I guess it's all in what you're looking for.
Buy a used H17 for $3K and race against over 30 boats at a Nationals in 2 weeks.
Spend 12-15K on an A or F16 and race against 30 boats at the A Nationals and no more than 10 F16's from what I have seen. Both very cool and very fast. I just want to race against some boats drink rum and tell stories after dinner.
If I could lose 50lbs in the next 2 weeks my 1971 H14 would still be competitive.