I've dumped my 12/13 year old on an H16 a few times. What was important was that the water was warm, we were wearing life jackets, he was comfortable in water, and we could right the damn thing. Probably the worst thing that could happen is me falling on him against something solid like the mast, boom, or hull. Regardless of brand, unless you're extremely careful of when not to go out, you're going over. When dumping over on the side, you want to just slide into the water under the boom. (Wow, going over the back side could be a 6ft fall onto the other hull - OUCH!) A pitchpole will typically toss you into the drink on the windward side of the mast. Either way, just going with it seems to be easier than fighting it. When you do, the kids are going to look to dad to keep his cool. I worked under the assumption that if he panicked, things could get ugly fast. Do it on purpose in a safe place in the spirit of fun so you all can get comfortable with it. As bothersome as motorboats can be, waterskiers are not reluctant to jump in and lend a hand if you're having trouble.

I'm kind of heavy and the TheMightyHobie18 has much more buoyancy. I've also read that the H16 pitchpoles much easier than the TheMightyHobie18 and the so I've upgraded to an TheMightyHobie18 this winter. Hoping the daggerboards don't add much more difficulty to the experience.