iShares Cup 2009 Hyeres | Second Day

First race, first upwind, first crossing...... a bang and a crash, right in front of us between Ecover (on port) and Renaissance (on starboard). Rule 10; Yellow flag penalty on Ecover.
That part was easy enough.

But after the race, going over to Renaissance, we were told and could see that not only the rudder housing but also the rudder stock (the helm connecting the blade to the tillerbeam) was broken.
No more racing for Oman Renaissance. That race, they could only finish by sitting on the leftover part of the stock all the way back on the port hull. Loick Peyron did a fantastic job keeping the big cat going and finishing second. (They were in first place when this happened)

They had to go in and start repairs... In between races we discussed what kind of redress they were entitled to... which should not only be fair to all competitors but also followed ISAF guidelines.. If you remember, there's a Q&A about redress: Q&A 2007-001 which states that a boat' score should be in majority from sailed races.

This is what the panel found and concluded after the hearing:

Facts Found:
In race 7 Renaissance was on starboard tack close hauled on the first beat to windward. Ecover was on port tack close hauled going astern of Renaissance. Ecover hit Renaissance on the port rudder with the bow of her port hull. Renaissance finished in second place in race 7. There was serious damage to Renaissance. Renaissance was unable to race in races 8 to 13 because of the damage sustained.

Conclusion and Rules that apply:
Ecover as port tack boat did not keep clear of Renaissance a starboard tack boat, thereby breaking rule 10. Redress is granted based on rule 62.1(b): physical damage because of an action by a boat that was breaking a rule of Part 2 .

Decision:
Ecover is DSQ in Race 7 (already decided on the water).
Based on results from races 1 to 7 Renaissance is awarded average points for races 8 to 13, with the total points rounded down to the nearest whole number. There will be no further redress considered for this incident.

It did mean that Renaissance is now in second place overall. They scored an average of place 3.3 in the first seven races and that means 7.7 points times 6(races) = 46.2 rounded down to 46.

Both the Oman boats are currently in first and second place...
We will find out today if they keep that place....

J.