Monday 8 February 2010

(pillow)Case of the Week (6) -110

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CASE 110
Rule 62.1(b), Redress
A boat physically damaged from contact with a boat that was breaking a rule of Part 2 is eligible for redress only if the damage itself significantly worsened her score. Contact is not necessary for one boat to cause injury or physical damage to another. A worsening of a boat’s score caused by an avoiding manoeuvre is not, by itself, grounds for redress. ‘Injury’ refers to bodily injury to a person and, in rule 62.1(b), ‘damage’ is limited to physical damage to a boat or her equipment.
Assumed Facts
Boat B is required to keep clear of Boat A. However, B collides with A, turning A 180 degrees before she is able to continue sailing to the next mark. Boat A loses five finishing places because of the incident. She protests B and requests redress under rule 62.1(b). During the hearing, it is established that there was physical damage to A but that the damage itself did not affect her ability to proceed in the race at normal speed. A’s protest is upheld and B is disqualified.

Question 1
Is A entitled to redress?
Answer 1
No. Under rule 62.1(b), the damage itself must be the reason a boat’s score is made significantly worse. In this case the damage had no effect on A’s score.

Question 2
Must contact between the boats occur in order for redress to be granted under rule 62.1(b)?
Answer 2
No. A boat that suffers injury to a member of her crew or physical damage while acting to avoid contact with a boat that has broken a rule of Part 2 may be entitled to redress if the injury or damage is found to have made her score significantly worse and was not her fault.

Question 3
If there had been no collision because A had been able to avoid B by changing course 180 degrees, but A lost five places as a result, would she have  suffered ‘injury’ or ‘damage’ as those terms are used in rule 62.1(b)?
Answer 3
No. ‘Injury’ in the racing rules refers only to bodily injury to a person, and ‘damage’ is limited to physical damage to a boat or her equipment.

USSA 1996/73 and 2007/98



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This has been and always will be an important case. The answers may not always satisfy the sailors’ perception of justice, but they are the only answers the rules permit.
In many sports there’s no redress at all. At least in sailing we can salvage a score sometimes.

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4 comments:

  1. What if a port tack boat suddenly alters course and collides with a close by stbd tack boat, causing it to broach while attempting to avoid/minimize contact and losing a crew member overboard as a result. Are the places lost while retreiving the crew member grounds for redress?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Clever, but no cigar.
    You want me to consider the lost crew member as 'equipment' that is needed to sail the boat. If you look at, for instance rule 30, the crew is not part of the equipment. They are separately mentioned.
    I'm sorry, but in my opinion this is not something you get redress for.
    And using rule 1.1 as grounds does not do the trick either. That one has been specifically disallowed for redress in 62.1(c).

    ReplyDelete
  3. Rule 62.2(d) states "a boat against which a penalty has been imposed under Rule 2 . . " is also a reason for redress. If Boat B is disqualified by the Protest Committee, doesn't it follow that Boat A would then be entitled to redress?

    ReplyDelete
  4. Aaaah. It states a penalty imposed under RULE 2, not part 2. B must be found guilty of not complying with recognized principles of sportsmanship and fair play.
    I don't think that is an issue here.
    So, again no redress.
    I'm keeping all the cigars!

    ReplyDelete

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