The imagination is a powerful thing. wink

Loss in functionality is the trade off but will they help you win races? NO. Are they in the way? YES. Will it be expensive to replace or repair those "deep" boards? YES. Would center or low profile boards like on Taipan be lees likely to get whacked in club or rental use? YES. Do we need the "deep" boards to enjoy "apparent wind sailing"? NO. Do the "deep" boards create more problems then they solve? YES. Can we make them shorter? NO. Not without a redesign of the "trunks". Will they redesign the "trunks"? NO. Would not add to bottom line which is perhaps why they went with the F18 beams and want the F16 min. weight increased. Did I miss anything?... grin


Originally Posted by Timbo
I race Uni most of the time and I LOVE my deep boards. In medium wind I leave them down when going downwind, so no loss of time there at the A mark spin. set. When it's really blowing I'll pull them both half way up, but I've got the up line on them so I don't go to the leeward side to do it, just a quick pull on the line and up it comes. The only drawback is at the C mark or gate, I've got one more thing to do, put them both back down for the next upwind leg, so that does add a couple seconds, but I've never lost a race by -a couple seconds- so I don't think it really has an effect on my overall standings. ;^)

I do think the deeper boards will help you go better upwind (create more lift, point higher or sideslip less) and allow you to fly a hull earlier in medium wind, which also reduces drag, so that's a help.

"House prices have risen by nearly 25 percent over the past two years. Although speculative activity has increased in some areas, at a national level these price increases largely reflect strong economic fundamentals." – Ben Bernanke – 2005