CLICK HERE to return to Home Page



SUMMARY OF AMYA RULES OF SAILING
AND SITUATIONS AND RELATIVE POSITIONS TO AVOID BECAUSE OF THEM

1. If you overtake a boat from the stern and have right of way on the leeward side; Rule 17.1 limits you to sailing a proper course to the next buoy. This limit continues until your stern passes his bow.

2. If you are sailing WITH THE WIND, [but not into the wind] you may not sail below your proper course if you have a boat to leeward of you.....OR......you have a boat astern of you who is steering a course to leeward of you...... unless you are turning to gybe your sails to the other side of the boat. Rule 17.2

3. A proper course is defined as the course that would be the fastest around the course. Downwind that would be towards the mark. However, going up wind; anticipated wind shifts may make the proper course some other course than that which is as close to heading for the mark as you can.

4. The new rule provides that a boat with the right of way NEED NOT ACT to avoid contact until it is clear that the other boat is not going to keep clear ....... and even then....... the right of way boat shall not be penalized unless it causes damage. Rule 14

5. To "FINISH" you must do two things. A. Any part of your boat must cross the finish line. All of the boat need not cross the line. B. You must clear the finish line without hitting any finishing mark.

6. If a group of boats are all over the starting line; the fact that several boats made the same mistake does not give those boats the "right" to a restart. Rule 29.3 for general recall is an OPTION GIVEN THE STARTER ........ in case he can not identify exactly which boats are over.

7. If a boat is within 4 boat lengths of you as you approach a mark and is inside of you...... Rule 18 says you must give them room to round the mark inside of you. But note that if boats are on opposite tacks this rule does not apply.

8. If two boats are on opposite tacks, the boat on the STARBOARD TACK has the right of way. Rule 10.

9. If two boats are sailing alongside each other the LEEWARD boat has the right of way. Rule 12. Note definition of keeping clear, below: If leeward boat can turn and hit you immediately, which he is free to do, you are not keeping clear and you would be penalized, not the leeward boat for hitting you!

10. But note: when you tack, you lose any right of way you may have had..AFTER your main boom crosses the center line of your boat. Rule 13.

11. If both boats are tacking your revert to the ordinary rule of the road: The ship to the right of the other has the right of way. Rule 13.

12. What is keeping clear? By definition in the rules: A. Sailing the same way. The clearance is such that the right of way boat can change course without immediately hitting the burdened boat. B. When comming at each other: When the right of way boat has no need to change course to avoid a collision.

BOTTOM LINE: If the right of way boat changes course ...... you must respond and also change course, generally That is it has the right of way to "push" you away from them by turning into you and you must respond..

13. Am on a Port or Starboard tack? Remember Port has 4 letters so does "Left" side. You are on the tack OPPOSITE TO THE SIDE YOUR BOOM IS ON. Particularly important going down wind when your boom could be on either side of the boat. Or it can be seen as the side of the boat facing where the wind is coming from.

14. Am I the LEEWARD BOAT or the WINDWARD BOAT? By the Definitions in the Rules: The leeward boat is the one downwind of the other. Or to think of it another way: The boat that is on that side that the booms are on is the downwind boat. But note going downwind when the boom might be on either side: A. If you are concerned with the tack you are on, then the side the boom is on, determines the matter. B. However, if you are concerned with who is the "Leeward Boat" then the boat down wind, determines who is the Leeward boat, with the right of way.

15. When you start and the clock is within one minute of the start time: you CAN NOT get to the right side of the course by crossing the start line. You must go around the OUTSIDE of the start marks. Rule 30.1 Note however: if you are over the line early, when starting, you do not need to go outside of the marks to get in a position to restart, once the START TIME IS REACHED. You need only get your WHOLE BOAT ON THE START SIDE OF THE LINE. Rule 29.1 But you must stay out of other boats way that are properly starting, whatever tack they are on.

