Wouter,
This forum is not for what you are using it for. We have some communication problems. If we could talk face to face for a while in private, most of them could be solved.
For example: Shared lift--- The foot of a real "spinnaker" to me comes all the way back to the rear beam. This large sail has a low lift to drag ratio with the resulting thrust vector passing across the boat forward of the CB, trunk located at the shroud, with a large athwartship component which causes lee helm. The very short footed "gennakers" which are trimmed to the main beam have a much higher lift to drag ratio and the resultant thrust vector is more aligned to the direction of the boat and does not cause lee helm. So, the size and shape of the spinnaker or gennaker or whatever you want to call this large foresail determines whether or not the boat developes lee helm with its use.
ARC17 PN Rating---The 70 PN rating for the ARC17 was arrived at by Rick White using U S Sailing Rules. If you have a problem with that, write Darline Hobock. I write her frequently and disagree with some PN numbers and rules that determine these numbers.
Righting Bar---Supercats are rigged with a righting bar. This is not true. All SCs and ARCs are rigged with a shroud extension righting system.
Texel speed record--- I do not live in Holland. I only know about the speed record that I set in a real race on race day around the Isle of Texel. The details of setting a race record on a non race day with no competition and in a totally different environment from a real race, I know nothing about. This seems strange to me, maybe a little hollow or false. It sounds more like practice to me. In the Indy 500 or the Daytona 500 races lap records set in practice don't count. Records are only set in a real race. In Formula 1 racing can you set a record in practice?
My being so "sure about things" is your interpretation---I do know when ARC put the items into production that you listed. I have never seen A NACRA self tacking jib. Possibly this was on a few boats in California only. I can see that a self tacking jib with the tack up at the top of the forestay bridle and the clew down at the main beam would be a small sail with a short luff and not very high performance. The spinaker pole and the pelican stricker tube with a low jib tack, long luff jib, can turn this situation around even with a slight loss in jib area. I had a self tacking jib on my RC27 within a year of starting to use a spinnaker in 1983.
As far as the ARC22 that went to France in the early 1990s--- I only know what the owner told me about his many visitors interested in the technical points on his boat especially the self tacking jib.
Curved tracks for self tacking jibs---There can be straight tracks and slightly curved tracks and curved tracks to the radius of the foot of the jib used on self tacking jib systems. The straight tracks and the slightly curved tracks work the same. The jib sheet controls the sail shape and car position. The slightly curved track encourages the car to run out a little more quickly than the straight track and holds the sheeting angle more constant. The track bent to the radius of the foot of the jib requires the additional control line to set the position of the jib car along the traveller track. I've experimented with them all, Wouter, prior to 1992.
Wouter, I think this is enough of this spewing of hot air and challenge over things that are not important. I think you can see that we don't disagree over things as much as you make it out to be. To make these types of entries on the forum is a waste of everyones time.
Bill