A question about the rules at A-Mark.
In all cases the boats are on starboard tack in the Zone aproaching A-Mark to be rounded to port.

Consider three scenarios:
1) Boat 1 is clear ahead and slightly below the layline. Boat 2 is astern and laying the A mark. If Boat 1 has to tack to round the mark, according to Rule 18.2(c), Rule 18.2(c) no longer applies and the situation becomes a Tacking & Port/Starboard situation. I believe this is correct.


2) In another case, Boat 1 is ahead and to leeward overlapped with Boat 2 astern and to windward. Boat 1 must tack to round the mark, but Boat 2 is laying the mark. Rule 18 again does not apply because according to Rule 18.1(b) one but not both boats must tack. So again the situation would become one of Tacking & Port/Starboard. (If Boat 1 is able to lay the mark by luffing, she is ok, but she can not cross head to wind). I believe this is correct.

3) Boat 1 is ahead and to leeward, Boat 2 is overlapped astern and to windward. Neither boat is able to lay the mark without tacking. I believe Boat 1 is the right of way boat and is allowed room to tack since Rule 18 includes the phrase "room to tack or jibe when either is a normal part of the manouvre", and no other rules seem to apply when both boats must tack in the zone. Is this correct? How would Boat 1 prove that Boat 2 needed to tack also?

Comments and insights are welcome.

sm

In situation 3, how can one boat be ahead and the other be overlapped?
2006 Case Book

Check cases 81, 94, 95, 15, 2.

Ahead but not "Clear Ahead"

ah...

I believe your interpretations of rule 18 are correct, but it's usually a mistake to assume that a protest committee will share your understanding.

My advice would be (in descending preference order):
1) Don't get into this situation to begin with. Push your way up to the layline before becoming "about to round or pass" the mark. The rules are written to discourage tacking inside the two-boat-length-zone (TBLZ) and it's safest to avoid doing so.

2) If you wind up in this situation after all, hail the other boat before things get rushed. Tell them that you're inside boat and need room to tack. When both skippers know what the other intends to do, then they will most likely get through the encounter safely, cleanly, and without protest.

3) If the other boat won't give you room, don't break any rules yourself. You can head up, but you must try to avoid contact. Make sure you're squeaky-clean and then protest. If the other boat needed to tack to make the mark, then she will. In the protest hearing, be polite, present the facts clearly, precisely, and with good substantiating evidence. Testimony such as "I know were were overlapped for 10 seconds because I counted "one one-thousand, two one-thousand..." carries a lot more weight than "I guess it was 10 seconds or so". Tell exactly where the boats were at what times and it should be evident that tacking was required. Don't stop at the facts. Lead the protest committee through your interpretation of the rules, which ones apply, what each boat's obligations were, how you fulfilled yours, and how the other did not. Many protest hearings are miscarrages of justice simply and solely because people present their cases poorly.

Regards,
Eric

To round the mark when you are not laying it would require 2 tacks. The rules allow for a tack that is a normal part of the rounding. Do they allow for 2, because the first tack doesnt't get you around the mark?
As pointed out, it would be wise to leave the "double tack in the 2 boat length circle" out of your bag of tricks.

I'm sure there are many who would say that if you missed the layline, that you were not "about to round or pass" the mark. I'm not aware of any definitive ruling on this particular situation, so it would be interesting to see it come up in an appeal. I suspect most judges would consider any boat in the TBLZ "about to round or pass", regardless of the number of tacks needed (as long as they were headed towards the mark). And, because rrs 18 does not apply "while the boats are on opposite tacks", rule application could get a little hairy during the rounding.

As a thought exercise, it's interesting, but I wouldn't want to be the one testing it in a protest hearing.

Regards,
Eric

Cat's are almost too fast to decide to tack, then complete the tack within the two boat lengths in most wind conditions, ie. the decision is made before you even enter the two boat lengths zone whether you're going to lay the mark or not.

If you leave your decision that late, you deserve to not round first time. Bear away and gybe onto port, tack and then round, also known as bailing out.

If you are the leeward of two boats that are not going to make it, why the hell have you left the decision so late! Bail out and go around properly earlier.

In cat sailing, with high speeds and slow tacks, it is always best to think well ahead and make decisions as early as possible, erring on the side of maintaining speed.

Indeed, on a cat it is always better to sail 50 more meters or so then to get hung up in a forced tack or a dispute with another boat.

Wouter