16. THE STRING RULE: You will find that IT DOES EXIST AND CAN BE FOUND as Rule 28.1. The reason for the rule is that otherwise, [when you round a mark the "wrong way"] there is no way of determining where you must go to before you can proceed to "properly round the mark", that is fair to those who rounded it properly. It is called the string rule because the technical language of the rule [28.1] is expressed in terms that a string representing the wake of a boat, after starting until finishing, would, when drawn taut, would be held by each mark and lie on the required side of each buoy. This language may seem confusing; but if you try to describe the same thing in other language, it takes many paragraphs to do so; to cover every possible approach to a mark from the "wrong side." If you will put three nails in a triangle in a board and take a string and move around a mark the wrong way and then proceed to the next mark, you will see how, doing it improperly causes the string to not be "caught by the mark" when drawn tight. But in practical terms, the rule is VERY SIMPLE. What it means is - that if you start around a buoy the wrong way....YOU MUST RETRACE YOUR PATH to get TO THE CORRECT POSITION TO START rounding the mark properly. What the rule seeks to avoid is - assume you started around the mark the wrong way ..... got a third of the way around and discovered your mistake. Now what do you do? If you simply turned 180 degrees and headed off for the next mark you would pass the mark on the required side ... right?... at least for a moment .... But is that fair to everyone else? So how far around the wrong way must you go .... before it would be fair? There is no way to determine it ..... thus the rule ..... go back the way you came.

17. If you believe that you have violated any of these rules, you may get clear of all boats and do a complete 360 degree turn which will exonerate the mistake. If you believe another has violated the rules, you must say to them, TWICE: Boat ___[your boat number] PROTEST Boat ___ [their boat number] ..... or "The Green boat etc. if who you are talking about would be clear, if the sail number is not clear; and usually three or four words that tend to describe why you are protesting; if its not obvious what you would be protesting. They, in turn, will either "accept your protest" and do a 360 turn to exonerate themselves; or reject it. If they reject it, then notify the Regatta Director of your Protest, after the race; and a hearing will be held to determine who had the right of way. But you must have "Protested" the other boat, AT THE TIME, or a hearing will not be held.

REMEMBER: As between two reasonably experienced skipper's; THERE IS JUST AS MUCH CHANCE THAT YOU ARE WRONG IN YOUR PERCEPTION OF WHO HAS THE RIGHT OF WAY, AS THEY ARE. After you have sailed awhile.....you will find....even the most experienced of skippers, sometimes are wrong in their perception.
There is nothing wrong with PROTESTING. It is simply an INQUIRY as to WHO HAS THE RIGHT OF WAY; based on YOUR PERCEPTION that you did. Sometimes, even the best of skippers get things screwed up. So may you. I know I do.
IT IS VERY UNWORKABLE AND UNSPORTSMANLIKE CONDUCT.....to assume and adopt an "attitude" that you are absolutely right and another is absolutely wrong. One has every right to inquire.......ONE HAS NO RIGHT.....to unilaterally decide that they are right and another is wrong.......that job belongs solely to a race official or referee. We all know that professional athletes argue violently and angrily and are wrong over 80% of the time!
A referee can be wrong.......no one is perfect and that is their job to decide. So even when wrong, that is their job. It is not our job, as skippers to "decide" who is right or wrong, tho certainly we try to be right. As a participant there is nothing in the rules that allow you to decide---as an absolute matter of certainty-- that someone else has violated the rules. Therefore to do so is the assumption of a power you never have.....that is the definition of ARROGANCE. If it happens that you are "right", so be it. But the important point is that when you are wrong [and you will be sooner or later]; although you are expected to be wrong from time to time; YOU ARE NOT EXPECTED TO BE ARROGANT; which is insulting and unacceptable, even when you are right. A suggestion for beginners. Everyone remembers when they were beginning. Do not be afraid of mistakes. It is to be expected. And the only way to really learn is to just get in there and try.

