You were in the right, he should have kept out of your way;

"2.3 A boat moving astern by backing a sail shall keep clear of one that is

not."

It might be worth noting that the notion of "overtaking boat" does not exist in the rules, and has not existed for many years... A boat is either clear astern or overlapped.

 Rule 17.1 limits the rights of a boat that a boat establishing an overlap from clear astern (both boats may be sailing backwards when this happens ... rule 20.3 only applies if a boat is backing her sail) so that she cannot sail above her proper course.

Gordon DAVIES

Dear all,

Thanks for the input.  Gordon are you saying that I was rin the right or not? (I'm a bit thick and you lost me a bit)

If the other boat was moving astern by backing a sail she was required to keep clear. In this case it seems that she did not. You were in the right.

I  wanted to warn you about using the phrase "overtaking boat". The fact that you are overtaking or not now has no importance whatsoever in the rules. If you use the phrase "overtaking boat" in a protest at best you will solicit a wry smile from members of the protest committee, at worst you will convince them that yopu do not have a clear grap of the rules.

The rules now talk about a boat clear astern becoming overlapped... this may be because she is overtaking, it may also be because the clear ahead boat has altered course, or may even be sailing backwards. This becomes important in the context of rule 17.1 which limits the luffing rights of a clear astern boat when she bocomes overlapped within two boat lengths to leeward of a boat on the same tack.

Gordon DAVIES

Often when boats back their mains and stop and you are moving forwards it is very hard to tell who is in the right.

It is only when they are actually sailing backwards they lose their rights; when they are stopped and you are not overlapped then you need to avoid them until you are perhaps overlapped to leeward and have acquired luffing rights.

Rick

I could never resist flattery, Garry. So here goes

If a windward overlapped boat starts sailing backwards by backing a sail you do not have to give room to keep clear. As windward overlapped boat she already had an obligation to keep clear, that obligation remains even if the rule that gives her that obligation is no longer the same.

Rule 15 only applies when you acquire right of way by your own actions, like sailing into an overlapped position to leeward of another boat. If she establishes an overlap to windward she has acquired an obligation to keep clear by her own actions and you do not have to give room to keep clear.

Hope this is clear

Gordon

I'm not sure that is true even in theory. Protests are about making your case. Therefore you need to understand what case you are making. The facts found will be related to the facts reported. You only know which facts matter, and therefore should be reported, if you understand, at least to some degree, the application of the rules to the situation.

Water. 

Certainly not. The point is that there are a million facts but only a few are relevant. To know which those are requires a knowledge of the rules.

Read RRS appendix M, which describes the recommended procedure for a protest. One party is described as making a case, the other defending it. How can you possibly make a case if you don't know the rules? How do you even fill in the form which is normally required?

The protest system is based on adversarial Anglo-Saxon law, where the two sides argue their case. There may be a "Judge". There is no "Investigating Magistrate". 

There is no requirement to state which rules have been broken on the protest form.  Furthermore just because the protestor states rule 18 was broken doesn't stop the protest committee finding that it was rule 10.

While I agree the set-up tends to make it adversarial there is also the element of an investigating committee.

What would be the outcome if boat A on starboard was hit by boat B on port (no other boats around and plenty of navigable water).  Boat A only knows the IRPCS and that if you're hit shout protest.  Boat B is a rules expert pushing his luck.  Are you suggesting that boat B would be exonerated at a hearing?

Of course B should just do his turns and get on with racing but how often do we see that nowadays!

There are a number of scenarios in which a starboard tack boat may be deemed to have infringed a port tack boat. In particular rules 15, 16.1, 16.2 may all provide the port tack boat with some hope.

Gordon