Mark,
That is usually the case with a one-design class. Heck, the Shark Catamaran that my family bought in 1962, the second one in the United States, was #50. And that number is still with that boat and on its sail and we know its history from its travels around the United States, and we know where it is now and who owns it. And that's the way it should be.

But in the case of a formula class (which is why I thought this discussion would be better on a formula forum), the number that was assigned by the manufacturer may not be the same as the one that is assigned by the Formula Class Association.

So does the sail number originally assigned by the factory stay with the boat forever but the formula sail number belong to the Formula Class member that applied for that number? If I sell my old Formula 16 boat and buy a new Formula 16 boat, do I get to keep my same number? I mean on the Formula 16 class list my name is listed with that number. Does all that have to be changed if I sell my boat and buy a new one? But you can't have two boats with the same number, right? SO.......

I just don't know how all this works in a formula class. Like I said, maybe the Formula 18 class has it all figured out.

On a football team if you have a number on your shirt, you keep that number even if you get a new shirt; right?