Club Sailing Instructions
Races will be sailed under the Racing Rules of Sailing 2013-2016 (RRS) as issued by the International Sailing Federation (ISAF) and the prescriptions of the Royal Yachting Association (RYA), except as any of these are changed by these instructions.
Entries: To enter any race the helmsman must be a member of the club, except for open events when competitors are deemed to be Honorary Members. To enter club races competitors must make their intentions clear to the Race Officer(s). Cadet competitors are expected to make their intentions to sail clear to the Race Officer(s) in the dinghy park. Cadet competitors must not go afloat until one of the club’s safety boats is in the vicinity of the Hard. In the event of a cadet competitor wishing to retire from a race the Race Officer(s) must be informed who will, either direct the boat to sail in or to tie alongside the committee boat.
Insurance and safety: The safety of a boat, her crew and entire management shall be the sole responsibility of the person in charge (or parent/guardian in the case of cadet members) who must ensure that the boat and crew are adequate to face the conditions that may arise during the course of the race/event. Neither these sailing instructions nor any inspection of the boats limits or reduces the absolute responsibility of the person in charge (or parent/guardian in the case of cadet members) for the boat, her crew and her management. Tollesbury Sailing Club shall not be responsible for any loss, damage, death or personal injury howsoever caused to any member or other person as a result of their taking part in any club race or event.
Buoyancy: Effective personal buoyancy shall be worn by all dinghy helms and crew when afloat. Wet suits and dry suits do not constitute adequate buoyancy. All dinghies sailed in club events shall have adequate fitted buoyancy as required by the class rules. It is the responsibility of the person in charge (or parent/guardian in the case of cadet members) to check the buoyancy is adequate and in good condition before going afloat.
Dinghy courses and start times: Courses for dinghy races will be displayed on the committee boat. In the event of the course being changed before the start signal flag C, accompanied by 2 sound signals, will be displayed and the new course will be displayed on the committee boat. Start times are as advertised in the club programme.
Start and finish lines: The start line and finish line will be between the committee boat and the designated buoy or mark on the shore. The course may be shortened and the race finished between the committee boat displaying flag S and an adjacent buoy or shore mark.
Race signals and starts: The following flag signals will be used for dinghy races.
DINGHY HANDICAP Pennant 1
CADET HANDICAP Code Flag T
PREPARATORY SIGNAL Code Flag P
INDIVIDUAL RECALL Code Flag X
GENERAL RECALL First Substitute
CHANGED COURSE Code Flag C
SHORTENED COURSE Code Flag S
ABANDONED RACE Code Flag N
POSTPONEMENT Answering Pennant
The starting sequence will in accordance with RRS rule 26. This sequence is as follows:
Warning Class Flag 1 sound 5 minutes before start
Preparatory P flag 1 sound 4 minutes before start
One-Minute P flag removed 1 long sound 1 minute before start
Start Class flag removed 1 sound 0
Times shall be taken from the visual signals; the absence of a sound signal shall be disregarded.
Recalls: In the event a boat, or boats, is on the course side of the starting line at the start signal, code flag X, accompanied by one sound signal, shall be promptly displayed. The offending boat(s) shall return to the pre-start side of the starting line and start correctly.
In the event the race officer(s) is unable to identify all the boats starting prematurely, or there has been an error in the starting procedure, a general recall will be signalled by displaying the 1st substitute accompanied by two sound signals. The procedure for a new start shall be made one minute after the 1st substitute is removed (accompanied by one sound signal).
Protests: Protests must be submitted in writing to the Race Officer in accordance with the procedure contained in RRS within one hour of coming ashore. The Race Officer will convene a Protest Committee as soon as is practicable. The findings of the protest shall be communicated to the parties involved as soon after the hearing as is practicable. The parties involved in the protest shall make themselves available as directed by the Protest Committee.
Scoring: For a series of races points shall be awarded in accordance with the RRS Low Point system, i.e. 1st place 1 point, 2nd place 2 points, 3rd place 3 points, etc. For a retirement or DNF (did not finish) in any race the points so awarded shall be 1 point more than the number of starters for that race. For a DNS (did not start) the points so awarded shall be the number of series starters plus 2 points.
In a series consisting of N races the number of races to qualify for the series shall be calculated as follows: where N is even N/2 plus 1, where N is odd N/2 plus ½.
A competitor carrying out Race Officer/Safety Boat duties will be awarded at the end of the series points equal to the average of their results from races sailed in that series. The number of average points results awarded will be determined by the number of races required to be added to qualify for that series.
Penalties: RRS rules 44.1 and 44.2 will apply as follows: 360º turn for touching a mark (Rule 31) and 720º turn for infringement of rules of Part 2 of RRS.
Dinghy handicaps: These will be based on the Portsmouth Yardstick system. Where personal handicaps are applied for specified trophy races these will be based on the helm’s previous performance. Changes will be made during the season to reflect performance.
Cadet events: To be eligible for Cadet events competitors must be aged 18 years or under. In exceptional circumstances an adult may be allowed to sail as crew with the agreement of the Race Officer.
