a bow thruster.
It will cost about €9,000. Oh, you'll be able to buy the new Hobie H+ in four different colours.
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