Great insight CJT!
You wrote:
"The whole race becomes about them, the back of the fleet gives up and goes away."

Sailing as a sport requires competition between sailors... If the competitive balance is skewed dramaticaly (by money or Olympic status) fewer and fewer sailors compete in the sport (or class). Fewer and fewer competitors results in a single class which skews the competive balance further and new racers have no yardstick with which to measure their progress.

As our racing season starts to emerge from the snow banks... we must keep in mind that our top sailors are addicted to racing and we can count on them to take care of their own needs....Meanwhile, our C fleet sailors are trying the sport on for size.... We must grow our base of sailors by providing a friendly competitive envirorment that matches their goals in the sport that we are running.

You wrote:
Non-sailors look at it, go "wow", then "I'll never be able to do that" and go look at something theyt can do- run a powerboat. The sport should be publicising boats beginners can sail.

I agree that this is important. One problem that all but kills this kind of initiative is that the sailors who are running clubs and events are addicted to the sport and have moved up from the entry level boats and simply lost touch with the non sailor just getting going in this kind of sailing. Time is limited for everyone these days and I think its a lot to ask of these club members to take on this additional challenge. Dealers and factories have a direct stake in new sailors! We need their leadership and manpower to grow the sport by recruiting new sailors and then introducing them to the sport of cat racing.

Take Care
Mark