Wednesday 6/22/2011
The winds were light from the SE between 4 and 8 knots. Winds went variable in the downpours. Current was flooding early and then ebbing late. The course was from H to K to G to H.
The forecast for this race was rainy with a chance of thunderstorms. The RM left the dock early and headed out to the course. The radar indicated a heavy band approaching the race area. Further south in central Jersey, a well-developed cell was wreaking some havoc. We kept an eye on the warnings and the radar and we never were under any thunderstorm warnings.
The RM had a line set before 18:00 and announced the course repeatedly. We were happy that the race would go on as the weather was not posing any real threat. Things can change rapidly, but it was nice to be able to give the race a chance rather than cancel yet another decent race evening. We seem to get some threat of foul weather two or three Wednesdays each season and only occasionally does the shit hit the fan.
The line was skewed to make the port end considerably favored. Starting on port was the only option for us. Many boats setup near the RM or the middle of the line, but we went straight for the pin end. We started about 3-5 seconds late, but we had speed and we were at the pin.
Being ahead and higher than the fleet gave us a nice advantage on the leg. The wind was more consistent on the left side and we stretched out on most boats after the start. We even caught a few B boats on the first leg. Coming into K, we tacked around and stayed high since the wind seemed to get lighter towards G. By staying high, we would later have some room to come down as the wind died down.
Coming into G, we were between two B boats. I was hell bent on making sure we could jibe around the mark and get back to the middle of the river. This was a fatal mistake. I maneuvered the boat to get to the left and promptly killed our momentum. We were now in a hole and had little steerage. The two B boats we rounded with stayed up to the eastern shore and kept their breeze and momentum. The correct move was to stay on the east side and we just blew it.
After a couple of minutes without much progress, A Train and Zoom rounded G and stayed to the east. This was a great move by them. They continued in the breeze while we were still in the hole. Eventually, the skies opened and some rain fell. This bit of rain did not bring wind with it. It was frustrating since we were now watching boats we had put well behind us sail by. When the rain eased, the wind backed from the SE again and carried us to the finish. A Train and Zoom had a great leg and finished ahead of us. Merlin also made a good charge and finished very close behind.
It was interesting at the finish. A Train, Zoom, Genesis, and Jazz were all finishing around the same time. The pin was favored and we were the last of the four boats. No one seemed to be going towards the pin very aggressively, so we cut in without room. It was risky since we could have been forced to spin around if someone decided to take the pin close, but everyone ended up sailing down the line a little. We probably picked up 10 or 15 seconds by finishing right at the pin. The boats that reached up the line lost some time by not turning down sooner.
The only rule worth mentioning here is that once a boat finishes she needs to stay clear of boats racing. As we were finishing, a boat that had finished headed up to sail back south. I asked them to hold their course since we had not finished yet and they should not interfere. I bring this up since until they finished, they had room at the pin and we needed to stay clear. Once they finished AND cleared the line, they have to stay clear of the racing boats. This does not mean they had to “get out of the way”. It means they cannot change their course and interfere with anyone still racing. Sometimes in light air finishes, I have the engine ready to go in case we need to clear out quickly. There was no issue this night, but I figure the rule is worth mentioning.
23 INTERFERING WITH ANOTHER BOAT
23.1 If reasonably possible, a boat not racing shall not interfere with a boat that is racing.
Finish A boat finishes when any part of her hull, or crew or equipment in normal position, crosses the finishing line in the direction of the course from the last mark, either for the first time or after taking a penalty under rule 44.2 or, after correcting an error made at the finishing line, under rule 28.1.
Racing A boat is racing from her preparatory signal until she finishes and clears the finishing line and marks or retires, or until the race committee signals a general recall, postponement or abandonment.
When we put rule 23.1 together with the definition of the finish and racing, we can see that as long as we gave the boat room to clear the line, their racing will end and they will need to stay clear. That is not to say the boat that finished needs to change course immediately and get out of the way. Rather it is to say that the boat that finished and cleared the line should not interfere with the boats racing. Again, this was not an issue on this night, but it is worth mentioning.
Another point that we should look at is that a boat must clear the line on their own before they can start their engine. I never realized that until I looked into this situation. I always thought that once you got your horn you were done, but looking at the above definition of racing we see that you are still racing until you clear the line and marks. That does not mean you have to completely cross the line, but you do need to clear it before you can put your engine in gear.
PART 4
OTHER REQUIREMENTS WHEN
RACING
Part 4 rules apply only to boats racing.
42 PROPULSION
42.1 Basic Rule
Except when permitted in rule 42.3 or 45, a boat shall compete by using only the wind and water to increase, maintain or decrease her speed. Her crew may adjust the trim of sails and hull, and perform other acts of seamanship, but shall not otherwise move their bodies to propel the boat.
After finishing, we sailed around for another hour. The rain came and went and with it some good winds. After all the rain cleared out, the wind died and we headed in. All in all, a good race and a good night of sailing. The RM did a great job getting a race in. I appreciate their commitment to their duty.
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Monday, June 20, 2011
Spring Race #6
Wednesday 6/15/2011
The winds were light from the NE between 0 and 2 knots. A healthy WNW breeze kicked in around 19:00. Current was ebbing until 20:00 then flooding. All divisions sailed from H to D to 26 to H. The Full Moon race sailed H to 26 to 24 to H.
This night was a tough one. It was light from the NE as we headed out. I was ready to swim again, but it appeared the Race Marshall was going to start us no matter the wind speed. As we prepared for the sequence, our plans included anchoring at the line. A few boats ended up doing this.
