SB3 Ireland Northern Championship

2nd & 3rd May 2009

Sponsored by Irish Boat Jumble

Carrickfergus Sailing Club

Sailing Instructions

1. Rules

1.1. The regatta will be governed by the rules as defined in The Racing Rules of Sailing.

1.2. Laser SB3 Class rules will apply.

1.3. Racing rule(s) 35, 40, 44.1, 44.2, 60.1(a), 62.1(a), 62.2, 66, A4, A5 will be changed. Changes appear in full in these Sailing Instructions.

2. Notices to Competitors

2.1. Notices to competitors will be posted on the official notice board(s) located in the foyer of the clubhouse.

3. Changes to Sailing Instructions

3.1. Any change to the sailing instructions will be posted before 0900 on the day it will take effect, except that any change to the schedule of races will be posted by 2000 on the day before it will take effect.

4. Signals Made Ashore

4.1. Signals made ashore will be displayed at the club battery.

4.2. When flag AP is displayed ashore, ‘1 minute’ is replaced with ‘not less than 45 minutes’ in the race signal AP.

5. Schedule of Races

5.1. Dates of racing: Saturday 2nd to Sunday 3rd May 2009

5.2. Number of races: Seven

5.3. The scheduled time of the warning signal for the first race each day is 12:00 on Saturday and 11:00 on Sunday.

5.4. After a long postponement, to alert boats that a race or sequence of races will begin soon, an orange flag will be displayed with one sound for at least four minutes before a warning signal is displayed.

5.5. On the last day of the regatta no warning signal will be made after 14:30.

6. Class Flags

6.1. The Class flag will be the Laser SB3 Class Pennant.

7. Racing Areas

7.1. The Racing Area will be to the South of Carrickfergus Sailing Club.

8. The Courses

8.1. The diagram opposite shows the course.

8.2. Marks shall be passed in the following order:

Start - 1(p) - 2(p) - 3P(p) & 3S(s) - 1(p) - 2(p) - 3P(p) & 3P(s) – Finish

8.3. Marks 3P and 3S form a Gate to be passed between from the direction of the last mark.

9. Marks

9.1. Marks 1, 2, 3P and 3S will be Red Spherical buoys.

9.2. The starting mark will be a Green Spherical buoy.

9.3. The finishing mark will a Yellow Spherical buoy.

10. The Start

10.1. The starting line will be between a red and white pole on the Committee Vessel and the starting mark.

10.2. A boat starting later than 4 minutes after her starting signal will be scored Did Not Start without a hearing. This changes rules A4 and A5.

10.3. If any part of a boat’s hull, crew or equipment is on the course side of the starting line at any time during the two minutes before her starting signal and she is identified, the race committee will attempt to broadcast her sail number on VHF channel 37. Failure to make a broadcast or to time it accurately will not be grounds for a request for redress. This changes rule 62.1(a).

11. Change of the Next Leg of the Course

11.1. To change the next leg of the course, the race committee will move the original mark (or the finishing line) to a new position.

12. The Finish

12.1. The finishing line will be between a red and white pole on the Committee Vessel and the finishing mark.

13. Penalty System

13.1. Rule 44.1 is changed so that the Two-Turns Penalty is replaced by the One-Turn Penalty.

14. Time Limits

14.1. The Time limit is 75 minutes

14.2. Boats failing to finish within 20 minutes after the first boat sails the course and finishes will be scored Did Not Finish without a hearing. This changes rules 35, A4 and A5.

15. Protests and Requests for Redress

15.1. The Exoneration Penalty and the Advisory Hearing and RYA Arbitration of the RYA Rules Disputes Procedures will be available. See Official Notice Board for details.

15.2. Protest forms are available at the race office. Protests and requests for redress or reopening shall be delivered there within the appropriate time limit.

15.3. The protest time limit is 90 minutes after the last boat has finished the last race of the day.

15.4. Notices will be posted no later than 30 minutes after the protest time limit to inform competitors of hearings in which they are parties or named as witnesses. Hearings will be held in the protest room, located at the Club Battery, beginning at the time posted.

15.5. Notices of protests by the race committee or protest committee will be posted to inform boats under rule 61.1(b).

15.6. Breaches of instructions 17. , 20. , and 21. will not be grounds for a protest by a boat. This changes rule 60.1(a). Penalties for these breaches may be less than disqualification if the protest committee so decides. The scoring abbreviation for a discretionary penalty imposed under this instruction will be DPI.

15.7. On the last scheduled day of racing a request for reopening a hearing shall be delivered
(a) within the protest time limit if the requesting party was informed of the decision on the previous day;
(b) no later than 30 minutes after the requesting party was informed of the decision on that day.
This changes rule 66.

15.8. On the last scheduled day of racing a request for redress based on a protest committee decision shall be delivered no later than 30 minutes after the decision was posted. This changes rule 62.2.

16. Scoring

16.1. Three races are required to be completed to constitute a series.

16.2. When fewer than five races have been completed, a boat’s series score will be the total of her race scores.

17. Safety Regulations

17.1. A boat that retires from a race shall notify the race committee as soon as possible.

17.2. Rule 40 will apply at all times while afloat. Flag Y will not be displayed and no sound signal will be made.

18. Replacement of Crew or Equipment

18.1. Substitution of competitors will not be allowed without prior written approval of the race committee. Be aware of SB3 Class Rule C.3.1(c) regarding carrying of ballast to maintain previous crew weight.

18.2. Substitution of damaged or lost equipment will not be allowed unless authorized by the race committee. Requests for substitution shall be made to the committee at the first reasonable opportunity.

19. Equipment and Measurement Checks

19.1. A boat or equipment may be inspected at any time for compliance with the class rules and sailing instructions. On the water, a boat can be instructed by a race committee equipment inspector or measurer to proceed immediately to a designated area for inspection.

19.2. All competitors shall sign the “Equipment Declaration Form” at Registration

20. Support Boats

20.1. Team leaders, coaches and other support personnel shall stay outside areas where boats are racing from the time of the preparatory signal for the first class to start until all boats have finished or retired or the race committee signals a postponement, general recall or abandonment.

21. Radio Communication

21.1. Except in an emergency, a boat shall neither make radio transmissions while racing nor receive radio communications not available to all boats. This restriction also applies to mobile telephones.

22. Prizes

22.1. Prizes will be given as follows: Overall First, Second, Third, Fourth and Fifth Overall, along with Silver and Bronze Fleet winner prizes will be awarded.

22.2. Boats will be allocated into Silver and Bronze fleets for Sundays racing, based on the number of boats, after a discard if sufficient races completed, and boats shall collect coloured ribbons from the Club Notice Board area prior to sailing on Sunday, to be flown from their backstays.

23. Disclaimer of Liability and Insurance

23.1. A boat is entirely responsible for her own safety, whether afloat or ashore, and nothing, whether in the Notice of Race or Sailing Instructions or anywhere else, reduces this responsibility.

23.2. It is for the boat to decide whether she is fit to sail in the conditions in which she will find herself. By launching or going to sea, the boat confirms that she is fit for those conditions and her crew is competent to sail and compete in them.

23.3. The boat is required to hold adequate insurance and in particular to hold insurance against third party claims in the sum of at least £2m sterling.

23.4. Nothing done by the organisers can reduce the responsibility of the boat nor will it make the organisers responsible for any loss, damage, death or personal injury, however it may have occurred, as a result of the boat taking part in racing. The organisers encompass everyone helping to run the race and the event, and include the organising authority, the race committee, the race officer, patrol boats and beach masters.

23.5. The provision of patrol boats does not relieve the boat of her responsibilities.