West Michigan Youth Sailing Association

2011 WMYSA Championship Regatta Series

Sailing Instructions

1. RULES.

1.1 The 2011 WMYSA Championship Regatta Series will include the following regattas:

July 1, 2011 at Spring Lake Yacht Club, Spring Lake Michigan

July 15, 2011 at Macatawa Bay Yacht Club, Holland Michigan

July 29, 2011 at White Lake Yacht Club, White Lake Michigan

Aug. 12, 2011 at Muskegon Yacht Club, Muskegon Michigan

1.2 All races and regattas constituting this Championship Series will be governed the Racing Rules of Sailing (RRS) 2009-2012.

1.1.a The Butterfly class will be scored as an open event, the boat may be sailed either single-handed or with crew, without weight limitations, in any race of the regatta, but the skipper must be the same person for all races.

1.3 Substitutions of boats and/or sails will not be allowed once racing has started, unless written permission has been received from the PRO.

2. NOTICES TO COMPETITORS.

2.1 Notices to competitors will be posted on the official notice board located near the registration table at each regatta event.

3. CHANGES TO SAILING INSTRUCTIONS.

3.1 Any change to these sailing instructions will be posted on the official notice board prior to the Competitors Meeting.

4. SIGNALS MADE ASHORE.

4.1 Signals made ashore will be displayed on a flagpole or staff on the host yacht club property.

4.2 When flag AP is displayed, “1 minute” is replaced with “not less than 30 minutes” in Race Signal AP.

5. SCHEDULE OF RACES.

8:30 – 10:00am Arrival and Rigging, check in and registration

10.00am Competitors Meeting

11.00am Warning Signal for the first race of the day

Additional races will follow depending on sailing conditions. No warning signal will be signaled after 3:00 pm

6. SECTIONS – CLASSES.

Optimist Green Fleet Yellow Flag

Optimist Red/White/Blue Fleet Optimist Class Flag

Laser and Laser Radial Fleets Laser Class Flag

Butterfly Fleet Butterfly Class Flag

420 Fleet 420 Class flag

7. RACING AREA.

7.1 There will be two race areas.

7.2 Race circle ONE will be for the Optimist Green Fleet and Optimist Red/White/Blue fleet – Location dependent on Wind Conditions

7.3 Race circle TWO will be for the Butterfly, Laser Radial, Laser and 420 Fleets.

8. COURSES.

8.1 The courses will be windward leeward (rounding marks to port) as shown on Illustrations A and B.

8.2 A course designated as “W1” will consist of one lap around the race course as described on Illustration A.

8.2.1 Race Circle One will use only “W1” courses.

8.3 A course designated as “W2” will consist of two laps around the race course as described on Illustration B.

8.3.1 Race Circle Two will indicate course W1 or W2 on a white board on the committee boat.

8.4 The start-finish line will not be considered an obstruction and will be open to boats sailing downwind.

9. MARKS.

9.1 The windward and leeward marks of the course will be orange inflatables.

10. THE START.

10.1 Starts will be a three minute sound signal sequence pursuant to Appendix S.

10.2 The starting line will be between a staff bearing an orange flag on the Race Committee Signal Boat and a mark at the port end of the starting line.

10.3 For any boat deemed OCS at the start, Race Committee will attempt to hail her sail number. Failure to hail or be heard will not be grounds for redress.

10.4 The starting order for all classes and course diagrams will be distributed at the competitors meeting.

11. CHANGE OF COURSE.

11.1 To change the next leg of the course, the race committee will move the original mark [or finish line] to a new position. Course changes of less than 5 degrees will not be signaled. This instruction changes RRS 33.

12. THE FINISH.

12.1 The finish line will be between a staff bearing an orange flag on the Race Committee Boat and a nearby race mark.

12.2 Boats that have finished shall immediately sail to the left or right of the finish line and keep well clear of all boats still racing.

13. TIME LIMITS.

13.1 Boats failing to finish within 20 minutes after the first boat to sail the course will be scored TLE (Time Limit Expired). This changes RRS A4 and A5. See Sailing Instruction “Scoring 15.4”.

14. PROTESTS AND REQUESTS FOR REDRESS.

14.1 Racing Rule 61 is changed to require a competitor to inform the race committee finish boat of its intention to protest, including the sail number of the protested boat, immediately after finishing.