As the time approached for the C start, I was way out of position. I ended up starting over one minute late. I came into the boat end on a reach, but the wind was so light that we had trouble making one knot through the water. With foul current, this was barely any progress over the ground. We heard of two C boats that got pushed into the RM. Half the other C boats either anchored or started very late.
We debated the start on our boat. Frank believed that the start was the right thing to do and I thought the RM should wait until there was a steady 2-3 knot wind. The RM said they measured 3 knots on the water, but we did not see that ourselves. It is a tough call, so I will post a survey and let’s get some anonymous opinions.
There was one boat left to race against in C shortly after the start since so many were stuck on the line or worse. We ended up well behind that boat during the light and variable part of the first leg. Then we looked to the West and saw the breeze coming on. We maneuvered the boat as best we could to head north. This brought us to the left (west) of our competition and we got the breeze first. They had a comfortable lead when the air finally reached them, but they decided to squander that lead and head up to engage us.
I try to be Mr. Mellow on Wednesday nights, but sometimes I just can’t get away from boat to boat situations. This boat wasted a lot of distance to get close to us. They were still ahead, but only a boat-length to leeward. We both sailed high for a while, then I made a drastic turn to leeward and went below them. I just wanted to get to the mark quickly. After a costly delay, the other boat sailed from over two boat lengths to windward back down to us. Now they had lost more distance and we were overlapped to leeward. It was quite a bit of good fortune for us to have this boat engage us from a commanding position and then switch positions and put us in the leeward spot.
We were moving ahead of them at this point. They were still overlapped when they called for room. I was amazed by this since we were a long way from the mark. I responded to them that we would start our stopwatch and time how long it took us to get to the mark. (To make this clear, the boat seemed to call for room at this point and we said that it was too early.) They were about to lose their overlap and we had no intention of giving them room after that. By the time we got to the mark, doing 5 knots, 75 seconds had passed. Let’s pause and do some math together. Keep in mind we were ahead, so the 3 boat-length circle uses our 28 feet as the boat-length.
5 knots = 8.44 feet per second
75 seconds * 8.44 = 633 feet
633/28 = 22.6 boat-lengths
28*3 = 84 feet = 3 boat-lengths = 10 seconds from circle to mark at 5 knots
I could be terribly wrong with what the other boat was trying to communicate, but it appeared that the boat was asking for room over 22 boat-lengths away. Sound crazy? It should, but it is not. I have lost this protest before. You would be amazed how fast 22 boat-lengths can turn into 3, or even 2 in the old days. Having that previous experience has taught me to start a stopwatch when a boat makes a hail for room. When you can give the protest committee a hard time, with your speed, things will be clear in the hearing. In this case, it was purely academic.
Back to racing, in those 22 boat-lengths we sailed to the mark, we added to our lead and there was no room issue with that boat. We rounded ahead of them and then tacked three times quickly to get on their air. I normally would not do this, but they engaged us, so I thought it best to get well ahead and avoid any further issues. We were over a minute ahead at 26 and cruised on down to the finish.
After finishing, we heard a boat that wanted to take a penalty. They did a 360. A 360 is used when you hit a mark. If the rules allow, you need to take a Two-Turns penalty (720) when accepting a penalty. Our rules say that boats need to acknowledge their foul and take a percentage penalty of their finishing place.
PENALTY SYSTEM: For infringement of a rule of Part 2, penalties will be as set forth in rule 44. If a scoring Penalty of 20% is taken, a yellow flag need not be flown and the decision to accept such penalty need not be made while racing. But the decision must be made before the convening of a protest hearing.
Click Here for Rule 44
Rule 44 talks about the Two-Turns penalty and says that a penalty can be a scoring penalty if specified in the sailing instructions. Our instructions seem to indicate that the scoring penalty is the one we use, although it could be argued that the instructions allow for either penalty.
Full Moon Race
Once the boats had finished sailing, we set the anchor and got ready to run the full moon race. We decided not to pick up the flags since the wind was up and the RM was still anchored. We rolled into a start at 19:55. The breeze was still good, but was beginning to fade. We executed the sequence and the 6 boats racing had a nice start.
The race looked pretty good until the wind dropped out about half way through. Four of the six boats finished. It was a nice evening as Genesis approached the line in light air. Here is a video of them coming into the finish with the full moon behind them.
There was a tight finished between Gusto and Zoom with Zoom just barely edging out Gusto by a few seconds. We then fired up the diesel and headed in.
On the way in, we had a large motor boat coming up from the south. The boat was to our port and they were heading 20 degrees to the starboard of our course. This was a collision course. I was hoping the captain would make a slight turn to take our stern, but he was not yielding. I was not positive we had the right of way, nor did I want to press the issue. Since the other captain was not yielding, I threw in a 360 before it got close. There is no pride in navigating at night. I did not know the other captain’s abilities, so I decided to take the drastic turn and make clear my intention of motoring behind him. He passed without incident and we made it back to the harbor.
Turns out I was right of way, but I did not need to sink my boat to prove a point. In case you need a quick refresher, click here.
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The winds were light from the NE between 0 and 2 knots. A healthy WNW breeze kicked in around 19:00. Current was ebbing until 20:00 then flooding. All divisions sailed from H to D to 26 to H. The Full Moon race sailed H to 26 to 24 to H.
This night was a tough one. It was light from the NE as we headed out. I was ready to swim again, but it appeared the Race Marshall was going to start us no matter the wind speed. As we prepared for the sequence, our plans included anchoring at the line. A few boats ended up doing this.
