Quite a lot of heat being generated in this debate. It has been rehearsed endlessly in the RV forums (Yahoo rvsqn in UK and Vans Airforce in the US) and both TW and NW RV's have fierce devotees.
The proportion of Type-A (nosewheel) RV's of all types, not just RV 9's, in the US is considerably higher than in the UK - there are far more RV's there than in the rest of the world anyway.
One reason for this is that US aircraft insurers load TW insurance compared with NW - on grounds of accident rates presumably. Many builders seem to opt for the nosewheel because they are worried about the premium for taildragger. It will be interesting to see if the recent (admittedly quite small) spate of A-type pole-vaulting accidents changes this.
I haven't flown an A-type but I can say that it's really not hard to learn to handle a TW RV.
And those looks!!! No contest!!!
