just my point of view, never had to justify it but... I enjoyed beating hobbies up wind on my seaspray. It was all about the ability to get upwind faster. When I go out for recreation, I like to feel like I am beating the wind. I want to be able to do that as much as possible. I guess the wind is my opposition. The coast home with the wind has never been a challenge. The spi looks pretty, but I think it's a cake walk, a time to catch some rays and have a beer after winning the real race of getting up wind. just my opinion
Racing H16 and 20s et.it was all about getting to weather; the feeling of powering up wind. While it was technically challenging to keep as fast or faster down wind, it was rarely thrilling unless the wind was nuking .
Now add a spin and you are racing downwind. Sailing is a new game, it is not hard to do, but there is a significant learning curve to do it well. The boat is now balanced: if you are trapping up wind then you are down as well – so to speak.
Both the A and the F16 are pretty light and responsive, but the addition of the spin is what, for me, makes the F16 fun to sail not work. I have never yet been sorry for the added time it takes me to rig. Once the chute fills and you feel the boat want to pull out from under you, it’s all good.