As the time approached for the C start, I was way out of position. I ended up starting over one minute late. I came into the boat end on a reach, but the wind was so light that we had trouble making one knot through the water. With foul current, this was barely any progress over the ground. We heard of two C boats that got pushed into the RM. Half the other C boats either anchored or started very late.
We debated the start on our boat. Frank believed that the start was the right thing to do and I thought the RM should wait until there was a steady 2-3 knot wind. The RM said they measured 3 knots on the water, but we did not see that ourselves. It is a tough call, so I will post a survey and let’s get some anonymous opinions.
There was one boat left to race against in C shortly after the start since so many were stuck on the line or worse. We ended up well behind that boat during the light and variable part of the first leg. Then we looked to the West and saw the breeze coming on. We maneuvered the boat as best we could to head north. This brought us to the left (west) of our competition and we got the breeze first. They had a comfortable lead when the air finally reached them, but they decided to squander that lead and head up to engage us.
I try to be Mr. Mellow on Wednesday nights, but sometimes I just can’t get away from boat to boat situations. This boat wasted a lot of distance to get close to us. They were still ahead, but only a boat-length to leeward. We both sailed high for a while, then I made a drastic turn to leeward and went below them. I just wanted to get to the mark quickly. After a costly delay, the other boat sailed from over two boat lengths to windward back down to us. Now they had lost more distance and we were overlapped to leeward. It was quite a bit of good fortune for us to have this boat engage us from a commanding position and then switch positions and put us in the leeward spot.
We were moving ahead of them at this point. They were still overlapped when they called for room. I was amazed by this since we were a long way from the mark. I responded to them that we would start our stopwatch and time how long it took us to get to the mark. (To make this clear, the boat seemed to call for room at this point and we said that it was too early.) They were about to lose their overlap and we had no intention of giving them room after that. By the time we got to the mark, doing 5 knots, 75 seconds had passed. Let’s pause and do some math together. Keep in mind we were ahead, so the 3 boat-length circle uses our 28 feet as the boat-length.
5 knots = 8.44 feet per second
75 seconds * 8.44 = 633 feet
633/28 = 22.6 boat-lengths
28*3 = 84 feet = 3 boat-lengths = 10 seconds from circle to mark at 5 knots
I could be terribly wrong with what the other boat was trying to communicate, but it appeared that the boat was asking for room over 22 boat-lengths away. Sound crazy? It should, but it is not. I have lost this protest before. You would be amazed how fast 22 boat-lengths can turn into 3, or even 2 in the old days. Having that previous experience has taught me to start a stopwatch when a boat makes a hail for room. When you can give the protest committee a hard time, with your speed, things will be clear in the hearing. In this case, it was purely academic.
Back to racing, in those 22 boat-lengths we sailed to the mark, we added to our lead and there was no room issue with that boat. We rounded ahead of them and then tacked three times quickly to get on their air. I normally would not do this, but they engaged us, so I thought it best to get well ahead and avoid any further issues. We were over a minute ahead at 26 and cruised on down to the finish.
After finishing, we heard a boat that wanted to take a penalty. They did a 360. A 360 is used when you hit a mark. If the rules allow, you need to take a Two-Turns penalty (720) when accepting a penalty. Our rules say that boats need to acknowledge their foul and take a percentage penalty of their finishing place.
PENALTY SYSTEM: For infringement of a rule of Part 2, penalties will be as set forth in rule 44. If a scoring Penalty of 20% is taken, a yellow flag need not be flown and the decision to accept such penalty need not be made while racing. But the decision must be made before the convening of a protest hearing.
Click Here for Rule 44
Rule 44 talks about the Two-Turns penalty and says that a penalty can be a scoring penalty if specified in the sailing instructions. Our instructions seem to indicate that the scoring penalty is the one we use, although it could be argued that the instructions allow for either penalty.
Full Moon Race
Once the boats had finished sailing, we set the anchor and got ready to run the full moon race. We decided not to pick up the flags since the wind was up and the RM was still anchored. We rolled into a start at 19:55. The breeze was still good, but was beginning to fade. We executed the sequence and the 6 boats racing had a nice start.
The race looked pretty good until the wind dropped out about half way through. Four of the six boats finished. It was a nice evening as Genesis approached the line in light air. Here is a video of them coming into the finish with the full moon behind them.
There was a tight finished between Gusto and Zoom with Zoom just barely edging out Gusto by a few seconds. We then fired up the diesel and headed in.
On the way in, we had a large motor boat coming up from the south. The boat was to our port and they were heading 20 degrees to the starboard of our course. This was a collision course. I was hoping the captain would make a slight turn to take our stern, but he was not yielding. I was not positive we had the right of way, nor did I want to press the issue. Since the other captain was not yielding, I threw in a 360 before it got close. There is no pride in navigating at night. I did not know the other captain’s abilities, so I decided to take the drastic turn and make clear my intention of motoring behind him. He passed without incident and we made it back to the harbor.
Turns out I was right of way, but I did not need to sink my boat to prove a point. In case you need a quick refresher, click here.
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Spring Race #5
Wednesday 6/8/2011
The winds were light from the West between 4 and 8 knots. Current was changing or something, not a big deal. We sailed from H to 24 to D to H. A & B went twice around.
It was a hot evening. We left the slip and went just to the south of H so I could have some room to swim while the boat was carried to the line. After taking a quick dip, the wind started to pipe up a bit, so we hoisted the sails and began to move.
The starting line was fair with the pin end favored. The RM originally called for two courses that would have us going around the first mark in opposite directions, but then changed to twice around for A&B and once for C. I was happy with this call since the original course would have had the non-spin boats doing windward leeward, while the spin boats were doing reach-reach to get downwind.
