"Alina" has a Jerry-Montgomery-modified rudder . . . I think deeper and more foil-shaped . . . And a carbon-fiber boom . . . She must be the fastest M17 sailing . . . ----- Original Message ----- From: <htmills@bright.net> To: "'For and about Montgomery Sailboats'" <montgomery_boats@mailman.xmission.com> Sent: Friday, March 26, 2004 9:15 PM Subject: for the fun of racing fast fans on the list Hi, Doug! I don't have the sweet spot figured out; John or Jerry or some of the others could give you a much better answer, but Miss T's mast is significantly raked aft more than Busca's and she knocks Busca's socks off to weather, even with reduced sail and the windage of a bimini. The 17's big rudder is important as a lifting foil and takes some of the load off the keel which, not being a deep fin loses out some in efficiency. At some point you can over-do it though, and end up with a loss in performance. Tod -----Original Message----- From: montgomery_boats-bounces+htmills=bright.net@mailman.xmission.com [mailto:montgomery_boats-bounces+htmills=bright.net@mailman.xmission.com] On Behalf Of Doug Kelch Sent: Friday, March 26, 2004 8:54 PM To: For and about Montgomery Sailboats Subject: for the fun of racing fast fans on the list Tod, I agree with your 10 deg opinion altho it could easily be 15 deg in some conditions. What is this about loading some weather helm into the equation - I always thought a slight weather helm to neutral was best to avoid rudder drag! Are you saying that give all other trim to be optimum that a moderate weather helm helps you point better than a light weather helm? Thanks Doug