Rules Questions 15 February 2025

 We will look at Continuing Obstructions, Proper Course and revisit windward mark port roundings.

Windward Mark Port Rounding

We have previously looked at the rules at top mark roundings. There is an interesting example of a boat fetching the mark on Port with a starboard boat tacking to lee ward.  The windward boat has mark room.  Once Yellow tacks to port Blue is the inside boat, overlapped and entitled to mark room.

Room to keep Clear, port rounding.

This is a common situation in Balmoral SC racing. Boats rounding the topmark to port and then wanting to head down wind. They are on starboard but changing course as they round the mark. Do they have to give the port tackers room to keep clear of them.  

Answer Yes.
S is the right of way boat under rule 10 (starboard/port), but she is required to give P room to keep clear if she is  changing course (Rule 16.1). P does not need to anticipate S will bear away after rounding the mark.

Rule 16.1

Continuing Obstructions

Balmoral SC courses have two common continuing obstruction situations,  Groto Point in our NE course and Wyargine Point in the South course. Rule 20.1 has been revised in the 2025 to2029 rules.  

20.1 Hailing

A boat may hail for room to tack and avoid a boat on the same tack by hailing ‘Room to tack’. However, she shall not hail unless

• (a)  she is approaching an obstruction and will soon need to make a substantial course change to avoid it safely, and

• (b)  she is sailing close-hauled or above.

Question - what is the required hail  'Water', 'I need to tack', 'Room to tack' ?

Proper Course (definition)

Has Yellow broken rule 17?

Has Yellow failed to keep clear?

Rules Questions for Race Day 11 January 25

Last year we looked at top mark roundings. One rule of particular interest was  Rule 18(1) which  says mark room does not apply between boats on opposite tacks on a beat to windward. 

However, this is not the case for leeward mark roundings. Boats on opposite tacks can have mark room when both boats are sailing more than ninety degrees from the true wind.

We will need to carefully look at when boats are overlapped.

Definition
Mark-Room Room for a boat

(a)  to sail to the mark when her proper course is to sail close to it,

(b)  to round or pass the mark on the required side, and

(c)  to leave it astern.

Definition
Clear Astern and Clear Ahead; Overlap 

One boat is clear astern of another when her hull and equipment in normal position are behind a line abeam from the aftermost point of the other boat’s hull and equipment in normal position. The other boat is clear ahead. 

They overlap when neither is clear astern. However, they also overlap when a boat between them overlaps both. These terms always apply to boats on the same tack. They apply to boats on opposite tacks only when rule 18 applies between them or when both boats are sailing more than ninety degrees from the true wind.

Rule
18.2 Giving Mark-Room

a) When the first of two boats reaches the zone,

(1)  if the boats are overlapped, the outside boat at that moment shall give the inside boat mark-room;

(2)  if the boats are not overlapped, the boat that has not reached the zone at that moment shall give the other boat mark-room

Example 1.

Is Blue overlapped with Yellow, is Blue the inside boat, is Blue entitled to mark room?

Answer Yes, Yes , Yes.

Example 2

Question

Is Yellow overlapped with Blue at position 1, is Yellow the inside boat, is Yellow entitled to Mark Room.

Answer No, No, No.

Example 3

Blue and Yellow are opposite tacks. Does Mark Room apply? When Blue reaches the Zone, is Yellow overlapped? Is Blue the inside boat? Is Blue entitled to Mark Room?

Answers, Yes,Yes, Yes, Yes.

Example 4

Blue and Yellow are on opposite tacks.

Are the boats overlapped when Yellow reaches the Zone? Is Blue the Inside Boat and entitled to Mark Room?

Answer Yes, Yes

Example 5

After entering the zone, Blue breaks the overlap. Should Blue give mark-room to Yellow.

Answer Yes

Example 6

Is Blue entitled to mark-room.

Answer Yes

Thanks to Sailzing and UK Sailmakers  for the animations, see more about 18.3 mark room rules at:

https://sailzing.com/rules-18-3-and-18-4-mark-room-3-racing-rules-of-sailing-2021-2024/

Rules Question for Raced day 14 December 2024

This week we look at the different rules that apply to top mark starboard and port roundings. These are key rules that are common to both situations.

