Yes, you have a good point but there are compromises with all rigs. After all, high aspect ratio conventional rigs have a higher centre of effort than low aspect ratio ones, but the pros generally outweigh the cons.
Maybe you can get away with a smaller area overall and shorter mast with this rig? (area up in higher wind strength, deep camber for starting from rest/accelerating) Maybe you can't - but they certainly look cheap to try out!
There was wind tunnel work done some years ago by C.A. Marchaj on various rigs for a paper "Planform Effect of a Number of Rigs on Sail Power" and this 'crab claw' rig seemed to stand out from the crowd:
I think the graph shows that the bermudan rig edges ahead to windward (which I imagine will provide a higher ultimate top speed for a land yacht) but does not provide nearly as much 'grunt' at higher angles of attack (where a landyacht would be when accelerating from low speed).
To be fair it is probably the case that the bermuda rig tested was a pretty dated and water based type - I would expect a modern land yacht rig to be considerably better, especially to windward.
(Normally a Blowout). Sail configuration depends a lot on Rolling Resistance/Running Surface Hardness, Areas as "Hard as a dogs forehead" offer little resistance and then it gets down to tires width and tire pressure. Then if you have really excellent sideways resistance you can get the very best of speeds with a flatter shaped sail. I use a sail that is as flat as a tablecloth and derive shape from a large Luff Pocket and shaped CF Battens. When starting off the acceleration
