I believe there is a story about Randy Smyth realizing he was about to - or had- gone over the line early so he basically stalled his boat and sailed backwards. The boats that were stalled behind him were still considered "overtaking" boats so he had the right of way.
I'm not sure if that was Smyth or not - but that did happen. However, the rules have been changed such that if you are backing up you loose all rights.