14.2 Protests shall be delivered to the Race Committee no later than 30 minutes after the race committee signal boat docks. The Race Committee will post the time of the docking on the Official Notice Board as soon as practical. This instruction changes rule RRS 61.3.

14.2 Notices will be posted on the Official Notice Board within 30 minutes after the protest time limit or as soon thereafter as practical to inform competitors of hearings in which they are parties or named as witnesses. Such posting constitutes the notification required in RRS 63.2.

14.3 Notices of protests by the race committee or protest committee will be posted on the Official Notice Board to inform boats under RRS 61.1(b).

14.4 Protests will be heard in approximately the order posted as soon as practical after the expiration of the protest time limit. Representatives of boats who are parties to a hearing and their witnesses shall remain on call in the vicinity of the Judges’ Area. The helmsman shall represent the boat. This instruction changes RRS 63.3(a).

14.5 Requests for redress relating to possible scoring errors or starting penalties will be treated initially as a “scoring review” with appropriate members of the race committee before being considered as a request for redress by the protest committee. This instruction changes Rule 63.1.

15. SCORING.

15.1 The Low Point Scoring System of Appendix A will apply. Each boat’s score at each regatta venue will be the sum of all her races. There shall be no throw outs. This amends RRS A2.

15.2 One completed race shall constitute a regatta event.

15.3 A boat that did not start, did not finish, retired after finishing or was disqualified shall be scored for the finishing place one more than the sum of the number of boats registered and checked-in. This instruction changes RRS Appendix A4.2.

15.4 Boats scored TLE will be scored 2 more points than the last finisher in her class. This total shall not exceed the number of boats entered in the class plus one.

15.5 A minimum of 5 boat entries is required at each event in order for a Class to be scored at that event.

15.6 The cumulative Club Series Championship will utilize a high-point scoring system wherein points contributing to each Club’s total 2011 Series score will be awarded as follows:

Optimist Green:

1 point for each entrant who completes at least one race at a venue

Optimist Red/White/Blue, Laser, Laser Radial, Butterfly and 420:

11 points for the 1^st place finisher after all completed races at each venue

10 points for the 2^nd place finisher after all completed races at each venue

9 points for the 3^rd place finisher after all completed races at each venue

8 points for the 4^th place finisher after all completed races at each venue

7 points for the 5^th place finisher after all completed races at each venue

6 points for the 6^th place finisher after all completed races at each venue

5 points for the 7^th place finisher after all completed races at each venue

4 points for the 8^th place finisher after all completed races at each venue

3 points for the 9^th place finisher after all completed races at each venue

2 points for the 10^th place finisher after all completed races at each venue

1 point each for 11^th place and above after all completed races at each venue

16. SAFETY REGULATIONS.

16.1 A competitor retiring from a race shall notify a race committee boat or safety boat before leaving the course, or notify the race committee immediately upon returning to shore.

16.2 Each competitor must wear a personal flotation device (PFD), approved by a recognized authority, properly secured at all times, from dock to dock except when temporarily adding or removing clothing. Wet suits, dry suits and inflatable PFD’s do not constitute adequate personal buoyancy. Failure to wear one will result in a penalty up to and including disqualification.

16.3 Each competitor must have a whistle attached to his or her clothing at all times, from dock to dock.

17. ENVIRONMENT .

17.1 Discharge of drink containers, food wrappings and other trash into the water by competitors, support boats or race committee boats is prohibited.

18. PRIZES.

18.1 Prizes will be awarded as follows for fleets that meet the minimum number of entries required:

Optimist Green 1–10

Optimist Red/White/Blue 1-10

Laser 1–10

Laser Radial 1-10

Butterfly 1 -10

420 1-10

19. DISCLAIMER OF LIABILITY.

19.1 Competitors participate in the regatta at their own risk.

19.2 Parents/guardians are responsible for the safety of the sailor whom is less than 18 years of age. It is the responsibility solely of the parent(s) of the sailor to decide if the sailor should sail in the weather and sea conditions that might arise during the event. Parents not personally attending any part of the event must ensure that another adult is authorized and designated to make these decisions for their sailor.

19.3 The organizing authority and all parties involved with the organization of the event disclaim any and every responsibility whatsoever for loss, damage, injury, inconvenience or death sustained in conjunction with or prior to, during, or after the regatta that might occur to persons and goods, both ashore and at sea as a consequence of participation in the races covered by these sailing instructions.