montezuma
New member
Motoring back up the Hamble on Wednesday evening after a tough week across Biscay there was the usual impenetrable sea of dinghies milling around outside Warsash SC for their mid-week racing. A bright yellow high performance dinghy came straight for us, his pole missing our transom by 4 inches (by design I suspect to make his point.) The exchange was:
"Get out of my way, I'm racing"
"I can't, I'm navigating in a narrow channel and have nowhere to go"
"I'm racing"
"I don't give a .. what you're doing, we both have a right to be here and you are the give way vessel"
I can't remember anything in the Colregs that excludes racing dinghies in the Hamble. Quite the reverse, thay are within the definition of a "vessel" and are obviously operating in waters directly connected to the high seas.
Are there any local "special rules" that cover this situation and, more importantly perhaps, what is the customary way of getting up the Hamble when WSC are racing?
"Get out of my way, I'm racing"
"I can't, I'm navigating in a narrow channel and have nowhere to go"
"I'm racing"
"I don't give a .. what you're doing, we both have a right to be here and you are the give way vessel"
I can't remember anything in the Colregs that excludes racing dinghies in the Hamble. Quite the reverse, thay are within the definition of a "vessel" and are obviously operating in waters directly connected to the high seas.
Are there any local "special rules" that cover this situation and, more importantly perhaps, what is the customary way of getting up the Hamble when WSC are racing?
