Ok,
So I have an interesting one (well I thought it was interesting) that goes like this:
W claims L did not provide adequate buoy room. L claims W's proper course was not to sail close to the mark and so failed to keep clear.
So here's my thinking. When both boats originally overlapped, it was W's proper course to sail close to the mark. Mark room was given. When W bore away, her proper course was no longer to sail close to the mark. L no longer has to provide her room to sail to the mark but does have to provide room to tack. At all times, none of this absolves W's responsibility to keep clear under rule 11.
My feeling W gets flicked for rule 11. L gets an infringement for not providing room to tack, but may or may not get exonerated because of 16.1 and 43.1(a)?
There are some relevant case notes here:
CASE 21 When a right-of-way boat is obligated to give mark-room to a boat overlapped inside her, there is no maximum or minimum amount of space that she must give. The amount of space that she must give depends significantly on the existing conditions including wind and sea conditions, the speed of the inside boat, the sails she has set and her design characteristics.
CASE 25 After an inside overlapped windward boat has been given mark-room, rule 18 no longer applies, but rule 11 continues to apply. The inside windward boat must keep clear of the outside leeward boat, and the leeward boat may luff provided that she gives the windward boat room to keep clear.
CASE 118 In the definition Mark-Room, the phrase ‘room to sail to the mark’ means space to sail promptly in a seamanlike way to a position close to, and on the required side of, the mark.
CASE 14 When, owing to a difference of opinion about a leeward boat’s proper course, two boats on the same tack converge, the windward boat must keep clear. Two boats on the same leg sailing near one another may have different proper courses.
CASE 75 When rule 18 applies, the rules of Sections A and B apply as well. When an inside overlapped right-of-way boat must gybe at a mark, she is entitled to sail her proper course until she gybes. A starboard-tack boat that changes course does not break rule 16.1 if she gives a port-tack boat adequate space to keep clear and the port-tack boat fails to take advantage of it promptly.
CASE 134 A boat’s proper course at any moment depends on the existing conditions. Some of those conditions are the wind strength and direction, the pattern of gusts and lulls in the wind, the waves, the current, and the physical characteristics of the boat’s hull and equipment, including the sails she is using
Now the scenarios in each of these cases is different, but IMHO the ruling is the important bits.
1) To start with, Case 75 makes it clear that mark room does not nullify other rules of part 2
2) Case 118, and Case 21 give some boundaries to mark room. that to the point right up and including when a boat needs to tack, if her proper course is not close to the mark, then "sail to the mark" does not apply
3) Case 25 outlines that if 18 no longer applies, then 11 still does.
4) Case 134 and 14 suggests a boats proper course can change from moment to moment, and that boats can have different proper courses. That is to say, just because your poper course at the zone was to sail close to mark, if that changes, then so does that limitation.
All in all, L in providing mark room, must only provide room to sail close to the mark, and to tack, and no more. In bearing away, W cemented that her proper course was not to sail close to the mark, but rather some distance away from the mark before tacking. L was within her rights to maintain her proper course as right of way boat, until W needed to tack (ie to lay the mark on port)
Thoughts?
So I have an interesting one (well I thought it was interesting) that goes like this:
- W and L are on a beat to windward, on starboard, in variable to light winds and smooth water. They are sailing close to the starboard lay line for a starboard mark rounding. W establishes an overlap to windward but inside L as they enter the zone. W requests room and L complies.
- A momentary change of pressure and direction hits W & L. W bears away, and L holds their course. The boats (ostensibly) collide. they are approximately 1.5 boat lengths from the port layline, and approximately 1.5-2 boat lengths below the mark
- Due to W's closeness, L is unable to manoeuvre, nor W, in order to allow W to tack. In attempting to tack, W's transom collides with L
- When W does tack, they are about 1 to 1.5 boat lengths from the mark on port tack and on the lay line
- Both boats clear the mark without further incident
W claims L did not provide adequate buoy room. L claims W's proper course was not to sail close to the mark and so failed to keep clear.
So here's my thinking. When both boats originally overlapped, it was W's proper course to sail close to the mark. Mark room was given. When W bore away, her proper course was no longer to sail close to the mark. L no longer has to provide her room to sail to the mark but does have to provide room to tack. At all times, none of this absolves W's responsibility to keep clear under rule 11.
My feeling W gets flicked for rule 11. L gets an infringement for not providing room to tack, but may or may not get exonerated because of 16.1 and 43.1(a)?
There are some relevant case notes here:
CASE 21 When a right-of-way boat is obligated to give mark-room to a boat overlapped inside her, there is no maximum or minimum amount of space that she must give. The amount of space that she must give depends significantly on the existing conditions including wind and sea conditions, the speed of the inside boat, the sails she has set and her design characteristics.
CASE 25 After an inside overlapped windward boat has been given mark-room, rule 18 no longer applies, but rule 11 continues to apply. The inside windward boat must keep clear of the outside leeward boat, and the leeward boat may luff provided that she gives the windward boat room to keep clear.
CASE 118 In the definition Mark-Room, the phrase ‘room to sail to the mark’ means space to sail promptly in a seamanlike way to a position close to, and on the required side of, the mark.
CASE 14 When, owing to a difference of opinion about a leeward boat’s proper course, two boats on the same tack converge, the windward boat must keep clear. Two boats on the same leg sailing near one another may have different proper courses.
CASE 75 When rule 18 applies, the rules of Sections A and B apply as well. When an inside overlapped right-of-way boat must gybe at a mark, she is entitled to sail her proper course until she gybes. A starboard-tack boat that changes course does not break rule 16.1 if she gives a port-tack boat adequate space to keep clear and the port-tack boat fails to take advantage of it promptly.
CASE 134 A boat’s proper course at any moment depends on the existing conditions. Some of those conditions are the wind strength and direction, the pattern of gusts and lulls in the wind, the waves, the current, and the physical characteristics of the boat’s hull and equipment, including the sails she is using
Now the scenarios in each of these cases is different, but IMHO the ruling is the important bits.
1) To start with, Case 75 makes it clear that mark room does not nullify other rules of part 2
2) Case 118, and Case 21 give some boundaries to mark room. that to the point right up and including when a boat needs to tack, if her proper course is not close to the mark, then "sail to the mark" does not apply
3) Case 25 outlines that if 18 no longer applies, then 11 still does.
4) Case 134 and 14 suggests a boats proper course can change from moment to moment, and that boats can have different proper courses. That is to say, just because your poper course at the zone was to sail close to mark, if that changes, then so does that limitation.
All in all, L in providing mark room, must only provide room to sail close to the mark, and to tack, and no more. In bearing away, W cemented that her proper course was not to sail close to the mark, but rather some distance away from the mark before tacking. L was within her rights to maintain her proper course as right of way boat, until W needed to tack (ie to lay the mark on port)
Thoughts?