James,
Can you look over the following points and check, something doesn't seem to add up.
You wrote :
is essentially a 5.2 hull shortened marginally. Despite being called a 16 it is actually over 17 feet long (to match the actual length of the Hobie 16 which is also over 17 feet)
The Texel handicap system measures boats and found :
Nacra 5.2 hull length overall = 5.18 mtr.
Hobie 16 hull length overall = 5.06 mtr.
F16 hull length overall = 5.00 mtr.
16 feet = 4.88 mtr.
17 feet = 5.18 mtr.
In effect the Hobie 16 is not over 17 feet long. It is just over 16 feet long, but still less then 17 feet. It is practically halveway between 16 and 17 feet.
If the nacra 16 sq. is a cut down nacra 5.2 hull (5.18 mtr) then this hull must be shorter then 17 feet as well. If they made is metric at 5 mtr as specified then it would be about halveway between 16 and 17 feet as well. To be precise; 16.4 feet or 16 feet and 5 inches. In such a setup it would also be full F16 compliant.
To arend
The main challemge is that they are constructed as single handed boats with dual forestays and I'm not sure how they would cope structually with a low bridle and single forestay to fit a current kite set-up (although all that weight has to be doing something!)
One could replace these double forestays with a high bridle strop and a single forestay and allow better spi handling that way. OR one could fit a bridle foil and have a long single forestay and be completely free in the way of spinnaker. Both mods are relative simple to make at home and are inexpensive. You may need to have you stays modified at a chandler but that is really inexpensive in most cases.
Wouter
