Tim, That example above is what can happen in F16 right now!!!!
The class rules are so loose that someone can build the super pimped boat and if they point it in the right direction on the race course you wont see which way they went...Maybe the class could survive that but it would forever change it. You would have to either ban the super boat (for meeting the rules??) or you would all have to build super boats (not cheap) or just get used to having your butt kicked everytime someone turned up with a super F16...
You are incorrect with that assumption.
I suggest you read the rules.
A mast weight must be attained by suspending the tip on a horozontal plane. You could build a mast with carbon but you would be throwing your money away because you would have to overbuild or add weight to the mast for it to be legal.
Actually, I think you need to read the rules.... The tip weight as it currently stands is unachievable with an alloy mast so there is a clear weight advantage with a carbon mast. Oh, there is the small advantage of a stiffer mast with carbon... but I won't get too technical here.
The price of a new F16 is very reasonable and 1/2 the cost of a new A Class.
A new A class is built to take advantage of the class rules, hence the cost. NO current F16 is built to take advantage of the rules. If somebody actually did it the boat would cost as much as an A class.
F16 needs to answer a fundamental question:-
Do you want to be like an A class with kites? The current rules are written to allow exactly that. Sure costs are good now but the rules allow a lot more than what is currently being offered to the market.
Somebody mentioned that some builders have to add weight to F18's to get them up to weight. Thats correct. And I dont think you wil find a current F18 manufacturer or sailor that wishes the weight was less (Say 160kg). It would be cheaper to build them (very slightly) and the boats would be easier to handle on shore. But the class is so big now that to make the change would destroy the fantastic success it is enjoying.
What I am saying is that F16 has the chance now to make changes that will ensure it has a bright future.
