Dear Hobie Dave:
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<br>I can only respond from the Trapseat perspective as the wildthing is done quite often in this class. I would say from my experience in light winds doing the wildthing has allowed me to win several races (much more). In Trapseat sailing if you do not do the wildthing then you can expect to loose.
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<br>In strong winds in the range of 15 to 20 knots I do not do the wildthing because if you flip your are going to loose the race period. So for me and those I sail with we only wildthing in winds under 15 knots, actually maybe under 12 knots. In winds above 15 knows we may at times do a milder form of the wildthing (mildthing). But mostly we do not do the wildthing or mildthing in strong winds.
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<br>Mainly in the Trapseat events we try to reduce the wetted surface of the H16 by having less hull in the water and basically turning our boat into a monohull down wind. We of course also kick up the rudder that is on the being lifted during the wildthing and we also get our weight forward based on the strength of the wind.
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<br>With the wildthing/mildthing you need to be in as much control as possible and watch for guests of wind, waves, etc. Get Rick White's Racing for the 90's book as it has a great article on this topic even though you will need to adapt the info. a little for the H16 and its asymmetrical hulls.
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<br>Cheers.<br><br>