A severe test Club page
RORC
The recent ball tampering affair caused by a small group of Australian cricket players in the test match with South Africa that caused out- rage in Australia was a reminder of what competitors in any sport will do to find a competitive edge. What was clear from the interviews about the incident, caught by the TV cameras – which involved the use of sandpaper to rough up one side of a cricket ball to encourage it to swing in a particular direction as it passed through the air – is that the captain who masterminded the act took the view that this was just another day in cricket: ‘hands up, we have been caught fair and square’ and that his team should be punished. What the captain (revered in world cricket and a god in Australia)
failed to understand was the seriousness of the affair and the impact it would have back home in Australia. Cricketing fans and general public alike were outraged – the incident even attracting the attention of the Australian Prime Minister. Only when Steve Smith returned to his homeland and had to confront his family and friends did the true meaning of his actions finally hit him. I draw attention to this as we start another season because our
sport of sailing is an honesty sport and we take it for granted that everyone knows the rules – not just the racing rules of sailing – but all the rules surrounding the sport such as rating rules, Special Regulations (safety) requirements and Sailing Instructions. We expect owners and key crew to know these rules; know how
many sails they are allowed to carry, that new sails are no bigger than the sails shown on the measurement certificate and are set within the bands on the mast. Big boat racing is complicated, but the rules are there for a purpose:
to make sure the boats are sailing in the condition they were measured and that the playing field is level. In major events such as a world or European championship and the Commodores’ Cup, where boats are required to berth in one location, checks on sail sizes and various boat measurements can be done before the start of the regatta. But for RORC offshore races in the Season Points Champion ships
boats come from many locations and arrive within minutes of the start and disappear after the finish to their home (often not stopping to say thanks to the race organisers). So it is difficult to check boats and, anyway, should we not trust skippers and crews to race fairly? Ignorance of the rules is one thing but manipulation of them for
advantage is another, one that those with knowledge and experience can initiate without alerting the attention of the crew. However, stacking sails and heavy, loose items on the windward side of the boat, contravening Rule 51 ‘Movable Ballast’, is something that can add power and speed and cannot be done without the crew’s knowledge; it is a constant concern for sailors and event organisers. Newcomers to the sport will no doubt have seen footage of the
Volvo Ocean Race with sails stacked on the windward side and could assume this is the natural thing to do – unless told otherwise. At RORC we produce a sticker that must be prominently displayed
so that everyone onboard knows that stacking is not allowed under IRC. We further require every crew – not just the race skipper – to sign a declaration after a RORC race that the whole team have observed the rules correctly. In a self-policing sport you are ultimately dependent on the integrity
of the competitors but we hope these practices act as a deterrent to keep a complex and technical sport as fair as possible.
2018 Easter Challenge The weather tried hard to thwart our latest Easter Challenge, the opening event of the RORC domestic race programme. It was one of the coldest and wettest Easters for many a decade and thermals and balaclavas were required for most of the weekend. On day one PRO Stuart Childerley started the event with a series
of practice starts and short beats for the 41 brave crews who turned up in spite of the weather. This was followed by two windward- leeward races in an easterly wind varying between 8 and 15kt with sufficient shifts to keep tacticians on their toes. After racing it was back to RORC Cowes for a video debrief hosted by North Sails and supervised by coaching legend Jim Saltonstall. In his inimitable style Jim reminded the audience of the 10 important subjects surrounding success in ‘the most challenging sport in the world’ followed by analysis of starting techniques from assistant coach Mason King and North sailmakers Dave Lens and Franc Gerber. North Sails have supported the Easter Challenge for the past
five years, latterly investing in a drone to supply aerial footage to highlight starting, rules incidents and mark roundings. The rain scup- pered drone flying Friday but Saturday was clear and the aerial per- spective was appreciated by a packed house at RORC Cowes after four races in a shifty westerly gradient breeze. Sunday’s racing was cancelled because of a dying breeze and strong spring tides and an early decision was made to allow competitors to enjoy the rest of their Easter holidays. The prizegiving was well attended… helped by the Easter bunny providing sufficient chocolate eggs to go round.
Three more years Calero Marinas have confirmed their commitment to host the start of the RORC Transatlantic Race for the next three years with the move supported by the Canary Island and Lanzarote Island govern- ments and Arrecife town council. Calero Marinas have been hosts to all four editions of this relatively new addition to the RORC pro- gramme with the first race run from their Puerto Calero Marina and the last three from the newly built Marina Lanzarote outside Arrecife. The Canary Islands are now a year-round world-class yachting
destination and the 380-berth Marina Lanzarote boasts extensive facilities with a dry dock plus 820-ton and 100-ton cranes… big enough for most readers’ needs (but certainly not all – ed!). Eddie Warden-Owen, CEO
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Volvo Ocean Race 2014/2015 and at least the stack up on deck is securely tied off and does a useful job keeping some of the water and spray off the crew. The stack down below, on the other hand, simply reduces rest space and is a constant nightmare to keep in place. At least in the Volvo there are hands available, not so in the Imoca 60 and Figaro solo classes. Easy to see, however, why some newcomers to more prosaic levels of offshore racing might feel pressure to try to mimic what they have watched their professional peers doing on film
64 SEAHORSE
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