Start of the May 2016 Mug Race

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Bill Roberts
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Start of the May 2016 Mug Race

Post by Bill Roberts »

The Mug Race is a distance race, 38 miles, on the St Johns River in north Florida. The race starts in Palatka, FL and finishes at Jacksonville. The race is sponsored by the Rudder Club of Jacksonville. At the start the river flows north. The starting line is set up east and west. This year the wind was from the NW 5 to 10 mph at the start. There were about 75 boats starting, a mix of mono hulls, mostly keel boats, and catamarans. Everyone starts together. At around three minutes to the start the mono hulls were seen gathering at the east end of the line, the Race Committee Boat end. On starboard tack one could just about sail straight down the starting line. The multihulls were gathering nearer the west end of the line planning a port tack start.
At about two and a half minutes to go, the mono hulls started slowly moving down the line on starboard tack one behind the other. At about a minute to go, the first mono hulls realized they were getting to the west end of the starting line too soon and running out of line length. So these mono hulls put the brakes on. Then the monos behind were getting too close to the boats in front of them so to avoid rear end collisions, they began to tack to port slowly trying not to go over the starting line. All this time the catamarans were easing toward the line on port tack. Now the gun goes off and the race is started. Some of the mono hulls were in irons and stopped. Stopped right in front of the catamarans. The west end of the starting line is blocked with motionless mono hulls trying to tack. The catamarans start trying to wiggle through the mono hull jungle with some of the mono hulls backing up. There were a few bumps and bangs but finally things got straightened out and some boats started the race a minute or so late.

The question is "according to the racing rules who was in the right and who was in the wrong at the start of this race"?
A second question: What needs to be changed so that this does not happen again?
Last edited by Bill Roberts on July 27th, 2016, 7:34 pm, edited 1 time in total.
havliii
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Re: Start of the May 2016 Mug Race

Post by havliii »

Since I don't race, I haven't a clue. But I would like to hear your thoughts on what was wrong. A line perpendicular to the wind direction might be a place to start the critique.
Bill Roberts
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Re: Start of the May 2016 Mug Race

Post by Bill Roberts »

Thanks for your response. With a starting line perpendicular to the wind, boats could have started on starboard tack but they would have made no progress down the race course. They would have started in a direction straight across the river. Also the shore line was about 1/4 mile from the starting line leeward end. So, everyone starting on strarboard would have been to the shore in a couple of minutes. The first boats to the shore would be tacking to port tack first. The slightly slower boats on starboard tack would be coming at the faster boats who had already tacked to port and be calling for starboard tack rights of way. Here comes another mess. The first leg was so short that faster boats could not develop enough of a lead to have time/distance to tack and get out of the way from boats that had not tacked yet and were still on starboard tack.

Give me another solution, please.
Bill
Laz
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Re: Start of the May 2016 Mug Race

Post by Laz »

Bill,

Was the line long enough for all 75 boats if they were on the same tack? If not, then a staggered start would have been better.

If the monos were clearly on starboard tack, then they have right-of-way independent of motion. I don't know the rules if a boat is dead-to-wind and stalled.

One of the reasons for the port/starboard rule is to allow tactics to compete with speed. You may recall when they changed the direction of rounding the windward mark to be on port tack, so the trailing boat might be able to challenge for space as they near the mark. I think this varies by class and venue.

My info is probably stale.

Laz
"Sonja" - SC15, Havre de Grace MD (top of the Chesapeake).
Bill Roberts
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Re: Start of the May 2016 Mug Race

Post by Bill Roberts »

Laz,
The line was long. Starboard tack right of way was being observed. The starboard tack boats began tacking to port at 10 to 20 seconds before the start. Their problem was that they did not have enough speed to complete the tack and ended up blocking the starting line and in irons, no speed in any direction. There is also a rule that says when you tack or jibe there must be enough room around you relative to other boats to complete the tack or jibe. This is where the starboard tack boats went wrong. They had slowed down to keep from running out of line length before the gun went off and then when they tried to tack, they did not have enough speed to complete the tack.