Watching the first start, I saw a B boat pull off a port tack start. The slowest boat at their start port-tacked the entire fleet. I heard some starboard hails, but I am not sure if anything was even close. I have done that start once or twice in the same breeze. The trouble is that the left usually pays and port tacking the fleet brings you right. I don’t know what happened after that.
Back in C, we had a nice conservative start. We were close to the pin, but about 10 seconds late. We worked our way to the left side of the course before tacking over to port. We made some distance on the other boats by the time we reached 24. On the downwind, everyone seemed to sail north of the rhumb line. We winged it and went straight towards D. This worked out and we even passed a few B boats on the leg.
Leading up to the rounding at D, we heard at least two boats hail the RM to shorten the A and B course to once around. The wind at D was terrible, but the wind up the course was still holding on. While I would agree with the hailing boats that a shorter course was an option, I do not agree with them hailing for it. It is hypocritical for me to say this as I am sure I have done it in the past. Hell, I would probably put a link to a past blog where I talk about regretting getting on the radio, but since it is my blog, I’ll let someone comment with the link.
In the end, most boats that stayed out to race finished. A few withdrew. If you have no chance at finishing in the time limit, I can understand withdrawing. Otherwise, this is a 20:30 hard stop for racing. Surely, two hours on the water on a nice evening is not so uncomfortable that boats should be giving up and going home. I am psycho about sailing, so maybe I am way off base. We get about 20 hours of racing each year on Wednesday nights. Seems a little odd to give up when there is a chance at finishing.
Only two boats were OTL. The wind definitely died, but when we sailed in it seemed like someone would finish from B before the extended time limit of 20:50. Looking at the results, it does not appear that happened.
I would like to make special mention of a great performance on this night. Hard Attack sailed very well. They were out ahead early on the heels of the A boats and took line honors at the finish for B. It was great to watch them have such a good race. They were out with us in the stormy weather that cancelled race #2 and seeing them perform well made me think about how they flew their spinnaker on that nasty night. I hope their practice continues to pay off.
Summer Wind had a great race in C2. It was great to see two of the most dedicated racers getting good scores on this night.
The winds were light from the West between 4 and 8 knots. Current was changing or something, not a big deal. We sailed from H to 24 to D to H. A & B went twice around.
It was a hot evening. We left the slip and went just to the south of H so I could have some room to swim while the boat was carried to the line. After taking a quick dip, the wind started to pipe up a bit, so we hoisted the sails and began to move.
The starting line was fair with the pin end favored. The RM originally called for two courses that would have us going around the first mark in opposite directions, but then changed to twice around for A&B and once for C. I was happy with this call since the original course would have had the non-spin boats doing windward leeward, while the spin boats were doing reach-reach to get downwind.
Watching the first start, I saw a B boat pull off a port tack start. The slowest boat at their start port-tacked the entire fleet. I heard some starboard hails, but I am not sure if anything was even close. I have done that start once or twice in the same breeze. The trouble is that the left usually pays and port tacking the fleet brings you right. I don’t know what happened after that.
Back in C, we had a nice conservative start. We were close to the pin, but about 10 seconds late. We worked our way to the left side of the course before tacking over to port. We made some distance on the other boats by the time we reached 24. On the downwind, everyone seemed to sail north of the rhumb line. We winged it and went straight towards D. This worked out and we even passed a few B boats on the leg.
Leading up to the rounding at D, we heard at least two boats hail the RM to shorten the A and B course to once around. The wind at D was terrible, but the wind up the course was still holding on. While I would agree with the hailing boats that a shorter course was an option, I do not agree with them hailing for it. It is hypocritical for me to say this as I am sure I have done it in the past. Hell, I would probably put a link to a past blog where I talk about regretting getting on the radio, but since it is my blog, I’ll let someone comment with the link.
In the end, most boats that stayed out to race finished. A few withdrew. If you have no chance at finishing in the time limit, I can understand withdrawing. Otherwise, this is a 20:30 hard stop for racing. Surely, two hours on the water on a nice evening is not so uncomfortable that boats should be giving up and going home. I am psycho about sailing, so maybe I am way off base. We get about 20 hours of racing each year on Wednesday nights. Seems a little odd to give up when there is a chance at finishing.
Only two boats were OTL. The wind definitely died, but when we sailed in it seemed like someone would finish from B before the extended time limit of 20:50. Looking at the results, it does not appear that happened.
I would like to make special mention of a great performance on this night. Hard Attack sailed very well. They were out ahead early on the heels of the A boats and took line honors at the finish for B. It was great to watch them have such a good race. They were out with us in the stormy weather that cancelled race #2 and seeing them perform well made me think about how they flew their spinnaker on that nasty night. I hope their practice continues to pay off.
Summer Wind had a great race in C2. It was great to see two of the most dedicated racers getting good scores on this night.
Monday, June 13, 2011
Hudson Cove Regatta
Saturday-Sunday, 6/4/11-6/5/11
Saturday: The winds were light and variable until 13:30. At that point, a Northerly filled in and persistently moved left until it was NW by the end of racing. Courses were windward leeward.
Sunday: Started light, but by 10:30 a Southerly filled in. Course was from H to K to C to H.
I was assigned to Race Committee for the HCYC regatta. Tom DiLauro is in charge of the Race Committee and he assigned me to oversee the on water operations. It started with the skipper’s meeting where I issued instructions to monitor 72 for RC broadcasts and to ignore HRYRA instructions 4.3. Those instructions indicate a cap on how long we can wait to start a race and I was not interested in having my hands tied to the two hour limit. We need to change that for next year. There is no reason we should call off a Saturday race day after only two hours.
