Depends on the conditions
Ideally you would have an adjustable backstay that would allow you to have a straight mast in light air and bend in strong breeze. If you always sail in certain conditions you can and don't have a backstay adjuster you can just set it to suit your conditions. One point though. The 35.5 has one of highest Sail Area/Displacement ratios of any Hunter. This means it overpowers sooner than some. I liked some significant mast bend in our boat to handle the strong breeze better even though I was giving up a little speed in light air. Also more backstay tension and more mast bend should help tighten the forestay which I think this boat needs. Tight uppers help too. Even with both backstay and uppers tight I still never got the forestay as tight as I would have liked. Principles involved...As you bend your mast the middle of the mainsail gets flatter creating less lift and heeling force. The boat we'll heel less, but not have as much power for light air.If you don't have an adjustable backstay its a compromise. Pick the bend that matches your conditions. Don't be afraid of the bend. I haven't been on my 35.5 for two years (long story), but I think we had at least six inches of pre bend in the mast. Not to be confused with mast rake by the way...