TallBuoy
Member
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?
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?