By Dave Cobbett
The question frequently arises, within the zone at a leeward mark: “Does starboard gybe boat have rights over port gybe ?” The following Fruit Bowl protest helps settle the question.
Boats B and C are close together on port gybe, with the 3-length zone, and about to round the right-hand gate mark (looking downwind). Boat C is the inside boat, clearly overlapped inside B.
Boat A comes in at a fairly wide angle on starboard gybe, from the left side of the course (looking downwind), entering the zone after B and C. Boats B and C have been overlapped inside Boat A for several boatlengths prior to entering the zone.
Boat A calls “Starboard”, then collides with B(still on port gybe), who in turn is forced into C(still on port). The boats swing momentarily in a counter-clockwise arc.
Boat C rounds the mark, hitting it as he goes, and does his penalty turns.
Boat A protests B, on Rule 10 (starboard over port).
Decision: The Protest Jury disqualified Boat A on a couple of counts.
1 – Rule 14 – Avoiding collision
2 – Rule 18.2.b – Mark Room. The new Rule 18 helps clear some confusion. Under the old Rule 18, if Port (P) entered the zone clear ahead of Starboard (S), P became the right-of-way boat while they were rounding the mark. Having the port gybe boat become the right-of-way boat was very confusing.
Under the new rules, S remains the right-of-way boat, but must give P “mark room” (see Rule 18.2.b). In this case, Boat B, having an inside overlap on A, was entitled to ‘mark room”, as was Boat C. In fact Boat C could have protested Boats A and B…… B for not keeping clear, and A for not giving mark room.
Here, Boat B would have been exonerated for hitting C, having been forced into C by Boat A, which was breaking a rule. Boat C did not need to do penalty turns, since she would have also been exonerated by virtue of being forced into the mark by Boat A, which was breaking a rule.
The question frequently arises, within the zone at a leeward mark: “Does starboard gybe boat have rights over port gybe ?” The following Fruit Bowl protest helps settle the question.
Boats B and C are close together on port gybe, with the 3-length zone, and about to round the right-hand gate mark (looking downwind). Boat C is the inside boat, clearly overlapped inside B.
Boat A comes in at a fairly wide angle on starboard gybe, from the left side of the course (looking downwind), entering the zone after B and C. Boats B and C have been overlapped inside Boat A for several boatlengths prior to entering the zone.
Boat A calls “Starboard”, then collides with B(still on port gybe), who in turn is forced into C(still on port). The boats swing momentarily in a counter-clockwise arc.
Boat C rounds the mark, hitting it as he goes, and does his penalty turns.
Boat A protests B, on Rule 10 (starboard over port).
Decision: The Protest Jury disqualified Boat A on a couple of counts.
1 – Rule 14 – Avoiding collision
2 – Rule 18.2.b – Mark Room. The new Rule 18 helps clear some confusion. Under the old Rule 18, if Port (P) entered the zone clear ahead of Starboard (S), P became the right-of-way boat while they were rounding the mark. Having the port gybe boat become the right-of-way boat was very confusing.
Under the new rules, S remains the right-of-way boat, but must give P “mark room” (see Rule 18.2.b). In this case, Boat B, having an inside overlap on A, was entitled to ‘mark room”, as was Boat C. In fact Boat C could have protested Boats A and B…… B for not keeping clear, and A for not giving mark room.
Here, Boat B would have been exonerated for hitting C, having been forced into C by Boat A, which was breaking a rule. Boat C did not need to do penalty turns, since she would have also been exonerated by virtue of being forced into the mark by Boat A, which was breaking a rule.
