Club Race Officer

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Race Management Training Course
Club Race Officer
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Race Management Training Course
Club Race Officer
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Club Race Officer (Trainers Seminar)
Module 1 Before the Race Module 2 On the Water,
before the start Module 3 During the Race
and the Finish Module 4 Post-Race and Safety
Regional Race Management Training
Coordinator Mike Harrison (National Race Officer
National Judge) 0131.554.7773 e-mail
sailing_at_scotsport.co.uk
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Club Race Officer
Module 1 Before the Race Module 2 On the Water,
before the start Module 3 During the Race
and the Finish Module 4 Post-Race and Safety
Regional Race Management Training Coordinator
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Group Discussion

• How does your club organise its Race Management?
• How effective is Race Management in your club?
• What are the main difficulties?

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Race Management at Club level is designed to

• make the most of the club organisation
• give customer satisfaction - good sailing

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Who are the customers?

• Beginners / Learners
• Experienced recreational racers
• The Open Meeting experts (customers becoming
  competitors)

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Learners (of all ages) require

• Space
• no-one carving them up
• Tolerance
• while they learn
• Chance to finish the race
• without being cursed by the Race Officer

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Experienced recreational racers require

• Enjoyable racing
• Competitive sailing at their level
• A regular pattern to the racing
• don't want to have to think too much!
• Time to talk about the race in the bar

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Open Meeting experts require

• Competition in which they stand a fair chance of
  winning
• Perfect organisation
• accurate start lines
• true beats
• correctly angled reaches
• Emphasis on racing and winning
• Remember - for many of these, club racing is only
  a training session, but it must be good

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To give competitor satisfaction, the club
organisation needs to

• Communicate efficiently
• Follow a regular pattern in its organisational
  structure
• Have an efficient method of encouraging members
  into taking and accepting responsibility
• GET AWAY FROM THE 'ONE-MAN BAND'

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One method of club organisation (race management
aspects only)
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Job Descriptions

• Sailing Captain
• acts either as chairperson or secretary to
  sailing committee
• is responsible to club management for efficient
  running of the sailing programme
• Bosun
• ensures all equipment is in good working order

• Chief Race Officer
• co-ordinates all club race management
• trains Club Race Officers
• issues Club Race Officer Certificates in
  conjunction with Regional Race Management
  Training Co-ordinator
• vets all Sailing Instructions

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Job Descriptions

• Fleet Captains
• communicate fleets' views to the Sailing
  Committee
• communicate committee decisions to fleets
• Results Secretary
• processes and publishes all results

• Monthly Race Managers
• responsible to Sailing Committee for completion
  of race programme in their duty period
• responsible for all race management matters
  during their duty period

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Monthly Race Managers (from Committee Members)
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Monthly Race Managers

• these are the people the club needs to train
• they will probably come to your training sessions
• they will hopefully become your Chief Race
  Officers

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Race Officer Duty - Preparation

• Long before the day
• go on duty with a good race officer
• observe
• make notes

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• D-day minus 7
• Contact Monthly Race Manager (or be contacted)
• Get a copy of the Clubs Race Management Guide
• Check
• programme is to run as scheduled
• race team members are all available
• experience (balance) of team is OK
• all equipment is operational

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Race Equipment

• If you start races away from a fixed Race Box -
  what equipment is in the clubs race bag?
• What personal equipment does a CRO need to
  provide?
• What has to be done in the time before the start
  (especially the first 30 minutes after you arrive
  at the clubhouse)?

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The Race Officers bag

• Additional Personal Equipment
• waterproofs
• buoyancy aid
• snacks (food drink)

• suncream
• seasickness tablets
• aspirin
• insect repellent
• shackle key
• duct tape
• memo recorder
• batteries
• pencils (chinagraph), pens
• burgee
• cotton wind indicator
• neck towel
• fingerless gloves
• woolly hat, baseball cap
• recording sheets plain notepad
• clipboards (2)

• Rule Book
• SIs for the event
• VHF radio
• monocular
• gas air horn
• mouth-blown horn
• whistles (2)
• anemometer
• hand-bearing compass
• orienteering compasses (2)(for handing to
  mark-layers)
• GPS
• complete flag set (including orange, black, red,
  green blue)
• set of letters numbers (for course notification)

