Dinghies VS Cats

But with the time taken to tack ( and I'm nto just talkinf about cats  here, fast dinghys B14, 49er etc as well) you can't make use of the smaller shifts, your looking more for the longer duration wind patterns, long ossicilations, wind swing etc.

I agree that cats sailing long courses do have their own unique tactical considerations, but put a fast boat on a short course and it corner time!

As a generalisation (and its a big one!) I think that the faster dinghys go, the less tactical the racing beomes, even more so with cats.

When your going slower, and can tack/gype compartivly faster, you can take advantage of changes in wind direction much more effectivly, as well as sailing the fleet more closely.

Once you start getting into boat speed sailing, you just have to decide which corner you want to sail into, and hope you got it right!

Both require their own individual set of skills and techniques, and have differing positive and negative points, but on balance (and this is a personal opinion), I prefer the tactical sailing

But you did not say at "Hill Head" you made an inaccurate generalisation!

Not at Grafham; Same price

Can't believe that !. A cat in a breeze can be awsome and should be experienced by all.

I too prefer dinghies overall but love cats (and also boards) in the right conditions.

Nip round to your neighbours at Pentewan next time you are able and hitch a ride - then see if you'd 'give up sailing'