Upwind/downwind right of way

Jim C - all my sailing is on the sea at present.

My point is that some skiffs seem to have a fairly narrow range of angles on which they can go downwind without capsizing, and some seem to have difficulty when they are going downwind without a spinnaker. Big boats may take some time to change course, but they do not have this limit range of possible course. And the notion of not keeping clear in a 60ft yacht implies a lesser tolerance of proximity than when sailing 12 ft dinghies.

I was once sailing an International 12foot class, we were on starboard and the J Class Valsheda was on port! We decided to tack rather than insist on our rights!

Gordon

Gordon,

Was you polint re the J class the fact it cannot tack/gybe and change course the reason you did not push too hard?

I again ask for your comments on the above.  I feel you have essentially agreed that different boats take differing times to change direction and thus the time required to keep clear is different depending on the boat that is sailing. 

On the Velsheda - we could have stood on, borne away to pass astern or tacked. We tacked because we wanted to go to the right. A big boat can in fact alter course quite rapidly, they are not usually restricted to a narrow band of wind angles. Velsheda could have lufed 3 or 4 degrees and cleared us without problem. The speed difference was such that we were, for all purposes, an immobile object.

I would argue that the time required for most boats to alter course is not that different, although in that time some may travel a lot further. The reaction time of the helmsman remains the same. Big cats are an exception, because they often have difficulty bearing away without some serious trimming to prevent the leeward bow digging in. Some skiffs also have a problem when running as bearing away of luffing more than a few degrees may result in a capsize. The rules clearly state that this does not alter in any way their obligations.

It could be argued that sailing a boat in such a way that it has a limited capacity to alter course is not "seamanlike". It would make an interesting case.

Probably, the common sense decision is to ensure that there is sufficient separation between differing classes so that the problem doesn't arise.

Gordon

The J Class example bought to mind the Match Race between the IACC Ville de Paris and one of the Js (Endeavour?).  VDP stuffed the J downwind in the prevailing conditions but upwind they were well matched.

Going upwind there was a close crossing/collision situation with the J on port.  The J simply hardened up by a significant amount and "fore-reached" across in front of VDP who simply did not have the momentum to "hunt" even if she wanted to.

Not the same deal - but relevant as it illustrates how the characteristics of boats vary their rule interactions.