There is a HUGE control disparity between tacking and ducking with the Extreme 40s. It was too risky to bear-away. Most footage that I have seen, confirms that they tack on a dime and are beast when bearing away and thus the question was "room" required to either direction.... I don't think so.

The phemonena is similar to when first learning to fly the chute on a beachcat but in the inverse way. Most instictively headed-up not bore away when the chute heated up. We are applying our own beachcat experiences that are not typical of the Extreme 40s. I don't believe GE had a choice, he needed to tack but it would have been iffy to make the mark so he tried to duck expecting A to be out of the way in time. Most beachcats duck without loosing control, rudders are more in proportion to the boat and the main can be unsheeted in an instant. Accordingly, we think that ducking was a safe option..not on an Extreme 40. It's a whole paradigm shift, just like when first learning to fly the chute.