We next moved to the water with two boats. Moon Dog is the RC boat while George Samalot’s whaler is the mark boat. Once on the water, we dropped the hook near H and waited for a breeze. After being teased with a SW whisper for two hours, we finally got a northerly to fill in. As soon as we saw the breeze up north, the mark boat went up and dropped the windward mark. I was determined to get a race in no matter the circumstances, so we set up a two mile loop. While short for the 6-8 knots we were seeing, I did not want to take a chance at getting blanked for the day.
By the time we rolled into sequence, both the line and the course were skewed by about 30 degrees from the wind. Fearing the breeze would leave us, we sent the racers around for a quick first race. This worked out well as the last C boat did not finish until 14:30.
The racing instructions indicate a 30 minute delay from the time of the last finisher to the time of the next race. I conveniently interpreted this as 30 minutes from the last finisher until HER start. So with the last finisher in at 14:29, I decided we could begin the sequence at 14:45. This would start the C fleet at 15:00. We needed quick action since the RC boat had to be in by 16:30. We would have finished boats using the mark boat if the race dragged on, but that would not come to pass.
That course was also skewed as the wind went further left. It still left a decent upwind and downwind, but not the ideal setup that inflatable marks should allow. At the end of racing there were two protests. One was boat against boat and one was against the RC.
The protest against the RC was never heard. Looking back, I wish I would have communicated more on the radio before the starts. I wanted to send C once around instead of twice. The race instructions had no way to indicate the two different courses at once. The only way I thought I could do this was to change the course board at the warning signal which is also the start for B. Here is the rule:
27.1 No later than the warning signal, the race committee shall signal or otherwise designate the course to be sailed if the sailing instructions have not stated the course, and it may replace one course signal with another and signal that wearing personal flotation devices is required (display flag Y with one sound).
My compliance with rule 27.1 was followed by at least one pre-race announcement on VHF 72 and another post start clarification for a racing boat. The only rule I may have broken would be answering the boat that asked about the course after the start, but I think it is not assistance to clarify course confusion over the official race channel. If it is, fuck it. I’ll do that until they prohibit me from doing race committee.
In the end, three boats did not know it was one lap instead of two. I feel bad that this had to occur. Our sailing rules are sometimes reminiscent of the communication between 19th century boats, flags and signals. I think we can move into the 21st century and begin using things like the web or even twitter to get race course selection through. This is a constant problem I have experienced for over 30 years and it is time to eliminate it. It would have been nice if I could have sent a tweet (terminology courtesy of my wife). Then everyone would have the course. Maybe I’ll look into that for the next go around.
The important lesson is to check the course board after your warning signal. That is the only iron clad requirement in the rules. Everything else is non-binding.
The other protest was between two boats. I will not go into details about it. Arbitration was a failure by me. I think if I could have convinced the parties to give it a better chance, we could have arbitrated it, but I was too quick to allow them to proceed to the actual hearing. The trouble with the protest hearing is that you are right or DSQ. Nothing in between. In arbitration, you can impose alternate penalties.
The hearing went by the book. I don’t think we finished until 19:30. Luckily, I had spent a lot of time preparing for a protest. I even felt Saturday morning that I should have prepared more for on the water than protest, but I was relieved I had prepared once I knew there would be a hearing. The decision we reached was a difficult one and I wish it could have gone a different way. I am bound by the rules and evidence and that produced a result I was not happy about. A correct result by the rules, but a troubling one nonetheless.
Sunday was perfect. A light SSW breeze that built as the day went on. Captain Al of Moon Dog was nice enough to anchor twice as I was determined not to set another shitty line. This time the line was square, the course was perfect, and the race went off without a hitch. This is how I imagined Race Committee and it was nice to have an easy day after the shit storm on Saturday.
Personal Notes
I was amazed at the effort and concern all the race committee volunteers have for this regatta. I had the distinct honor of being in charge of the on the water activities for a group that were seasoned pros at this. Every operation of the committee boat was planned and executed with precision. Captain Al guided us to the right spot and did not complain as we ran around his boat all day. Jackie and her team of score keepers and flag hoisters were spot on to the second. Tom D. had everything in place to make the regatta a success. My normal crew, Eric, dutifully went around in the mark boat as I asked with every slight breeze on Saturday. All around, a perfect effort on their part.
All mistakes and errors Saturday were solely in my area. This is no pity party, I am confident I did a good job, but there is plenty of room for improvement. In Race Committee, there is no chance to make up for a mistake. If you screw something up, there is no going back, at least not without a high cost. Let’s look at some of the decisions I wish I could redo and see if I can improve for next year.
1. When the breeze finally seemed to be filling in, I rushed to get a race in. During that rush, I did not get a reading of the final wind, but had the mark boat set the first mark in the general direction of where the wind was filling in from. I think with an extra 10 minutes, I could have had a better course. As a result, the wind was further left than expected and the course was thus skewed. The starting line was skewed as well.
2. I do not regret the short course. Contrary to the anonymous caller asking for a longer course, I wanted two races and the best way to guarantee at least one was to set the first course shorter than I normally would. I stand by that decision and welcome comments to the contrary.
3. When I reset the marks for the second race, I did not direct the mark boat to go west far enough. This was a minor error as they were already getting close to the channel and we were running out of room anyway.
