Hi, Mary,



Of course you know that many races are organized with strictures to focus the competition on one or another aspect of sailing, and to exclude advantages like age, gender, weight, boat modification etc.



Meanwhile, many races are "wide open" and encourage innovation, preparation, conditioning, and so on.



Each broad category of structure offers different challenges, with concommitant rewards inherent in those challenges, for those who rise to meet them.



Some purists like the idea expressed by Rick's discussions of Wave contests. He seems to be aiming for as little variation as possible in the way of boat, campaign etc. so as to come as close as possible to a "mano a mano" "Who's the better sailor, period." kind of contest. That goal, (if I'm understanding Rick correctly...), or that kind of valuation of the contest, wouldn't be very compatible with allowing some guys to have more or less resources on the beach than other guys, or more practice time since his expenses are paid... since that moves the competition into "Who's the better sailor *AND* campaigner".



I'm not saying one's wrong and one's right, just that they're different, that's all.



Personally, I'm very excited to git my whuppin' from the baddest dudes on Waves; but I would mildly prefer if we all had identical physical resources on the beach - just my .02.



So it may not be racing against the "pro's" that's being objected to by the poster, but the advantages those pro's obtain in equipment.



Again, personally, I'm going to learn from them in any boat. And if the wind-gods smile, who knows......