Hi Sunny -
The self-tacking jib is indeed class legal and I considered one as well. In the time it took me to decide if one was right for me, I got so used to sailing without it that I stopped worrying about it. Bill Gillespie mounted a self-tacker on two boats, I think - he bent the tracks himself and it looked like it would work just fine.
On the matter of learning to tack - don't waste your time taking the jib off. That actually makes it harder. The beauty of that tiny jib is that you can leave it cleated on the wrong side and it won't bother you too much - what I mean is that you don't have to frantically rush to break it free on one side to sheet it in on the other.
My learning curve was this: in the beginning, I would start my tack by footing just a bit for a little squirt of speed, then turning steadily (but not slamming it over) up through the wind holding the mainsheet right next to the cleat. As soon as the mainsail went slack, I uncleated the main and moved to the other side of the boat so I could look forward again at the jib, which I haven't touched yet. Having the jib stay cleated will help you get the nose of the boat around, but it isn't so big as to cause a problem (like flipping <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/crazy.gif" alt="" />). I watched the jib fill up on the wrong side of the boat and felt the mainsheet play out a little bit, maybe a little less than a foot. Once I could *feel* the jib backwinding, I would straighten out the rudders and cleat the main where it was. Only then would I reach forward and break the jib free, sheeting it in hard and quick on the new leeward side. Then I would sheet the main in and steer up for speed. Once I got going, I'd take a look at sail trim to see if the jib was set ok.
This is NOT an incredibly fast tack, but it was how I learned and I got quicker and quicker tacking every time I sailed and got used to the feeling of the boat turning through the wind and powering back up after the tack. By the time Nationals came around, I had it down to one smooth quick series of motions as I crossed under the main.
If you take the jib off, I think you'll be learning the way some Hobie 14 sailors did - crank the rudders over and back through the tack. There's nothing wrong with learning that way, too, but you have a jib so you might as well use it. Plus, the boat goes uphill sooooo much better with the jib on. <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> I did an event once without the jib and it was waaaay less fun.
Enjoy the practice.