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• D-day minus 5
• Check personal equipment
• Re-read Racing Rules -
• Part 3
• Racing Signals
• Re-read Club Sailing Instructions

• D-day minus 1
• Watch TV weather forecasts - get a picture of
  what is happening, fronts etc
• If bad weather is predicted then arrange
  additional safety boat coverage

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• Start minus 1-2 hours
• Arrive at Club with latest forecast
• Note wind direction at Club
• Unlock/prepare equipment
• Check all boat crews have arrived and that they
  have checked their craft and its equipment

• Check that all starting equipment is in order
• Complete radio checks
• Check wind again
• From forecast and current observation predict
  wind strength and direction at start-time
• If too strong/light prepare to postpone

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Pre-Start Preparation

• Rescue craft afloat and ready
• Watches ready
• wound / batteries OK
• set to correct (real) time
• Recording Sheet ready
• Pencils sharp
• Guns ready
• Flags bent on to halyards

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The Start

• Do you know your flags?
• What are the main problems in getting a clean
  start?
• How can you try to ensure a good start?
• Write out a simple Idiots Guide for dealing
  with one or more OCS yachts.
• When short-handed in the Race Box, which are
  the most difficult times? And how can these
  situations be resolved?

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Linlithgow Loch Courses
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Port Edgar Dinghy Courses
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Courses

• What factors influence course setting in your
  club?
• Using the Port Edgar course card, select a course
  for an evening race for Fast Yachts. The wind is
  8-12 knots South-Westerly. High water was at
  1558 (5.9m) low water is at 2118 (0.7m). The
  race starts at 1900.

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Setting a Course

• Refer to recommended courses in Clubs Race
  Manual
• Select a course that is suitable for
• the PREDICTED wind strength and direction
• the tide
• Seek advice if necessary
• Note start and finish line positions

• Check that marks shown on recommended course
  actually are in situ
• Prepare course display, double-check that
  rounding sides of marks are correctly displayed
• NO LOOPING OF MARKS!
• Confirm choice with duty Race Manager or get
  someone else to check

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Decision Time!

• A Race Officer must use his/her judgement to
• decide length of start line
• how many last minute starters?
• how much bias is necessary?
• how shifty is the wind?
• any current to be considered?
• postpone the start
• organisation not ready (race team, rescue)
• wind - too little, too much

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The Race Officer must also use his judgement to

• start the race
• recognise on-course-side at start time and signal
  
• an individual recall
• or
• a general recall
• shorten course

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Before the Warning Signal

• The Race Officer must signal or otherwise
  designate the course
• The Race Officer may remove and substitute a new
  course signal

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Warning Signal

• When
• in System 3 - 1 minute prior to Preparatory
  Signal
• at advertised time
• at 00 seconds on real-time clock
• Method
• class flag displayed
• one sound signal

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Before the Preparatory Signal

• The Race Officer may shift a starting mark

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Preparatory Signal

• Fleet now under racing rules
• Yachts sailing in the vicinity of the Starting
  Line rank as competing yachts

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Before the Start

• The Race Officer may
• shorten course to one prescribed in the Sailing
  Instructions
• postpone, to designate a new course before or
  with the new warning signal, or for any other
  reason
• postpone to a later day

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Start
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Identifiable Boat(s) On Course Side of the line

• hoist X
• one gun
• record OCS on race sheet
• watch boat(s)

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Identifiable Boat(s) On Course Side of the line -
Re-Starting

• When all have returned behind the start line
• lower X
• delete OCS
• If some do not return, keep X up until 1 minute
  before next start or until starting line is closed

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I didnt see anything...

• A Sunday race has three starts. A strong tide
  pushes several boats of the first fleet over the
  line. Your view is blocked by the nearest boat.
  What is the sequence of actions you follow?

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General Recall

• To be used
• when there are several unidentified OCSs or
• if there is an error in procedure
• Method
• hoist 1st Substitute
• two guns

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Re-Start after General Recall

• Try to keep to multiples of the time sequence -
  start on next 5 minute (or 3 minute) interval
• always at 00 seconds on real-time clock!
• One minute before this time
• lower 1st Substitute
• one gun

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Re-Start after General Recall Stage Two

• Remember you go straight into the Preparatory
  signal
• One minute after lowering 1st Sub.
• hoist class flag and preparatory flag (P or
  other)
• fire one gun

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Club Rules

• What is the rule in your club about late
  starters?
• The first fleet of an evening race is due to
  start at 1900. At 1856 you see a yacht cast off
  from its mooring, sail to the pre-course side of
  the line and start at 1902. What do you do (or
  should you have done)?

