Page 56 - Case Book 2017 - 2020 April 18

must be between the committee boat and a mark, or at a protest committee protested her and found that she had
line or a gate. broken rule 48.1, Fog Signals and Lights; Traffic
Separation Schemes. It imposed a 5% time penalty.
When sailing instructions include an obligation that Barada appealed on the grounds that the protest was
applies before or after a boat is racing, a boat may be invalid and that no provision was made in the sailing
penalized for breaking that rule. The penalty is to be instructions for that penalty.
applied to the race nearest in time to the incident.
DECISION
ASSUMED FACTS FOR QUESTION 1 Barada’s first ground of appeal is dismissed. Her
On a triangular course, the wind falls light and it second ground of appeal is upheld, but her penalty is
becomes necessary to shorten course. A launch is changed to disqualification.
placed on the reach between marks one and two, flag S
is displayed with two sound signals, and the boats are Barada stated in her declaration that she had not shown
timed when they cross a line projected from the navigation lights. This admission entitled the protest
timekeeper through the mast of the launch. committee (or the race committee) to protest her, as
permitted by rules 60.2(a) and 60.3(a). Those rules
QUESTION 1 preclude a race committee or a protest committee from
Is this procedure acceptable?
protesting based on information from a person with a
ANSWER 1 conflict of interest, and Barada’s representative had a
No, it does not comply with rule 32.2. When the race conflict of interest, as defined, since her report opened
officer wishes to use a transit line from a race her to protest and penalization. However, those rules
committee vessel, the line must be described in the make a specific exception for information from the
sailing instructions which, to comply with rules 25 and representative of the boat herself. The protest
85.1, must also state that rule 32.2 and the meaning of committee’s protest was therefore valid.
flag S are changed.
The only penalty a protest committee may impose for
ASSUMED FACTS FOR QUESTION 2 breaking a rule, unless otherwise stated in the racing
Club byelaws state that personal flotation devices must rules or in the sailing instructions, is disqualification.
be worn at all times when afloat. This is repeated in the Protest Committee v Barada, Royal Malta Yacht Club
sailing instructions. A helmsman enters for a race and
goes for a short trial spin without wearing a personal RYA 1969/12
flotation device; he puts it on just before the preparatory Rule 62.1(a), Redress
signal. His boat is protested and, despite his maintaining
that sailing instructions did not become operative until A race committee action or omission may be improper,
this signal, she is disqualified. even if no rule is broken, and even when it occurs
before the preparatory signal.
QUESTION 2
Is her disqualification valid? SUMMARY OF THE FACTS
About 15 minutes before the preparatory signal the race
ANSWER 2 officer moved the starting line about half a mile from its
Yes. When a boat breaks a sailing instruction that is original location. In spite of a boat being sent to tow
stated to apply before or after a boat is racing, rule 64.1 them, two boats arrived respectively four and seven
says that she is to be penalized in the race sailed nearest minutes late for the start. They started, and were the last
in time to that of the incident. to finish. They requested redress because the race
Questions from Prestwick SC officer had moved the line without a postponement that
was long enough to allow them to reach the new line.
RYA 1969/11 The request was refused on the grounds that the race
Rule 60.2(a), Right to Protest; Right to Request Redress officer did not break the sailing instructions. The boats
or Rule 69 Action appealed.
Rule 60.3(a), Right to Protest; Right to Request Redress DECISION
or Rule 69 Action The appeals are upheld, and the cases are returned to the
Rule 64.1, Decisions: Penalties and Exoneration
protest committee to award redress.
When a declaration after finishing is required by a The race officer laid a fresh starting line without
sailing instruction and when a boat states in hers that she adequately postponing the start of the race to enable the
has broken a rule, the race committee or protest boats to reach the new position and to manoeuvre to
committee is entitled to protest her. In the absence of any obtain a good start. This made their scores significantly
other applicable penalty in the sailing instructions, there worse: it was improper, even though it broke no racing
is no alternative to disqualification for breaking a rule.
rule or sailing instruction; and the boats were not at fault.
SUMMARY OF THE FACTS Request for Redress by Ajira and Goldcrest, Dale YC
The sailing instructions required boats to sign a
declaration after finishing to confirm that they had RYA 1973/5
complied with the rules. After a race lasting two days, Rule 20.1, Room to Tack at an Obstruction: Hailing
Barada lodged her signed declaration, adding the Rule 20.2, Room to Tack at an Obstruction: Responding
sentence: ‘Except that during the hours 0200 to 0500 we
were forced to sail without navigation lights…’ The
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