Naturally we are all smack talking eachother most of the time. And that is good fun.

But on a more serious note I would say that there are a few classes I keep a really close eye on. Both in growth and engineering. A-cat class is definately one of these as is the F18 class. However one other particular class is not part of this listing on both accounts.

In all seriousness I say that I don't think much of the EU and Aussie nacra 17's. A decent skipper would be able to run them down no matter who is on them.

The US nacra 17 is a different topic. The rig here has been boosted enormously. It has 3 sq. mtr. (= over 30 sq. ft.) more mainsail area and a bigger spinnaker by 2 sq. mtr. (= over 20 sq.ft.). I actually expect this US nacra 17 to be rather fast in most conditions. If anything it will be a true race and not a shoe-in. So yes indeed put a comparable crew on both boats and see what happens !

At this point I also would like to underline that the F16 is not intended to be the best singlehander available. It always tried to be the best it could be while using relatively basic components and materials. Aluminium, glass, vinylester. That is why the new price is so attractive. I dare say that we have come a very long way like this. Just last weekend we saw 18.000 Euro A-cats racing 12.000 Euro F16's and it was too close to call an outright winner. And we had perfect A-cat weather most of the time (lightish winds).

Could the F16 be an A-cat killer ? Yes, but at the beginning we decided to take another route. We would try to get the best out of basic materials and basic components and try to stay under 15.000. This meant we had to let the "Ultimate F16 design go". But I think we succeeded marvelously at our other goal, better then I expected. And there is still some more growth potential. I don't think we have max out the Blade F16 design yet.

But I'll say one thing about the F16's in relation to youth sailors. The F16's are very much racing boats; you have to know how to trim and depower them, because even that small rig can develop a whole lot of power. It is the same size as the Hobie 16 in platform and sail area, but the F16 can feel a whole lot more powerful. But when the trim is decent then it is a lovely ride. Especially under spinnaker I just love the boat.

It seems to the be a very good boat for light to medium crews to hang with the best of the F18's. And these are crews that would really be too light for the F18 themselfs.

If I can help in any way with the youth program you have then let me know.

Anyway good luck to all.

Wouter