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Postponement Signals

• These can be used for ANY REASON WHATSOEVER!
• Use them as the panic button - a cry for help
• Reasons can include
• buoy drifting
• major wind shift leading to heavily biased line
• mistiming between signals
• misfiring of sound signals
• broken halyards
• etc. etc.

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The Postponement Signals 1

• AP
• All races not started are postponed
• Keep to multiples of original time sequence if
  possible when lowering
• Warning Signal made one minute after this signal
  is lowered

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The Postponement Signals 2
N

• All races are abandoned
• This includes ones already under way as well as
  those preparing to start

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The Postponement Signals 3

• AP over numeral pennant
• postponed x hours from scheduled start time
• AP over H and N over H
• as for AP and N but - "further signals will be
  made ashore"
• i.e. go back to the beach/harbour
• AP over A and N over A
• postponed/abandoned to another day

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After the Start Race Control

• To remain in control of the race, the Race
  Officer must, at regular intervals, check
• Safety
• the weather conditions (that the crews can handle
  stronger winds)
• that rescue craft are still operational
• that rescue craft know of vessels which appear to
  be in trouble
• that priority is being given to people and not
  boats

• Time
• by timing boats on various legs of the course
• calculating the approximate finishing time for
  the first yacht
• comparing this time with the time limit, and
  preparing to shorten course if necessary
• Recording of Yachts
• ensure that recorders have positions of each
  yacht at end of each round
• keep track of leaders of each fleet
• keep track of 'tail-end charlies' of each fleet
  relative to leaders

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Shorten Course or Abandon valid reasons in Rule
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• error in starting procedure
• foul weather
• insufficient wind, making it unlikely that any
  boat will finish within the time limit
• a mark missing or out of place
• any other reason affecting the safety or fairness
  of the competition

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Shorten Course Signal means

• displayed at the starting line
• sail the shortened course prescribed in the
  Sailing Instructions
• displayed at the finishing line
• finish the race either
• at the finishing line at the end of the round
  still to be completed by the leading yacht or
• as prescribed in the Sailing Instructions

• displayed at a rounding mark
• finish between the rounding mark and the
  committee boat (see definition of finishing -
  later)
• in multi-class, fly over class flag(s) if not
  shortening all classes

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Shorten Course the method

• At Club Race Officer level, the most important
  thing is knowing when to shorten course
• The position of the leading boat must be known
• If the race is a close one, with the leader
  covering the second boat, it is essential that
  the boats all see and hear the shorten course
  signal, as this may affect their tactical sailing
  to the finishing line
• In club racing the signal is normally flown when
  the leader rounds the penultimate mark before the
  shortened course finishing line

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Shorten Course the signal

• When the leader rounds the last mark before the
  finishing line (i.e. is just on the last leg)
• hoist flag S
• two guns

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Finishing the Race

• The Race Officer has to
• set a finishing line
• (in most clubs this is frequently the same as the
  starting line)
• has the race team set up for the finish
• Gunner with sound signals
• Timekeeper ready to record finishing times
• Recorder ready to record sail numbers and times
• note any protest flags

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The Finishing Line

• Yachts must cross the finishing line in the
  direction of the course from the last mark
• Hook finishes are not permitted or valid

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FINALLY -

• Tidy up
• Give out and receive protest forms, noting
  relevant times
• Present the results in the agreed manner required
  by the results secretary
• Prepare, if required, a brief report on the race
  for the Press Officer
• Report any defects in the equipment to the Bosun
• Ensure that all equipment is securely locked away
• GO TO THE BAR AND RECEIVE PRAISE FOR A GOOD JOB
  WELL DONE!!!

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It couldnt happen to us...

• What safety precautions does your club insist on
  before a club race starts?

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Twice a year....

• What standards can you (reasonably) expect from
  the person who does a duty (Race Officer or
  Safety Officer) twice a year?
• As trainers, how can you effectively organise
  training for these people?