I dont see the difference between the two wordings here as it clearly would be against the intention of the rules to use the downhaul to 'stretch' the sail to make it bigger. If this is an issue, put a black "measurement mark" at the max hoist height and another at the lower limit. Sails not allowed outside these two measurement marks. I believe this is the "standard" in other classes which regulate luff length. Putting the gooseneck at the lower measurement band effectively stop anyone from downhauling below the mark.

The real question here in my opinion is wether the F16 class need a smaller mainsail? Or are there other reasons (except what Hans brought up) for decreasing sail area?


As long as we are talking about masts. I suppose we will not see many tapered masts in the F-16 class, as you loose effective area.