Words from a post on a Yahoo! C26 Discussion Board subject that was spinning wildly out of control. The issue was mast rake/weather helm.
The problem is aerodynamics.
Forward
rake induces aerodynamic
problems
that bring on
other
problems. Swept wings
on
fighters and now commercial
jets
are for a reason. The sail
is
a wing. With two wings
it is like slats. If the rake is forward
then the stall occurs earlier & less
efficiency & less speed. Take an
example from the catamarans.
They have extreme rake and
very high speed. It isn't aesthetics.
It is aerodynamics.