...you will have a very hard time proving that the leeward boat luffed you in an unseamanlike manner especially if the helmsman of the leeward boat hails you before the luff begins and turns his boat into you at a fast but steady rate. The onus is on you and usually you will lose in a protest hearing. If you choose to pass to windward, be ready for the consequences.
I agree that if you try to roll another boat, you should be prepared to be luffed. Hails are good practice, tend to prevent collisions, and support your position in the protest room, but (with the exception of rule 19) not part of the rules. As you say, the rate of turn is important. It has to be fast enough to be effective, but slow enough to give the other boat room to keep clear. That is a matter of interpretation, and whenever you go into the protest room over a matter of interpretation, you are in jeopardy. There is no "onus" in this situation. The only place in the rules that that presumes judgement one way or the other is RRS 18.2(e). Otherwise, the protest committee finds the facts and applies the rules based on them. If the PC finds that the windward boat capsized due to poor seamanship, then the leeward boat has not committed a foul. If they find that windward boat acted promptly with reasonable skill but was compelled to capsize, then the leeward boat broke RRS 16.1 and will be penalized.
I have also seen many lame incidents ... At a multiclass event a couple of years ago... That same sailor was at ... In each case, I was not being scored with this sailor, only sharing the course so I did not pursue circles or a protest.
Why not? The rules apply equally to all boats in a race, not just those in the same class. The Basic Principle of Sportsmanship and the Rules states "Competitors in the sport of sailing are governed by a body of rules
that they are expected to follow and enforce." When another boat fouls you, you are expected to protest. If you choose not to enforce the rules, then you shouldn't expect others to.
But it's this kind of BS with ignorant sailors on the race course that is so frustrating
If you don't protest them, they won't learn.
and those sailors can be especially scary when they are flying a chute.
Well, true. A catamaran flying a hull downwind under spinnaker is already on the edge. That is why the experienced sailors jealously guard their space to leeward. They know that it's their escape route should a gust hit.
Read, understand, and live by the racing rules.
Well, I do read the rules. I continue to learn new things about them, so I doubt I'll ever be able to claim that I understand them completely. Even the Senior Judges I know don't always agree with Dick Rose's rule interpretations. I don't live by the racing rules, but I do try to sail under them.
Bob, thanks for having the discussion, because it is important to understand and follow the rules. I think we are in much closer agreement than it appears.
Regards,
Eric