4. The larger error in the second race was the skewed line. I had the mark boat change the line by about 30 degrees, but should have moved it 20 or 30 more. Unfortunately, I had the mark boat go to the leeward mark instead of hanging around the pin. When I realized the line was off once again, I could not get them back in time to reset it. With a hard stop time for the day’s sailing, I decided to start with the skewed line rather than hoist the AP (postpone). The error was sending the mark boat away. They could have set the leeward mark after the start. I was hesitant to do that since it may confuse boats, but it was the right call and I did not make it.
5. The course confusion in C could use improvement. I need to think of ways to better communicate courses and changes to those courses. I will mention in next year’s skipper meeting to make sure everyone checks the course after their warning signal. You may see a course 15 minutes before your start, but it can change right up to the warning signal. This is where twitter or a web page could help.
I was happy to help the club and take over some of the tasks they did not like. I will think about the above points and many other possibilities that were considered during the weekend. Hopefully, we will have an even better regatta next year.
Saturday: The winds were light and variable until 13:30. At that point, a Northerly filled in and persistently moved left until it was NW by the end of racing. Courses were windward leeward.
Sunday: Started light, but by 10:30 a Southerly filled in. Course was from H to K to C to H.
I was assigned to Race Committee for the HCYC regatta. Tom DiLauro is in charge of the Race Committee and he assigned me to oversee the on water operations. It started with the skipper’s meeting where I issued instructions to monitor 72 for RC broadcasts and to ignore HRYRA instructions 4.3. Those instructions indicate a cap on how long we can wait to start a race and I was not interested in having my hands tied to the two hour limit. We need to change that for next year. There is no reason we should call off a Saturday race day after only two hours.
We next moved to the water with two boats. Moon Dog is the RC boat while George Samalot’s whaler is the mark boat. Once on the water, we dropped the hook near H and waited for a breeze. After being teased with a SW whisper for two hours, we finally got a northerly to fill in. As soon as we saw the breeze up north, the mark boat went up and dropped the windward mark. I was determined to get a race in no matter the circumstances, so we set up a two mile loop. While short for the 6-8 knots we were seeing, I did not want to take a chance at getting blanked for the day.
By the time we rolled into sequence, both the line and the course were skewed by about 30 degrees from the wind. Fearing the breeze would leave us, we sent the racers around for a quick first race. This worked out well as the last C boat did not finish until 14:30.
The racing instructions indicate a 30 minute delay from the time of the last finisher to the time of the next race. I conveniently interpreted this as 30 minutes from the last finisher until HER start. So with the last finisher in at 14:29, I decided we could begin the sequence at 14:45. This would start the C fleet at 15:00. We needed quick action since the RC boat had to be in by 16:30. We would have finished boats using the mark boat if the race dragged on, but that would not come to pass.
That course was also skewed as the wind went further left. It still left a decent upwind and downwind, but not the ideal setup that inflatable marks should allow. At the end of racing there were two protests. One was boat against boat and one was against the RC.
The protest against the RC was never heard. Looking back, I wish I would have communicated more on the radio before the starts. I wanted to send C once around instead of twice. The race instructions had no way to indicate the two different courses at once. The only way I thought I could do this was to change the course board at the warning signal which is also the start for B. Here is the rule:
27.1 No later than the warning signal, the race committee shall signal or otherwise designate the course to be sailed if the sailing instructions have not stated the course, and it may replace one course signal with another and signal that wearing personal flotation devices is required (display flag Y with one sound).
My compliance with rule 27.1 was followed by at least one pre-race announcement on VHF 72 and another post start clarification for a racing boat. The only rule I may have broken would be answering the boat that asked about the course after the start, but I think it is not assistance to clarify course confusion over the official race channel. If it is, fuck it. I’ll do that until they prohibit me from doing race committee.
In the end, three boats did not know it was one lap instead of two. I feel bad that this had to occur. Our sailing rules are sometimes reminiscent of the communication between 19th century boats, flags and signals. I think we can move into the 21st century and begin using things like the web or even twitter to get race course selection through. This is a constant problem I have experienced for over 30 years and it is time to eliminate it. It would have been nice if I could have sent a tweet (terminology courtesy of my wife). Then everyone would have the course. Maybe I’ll look into that for the next go around.
The important lesson is to check the course board after your warning signal. That is the only iron clad requirement in the rules. Everything else is non-binding.
The other protest was between two boats. I will not go into details about it. Arbitration was a failure by me. I think if I could have convinced the parties to give it a better chance, we could have arbitrated it, but I was too quick to allow them to proceed to the actual hearing. The trouble with the protest hearing is that you are right or DSQ. Nothing in between. In arbitration, you can impose alternate penalties.
The hearing went by the book. I don’t think we finished until 19:30. Luckily, I had spent a lot of time preparing for a protest. I even felt Saturday morning that I should have prepared more for on the water than protest, but I was relieved I had prepared once I knew there would be a hearing. The decision we reached was a difficult one and I wish it could have gone a different way. I am bound by the rules and evidence and that produced a result I was not happy about. A correct result by the rules, but a troubling one nonetheless.
Sunday was perfect. A light SSW breeze that built as the day went on. Captain Al of Moon Dog was nice enough to anchor twice as I was determined not to set another shitty line. This time the line was square, the course was perfect, and the race went off without a hitch. This is how I imagined Race Committee and it was nice to have an easy day after the shit storm on Saturday.
Personal Notes
I was amazed at the effort and concern all the race committee volunteers have for this regatta. I had the distinct honor of being in charge of the on the water activities for a group that were seasoned pros at this. Every operation of the committee boat was planned and executed with precision. Captain Al guided us to the right spot and did not complain as we ran around his boat all day. Jackie and her team of score keepers and flag hoisters were spot on to the second. Tom D. had everything in place to make the regatta a success. My normal crew, Eric, dutifully went around in the mark boat as I asked with every slight breeze on Saturday. All around, a perfect effort on their part.
