Race Officer Duties

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A Race Officer’s Guide - 2007 Introduction Responsibilities Preparation Signing-on Sheets Starting Sequence Starting Procedure - 4 Class Starts (Saturdays & Tuesdays) Starting Procedure - Single Class Start (Sundays) Individual Recalls General Recalls During The Race Shortening Course Finishing The Race Portsmouth Yardsticks Results Average Points Introduction This guide is intended for those with rusty memories or for those who have never been Race Officer before. It is written in such a way to lead you through the process of starting a race and all the events that lead up to it. It is hoped that the more experienced sailors will remember how the process is done but, just in case, this will act as a check list to ensure that all the right things happen at the right time in the right way. Responsibilities For every race there is a duty Sailing Committee member, whose responsibility it is to set the course. This is not intended to suggest that you, the Race Officer, is not capable of doing so, but the Sailing Committee regularly discuss course setting and so, hopefully, learn from their, and each other’s, mistakes. By all means help the Sailing Committee member with constructive comments. Preparation You should hoist the Club burgee to the masthead and the red ensign to the end of the yard. This indicates to all, that racing is to take place. No further flags will be flown from the mast unless racing is cancelled or postponed, or unless there is a general recall. The latter is unlikely in Club racing, but it is best to prepare for it by clipping the First Substitute onto one of the crosstree halyards. The outer distance mark is now permanently laid, so to set up the line, position the 2 orange posts (one on the front of the Signal Station building and one on the compound wall) so that the distance mark is in line with them. Check that the hooter/light is set up properly so that it is pointing straight down the start line. Make sure it’s connected to the transformer, which should be switched on at the mains socket inside the radio locker. Give the button a quick press to make sure the hooter and light are working. Make sure the radio base station is connected to its antenna lead and its power supply. Take the following items with you to the starting platform on the rescue boat shed roof: Race results sheets (one for each class) Pens/pencils A stopwatch Binoculars A calculator As the boats are launching, make a note of their sail numbers and boat types on the relevant results sheet. Signing-on Sheets The Club use signing on sheets firstly as a Safety control and to ensure results are allocated to the correct Boat/Helm/Crew. Starting Sequence It is very important that the race starts at the published time unless there is a really good reason not to. Therefore you have to be ready to make the first sound signal SIX minutes before that time. Ideally all racing marks should have been laid before beginning the starting sequence. However, if the line is in place and the first mark of the course is laid, it is generally safe to begin the sequence while the other marks are being laid. If in doubt, contact the safety boat to discuss how long they think they need to lay the remaining marks. Check that the marks are in their intended positions. Don’t get too picky about it – it is often more important to get on with the race rather than try to create the perfect course. The start line is a transit between the two orange posts. It is preferable that the distance mark should be in line with them, but not essential. It is better to have the line slightly ahead of the ODM rather than behind it, to discourage early starters. Once you are happy that all is set, proceed with the STARTING PROCEDURE section of this guide. If, for any reason, you have to abort the starting sequence (marks drifting, safety boat problems etc) then make 3 long sound signals and hide all shapes. When it’s all sorted out, begin the starting sequence again. Remember it’s the appearance/disappearance of the flag shapes, which indicates the official signal. The sound signal is merely to draw attention to the flag shapes. 1A 2 Starting Procedure – 4 Class Starts (Most Saturdays and Tuesdays) Classes 1A & 1B – Black flag shape Class 2 – Red flag shape Class 3 – Yellow flag shape Class 4 – Green flag shape Official start minus 6 minutes Warning signal Classes 1A & 1B One hoot/light signal Expose the black flag shape Official start minus 3 minutes Preparatory signal for Classes 1A & 1B Warning signal for Class 2 One hoot/light signal Expose the red flag shape Expose the Blue Peter Official start time Start for Classes 1A & 1B Preparatory signal for Class 2 Warning Signal for Class 3 One hoot/light Hide the black flag shape (if all clear) Expose the yellow flag shape  Official start plus 3 minutes Start for Class 2 Preparatory signal for Class 3 Warning signal for Class 4 One light/hoot Hide the red flag shape (if all clear) Expose the green flag shape Official start plus 6 minutes Start for Class 3 Preparatory signal for Class 4 One light/hoot Hide the yellow flag shape (if all clear) Official start plus 9 minutes Start for Class 4 One light/hoot Hide the green flag shape (if all clear) Hide the Blue Peter All races have now started Starting Procedure – Single Class Starts (Sundays+Some Saturdays) Official start minus 6 minutes Warning signal One hoot/light signal Expose the black flag shape Official start minus 3 minutes Preparatory signal One hoot/light signal Expose the Blue Peter Official start One hoot/light Hide the black flag shape (if all clear) Hide the Blue Peter Individual Recalls If any part of any boat or its equipment is over the line (OCS – On course side) at the time of the start signal, two actions should be taken: Make a second sound signal Move the flag shape of the class in question to a halfway position, rather than completely hiding it. Make a note of the class and sail number(s) of the boat(s) in question and watch to see if they return to a position behind the line to exonerate them self. If they do, then hide the flag shape fully. If any of them don’t, then leave the flag shape half hidden for at least one lap of the course. General Recalls In the unlikely event that there are so many boats over the line that you can’t identify all of them (or if you can’t identify the boats behind the line), then a general recall is required. The following actions should be taken: a) Make two extra sound signals (i.e. a total of three) b) Fly the First Substitute flag on the crosstree of the mast behind you. c) Start the remaining classes as programmed. The class with the General Recall goes to the back of the queue. d) At the time of the last legitimate start, the First Substitute should be dropped. One minute later, the class and Blue Peter flag shapes should be shown together. Three minutes later the restart takes place. During The Race Take a note of the time that each boat crosses the line at the end of each round. Except at the finish, you need only take a rough note of the hours/minutes. This will be useful in deciding whether or not to shorten course (i.e. predicting how long boats will take to do subsequent rounds) and may also be useful to “backtrack” times in the (unlikely!) event of mistakes or confusion with finishing times. Shortening Course It is generally a good policy for the duty Sailing Committee member to set an overlong course, which can easily be shortened, rather than risk setting a course, which is never going to be long enough. For that reason, it is often appropriate for the Race Officer to shorten the course during the race. These decisions are often difficult, as you have to consider the boats at the back of the fleet as well as the boats at the front. It is generally agreed that people would rather have a race that was a little too short, than one which was a little too long, so bear that in mind – especially on a Tuesday evening (when it can quickly get dark and people get thirsty!) and on a Sunday (when they are supposed to be SHORT COURSE races). 1B 2 1A 4 3  NOTE: Classes 1A & 1B can be shortened separately Finishing The Race The finishing line is between the orange post directly in front of you on the starting platform, and the outer distance mark. The orange post on the compound wall is not part of the finishing line and should be removed soon after the start. When each boat crosses the line after the prescribed number of rounds, or after the shorten course signal, then give it a hoot/light and record its sail number and finishing time (including seconds) on the race results sheet. Portsmouth Yardsticks Portsmouth yardsticks are the method utilised by the club to differentiate between boats in Handicap racing. These numbers are published annually by the RYA and a full list is available. Results When all the boats have finished, complete the race sheet by working out the corrected time with a calculator. The formula is as follows: = ELAPSED TIME IN SECONDS X 1000 / PORTSMOUTH YARDSTICK NUMBER For example: A Laser 1 with a PY of 1078 starts a race at 14.36.00 and finishes at 16.07.33 Elapsed time is 16.07.33 less 14.36.00 = 1 hr 31 min 33 secs Which equals 3600 secs + 1860 secs + 33 secs = 5,493 secs Now put this into the formula: 5,493 x 1000  = 5,095.55 rounded to 5,096         1078 For average lap time races, the corrected time should, then be divided by the number of laps each boat has sailed. So if our Laser has sailed 3 laps, his corrected time would be 5,096 divided by 3 = 1,699 If in doubt, consult the duty Sailing Committee member. Average Points Remember that you the Race Officers, and the safety boat drivers, are entitled to average points. Please make sure you add your names to the race results sheets to ensure this happens. Back to Top

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This page was last updated 26-03-2011

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