As someone who will likely be buying an F16 in the Fall I have a few questions on the costs of being in a development class. My concern is that after buying a boat, probably a Blade, that someone will come out with a new design making my boat obsolete shortly after I buy. Also, as engineer I can think of a lot tweaks that would greatly add to the speed and unfortunately the cost of the boat. I have actually done this before, although not in sailing. There was a charity race, soapbox derby cars, and Hewlett Packard hired me to consult on its car. We created a million dollar soapbox derby car that shut the event down because nobody else could afford to compete. So, the concern of my story is that I will have to spend lots of money to remain competitive.

What are the thoughts on this? Are there any cost containment measures? Or, does this class attract people, like myself, who do not plan on spending tremendous sums to gain an edge?

Thanks,

Scott