Matt's right about the bridle vane. They make a special one for Hobie 17s because it's a uni-rig. I would go that way first. By the way, the tacking thing is the reason the boat became less popular as a cruising boat on the beaches; when you added another person to go out for a ride, you really had to stay focused to not go into irons. In my opinion that boat is strictly a racing boat.

Wyatt