Call it a lemon, call it an orange. We're close to having 50 boats at the F18 North American and no matter how you cut it, peel it, or slice it, that's sweet. I'm about sick of this gloom and doom stuff. Those that continue to fight the major current will continue to fight the current - eventually they'll learn that past a certain point it's harder and even futile paddling against it. The momentum is pretty much undeniable at this point....but I never did notice the elephant in this room.

Having multiple manufacturers is great for the class...having one manufacturer with a clear advantage is not good for the class (which, BTW, isn't even close to happening yet). People like the ability of being able to choose their brand. People serious about their sport have shiny-itus and buy new boats - having slight (read: perceived) advances in technology gets these people to continue to upgrade (myself included). Used boats go back into the market ... it's a good cycle and a self propelling one. A huge leap forward in technology would really hurt the class but the rules are in place (and would/have quickly gone into place) to protect against that.

Success is entirely dependant upon how you spend time between failures.

I have a hit list of fortune cookies...I'll keep 'em coming.