Sail Numbers

Sandy said:
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Depending where you are planning to go perhaps having GBR on display might not be a good thing.
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I bought a kite last year which has some sort of an advertisement for whiskey, a Welsh flag and some reference to Great Britain...

I am looking forward with some trepidation to seeing it full of wind and seeing exactly what allegiences I may be claiming...( It was cheap and came with a really nice snuffer and I need the practice)
 
Spanjaard said:
I think the offshore numbers are more to do with burocracy than anything else. I willl get then just for the sake of not having an argument if sailing abroad.
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Sorry, but again you have got the wrong end of the stick. No such thing as "offshore" numbers as already explained. The only thing that matters when sailing abroad is to comply with maritime law and show a flag to indicate the nationality of the ship and have a document to confirm that, usually the registration document. For British ships this is the red ensign and either SSR or Part 1. Sail numbers have absolutely no meaning in this context.
 
Consider the fact that any “foreign country” bureaucracy has to apply to all kinds of vessel. What would be the sail number of a visiting Sunseeker? What about when you happen across the Douaniers while motoring into Cherbourg - will you uncover the sail and fumble through it to hold up the bit with the numbers on?

They are racing numbers, that’s all. Sometimes boats which don’t race have them, perhaps because they used to race, or the owners think they might want to in future, or they just like the look. My previous boat came with a number on the sail because she was a plastic gaffer and the style of the number deliberately aped the fisheries registration of a Victorian herring drifter. But as a matter for overseas bureaucrats, they are an irrelevance. My present boat does not have a sail number because we have no plans to race nor pose as a pastiche 1890s fishing boat, and the idea of this being an issue when we cross the Channel has never crossed my mind for a moment.

Pete
 
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Sandy said:
When I bought the boat it came with sail numbers. I asked at the RYA stand at the Southampton Boat Show a few years back if I needed to register them as the new owner and they said I did not. If I ever get a new set of sails I won't bother with them.

Depending where you are planning to go perhaps having GBR on display might not be a good thing.
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…or if you have a yacht of a certain vintage, you could have the letter “K” above her sail number. Madrigal’s starts with KC, because I never bothered to change it when the new country identification letters came in.
 
Tranona said:
Sorry, but again you have got the wrong end of the stick. No such thing as "offshore" numbers as already explained. The only thing that matters when sailing abroad is to comply with maritime law and show a flag to indicate the nationality of the ship and have a document to confirm that, usually the registration document. For British ships this is the red ensign and either SSR or Part 1. Sail numbers have absolutely no meaning in this context.
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Not a problem. It was not my intention to stir up any controversy regarding the sail numbers.

I have already applied and been allocated a number which would go on the main sail as recommended by the RYA. Why they are called offshore number and not racing number is probably another contentious matter.

Thank you all for your advice and info.
 
awol said:
From 28th September 2021 a GB sticker on your car must be replaced by UK when travelling abroad. It is only a matter of time before GBR goes the same way. Luckily I still have sails with K !
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Can I still use my ECOSSE sticker?
 
Spanjaard said:
.Why they are called offshore number and not racing number is probably another contentious matter.
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Presumably to differentiate from the different series of Dinghy & Keelboat Sail Numbers - which are also used by racing classes, and presumably much more numerous.
Term Offshore is probably slightly historic, relating to RORC and JOG handicap racing yachts etc, but differentiates from day sailing "keelboats" like Etchells, Squib, Daring etc
 
Spanjaard said:
I got news from the RYA
In-sequence number (the next available number) £30

Out of secuence (your choice):

4 digits: £225
3 £510
2 : £1021
1 : £2000
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To add to this…

If you want an out of sequence number *that hasn’t been issued yet* you can pay a £15 ‘early issue’ fee.

Currently they’re at 5580 so if your chosen lucky number is higher than that (I assume in a given range) it’ll cost you an extra £15, not £500.

Which makes no sense to me.
 
Thread revival. My boat is over 70 years old, a one-off, with no number on the main. I can’t find any record or pictures of a sail number in the past. I’ve never had a boat without a number! It feels odd. I’ll probably get a new main this year, and as I understand it I can put any old number up. What should I do? Post code? Last three digits? Blood group? I think RYA will issue a random number if I ask them but that’s a bit dull. Can I have 5446?
 
samfieldhouse said:
To add to this…

If you want an out of sequence number *that hasn’t been issued yet* you can pay a £15 ‘early issue’ fee.

Currently they’re at 5580 so if your chosen lucky number is higher than that (I assume in a given range) it’ll cost you an extra £15, not £500.

Which makes no sense to me.
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Now that this thread has resurfaced…

When I last looked at the RORC online application form you could search on their database for desired numbers and make your choice for the standard fee assuming a four digit sail number.

Three digits, or less, were reserved for members of RORC as I recall
 
I had a chat with the RYA when I bought the boat, with a GBR number on it. There is no central registry. I came away with the feeling you can put whatever you want

My next main sail will not have a number.
 
Sandy said:
I had a chat with the RYA when I bought the boat, with a GBR number on it. There is no central registry. I came away with the feeling you can put whatever you want

My next main sail will not have a number.
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Several organizations maintain registries, though. Mine is from the Clyde Yacht Clubs Association, denoted by a "C" suffix (3131 C if anyone sees me!). Other UK issuing authorities are the RYA, the RORC and the Clyde Yacht Clubs Association. It would certainly be wrong to use a number with the distinguishing prefix or suffix of any of these.
 
It is not uncommon to see boats sailing without numbers. It is also possible to see boats sailing around with no visible boat’s name. I doubt if anyone has ever been held to account for any of these omissions but foreigners are strange animals with different rules. A Dutchman was very offended by my sailing in his waters without a port of registry on the stern. Explaining that my boat is unregistered, except by SSR, failed to penetrate his thick skull, but he had no official status. I think it would be unwise to go abroad without the boat being clearly identifiable, and a sail number is a good way of doing this, but in home waters it is mainly a safety issue. With a catamaran it might be better to paint name and number on the underside.
 
AntarcticPilot said:
Several organizations maintain registries, though. Mine is from the Clyde Yacht Clubs Association, denoted by a "C" suffix (3131 C if anyone sees me!). Other UK issuing authorities are the RYA, the RORC and the Clyde Yacht Clubs Association. It would certainly be wrong to use a number with the distinguishing prefix or suffix of any of these.
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I was careful in my wording.
 
Spanjaard said:
I got news from the RYA
In-sequence number (the next available number) £30

Out of secuence (your choice):

4 digits: £225
3 £510
2 : £1021
1 : £2000

Big money for fancy number/s, considering is non transferable. Hey -ho, if that is what is worth, it means somebody has already pay it before.

I dont know the CYCA. I would imagiine same type of bussines.
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As my boat is a prototype, and as there seemed to perhaps be two off "001"s in my class, I allocated my self "1001"...and didn't pay the RYA nor anyone else!
The sky has not fallen in...so far...
 
Apart from the RYA and racing numbers, sail numbers are usually class/design numbers issued sequentially and the class insignia shown with the number
 
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