I am genuinely surprised there were not more protests and more damage in last night’s twilight race…
In Humbug and in particular, off the Goat Island Red Channel Marker, numerous Skippers failed to acknowledge or follow the rules that apply when either overtaking or when passing a continuous obstruction.
• Boats were pushing for room (on the inside) around continuous obstructions when they had no right to do so.
• Overtaking vessels were not giving room to the vessel in front.
THE BOTTOM LINE
If there is not the room available in front of you, whether it be off Onions Point, going through Humbug, or when passing continuous obstructions…
PLEASE DON’T EVEN THINK ABOUT GOING THERE !!!
DON’T TRY TO SQUEEZE THROUGH A SPACE THAT DOES NOT EXIST.
ie plan ahead on the race track.
Skippers and Tacticians in particular, please read some of the key rules detailed below and note that under Rule 19.2( c ) in particular if you don’t have room, the port/starboard and windward/leeward rules are switched off whilst rounding a continuous obstruction.
The Sailing Instructions state that the Goat Island Red Channel Mark is a continuous obstruction: (25 (vii) (b) ) and that Rule 19 applies.
(Don’t forget the islands are continuous obstructions…as was the Tall Ship last night off Goat Island….)
Some of the key rules that apply in the above scenarios include :
19.2 Giving Room at an Obstruction
(a) A right-of-way boat may choose to pass an obstruction on either side.
(b) When boats are overlapped, the outside boat shall give the inside boat room between her and the obstruction, unless she has been unable to do so from the time the overlap began.
(c) While boats are passing a continuing obstruction, if a boat that was clear astern and required to keep clear becomes overlapped between the other boat and the obstruction and, at the moment the overlap begins, there is not room for her to pass between them, she is not entitled to room under rule 19.2(b). While the boats remain overlapped, she shall keep clear and rules 10 (port/starboard) and 11 (windward boat keeps clear) do not apply.
15 ACQUIRING RIGHT OF WAY
When a boat acquires right of way, she shall initially give the other boat room to keep clear, unless she acquires right of way because of the other boat’s actions.
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 [your rights/obligations whilst tacking] to keep clear.
