Ranking as a Starter

Wrong way around. You are racing before the start.

"A boat is racing from her preparatory signal"

Sorry Rick but you are perfectly ignoring clear definitions in the RRS to justify the outcome you consider fair.

Because their SIs refer to the number of starters, not the number who raced. 3 raced but only one started.

I don't think you should pretend the SIs say what you'd like them to say or meant them to say or think they ought to say.

OCS is a start - albeit an illegal start, so there's at least two starters in that race. Ask some questions: What score was the early starter awarded? OCS or DNC?  What would have been the outcome if the early starter was only 5 seconds early instead of 5 minutes and a race (on the water) had ensued? What score was the retiree given. In my view it should have been DNS, not DNC, because he 'came to the starting area'.

I agree with the view that racing should be encouraged - and the club's attitude doesn't appear to do this. The SI's need changing...

Just my 2p worth...

Start A boat starts when, having been entirely on the pre-start side of the starting line at or after her starting signal, and having complied with rule 30.1 if it applies, any part of her hull, crew or equipment crosses the starting line in the direction of the first mark.

Unless the Topper went around lap 1 very quickly, I don't see how it could satisfy the requirement to be entirely on the pre-start side at the starting signal.

In the absence of any other definition, surely a starter is a boat that starts in conformance to the definition above. It would appear BNS was the only starter.