My vote is if we get 10 or more F18s then we should race as our own fleet. It is our mid-winters and we should be scored as our own fleet. Also, I'm not sure if a separate start is required for the race to count for our class rankings (Ding - any idea?).
My thinking is that if you want to race with the F18s then get an F18.
I'm not a fan of Portsmouth racing and prefer to avoid it as much as possible. That is a big reason I race an F18, because we typically get good turnout of boats.
Now, if F16s want to race straight up then maybe I could be talked into that.
One problem with clumping boats of different speeds into a single start is that you may have fewer starts, but you end up waiting longer for everyone to finish.