Page 79 - Misconduct a Reference for Race Officials

RACING RULES GUIDANCE

PERMITTING USE OF AN ENGINE

(AND OTHER METHODS OF PROPULSION)

The default situation is that the use of an engine (or any other method) for propulsion while
racing (therefore, at any time between the preparatory signal and finishing and clearing the
finishing marks) breaks rule 42.1, Propulsion: Basic Rule. In the racing rules, there is no
alternative to retirement when a boat realises that she has broken rule 42, and no option
other than to disqualify a boat that is found by a protest committee to have broken rule 42,
unless some other penalty applies.

Rule 42.3(h), Propulsion: Exceptions, allows various sorts of force to be used to get clear
after grounding or a collision, but the use of a propulsion engine is explicitly not permitted.

Rule 42.3(i), Propulsion: Exceptions, allows sailing instructions to state specific
circumstances under which a boat may use an engine, or any other method of propulsion,
provided she does not gain a significant advantage in the race.

PROPULSION BY ENGINE TO GET CLEAR AFTER GROUNDING OR A COLLISION
When a race committee does not want a boat that uses her engine in this way to have to
retire, there are two options:
1) It can have a sailing instruction that permits a boat which uses her engine to get clear
after grounding or a collision to exonerate herself by accepting a penalty less than
disqualification. Examples of a suitable penalty could be a scoring penalty or a time
penalty.
A suitable sailing instruction might be:
“When a boat uses her propulsion engine to get clear after [grounding] [or] [a collision],
she need not retire, provided that she stops using her engine as soon as she is clear, but
shall instead accept [a [ __%] scoring penalty calculated as in rule 44.3(c)] [a ____ penalty
and notify the use of her engine to the race committee within the time limit for [protests]
[declarations].”
Note that this sailing instruction does not change rule 42, which is forbidden by rules
86.1(a) and (b).

2) Alternatively, the race committee can use rule 42.3(i) to allow free use of an engine to
get clear after grounding or a collision.
The race committee must decide whether the exemption relates to grounding, a collision
or both. A suitable sailing instruction might be as follows:
A boat may use her propulsion engine to get clear after [grounding] [or] [a collision] and
shall stop using the engine for propulsion as soon as she is clear.

Rule 42.3(i) requires that the boat does not gain a significant advantage in the race. In
this context, use of the engine only to get clear does not constitute a significant
advantage, even if the boat would have lost many more places without using the engine,
and even if she can get clear more quickly than a boat with no engine.

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