PY Inflation?

 I though the long standing complaint on this forum was that there were to many returns coming from inland clubs ? And that was affecting the pys in a unfair way. 

Slower boats (almostt) always lose out in tide. The only exception is if you race only with the tide…..ie a one way race, not an out and back, or If the tide turns precisely as the slow boat reaches the turning point.

Originally posted by sargesail Slower boats (almostt) always lose out in tide. The only exception is if you race only with the tide…..ie a one way race, not an out and back, or If the tide turns precisely as the slow boat reaches the turning point.

Up tide and then down tide it will always get you. The slower boats lose a bigger percentage of their potential speed uptide and they don't get it all back going the other way......at extremes the slow boats can stand still or go backwards 

Across tide the slower boats have to effectively sail further as they offset more to compensate.

Tidally adjusted figures are essential in my opinion.........but I can't see it happening ATM apart from at a few diligent, volunteer rich coastal clubs who can convince the membership to accept local adjustment. + Many folk aren't comfortable unless the format is written in stone by an official source. Perceived ambiguity and nuance isn't for everyone.......this isn't a dig either.

I don't believe the RYA help enough with this issue because they are also caught up in perpetuating the myth that PY racing actually means something at coastal clubs. In order to help more they would have to expose the fact that using one set of numbers for all clubs is a seriously flawed system. They do indicate that it could be bettered by locally adjusting but the degree to which it is wonky is not acknowledged fully. Emperors clobber and all that.......IMO it's time the RYA invested more time and money in sorting it out.

Also: There is an RYA survey being conducted at the moment. They want feedback about how folk feel about dinghy sailing, cruising and racing. Anyone else seen it?

Ignoring tide and all that, the Great Lakes handicaps have a majority, and I say that loosely, slower boats getting slower too and there ain’t no tide inland for sure.   While tide is an impact on leg length, boat manoeuvres also have a bigger impact on speed the faster you go, so slower boats on shifty inland water and small course should be favoured!