These General Sailing Instructions shall be applied together with the Specific Event Sailing Instructions for the Puget Sound One-Design Racing Program. In case of conflict, the Specific Event Sailing Instructions govern.
REGISTRATION
To enter an event, submit a completed registration form and pay the appropriate fee. Registration forms can be hand delivered to the CYC clubhouse at Shilshole or submitted via mail, fax (206) 789-5896, or through the web site at www.cycseattle.org/reg_form.html.
RULES
Races will be governed by the 2005-2008 Racing Rules of Sailing (‘RRS’), the prescriptions of US SAILING, the rules adopted by local one-design fleets, these sailing instructions, and any sailing instructions specific to a particular event. In case of conflict, such specific instructions shall govern.
NOTICES TO COMPETITORS
Notices will be posted at the CYC Shilshole Clubhouse on the window next to the entrance door on the upper level. Any change in the sailing instructions will be posted at least 90 minutes before the first race in which it will take effect. Code flag "L" may be flown from the clubhouse flag staff to notify competitors of such change.
RESPONSIBILITY
4.1 The skipper of each boat is responsible for any unsportsmanlike conduct on the part of his or her crew. If action is taken under RRS rule 69, Allegations of Gross Misconduct, it may result in a competitor being excluded from further participation in the CYC racing program.
4.2 Occasionally, sailboat racing has resulted in injury or loss of life. All competitors in CYC events participate at their own risk. It shall be the responsibility of the skipper to inform the crew of the risks of sailboat racing, to make sure they understand and accept those risks, to decide whether the crew is competent and adequate for the event, and to decide whether to start or continue in a race.
SIGNALS MADE ASHORE
Signals made ashore will be displayed from CYC clubhouse flag staff. When flag "AP", the postponement signal, is lowered after having been displayed ashore, all contestants shall proceed promptly to the starting area.
SAFETY
6.1 Competitors in centerboard boats shall wear a life jacket or flotation garment other than a wet suit or dry suit at all times when racing. Between November 1 and April 1, competitors in centerboard boats shall wear a wet-suit or dry-suit in addition to a life jacket.
6.2 Boats shall not cross the tow line of a commercial vessel, and boats shall not sail a course that causes a commercial vessel to change course or speed.
6.3 Competitors needing help shall signal by waving an open hand. A wave of a closed fist will be interpreted to mean help is not needed.
6.4 A boat that leaves the racing area before finishing or before the last race of a day shall notify the race committee.
6.5 Boats shall give way to large vessels in the marina channel.
STARTING ORDER
Classes will start in the order in which class placards are displayed, reading from left to right and from the top line to the bottom line on the race committee boat readerboard. When a plus sign ("+") is displayed between two class placards, those two classes will start together at the same time.
CLASS FLAGS
Class flags will be posted at the Shilshole Clubhouse at least one hour before the first warning of each event.
COURSES
9.1 Each course will be signaled by a row of letters following the placards of the classes that are to sail that course. Each letter designates a buoy. The first letter displayed is the starting buoy, the last is the finishing buoy, and those in between are the rounding marks.
9.2 Mark descriptions and locations are inside the back cover of the Race Book.
9.3 Start between the starting buoy and the orange flag on the race committee boat. Pass each rounding mark in the order displayed and on the same side as the starting buoy. Finish between the finishing buoy and the orange flag on the race committee boat.
9.4 Gate at leeward mark: If Flag "G" is displayed at the warning for a class, there will be a gate (two marks) instead of a single leeward mark for that class, and boats shall pass between the two gate marks and then round either the port gate mark to port or the starboard gate mark to starboard.
9.5 Warning: The race committee may use its engine to hold position, and it may do so even when apparently anchored.
9.6 IMPORTANT RESTRICTION: After completing the first leg of the course, a boat shall not cross the line between mark F and the committee boat unless she is:
(a) finishing,
(b) completing a lap of a multiple-lap course (as indicated by a number following a designated course), or
(c) rounding the buoy end of the finishing line when such a rounding is required by the course for her class.
A boat that fails to observe this restriction may exonerate herself by making a 720° turn, just as she would to take a 720° penalty. This changes RRS rule 28.1. The finishing line is an obstruction for boats that are subject to this restriction. A boat that fails to exonerate herself will be scored DNF without a hearing. This changes RRS 63.1 and appendix A5.
9.7 Individual classes may be abandoned or shortened by displaying their class flag along with the appropriate race signal flag.
THE START
Races will be started using RRS rule 26 except a blue shape will replace flag P. The race committee may give a hail to the next class whose warning signal is about to be made. For Thursday Evenings, the interval between the warning signal and the start will be THREE minutes. For All weekend regattas excluding the OD Fleet Championships, the starting interval will be THREE minutes. For the OD Fleet Championships, the starting interval will be FIVE minutes
INDIVIDUAL RECALLS
The race committee may attempt to hail the sail numbers of the recalled boats. Failure to do so or failure to hear the hail will not constitute grounds for redress.
PROTESTS
12.1 Weekend regattas: Protests shall be delivered to the race committee no later than one hour after the race committee boat docks. The schedule of protest hearings will be posted on the board along the west wall of the lower level of the CYC Shilshole Clubhouse shortly after the protest time limit. Posting is considered notice given as required by RRS rule 63.2 and satisfies the notice requirement of RRS 61.1(b). Hearings will proceed whether or not all boats are represented. Protesting parties may be offered the opportunity to participate in voluntary protest mediation.
12.2 All other events and series: Protests shall be sent to the CYC office by mail with a U.S. Postal Service postmark date no later than the first weekday following the race in which the incident occurred or hand delivered before the end of office hours on that day. Parties to a hearing will be notified of the date, location and time of their hearing. If the protested boat elects to acknowledge breaking a rule, she should notify the protest committee chairman so that the hearing can be canceled. This changes RRS rule 63.1.
SCORING
13.1 The Low Point scoring system of Appendix A will apply. Boats that do not finish, retire, or are disqualified will score points equal to the number of boats that finish in their class in that race plus one. Boats that do not start will score points equal to the number of boats that finish in their class in that race plus two. This modifies RRS Appendix A4.2 and A9.
13.2 For Weekend Regattas, Spring and Fall Weekend Series: A boat's series score is the sum of her points in all the races, except that, if five to nine races are completed, her poorest score will be discarded and if ten or more races are completed, her two worst scores will be discarded. This changes RRS Appendix A2.
13.3 For Thursday Evening Series: For every five races completed there will be one discarded score. This changes RRS Appendix A2.
13.4 One completed race constitutes a series.
AWARDS
Corinthian awards will be presented for all events as indicated in the specific sailing instructions. The results of each event will be posted on the CYC web site.
BOAT STORAGE
Unless notified to the contrary, competitors must make their own arrangements for boat storage.