the whole point of racing for me is to sail my boat as well and fast as i can, the results take care of themselves. h16 racers have demonstrated that mast rake is fast. tuning a 16 is like tuning a guitar- all the strings need to be tensioned correctly for it to sing. also practice your tacking. in order for you to keep up with 17s and 18s you will have to sail better than they do. yes it is possible. the 16 is very fast downwind, can really move doing the wild thang (windward hull lifted, weight on leeward hull and forward) so you can make up what you may lose on the upwind leg. go fast and have fun!