All mistakes and errors Saturday were solely in my area. This is no pity party, I am confident I did a good job, but there is plenty of room for improvement. In Race Committee, there is no chance to make up for a mistake. If you screw something up, there is no going back, at least not without a high cost. Let’s look at some of the decisions I wish I could redo and see if I can improve for next year.
1. When the breeze finally seemed to be filling in, I rushed to get a race in. During that rush, I did not get a reading of the final wind, but had the mark boat set the first mark in the general direction of where the wind was filling in from. I think with an extra 10 minutes, I could have had a better course. As a result, the wind was further left than expected and the course was thus skewed. The starting line was skewed as well.
2. I do not regret the short course. Contrary to the anonymous caller asking for a longer course, I wanted two races and the best way to guarantee at least one was to set the first course shorter than I normally would. I stand by that decision and welcome comments to the contrary.
3. When I reset the marks for the second race, I did not direct the mark boat to go west far enough. This was a minor error as they were already getting close to the channel and we were running out of room anyway.
4. The larger error in the second race was the skewed line. I had the mark boat change the line by about 30 degrees, but should have moved it 20 or 30 more. Unfortunately, I had the mark boat go to the leeward mark instead of hanging around the pin. When I realized the line was off once again, I could not get them back in time to reset it. With a hard stop time for the day’s sailing, I decided to start with the skewed line rather than hoist the AP (postpone). The error was sending the mark boat away. They could have set the leeward mark after the start. I was hesitant to do that since it may confuse boats, but it was the right call and I did not make it.
5. The course confusion in C could use improvement. I need to think of ways to better communicate courses and changes to those courses. I will mention in next year’s skipper meeting to make sure everyone checks the course after their warning signal. You may see a course 15 minutes before your start, but it can change right up to the warning signal. This is where twitter or a web page could help.
I was happy to help the club and take over some of the tasks they did not like. I will think about the above points and many other possibilities that were considered during the weekend. Hopefully, we will have an even better regatta next year.
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Spring Race #4
Wednesday 6/1/2011
The winds were gusty and shifty from the WSW. We saw 6-20 knots. Current was ebbing about 1/2 to 3/4 of a knot. Skies were cloudy then cleared up. We sailed from H to 24 to G to D to H.
Tonight we were at the dock early and got out on the water by 17:15. We hoisted the main and a 20 knot puff blew Eric’s hat into the river. We retrieved it and sailed down to Croton point. Under main alone, we were doing close to 7 knots. We unfurled the jib and enjoyed a fast broad reach.
We got to the start area just before 18:00. The RM was fouled on his anchor line. As a result, the boat end of the line was heavily favored. With the high winds and skewed line, we decided to do a Vanderbilt start. This is a timed run. We tacked onto port near the line with 3 minutes to go. With 1:40 left, we tacked around and headed to the line. I was purposely a few seconds late since I wanted room to maneuver, but we were clear. We got off the line with speed and chugged upwind.
The shifts were crazy and, near the mark, the velocity was down. We rounded 24 and bore off to G. This leg required us to wing the jib near the end. We rounded G and had a great ride to D. It was a tight reach and the warm breeze made the leg delightful.
We rounded D and headed to the finish. We enjoyed some nice separation from the fleet and actually caught a few boats from the earlier start. It was a great course for the conditions. I like a race that finishes upwind.
Due to the skewed line, there was some confusion on which side to finish. We had this happen two years ago and I wrote about it. In this case, the committee boat was stuck on its rode and could not square the line. It is a matter of opinion whether or not it was clear that boats should leave H to port. This is covered by Case 82 in the RRS Case Book. (page 164)
CASE 82
Rule 62.1(a), Redress
Definitions, Finish
When a finishing line is laid so nearly in line with the last leg that it cannot be determined which is the correct way to cross it in order to finish according to the definition, a boat may cross the line in either direction and her finish is to be recorded accordingly.
It is a matter of opinion as to whether or not the finish line was laid so nearly in line with the last leg. Either way, both times should be recorded since this case may apply. If someone who had to refinish asked for redress, it may or may not be granted. That would be up to a judge. For our Wednesday Night racing, I think we should be lenient and score boats from either side whenever the line is close to being parallel to the last rhumb line, especially when a gear problem prevents a proper line from being set.
There was also another rule situation that I heard about. This was a simple windward leeward situation. Two boats were beating upwind. The windward boat (W) told the leeward boat (L) that they had to sail lower. On a beat, I cannot think of a situation where L would not have the right to sail close-hauled. As long as L is not above close hauled, they have right of way. There are two exceptions I’ll mention later.
Even if the L established the overlap from behind and rule 17 applied, they still have the right to sail their proper course (on a beat, proper course is close hauled). If W cannot sail as high as L, that is too bad for W. Even under rule 17, it is the leeward boat’s right to sail to their proper course. W’s proper course is not relevant.
One possible time L would have to go below their proper course would be if the overlap began while they were very close. This would involve giving W enough room to keep clear. On a beat, there should not be too much angle here, so I doubt this would ever happen. Another possible exception would be if W had to bear off for an obstruction. Here are the applicable rules:
11 ON THE SAME TACK, OVERLAPPED
When boats are on the same tack and overlapped, a windward boat shall keep clear of a leeward boat.
17 ON THE SAME TACK; PROPER COURSE
If a boat clear astern becomes overlapped within two of her hull lengths to leeward of a boat on the same tack, she shall not sail above her proper course while they remain on the same tack and overlapped within that distance, unless in doing so she promptly sails astern of the other boat. This rule does not apply if the overlap begins while the windward boat is required by rule 13 to keep clear.