Second question: What could the race committee have done to avoid this problem at the start?
Mac M
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Re: Start of the May 2016 Mug Race

Post by Mac M »

General recall and try again!
Bill Roberts
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Re: Start of the May 2016 Mug Race

Post by Bill Roberts »

Mac M, No boats were over the line at the starting gun.
And it will happen all over again! The problems happened a few boat lengths behind the line.
Starboard tack has the right of way over a port tack boat. Sailing 101.
Sailing 102: A boat tacking or jibing has no right of way over other boats while in the act of tacking or jibing. In the process of tacking or jibing a boat must do so such that no other boat has to alter course while the tacking or jibing boat completes the tack or jibe. Completion of tacking or jibing means sails full on the new tack. The boat that has just completed the tack or jibe may not be up to speed on the new tack but the sails are full on the new tack.

This is a guess on my part but I think the sailors on starboard tack just prior to the start of the race knew rule #101 but they did not know rule #102.
Bill Roberts
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Re: Start of the May 2016 Mug Race

Post by Bill Roberts »

OK, here's the simple solution.
The path of the river is set. The starting line is set and that is a good thing for the Mug Race at this location.
SOLUTION: When the wind has a westerly component in it like NW or further West, Make PORT TACK have the right of way before the start and until the starting gun/horn sounds. After the start, starboard tack has the right of way as normal.
The objective of the start in a distance race is to give all boats the perfect start on the line and headed down the race course at the gun. This is different from buoy racing and tactical racing/starting.
havliii
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Re: Start of the May 2016 Mug Race

Post by havliii »

Bill Roberts wrote:OK, here's the simple solution.
When the wind has a westerly component in it like NW or further West, Make PORT TACK have the right of way before the start and until the starting gun/horn sounds. After the start, starboard tack has the right of way as normal.
The objective of the start in a distance race is to give all boats the perfect start on the line and headed down the race course at the gun. This is different from buoy racing and tactical racing/starting.
NOOOOOOOOOO WAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYY! you're asking for a 'special rule' for a 'special situation' and asking 80-100 boats to remember that it is that 'special day' when the 'special rule' is in effect. What happens when 20 bozos on port hit 20 bozos on starboard and every single bozo declares that they have the 'right of way.' Not gonna happen. Sorry Bill, but that sounds like insanity to me. I love most all of your ideas, most.
J Drew
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Re: Start of the May 2016 Mug Race

Post by J Drew »

I saw this year's start as a potential catastrophe, so I hung back. There was a crowd gathering on one side, with plenty of room on the other side, so I went for open spaces.
By going to the east side I would have to tack sooner, but i was able to get out in front of the crowd, then with a couple quick cut and run maneuvers, most of them were behind me.

I really don't like traffic 8)
Bill Roberts
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Re: Start of the May 2016 Mug Race

Post by Bill Roberts »

havliii, You described exactly what happened at the start of the Mug Race this year. There were 20 bozos sailing down the line on starboard. They could not sail high enough to cross the line on starboard tack and start the race. They planned to tack over to port, they had to tack over to port, to cross the line and start. There was a large group of boats, 20 bozos, on port tack approaching the line luffing along at half speed. In the last 30 seconds, the starboard tack boats started attempting to tack to port tack in front of the boats already on port tack. The boats attempting to tack onto port had slowed down to keep from running out of starting line length. When they began attempting to tack to port tack, they did not have enough speed to complete the tacking process and stopped "in irons" at half a tack. Now the gun goes off and the port tack boats have to sail around the" in irons" boats. The port tack boats back their jibs to windward and trying every way the could to avoid collisions but there was some bumping and banging and many of the tacking boats were heard to say, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. "Every boat finally got across the starting line on port tack".
It is interesting to note that the boats sailing down the line on starboard tack just before the start were all monohulls.
The group of boats hanging out on port tack at the west end of the line were catamarans.
What does one conclude from these two different approaches in two different types of boat to this unique starting line/wind direction situation?
Bruiser
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Re: Start of the May 2016 Mug Race

Post by Bruiser »

Answer is monohulls have no rights when tacking, so they are in the wrong during their tack. The reality is they will never admit that. My solution is either 2 separate starts or a divided start line. One half for monohulls and the other half for the multihulls.

Cheers,
Bill Roberts
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Re: Start of the May 2016 Mug Race

Post by Bill Roberts »

Good answers Bruiser. Why does it take a train wreck to get things fixed?
There were several racers, cat sailors, that saw this coming before the first gun went off.
The rule beater monohull sailors thought they play it conservative and sail down the line on starboard tack
and tack to port just before the gun. I guess that is what a fleet of monohull sailors would do and there
would have been no port tack boats starting.
This shows me that monohull sailors are indeed taught to be rule beaters even when they don't know the rules.
Catamaran sailors strive to make a fair start on the gun and get on down the race course.
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