I have a request to everyone who reads this post.

Please make sure you have the latest version of the Racing Rules of Sailing (RRS) and find some quiet time to read Part 2 - When Boats Meet.

I sailed the Deep South Regatta this weekend in Lake Charles. There was an excellent turnout of around 50 boats. We had F-18's, I-20's, A-Cats, H-16, H-18, H-20, and Portsmouth. The wind gods cooperated with 8-14 knots on flat water on both days. The race committee did a fine job running five multi-lap races over a windward-leeward course.

The reason for my post is there were several scary moments on the water especially around marks and the starting line. In the first race of the series we had a sailor blatantly barge the weather end of the line. He forced Steve Piche into me and I had to grab Steve's bow to fend off a collision and keep from being forced into the boat below me. Luckily, the start was recalled, no collision, and no harm done (and I got together with the barging sailor after racing and politely told him to get his rule book out and learn what happened). There were other instances where boats on downwind legs were not keeping clear of boats on upwind legs (windward/leeward) and several mark roundings where boats sailed into positions where they had no rounding rights. I saw several "deer in the headlight" incidents where an offending boat just froze and the right of way boat had to sail around them. Amazingly enough, no damage but some scary moments nonetheless.

Lesson to be learned is everyone (beginner to expert) should tune up on the rules at least a couple of times a year and learn to anticipate these situations well in advance. Find the experienced sailors to answer your questions and/or use this forum as a resource.

A commitment to learning the RRS will make you a better sailboat racer and your sailing/racing experience more enjoyable.

Thanks!

Bob Hodges
A-Class USA 230

Bob:

Wish I could have been there, I love Deep South and the Cajun fun. I suggest everyone who doesnt know the rules inside and out get Dave Perry's "Understanding the Rules of Sailing through 2008". It is a fun easy to understand the views of the rules. Hope you have better luck next time and hope to see you At GBCC at HYC.

Doug and Ashleigh Snell
Hobie 17
Soon the be Mystere 4.3
www.tcdyc.com

Bob:

Maybe this could be a quiz type of forum where there is a question about a sailing situation to be answered? Maybe one that is not too easily answered so we could banter it around?

I will start it off with a Gate question.
Two downwind boats coming to the gate. If they round port (downwind left mark) then the Starboard boat has inside room at the mark. If they round starboard (right mark while looking downwind) then port boat has inside rights. Know that they will both be rounding the same mark whichever mark they choose. How much room does each have to give in each of these situations?

Thank you Bob for starting this,
Dan

I think there is some punctuation missing.

Hey Bob - what about the rule that the start line was an obstruction at all times?

Depends on how it is defined in the sailing instructions.



Eh ???????

If they are rounding the left mark or the right, it does not matter, they must round "in a seaman like manner".

If they are rounding one mark each, and assuming the marks are far enough apart that 2 boatlengs cannot apply (which you would hope or there would be no point in having both marks) then simple Port vs Starboard applies.

Bob,

Are you sure that you got everything right yourself ?

Maybe I misunderstand what you wrote but :



You can't really summarize windward/leeward like that.

Windward/leeward rule ONLY applies when both boat are sailing on the same tack or what ever you English speaking people call it; boom is hanging over same side of boat. Otherwise the port tack boat (with boom over his starboard side) on an upwind leg must give right of way to a starboard tack boat (boom over port) that is on a downwind leg.

Maybe I just misunderstood what you are trying to say.

Wouter

Try this free rules quiz. You still have plenty of time to study the ones you get wrong!

http://www.speedandsmarts.com/

Wouter, I did mean boats on the same tack in my reference to upwind/downwind meetings with leeward boat having rights.

It was announced that the startline would be an obstruction at the skippers meeting. A few people (including some experienced sailors) forgot...

They also announced an offset mark at 'A'. I forgot about this the first time around but my buddies behind me reminded us rather vocally. We had to take the kite back down and go round it like good boys, feeling rather foolish.

Chris.

Aren't these "announcements" required to be in the sailing instructions or posted on the notification board by the time listed in the SI's for postings?

Yup. That's why the sailing instructions should be kept as simple as possible. Less additions means less confusion.

scooby_simon:


Actually there is slight difference between the situations as one allows or requires a seaman-like rounding only and the other is allowed a tactical rounding. That is if a boat has the right of way outside the two boat length circle they maintain right of way and are allowed a tactical rounding. A boat having right of way before the two boat length circle is allowed to take a wide turn in order to come away from the mark very close to it, as long as they stay within the two boat length circle.

If on the otherhand a boat gained right of way due to the 2 boat length circle, but did not have it before that time, it is allowed only enough room to maneuver around the mark (seaman-like) and not allowed tactical access.

Dan

Generally, yes. Sailing instructions must be written (RRS 89.2a). Oral changes to the sailing instructions are allowed only on the water, and only if the sailing instructions describe the process for doing so (RRS 89.2c).

Announcements at the competitors' meeting cannot change the sailing instructions. Changes must either be written and posted (according to RRS 89.2c) or communicated on the water (again, according to RRS 89.2c).

Note, however, that some class rules (such as high school racing) modify RRS 89.2 to allow announcements at the competitors' meeting.

Regards,
Eric

Absolutely!
Anytime you put something in the SIs, you must be very careful to avoid confusion or contradiction. Sometimes, the stated words wind up meaning something very different than what was originally intended. I once chaired a protest hearing where I threw out a sailing instruction as invalid - and I was the person who wrote it.

Regards,
Eric

Ah yes, that one is commonly known as the "Lazy Race Committee Rule". There is no good reason for it except for the convenience of RC and it puts a harsh burden on the competitors (the guys RC is supposed to serve). It is almost impossible to write it effectively without being hopelessly convoluted. I encourage people to leave it out.

Regards,
Eric

There are some very valid reasons for declaring the start/finish line closed. When you have multiple starts it is very easy to have fleets starting while other fleets are sailing back through the line. This sucks. Closing the line is realy only a problem with a wide start line and a leeward mark that is only a short distance from the finish.

IF you only have 1 or 2 fleets then it isn't a big deal. If you have the manpower, remove the pin end of the line and set a new short finish line

IMHO
Eric Anderson

The one word that should describe any RC is invisible. Nothing they do should have any effect on the racers ability to sail a clean race.

All of which have to do with convenience of RC.

It's generally suicidal for a boat to sail downwind into a pack of starters, so this is rarely a real issue. It is certainly no more of an issue than sailing downwind past the pin end of the line just after a start.

Wherever it happens to be and however long it happens to be, it's still an unnecesary obstruction. It does not serve the sailors.

Can you explain? I don't really see where the number of fleets comes into play.

If you have a closed line, then you often do not have the option of moving the pin. If you have boats steering wide of the long line, it becomes unfair to shorten it.

If you have the manpower, set a course with separate start and finish lines. Or you could just keep track of the boats so you know when they're finishing vs. just crossing.

I've never come across a closed start/finish line that solved more problems than it created.

Regards,
Eric

Well, I wouldn't say "invisible", but we probably agree in essence.

Race Committe provides a service (running races) to the sailors. Everything they do should be done in that mindset. It is RC's job to run races that are:
(1) Safe,
(2) Fair, and
(3) Fun.*

When Race Committee starts making things harder for the sailors just to make things easier for themselves, then they have lost sight of their purpose.

(*) Well, fun for us amateur sailors anyway. I wouldn't insist that Olympic nor professional racing be fun.

Regards,
Eric