W.F,
I suppose, as the F18HT has the narrower beam and no jib, it should be quite agile and could make good viewing.
Whenever we run a regatta we invite the local TV station to come down and do some filming.They always give us time on the news each night. of the regatta.
The Local Radio stations also help spread the word and give updates each day and broadcast an interview when it's all over.
Also our publicity officer usually gets articles published in several Sailing magazines.
We do the best we can with what we have to work with.
I'd imagine a $5000 prize, even if it were only AUs dollars, in itself would get us more attention and air time.
I'd be interested to here how your test event goes.
Good Luck.