I agree with you that dude boats shift the racing scene as well as the social scene.
Way way back when.. a thread started by Ding who posed the question about being unwelcome at regattas... which actually started this wave thread.
I think you can make a case that when the dude boats start to predominate in a region or at a regatta... the simple Hobie 16 with an average family guy and his kid MIGHT start to feel like he doesn't fit in. He might be less likely to keep sailing.
Yacht clubs work it so that one fleet runs the events for the other... imagine a world where the F18 and A class and Hobie 20 fleets ran the Hobie 16, 17 and 18 and slow dead boat regattas on the first weekend and they reciprocated for the third weekend? Both fleets would run a few events for Newbies and rec sailors (eg the catapaloza event they described.
