What if there is no way to give them room? What if you are being taken up in a long line of leeward boats who are all taking each other up? You cannot bear off and are the next boat to the committee boat, you have to come up or hit someone below you. It's a chain reaction and sometimes you cannot give the guy above you any room. He has to see it developing and bail out via a tack away from the com. boat, circle around and then start in the back row.
He doesn't get to bear off and hit you, and then claim you didn't give him room to keep clear, because you cannot bear off without hitting the guy below you. That is why I don't like to start right at the com. boat in a crowded agressive fleet. You will get hosed!
The same thing applies at mark roundings. Chain reaction protests. If you couldn't give the inside guy room without hitting someone above you, you must protest the guy that prevented you from coming up in order to keep yourself from being subject to a protest from the guy under you that had to hump the mark.
You guys are making it too complicated.
Inside boats are owed room at finishing marks. You can't use the finishing mark or boat as a pick. You murdered that last tack and got beat - live with it.