After racing we cruised around in the warm Westerly. It was a great night of sailing and it would have to end early for pizza. Here are some pictures and a link to a video.
The winds were gusty and shifty from the WSW. We saw 6-20 knots. Current was ebbing about 1/2 to 3/4 of a knot. Skies were cloudy then cleared up. We sailed from H to 24 to G to D to H.
Tonight we were at the dock early and got out on the water by 17:15. We hoisted the main and a 20 knot puff blew Eric’s hat into the river. We retrieved it and sailed down to Croton point. Under main alone, we were doing close to 7 knots. We unfurled the jib and enjoyed a fast broad reach.
We got to the start area just before 18:00. The RM was fouled on his anchor line. As a result, the boat end of the line was heavily favored. With the high winds and skewed line, we decided to do a Vanderbilt start. This is a timed run. We tacked onto port near the line with 3 minutes to go. With 1:40 left, we tacked around and headed to the line. I was purposely a few seconds late since I wanted room to maneuver, but we were clear. We got off the line with speed and chugged upwind.
The shifts were crazy and, near the mark, the velocity was down. We rounded 24 and bore off to G. This leg required us to wing the jib near the end. We rounded G and had a great ride to D. It was a tight reach and the warm breeze made the leg delightful.
We rounded D and headed to the finish. We enjoyed some nice separation from the fleet and actually caught a few boats from the earlier start. It was a great course for the conditions. I like a race that finishes upwind.
Due to the skewed line, there was some confusion on which side to finish. We had this happen two years ago and I wrote about it. In this case, the committee boat was stuck on its rode and could not square the line. It is a matter of opinion whether or not it was clear that boats should leave H to port. This is covered by Case 82 in the RRS Case Book. (page 164)
CASE 82
Rule 62.1(a), Redress
Definitions, Finish
When a finishing line is laid so nearly in line with the last leg that it cannot be determined which is the correct way to cross it in order to finish according to the definition, a boat may cross the line in either direction and her finish is to be recorded accordingly.
It is a matter of opinion as to whether or not the finish line was laid so nearly in line with the last leg. Either way, both times should be recorded since this case may apply. If someone who had to refinish asked for redress, it may or may not be granted. That would be up to a judge. For our Wednesday Night racing, I think we should be lenient and score boats from either side whenever the line is close to being parallel to the last rhumb line, especially when a gear problem prevents a proper line from being set.
There was also another rule situation that I heard about. This was a simple windward leeward situation. Two boats were beating upwind. The windward boat (W) told the leeward boat (L) that they had to sail lower. On a beat, I cannot think of a situation where L would not have the right to sail close-hauled. As long as L is not above close hauled, they have right of way. There are two exceptions I’ll mention later.
Even if the L established the overlap from behind and rule 17 applied, they still have the right to sail their proper course (on a beat, proper course is close hauled). If W cannot sail as high as L, that is too bad for W. Even under rule 17, it is the leeward boat’s right to sail to their proper course. W’s proper course is not relevant.
One possible time L would have to go below their proper course would be if the overlap began while they were very close. This would involve giving W enough room to keep clear. On a beat, there should not be too much angle here, so I doubt this would ever happen. Another possible exception would be if W had to bear off for an obstruction. Here are the applicable rules:
11 ON THE SAME TACK, OVERLAPPED
When boats are on the same tack and overlapped, a windward boat shall keep clear of a leeward boat.
17 ON THE SAME TACK; PROPER COURSE
If a boat clear astern becomes overlapped within two of her hull lengths to leeward of a boat on the same tack, she shall not sail above her proper course while they remain on the same tack and overlapped within that distance, unless in doing so she promptly sails astern of the other boat. This rule does not apply if the overlap begins while the windward boat is required by rule 13 to keep clear.
After racing we cruised around in the warm Westerly. It was a great night of sailing and it would have to end early for pizza. Here are some pictures and a link to a video.
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Spring Race 4 Preview
Another Wednesday, another possible weather problem. Today we have a cold front coming through the area. With temps approaching 90 and high dew points, this is the right mix for storm cells to develop ahead of the front. Luckily, it seems the front will pass before 17:00.
I noticed the southerly gradient this morning and that is usually good for us. The storms have the potential to suck out some of that energy, but I think we will have some decent winds after the front passes. The front will usher in a more westerly flow at some point, so at least we have energy behind it.
The current is ebbing. With the south wind, that could put some boats over the line early. Watch for the current around the start area, especially if the southerly is lighter than expected.
Now this is the Hudson. Our river-lake can be predictable, but once we get comfortable, she always changes her mind. So take this with a grain of salt.
I have formulated many plans from my work desk only to have everything change when I get out there. It is the process of planning for a race that allows me to be prepared when plans changed.
I noticed the southerly gradient this morning and that is usually good for us. The storms have the potential to suck out some of that energy, but I think we will have some decent winds after the front passes. The front will usher in a more westerly flow at some point, so at least we have energy behind it.
The current is ebbing. With the south wind, that could put some boats over the line early. Watch for the current around the start area, especially if the southerly is lighter than expected.
Now this is the Hudson. Our river-lake can be predictable, but once we get comfortable, she always changes her mind. So take this with a grain of salt.
I have formulated many plans from my work desk only to have everything change when I get out there. It is the process of planning for a race that allows me to be prepared when plans changed.
"In preparing for battle I have always found that plans are useless, but planning is indispensable." - Dwight D. Eisenhower
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