Rules Query

I apreciate what you are saying Jim, but in practice, how you extracate yourself from a situation when you have been fouled is rarely taken into account, once you are rafted, you an take reasonable steps to prevent damage, including "fending off" seen it many times team racing, and never seen the fouled boat get penalised, whereas have seen the foulling boat get black flagged for doing the same.

Andy

Boat A is entitled to room, even to bear away and gain steerage way, and this must be given. In an umpired race boat B would be chucked as long as A started to respond as soon as the overlap was established. B might argue that if A did nothing she would have kept clear, but i think it would be hard to persuade the jury.

If you end up being the boat A, the best thing to have done was to have defended the space, but if you were caught out the best thing to  do is to make sure all the boats around are looking, and count very aloud the seconds till you hit, which of course you will, best to keep it under 5, then push off for the best start, ruining bargers day and no way you can possibly lose the protest, unless visiting a particularly malignant club.

As boat B just make sure you have enough room to leeward, in which to drop into, while making sure boat A remains stalled, but you must keep clear of him, if no space below, you could be in trouble, and unless boat A is a muppet in the protest room.

Won a cracking one in a match race because of this, because B remained above close hauled after the gun had gone. They were gutted! having thought they had got us bang to rights.

Andy