Crowding the starboard end of the start line

[TallBuoy]

I have just had an enjoyable weekend as RO for the CO26 National Championships - which is actually growing year on year. Despite my pleas at the briefing to take care about the committee boat, which was a borrowed motor cruiser, a long line and initially pin end bias, we still had a bundle at the starboard end for each race.

In fairness, this is not a class specific issue, it seems to happen in a majority of races. I know its all about getting advantage of windward boat after the start, giving clean air and ability to tack away when preferred. However, the risks of collisions or going OCS don't seem to bother some people. Those who barge rely on others bearing away to avoid damage - bad sport IMHO.

When skippering, I prefer to take a more cautious approach, further down the line in my own space and in clean air. I usually get a reasonable start, but then its down to judgement for the best time to tack over to the right hand side of the track.

Is it just me?

 

[garvellachs]

My limited experience agrees with you. I wonder why the committee boat is always that end and not the other? Watching the Olympics, it seemed more important to start in the first row than to grab the committee boat end.

 

[scottie]

There are ways to protect the committee boat if it's that much of a problem and I would say from experience of driving one at Scottish series putting a down a fixed line and bringing the starting boat up with the fleet is actually very effective and allows the start boat to escape damage couple that with an exclusion zone enforced you find the racing boat get the message pretty quick DSQ is not a favourite result

 

[TallBuoy]

My limited experience agrees with you. I wonder why the committee boat is always that end and not the other? Watching the Olympics, it seemed more important to start in the first row than to grab the committee boat end.

i did that today, and they crowded around the pin end. The line was 170m for 14 x 8m boats, most of which wasn't used !

 

[DFL1010]

Watching the Olympics, it seemed more important to start in the first row than to grab the committee boat end.

If it's a square line then front row trumps which end.
If it's biased, then end is (generally) more important than first or second row.

I do know of some ROs that put pin bias in to keep people away from the cttee boat. Not super-good that. Still, not as bad as hanging a buoy/fender off the back of the boat. Useless per the rules (you're allowed to hit it anyway) and just gets in the way.

 

[lpdsn]

Still, not as bad as hanging a buoy/fender off the back of the boat. Useless per the rules (you're allowed to hit it anyway) and just gets in the way.

I don't remember ever hitting an IDM, but I'm pretty sure if you do you have to go back and start again. Although it does depends how the SI's are written regarding the IDM.

 

[rwoofer]

I just increase the pin end bias until they keep away.

In general the ends of the line are often favoured as it is easier to be on the line than in the middle which typically suffers mid-line sag (even in the top flight). Committee boat often favoured so that you can actually hear the start signal properly.

 

[Keen_Ed]

If it's a square line then front row trumps which end.
If it's biased, then end is (generally) more important than first or second row.

I do know of some ROs that put pin bias in to keep people away from the cttee boat. Not super-good that. Still, not as bad as hanging a buoy/fender off the back of the boat. Useless per the rules (you're allowed to hit it anyway) and just gets in the way.

Big advantage of starting at the committee boat end is that it gives you the freedom to tack off earlier, rather than fighting to hold your lane as you get carried all the way out to the left hand bell.

World Sailing best practice is to lay a square line, where boats are evenly distributed along the line. (Section L3.2 of the WS race management manual). If boats are all preparing to start at the committee boat end, postpone and add more pin bias. And the definition of mark was changed in ?08? so that committee boats can be protected by attaching a racing mark to the stern. The definition is now:

Mark An object the sailing instructions require a boat to leave on a specified side, and a race committee boat surrounded by navigable water from which the starting or finishing line extends. An anchor line or an object attached accidentally to a mark is not part of it.

IIRC, the previous definition referred to objects temporarily attached to a mark not being part of it. Not a problem any more - dangle a large mark off the quarter closest to the line. if they hit the inflatable, they've hit the starting mark.

 

[savageseadog]

I've been luffed over a black flag line by someone with lots of room simply because they wanted to. The choice ended up with, do we come into contact abeam, or do we smash into the very expensive looking catamaran/committee boat.They ended up DSQ'd as well, stupid people.

 

[flaming]

It's something I've noticed as well. And it does tend to be the less experienced sailors who are there at the committee boat.

The top 5 boats are rarely there, they are the ones spread down the line in their own bit of space going fast.

 

[awol]

Handicap racing encourages the right-hand end start. A slow boat starting anywhere else is trapped and in dirty air from the faster boats. For the scratch boat, a port tack start at the pin end can be very satisfying.

 

[lw395]

Being at or near an end is often lowest risk of being OCS. You can see exactly where the line is. Depending on what and who I'm racing, it may be better to be 5 seconds late than in the middle of the line unable to be totally sure I'm not over. Due to missing the odd race for various reasons, I seem to effectively often race a series with no discard, so the damage to a series result from an OCS is unaffordable.

The reason lots of people crowd the boat end is that it generally works quite well. These people are not idiots, they have tried being clever at the start and often found the pitfalls. If you're not good enough to 'win the start' the committee boat queue usually sees you not losing too badly, then you can get on with the rest of the race. Better than being pushed across the beat to the badlands of the port side.
I tend to like the pin end. Duck a few transoms, sail my own race.

 

[Judders]

If you're not over at least once a season then you're not doing it right

 

[Bosun Higgs]

We dont have a problem - the committee boat has a HIAB on the stern for lifting moorings. The one racer who cut it too close hit the HYAB ripped his bow off and dropped his mast. He didnt win.

But that said, I have leaned over the side of the committee boat and touched hands with crew on the rail before now. Once the first lap or two are over and boats are spaced out, some skippers seem to amuse themselves by seeing just how close they can get to the committee boat as they pass.

 

[lw395]

If you're not over at least once a season then you're not doing it right

Or not learning from missing out on a cup last year....

 

[Mudisox]

I nearly always give a port end bias of about 2-3 boat lengths {on windward starts} and also tell everyone on VHF along with the commentary saying who is getting close to the line, in the last 90 secs. It seems to help, but the real problem is that inexperienced folk don't work out the lay lines for the start and come in on a reach, with others not legally, forcing them to tack away before they reach the Committee boat, they seem to learn subsequent times though.

I always hang a big fender over the quarter, - apart from anything else it acts as a big fender!