Having said that however, there are a couple of things that beginners might consider doing, without really giving up much.

1. Even the most experienced skippers, ALMOST ALWAYS, find it is best to be ON STARBOARD TACK, when approaching the start line. For those on port, seldom have the right of way. AND IT USUALLY RESULTS IN DISASTER, UNLESS YOU ARE REALLY ON TOP OF THE SITUATION.

And it is quite frustrating to experienced skippers to lose a hard earned good position at the start, because they have to avoid a "port" skipper who doesn't stand a chance of pulling it off successfully without violating the rules.
2. Consider laying back at the start in any event, for your own benefit. If you get involved with another yacht, you will usually find that you will lose A LOT MORE GROUND, than the little you might gain, by being "closer to the start." It is a long race!

3. When rounding a mark, consider taking it very wide. Again, to inadvertently get involved with another yacht, while rounding a mark, is almost always to lose more ground, that the little extra distance in going wider around the mark, clear of other boats. With experience you will learn, what minimum distance you need to "squeak" by! Remember, that in making a sharp turn, the boat pivots on the keel, in the middle of the boat, so that if you are right along side another boat, when you turn, your stern, will touch a boat on your outward side, costing you a 360. Remember also, that your are obligated to not only give enough room for the boat inside of you, at a mark to maneuver, BUT ALSO you must give additional room, so ALL BOATS inside of you, have room for them to give room to those inside of them!

But other than these two "critical areas", have at it. Don't worry about making mistakes. Everyone makes them, from time to time, so it is not unexpected.
MOST OF ALL ..... HAVE FUN. That's why we are at the Lake.

WHAT THE RULES MEAN TO ALL SKIPPERS, in practical terms, most of the time: 1. NEVER COME UP CLOSE TO ANOTHER YACHT, ON ITS WINDWARD SIDE. Why? Because, you are disrupting the wind coming to its sails. THIS IS THE VERY REASON THAT THE LEEWARD YACHT, has been given the right of way. Yes, you may do so, but the rules give the leeward yacht two things that it can do. AND IN FACT, it must do, unless it is willing to put up with you disrupting its wind. You can expect it to do so. It will maneuver in a way that will FORCE YOU, (if you comply with the rules) to TACK AWAY, so it can recover its undisturbed wind. WHICH IT HAS EVERY RIGHT TO DO.
A. If you are too close, it has every right to change its course into your path. (ie; it has the right of way) And unless it does so very abruptly, it the boats hit each other, the windward boat suffers the penalty. In fact, the leeward boat need not "hit" you, but can assert that you prevented it from changing course, which it has every right to do.
B. It can change course, until your sails start luffing and you slow down. AGAIN, its purpose is not to be obnoxious; but rather to FORCE YOU TO TACK AWAY, so as to stop your disturbing its wind. ON THE OTHER HAND, there is one situation, in which the windward boat, has the advantage, SO LONG AS IT DOESN'T GET SO CLOSE, that the leeward boat can force you to tack away.

Say both are beginning to approach a mark, but it is on the windward side, closed hauled, so that neither can not get to the proper side of the mark, without tacking.
If the windward boat were to tack too soon, to fetch the mark, [even tho it then becomes the leeward boat and temporarily has rights] it gives the then windward boat time to acquire an over lap and then have rights going around the buoy. There is nothing that requires one to give another boat a position to obtain over lap rights, nor should their be.
WHAT WILL THE BOAT THAT WAS INITIALLY WINDWARD DO? It will keep sailing on the original course, until when it tacks, it is at the maximum course into the wind, that will allow it to just reach the mark. What was the leeward boat, after the tack toward the mark, then becomes the windward boat, with no right. And if it has been a sufficent distance from you, after the tack, you will be behind it. If you try to stay to windward, to be in a position to get an inside overlap; since it is at the maximum angle, you will slow down. Your only choice will then be to go astern, thus losing your postion to obtain an inside overlap.
What makes it work for the windward boat, is to initially be far enough to windward, so the leeward boat can't luff you BUT ALSO be close enough that if the leeward boat attempts to change course to reach the mark; when his boom reaches his center line, AND THEREBY LOSES HIS RIGHTS AS THE LEEWARD BOAT, he would colide with your boat. If the distance is just right, the windward boat, effectively determines when the tack to reach the mark occurs, even tho, at the moment, it does not have the right of way. GIVEN THAT BOATS ON STARBOARD TACK HAVE THE RIGHT OF WAY.....WHAT WILL HAPPEN AT THE START, if you are on port tack.

