Basic Rules for Racing

Here are some of the basic rules that control all sailboat races. The purpose of the rules is to enable boats to sail in close proximity, while avoiding any damage or injury. If you are not comfortable sailing close to other boats, it is usually easy to hang back a bit, or make a wide turn to keep within your comfort zone.

In our A-fleet, skippers are encouraged to know the rules, at least to the level presented here. The B-fleet is set up for those who want a more relaxed racing experience, and no knowledge of the rules is assumed. Under the rules, a boat with the right-of-way still has a duty to avoid any damage or contact between boats. In the B-fleet, skippers must keep this rule in mind and respect everybody's "personal space". You are expected to give each other plenty of room, and should not assume that others will act always according to the rules.

The best way to learn the Racing Rules of Sailing (RRS) is to buy a rule book from US Sailing and read it! There are only about 4 pages in the entire book that you need to understand to be able to race without getting into trouble. These are the pages in Part 2 "When Boats Meet". Having said that, here is a summary of the most important rules to get you started!

There are three basic rules that cover the crossing situations between two boats in open water:

Port/Starboard

This is the most common rule used while racing and overrides most other rules. A boat on Port tack shall give way to a boat on Starboard tack. You should always be aware of boats around you - but especially when you are on port tack as you need to give way.

A boat on starboard tack sails with the wind blowing onto the starboard (right) side, and the mainsail on the port (left) side. A boat on port tack sails with the wind blowing onto the port (left) side, and the mainsail on the starboard (right) side.

Windward Boat

When two boats are on the same tack and overlapped, the windward boat is the boat that is closest to the wind. This boat must keep clear of all other boats to leeward. A common situation is when a boat is sailing downwind on a collision course with a boat on the same tack sailing upwind. The boat sailing downwind must give way to the boat sailing upwind.

Clear Ahead / Clear Astern

When two boats are on the same tack and not overlapped, the boat clear astern must keep clear of the boat clear ahead. Basically if you are passing a boat on the same tack you should keep clear of them.

At the start, at turning marks and at other obstructions, some further rules apply:

Buoy Room

When two or more boats on the same tack are approaching a mark, the boats on the outside shall give room to the boats on the inside to pass the mark. There are more complicated rules to this regarding the 2 boat lengths circle - if you are interested read the RRS.

Room to Tack

A boat approaching an obstruction, such as the shore, is entitled to room to tack away. Just shout "I need room to tack", and the boat to windward must tack or otherwise keep clear. If you are in a stack of overlapped boats (eg, just after the start), there may be a domino effect, so you should be aware of what is going on at the inshore end of the line.

At the Start

Boats may be luffing to slow down, which creates some interesting situations, but the three rules for open water still apply.

* Almost everybody tries to start on starboard tack.

* If you are sailing along, and a boat to leeward of you luffs up towards you, you must keep clear. If you are overlapped, this means you may be pushed up to the wrong side of the mark, or over the line. You are not entitled to room at the mark (the rule about inside overlap at a mark does not apply to the start mark).

* If you are behind a boat that suddenly slows down, you must keep clear: luff up, ease your sails to slow down, or duck below her stern.

* Since one end of our start line is the shore, boats are entitled to room to tack at the shore. You cannot push someone up onto the Yacht Club lawn!

I hope this summary has given you confidence to join in the racing. However, please note, the above has no legal standing. All our races are governed by the Sailing Instructions and the RRS.