Sorry, Wouter. I didn't know I was giving advice. I just asked some questions about possible things that he could try, assuming the normal things like downhaul and rotation and mainsheet don't work.

And I still have the same questions -- if the normal sail trim adjustments don't work, can't you experiment with different batten shape and stiffness in the top battens?

And the thing I mentioned about putting the top batten in backward is just something that has worked for us in some heavy-air circumstances.

And I did not tell Robi to shave his battens. He was saying why shouldn't he be able to sail with whatever he got with the boat. (Does anybody actually not change anything?)

Battens are not as important as they used to be. Sail makers are better at building good shape into catamaran sails, the high-tech materials do not make it as easy to change the shape of the sail by shaping battens.

But isn't it good, and fun, to experiment with different things? If there is one thing I have learned about sailing, it is that there are always new things to learn and to try. And it is important to always question and never blindly accept the technique of the day.

What works today might be obsolete tomorrow, and come back around and be the "in" thing again in a few years.

And I have also noticed that what works great for one sailor doesn't work at all for another sailor. People can have their boats set up completely different, but with identical hulls and sails, and be always fighting it out for first place.

The debates will always rage on, and nobody is ever truly RIGHT. What works for you might not work for me, and vice versa.

That's why it is more interesting to race on the water instead of on a computer.