18 MARK-ROOM

(a)  Rule 18 applies between boats when they are required to leave a mark on the same side and at least one of them is in the zone. However, it does not apply

(1)  between boats on opposite tacks on a beat to windward,

18.2 Giving Mark-Room

(a) When the first of two boats reaches the zone,

(1)  if the boats are overlapped, the outside boat at that moment shall give the inside boat mark-room;

(2)  if the boats are not overlapped, the boat that has not reached the zone at that moment shall give the other boat mark-room.

Rule 10 

Port tack boats must keep clear of Starboard tack boats 

Rule 11

When boats are on the same tack and overlapped, a windward boat shall keep clear of a leeward boat. 

Starboard Rounding Windward Mark.

Two boats on port tack are fetching a starboard windward mark and overlapped as the leading boat reaches the zone. The outside boat is giving the inside boat mark room.

Question . A starboard boat (S) tacks onto port in the zone. Is S entitled to mark room from the port tack boats?

Answer: The port tack boats have to keep clear of S while on starboard.. Boats on opposite tacks do not have mark room and boats tacking in the zone do not have mark room. After S completes its tack, whichever boat is the windward boat, must keep clear of a leeward boat.

Port Rounding windward mark.

Rule 18.3 has been written to discourage entering the zone on port tack and to give some preference to starboard boats fetching the mark.

Rule - 18.3. Passing Head to Wind in the Zone

If a boat passes head to wind from port to starboard tack in the zone of a mark to be left to port, rule 18.2 does not apply between her and another boat on starboard tack that is fetching the mark. If the other boat has been on starboard tack since entering the zone, the boat that passed head to wind

(a)  shall not cause the other boat to sail above close-hauled to avoid contact, and

(b)  shall give mark-room if the other boat becomes overlapped inside her.

Definition - Fetching  A boat is fetching a mark when it is in a position to pass to windward of it and leave it on the required side without changing tack.

Question 1

Blue crosses yellow and tacks from port to starboard tack in the zone. Has Blue broken rule 18.3?

Answer

No, Blue is able to cross yellow and keep clear. Blue then gives Yellow mark room as required under rule 18.3.

Question 2

Blue tacks in the zone to starboard and pinches around the mark causing yellow to head above close hauled.  Has Blue broken a rule? What else could Blue have done?

Answer

Yellow has been on starboard since entering the zone. Blues action caused Yellow to sail above close hauled.  Blue has broken rule 18.3.

Instead, Blue could cross ahead of yellow (if possible) or duck behind yellow before tacking.

Thanks to Sailzing and UK Sailmakers  for the animations, see more about 18.3 mark room rules here.

https://sailzing.com/rules-18-3-and-18-4-mark-room-3-racing-rules-of-sailing-2021-2024/

 Rules questions for race day 7 December 2024

These are rules to consider.

Rule 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.

Rule 16  CHANGING COURSE
Rule 16.1  When a right-of-way boat changes course, it shall give the other boat room to keep clear.

Come to the briefing to discuss the answers.

For more information about the Racing Rules of Sailing, scroll down this page.

Question 1
15 seconds before the gun, Blue is close hauled to the Boat End and Red is reaching in, Both on Starboard. If no one moves they will collide. 

Is Red entitled to room here?

Answer
Rule 11 applies and the windward boat (Red) must keep clear and is not allowed to hold her course. The leeward boat (Blue) is bound only by her duty to avoid a collision with damage (rule 14). Since Blue has not changed course, rule 16 does not apply.

Question 2

​  Blue and Red are both reaching on starboard to the Boat End for the start. Just before the gun, blue.              
  luffs up to the line, cutting off Red's approach. Red protests.

​  Does Red have a valid protest?

Answer
In accordance with rule 16.1 Blue may not change her course so late, because Red by this time no longer has room to keep clear. Blue should have luffed earlier, if she wanted to close the gap. There is no rule, that requires of a boat (here: Red) to anticipate an action of another boat (here: Blue's luff towards the starting line), even if this action is to be expected.