I decided to deep - six the race for the N 20s.
I was running the windsurfer course when the first N 20s arrived at the finish, and I reported to my RC assistants that those boats missed a mark. They did!
According to RRS
"SCORES DETERMINED BY THE RACE COMMITTEE
A boat that did not start, comply with rule 30.2 or 30.3, or finish, or
that takes a penalty under rule 44.3(a) or retires after finishing, shall
be scored accordingly by the race committee without a hearing. Only
the protest committee may take other scoring actions that worsen a
boat’s score."
Where finish is described as:
"A boat finishes when any part of her hull, or crew or equipment
in normal position, crosses the finishing line in the direction of
the course from the last mark after completing any penalties."
So, a race committee is obligated to record a boats finish. They are not allowed to judge whether or not a boat has successfully sailed a course, that is for the protest committee. It is not appropriate for the RC to hand out DSQ's or DNF's to boats that did indeed finish.
Who was and who was not at the skippers meeting should have no bearing on the decision. There should be no information disseminated at the meeting that is either not in the SI's or posted as a notice to competitors. Attending the meeting is not a requirement for successfully navigating a race.
