Scenarios #3 - Rule 20

Scenario #3

This is a scenario that we might see on one of our weekend distance race that starts between mark "V" and the KYC break wall.  Starting near break wall certainly poses a dangerous situation and this scenario explain the rules that apply to allow for a safe start.

• Preamble:
  • The starting line is between mark "V" and the yardarm (KYC break wall)
  • The KYC break wall qualifies as a continuing obstruction
  • The preamble of Section C has a special exception for a starting mark that is NOT surrounded by water and Section C is then turned on (so, Rule 18, 19 and 20 are turned on for this scenario)
• Position 1:
  • Blue, Yellow and Red are approaching the line to start
  • All 3 boats are overlapped and sailing close hauled and thus Rule 11 applies between all of them (they are all properly keeping clear of each other)
  • Red is going to run aground shortly if she doesn't change course
  • Red hails for "Room to Tack" as per Rule 20.1
  • Red has done this early enough to satisfy Rule 20.2(a) which requires giving Yellow (and Blue) "time to respond".
• Position 2:
  • Yellow immediately passes on the hail by hailing to Blue "Room to Tack" and satisfies Rule 20.3 even though it might have been too early for her to hail.
• Position 3:
  • Blue immediately responds by starting to tack (this is one of the two choices Blue has in Rule 20.2(c))
  • Yellow also starts her tack, and both satisfy Rule 20.2(c) & 20.2(d) (Responding).
  • Red is now able to begin her tack.
• Position 4 & 5:
  • All 3 have been able to tack, keep clear of each other, and avoid the continuing obstruction.

Key Take Aways:

• You CAN/SHOULD hail for "Room to Tack" in this situation, but you need to do it early enough for all involved to be able to respond.
• If YOU are hailed, then pass along the hail if necessary, and tack as soon as you can
  • You might also be able to respond by avoiding in some other way, in which case you would respond by hailing "You Tack" and then some how avoiding the boat that hailed.

NOTE:

• You could make the argument that at Position 1, Blue (and possibly Yellow) might have been laying the mark (KYC break wall) because they could have continued on without running aground.  Put in technical terms, they were fetching the mark.
• If you read Rule 20.1 carefully, the last paragraph says that if "a boat" (Blue or Yellow in this case) is fetching the obstruction and that obstruction is a mark, then Red "shall not" hail.
• So this might mean that Red's hail of "Room to Tack" broke Rule 20.1
• The end result is that everything else described would be exactly the same except that in a protest, Red would be disqualified. 
• Yellow (and Blue) would still have to have responded (see Rule 20.2(b)) and tacked as they did.