YOU WILL NOT HAVE THE RIGHT OF WAY. You can not go in front of other boats, because you would be over the start line before the start time. And just after the start, they will be on starboard tack and have the right of way. You will be forced to tack onto starboard, thus losing ground and ending up behind. WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU ARE ON STARBOARD TACK BUT OFF TO THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE START MARK, WAITING FOR THE APPROPRIATE TIME TO HAUL IN THE SAILS TO REACH THE START LINE, AT THE RIGHT TIME?????

If you have a boat to Leeward of you, you are in BIG TROUBLE. If you maintain that relative relationship, the leeward boat, may well be able to either head right for the right mark, [which it has every right to do as there is no "inside overlap rule that applies at the start; or if you both pass that mark before the start time, it may well come right up along side the start line, "forcing" you over the start line early.
And in any event, you are then close to the leeward boat and subject to having to TACK AWAY right after the start, as you are luffed, because you are taking the leeward boats wind.
Therefore, the key in this situation, if for some other reason, you like it, is to try to be in a position, that no boat to leeward of you can come to windward and crowd you, because you are at the maximum heading into the wind; and if they tried to to do, they would be heading into the wind and would stop. Of course, it also must be a position from which you can maintain that close hauled position AND be able to make the start mark.
FOR EVERYONE ELSE, the key is, if you find that situation developing, GET THE HECK OUT OF THAT POSITION.....AHEAD OF TIME. It will not get any better, absent A FORTUITOUS WIND SHIFT.
Of course, this is the real challanging thing about the start. One must think 10 or 20 seconds ahead, as to what positions are possible for and not possible for other boats, in those future seconds.

And indeed, by following the right of way rules before the last few seconds, you may be able to maneuver another boat so THEY CAN SIMPLY NOT GET TO MAXIMUM DESIRED POSTION IN THE FEW SECONDS BEFORE THE RACE.

NOTE:NOTE:NOTE. Contrary to what many think, if you violate the rules between the prepartory signal and the start signal. YOU ARE REQURIED TO DO THE REQUIRED PENALTY TURN .....BEFORE..... YOU START, if there is reasonable time to do so. You do not have to and indeed should not wait until after you cross the start line. If the penalty occurs early enough, you can exhonerate yourself and get on with obtaining your desired start position. On the other hand, while you are doing your penalty turn, away from everyone else, others will be busy getting in the right place to be at their desired posttion in the few seconds just before the start.

NOTE ALSO, that the rules provide that you can be disqualified if you incurr a penalty WHICH ALSO GIVES YOU AN ADVANTAGE IN DOING SO.
The classic case would be one in which you find yourself as the windward boat close to the start line just before the start. The leeward boat, as it has the right to do, can "FORCE YOU OVER THE START LINE PREMATURELY". If you refuse to go over the start line, when that is your only alternative, unless you incur a penalty, and instead crowd the leeward boat, and thus incur a penalty, thinking a 360, within a reasonable time after the start, would be better than having to go around the outside of the start mark and start again for being early; then you risk being disqualified under rule 44.1 that states with regard to exhonerating oneself by making a penalty turn: HOWEVER .... if she gained a significant advantage in the race by her breach she shall RETIRE.

HAPPY SAILING WITHIN THE RULES

ROWLAND

CLICK HERE to return to Home Page