A corinthian sport.

Be true to thy self.

Ethically? Yes. It's called RAF (Retired After Finishing).

Under the rules? No, not unless there was obvious damage or injury.

Regards,
Eric

The sailor was at the front of the fleet and I think finished 1st or 2nd in that particular race.

I appreciate everyone's input. In the future I think I will call out to the boat that they hit the mark and yell protest. There are other factors here too. What if, in this case, you said something to the PRO after the race while still on the water? Once again, I suppose since it isn't an official protest the PRO isn't obligated to do anything either?

Hell, in a local club race, If I get fouled, and they ask if I want them to do a turn, I almost always so no, unless it really screws me over.

Nationals on the other hand, I'll call it, and expect the same in return.

In this case, the PRO can't do anything because there is no protest, and the incident was not seen by the race officals.

We, the sailors, police our sport, we should do so. The committee is not responisble for following up the rule violaitons seen or said from other boats. It is the competitors responsability.

We as a group of sailors should all follow the same rules and enforce them regardless of boat class, fleet size, or event type. It will put us all on the same page, and teach us all more about the rules. Even if mistakes are made. Deborah and I sail in both monohulls and multi's. The Multi group is far more lax on the rules than the mono groups. It is talked about in various circles in the mono groups on how lax the multis are and sometimes spoken as unknowledgable of the rules. This is seen as a negative aspect of multihull sailing, and needs room for improvement to attract more people to "the dark side"

By the way, I can spell, I just type like I run my mouth: No backups and no edits.

Eric, I agree with where you're coming from, but in the context of the original question, I stand by what I wrote, to protest or not is ultimately a personal choice that involves a lot of factors.

Don't take my posts apart line-by-line here. Especially in regard to the point I was making about whether an RC protests someone specifically for touching a mark, your argument falls apart. A competitor should follow the same rules of thumb: make sure they really did see the mark get hit, and have a rock-solid story to give the PC if it goes that far.

Mike

Mike,

Ok, I won't quote you line by line. The context of the original question, however, is "What should one do during a race if you see the boat ahead of you hit a mark...".

I approach rule questions as hypothetical scenerios where the facts are as stated. I take it at face value that the mark was indeed hit. My analysis does not depend on the confidence level of those facts.

Now, the action a competitor should take is different than the action race committee should take in two ways.

1. During a race, a competitor who plans to protest must fulfill the requirements of rule 61.1(a), which include hailing "Protest" and displaying a red flag (exceptions apply). Race committee must comply with rule 61.1(b), which includes informing the boat after the race.
2. The decision whether or not to protest is also quite different. Competitors are "expected to enforce" the rules. RC is not. The sailors have a greater responsibility and should therefore be more inclined to protest than RC.

Drawing an analogy between RC protests and competitor protests is not really valid here, as the roles of the parties are quite different. Being sure of your facts, and presenting them in a compelling way is good advice for everybody in a protest hearing, but not really germaine to this question.

Regards,
Eric

Hi Eric,

I also saw "etiquette" in the title, which makes me (and others) think there was more to the question, but that's another story.

Anyway, we're basically on the same page, but you have to let the RC thing go, because you're still reading WAY more into this than what I'm actually saying.

The only reason I mentioned the RC was because, in my opinion, unless a sailor is as sure as the RC example I gave that a mark was hit, he shouldn't waste his time with the flag or hearing. I'm not comparing a sailor's obligations to initiate a hearing to that of the RC, just giving the example of what constitutes really knowing that the mark was hit.

If a sailor is sure the mark was hit, he needs to hail protest (immediately), or it never happened.

Mike

put chalk on the turn buoy. Check the boat for a nice streak down the side.

I like it!!!

The BIMBOs would hate you, not to mention the mark boat owners, but man, would that solve a lot of issues!

Mike

The thing with protests are that the scoring is not fare as I remember when I windsurfed competetively you could not through out a dsq. soooooo do your turns or in the PR you mite sufer dearly ! ! ! ! Since that is not so the dsq is not a deturant ! ! ! ! ! HUM

DSQs are generally excludable, unless otherwise specified in the sailing instructions.

RRS Appendix B8 covers scoring for windsurfers and mentions nothing about DSQs being non-excludable.

Just a statment if the DSQ could not be your through out then it would be a deturant I've seen many a DSQ as a through out/low score

One thing I have not see mentioned here and in the spirit of the original question "What should you do.........?"

There was an ongoing discussion around our local club about protests and such in club and fleet racing. I agree that it is better to spend time at the bar but we are forgetting newcomers to our sport (the few that there may be). Hank Goodman brought up a great point. The protest process is an excellent teaching tool. It keeps us all sharp on the rules and as long as it is not a hostile environment it is a very positive process that helps everyone learn, teach, and enjoy the sport. When I began sailing cats I was very fortunate to have people around me that would explain the mistakes I made in a real effort to better MY skill and not their own egos. I don't think this is always the case. But it should be.

All excellent points, zander. If doing a "public" hearing, the participants really need to act accordingly (I've seen this backfire).

Mike