Hey Eric,

This is a great discussion. I think a lot of this stuff gets brushsed aside and can lead to bad feelings between sailors and RC.

What you wrote in this post, I agree with, but there are some key words in the first section that were omitted from your previous posts. They would be: "and gets an answer." I previously said I wouldn't answer, as an RO, so there would be no grounds for protest against someone who asked a question.

The other key words are: "ask another sailor." We do the same thing, and it's perfectly OK (technically not legal, but no one cares). However, when I'm an RO, it is absoulely not OK for me as the RC to answer a question (except perhaps as mentioned in the total newbie discussion).

I agree with a lot of the other points, as mentioned, I tend to be cautious to be sure I remain fair. I probably should have said "lower the threshold" as opposed to "lower the standards."

The VHF stuff is a whole other story. I also like to do the live countdown, primarily for the mark boats. I've been told by a judge to be careful, because I might "confuse the competitors..."

I can definitely feel for your wife. Light air causes us to do weird things sometimes... <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Mike