Thoughts:

Get your head out the boat and be looking upwind where the pressure is coming from . Anticipate the gust before it hits and make a decision to feather up a little as it hits, crunch the downhaul before it hits, or sheet out a little and foot just before/just as it hits and when you get the acceleration crunch the main and get the lift.

Your choice depends on the puff, which side of the puff you are on, the weight of the boat, how powered up you will be when it hits, the wave state.

Pacing with an equivalent boat will reveal the most efficient technique. If the boat is popping up then sitting back down in puffs and you feel the rudders loading up you are probably over powered/oversheeted or are just not in that groove/zone where you are at one with the wind and the waves.

It seems like the less I focus on the telltales and the more I look out on the water and 'feel the force' the better I do to weather. If you have the crew running the main then good communication (what wind you see coming towards the boat and what to do once it hits) is vital.

Like Jake, I prefer a little feel in the helm so you get feedback when the boat is locked up and the main needs easing so you can foot to accelerate.

While pinching is slow, getting height seems very important in big fleets so you can climb out of a parade of boats on the same tack, or not foot down beneath other boats into dirty air. This groove is narrow on high performance boats like the F18 and A-Cat.

Chris.