Last issue, I drew your attention to a new International Race Officer, who grew up at the club. This month I would like to draw your attention to an experienced International Judge, who joined the club almost 20 years ago. Lynne Beal is one of only eight World Sailing International Judges in Canada. She was the Jury Secretary for the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta and a member of the Jury for the 2012 Olympics in London and the 2016 Olympics in Rio. She was scheduled to be a member of the Jury for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo and I assume will still be, when they take place in 2021. If you see Lynne around the club, please thank her for her ongoing dedication to the sport.

As I write this, I am social distancing by staying at home. These stratagems, social distancing and possibly even staying at home, might profitably have been adopted by two J Class boats that attended this year’s Antigua regatta. The J Class was the class used for the America’s Cup before the 12 metres. They are about 130 feet long, they displace 130-160 tons and they turn gracefully rather than smartly. The situation is fairly straightforward, but a collision between such large yachts is dramatic. Search Google or Youtube for “J Class Collision” to see clips of the collision. Also see https://www.sailingscuttlebutt.com/2020/03/12/video-massive-j-class-collision/ . The situation is fairly straightforward, as shown in the diagram.

Yellow (Topaz) is on starboard tack before the start. Blue (Svea) is on port tack. Green, who is the source of all of the video I have seen, is purely an onlooker.  

Blue either doesn’t see Yellow in time or doesn’t release her mainsheet in time – or both. At the last minute, Blue does bear off a little and just before the collision, Yellow heads up a bit. Some comments on the web suggest that Yellow was about to tack but I don’t see it that way. According to a posted protest result, there was no disagreement between the two boats on what happened. The decision indicates that Yellow luffed up, to avoid the collision, when it was clear that Blue was not keeping clear. I would have thought that bearing away would have helped more, but I don’t think either one would avoid the collision.

What are the rules that apply here? First we have rule 10. Port-tack Blue has to keep clear of the starboard-tack Yellow. Next, rule 14 – both boats have to avoid a collision, but the right-of-way boat, Yellow, does not have to act to avoid contact until it is clear that Blue is not keeping clear. I am sure that Yellow thought that Blue was going to bear away and avoid the collision. Finally, Blue could not take a two-turns penalty; the collision resulted in injury and serious damage, so according to rule 44.1b, Blue had to retire. As it turns out, both boats withdrew due to the damage. Yellow was awarded redress for this race, but to little avail as both boats were incapable of continuing in the regatta.

10 ON OPPOSITE TACKS