It appears that with the boat differing so much from a standard TheMightyHobie18 that the correction factors serve little purpose in this case. In the UK the portsmouth yardstick is a 'guide' not a bible. There is such a range of variability in different sailing locations that any rating system could be 'ideal' at one club yet prove totally inadequate at another.

If your club uses a portsmouth scheme, get the sailing committee to issue you with a provisional yardstick. Get it reviewed after a year with sufficient race results to enable it to be 'fine tuned' to enable fair racing for all.

With thanks to the efforts Robin Smith the introduction of SCHRS in the UK was a great step forward for catamaran handicap racing. It wasn't perfect but what was noticeable was the wider range of craft able to achieve race/regatta wins. After a couple of years my club reviewed the impact of SCHRS and made minor 'local' amendments to a couple of the ratings. These tended to be at the slower end of the fleet who found the ratings very difficult to sail to in the local conditions. The end result - sailors who are happy to use the rating system as implemented and reviewed.

Get a local number issued, go out and enjoy your racing. It should be appreciated that no rating system will ever be perfect. What is important is that both competitors and sailing/racing committees actively promote 'fair racing for all' however that can be best achieved.

Handicap allowances can encourage disabled sailors or novice racers to join in where there would otherwise be little chance of achieving anything because of the local 'hot shots'.

If you are not happy with a handicap don't moan to all and sundry in the dinghy park. Make note of the inconsistencies and when you have sufficient data from a number of races ask for a review of the rating as applicable. This then becomes a positive input to fair racing for all concerned.

The alternative - Don't race in handicap fleets.

Cheshirecatman