Poll: Short or Long?

Just a Poll announcement.

Lately I've been sending out posts to feedreader- and e-mail subscribers in a short format. Only the first couple of sentences of a new post. In the past I always used the full post.
With a shortened post I get a little more traffic to LTW, but I also realise that subscribers might prefer otherwise.

I've created a Poll-widget (top left) on LTW so you can tell me your preferences. Whatever answer gets the most votes, will dictate my settings. Go and vote, you have one month to do so.

Poll for Redress in Medal Race

One of my posts, Addendum Q changed in 2010 was published in Scuttlebutt. Since then several people have responded in the Scuttlebutt forum. In light of this I'm starting a poll.

You can vote on a simple question:
Should the Medal Race at the World Cup Events have the possibility for a Request for Redress - as written in the RRS - or not?
I'm leaving the poll up for a longer period. Say until we have a 1000 votes. That should give a clear picture.
As a judge I'm fairly neutral myself - although I'm leaning towards "Yes".

Please give me your answer in the poll at the top of the sidebar.

Continues in the Race - or - Racing?

In my last FTBD-post I asked a question about taking a penalty while a crew member had fallen overboard. (Flog the Blog Day 22)

In the comments different answers were given, but I've since come to the conclusion that it might be even more complicated. Let us recap:

This was the original case:

In a race - bigger boats - a crew member falls overboard while the boat is sailing clear to take a penalty. The boat does one turn including a gybe and a tack, picks up the crew member and does it's second turn (with a gybe and a tack) straight after. There is hardly any time lost with picking up the crew member out of the water... The turns are done almost immediately after each other. The boat continues and subsequently wins the race. There's a valid protest on rule 47.2 by another boat. What is your decision?

In the comments different decisions were given:

• One decided on DSQ for breaking rule 47.2
• Three thought the penalty was incorrect ;
• One was undecided, the penalty might be correct;
• One wanted to dismiss the protest because the boat does not "make progress in the race";
• And even one who himself fell overboard, while expecting the boat to do it's turns. It is the boat being protested, so why not!

For certain, no consensus by a long way.

Precisely because of protests like this, an International Jury is made up from five different persons, who all can discuss the issue and convince each other. And finally vote to reach a decision.

In light of this, I want to set up a POLL again - the last one was already a long time ago - and let all LTW-readers form the "jury panel"

Before I give you the options, there's one other issue I want to raise. If the penalty was incorrect - because you think all crew-members have to be on board to make it valid - the boat has not exonerated itself. That in itself breaks no rule! You cannot be disqualified for not doing two turns - or for doing them incorrectly. You can only be disqualified for the original rule infringement the boat took the penalty for.

If a protest is handed in - like in this case, for breaking rule 47.2 - you need to go back to the original incident to find facts to determine if a boat indeed broke a rule. And since that is NOT what the protest was about, my own opinion is that you cannot do that. It is not part of the incident on the protest form.

But you might think differently, so I will include that option in the poll.

Everybody still with me?

You can vote for the following choices:

Option 1:	Penalty was correct, but the boat broke rule 47.2 by continuing in the race without all crew members on board. DSQ. If while taking a two turn penalty you don't keep clear of another boat (on its proper course), you still have exonerated yourself for the original rule infringement. But you have broken rule 21.2, something you can be protested for anew. If you want to exonerate yourself for that, you need to do another two turns penalty. Unfortunately in our case, you cannot take a two turns penalty for breaking rule 47.2 - it's not in Part 2.
Option 2:	Penalty was correct, no progress in the race, so the boat did not break 47.2. Protest dismissed.
Option 3:	Penalty was incorrect, the boat did not exonerate itself. But protest is dismissed because original incident was not mentioned, and no DSQ
Option 4:	Penalty was incorrect, the boat did not exonerate itself. Panel will investigate and find facts about original infringement. Depending on the outcome the boat will be DSQ'd or the protest dismissed. Even if the incident is not mentioned or described on the protest form, you are of the opinion that incorrectly taking a penalty in itself is grounds for going back to the original rule infringement. It is part of the same "incident".
Option 5:	I'm deciding something else and tell about my arguments and decision in a comment on this blogpost.

I'll let the poll run for a fortnight, say until middle of this month, October 18th. You can convince others by giving your arguments in the comments.

Ooh, you are allowed to change your vote!

Added 16/12/2009:

Results of the Poll
Option 1: DSQ for Breaking RRS 47.2	12	42,86%
Option 2: Penalty correct; P. dismissed	6	21,43%
Option 3: Penalty incorrect; P. dismissed	1	3,57%
Option 4: Penalty incorrect; Find Facts and decide	5	17,86%
Option 5: Other, see comments	4	14,29%
total votes:	28	100,00%

Once upon a time....the End

Unbelievable!

My "fairy tales" generate more visitors than any Q&A or true story ever can.
After being published in Scuttlebutt 2721 my post 'A Lesson in Umpiring' generated over a 1000 visitors. I should start all my posts with: 'Once upon a time......'

Perhaps I should follow Tillerman's poll and write about: 'Whatever the hell I want' as long as there is at least one magical creature in it. I will ask Mss Esmerelda Wheaterwax to teach me headology or Nanny Ogg how to curse. "Bugger all that, let's curse someone"


Please excuse me, I have to find a frying pan. I just experienced a 'sussurus' and have to look for the Nac Mac Feegle, before they steal all my possessions.... and my mind.

IDMMRD | 1 Umpire Call

• Yellow and Blue, both on SB, on the sb-layline to the windward mark;
• Yellow entering the two-length zone, 2 meters clear ahead of Blue;
• Blue enters the two lenght zone and Yellow, stil clear ahead, bears away slightle;
• Yellow luffs to head to wind next to the mark and slows down. Distance between Y & B is now 1 meter;
• Blue bears of forcefully to pass behind Yellow and shows Yankee flag
• When Blue is half a boat length passed Yellow's stern, Yellow passes head to wind and tacks
• Blue luffs and tacks as well. (changed)
  
• Both round the mark and continue the Match.

Umpire's signal a decision by showing which flag?

___________________________________
You can answer this call by voting in the poll, almost on top of the sidebar
Poll closes Monday-evening 23:00 hours.

.

Finished? Results of the POLL

In last weeks poll, which ended today, in total 13 people voted, with the following answers:While this is clearly a dare for most visitors to commit to an answer, because only a handful of people voted, I'm having fun with it, so polling will return. Perhaps I should include a grand prize? Anyway, here's my view on the answer of the Poll question: When does the RC Score the boat as finished? If you want to look at the question again first, go to this post, otherwise read on:

If the committee-members on board of the finishing vessel are up to par, this boat will appear twice on the finishing list! Once in position 4 and once in position 10.
Both times she crosses the finishing line in the direction of the course from the last mark. But, you cannot score a boat twice in a race. The definition of finish goes on:.... , either for the first time or after taking a penalty under rule 31.2 or 44.2 or, under rule 28.1, after correcting an error made at the finishing line.
I would not hold it against the committee that they don't know what the boat has done between position 4 and position 10. They are there to finish. In all likely hood a couple of other boats will have finished in between and you can't expect them to follow each boat after they have crossed the line. But you can depend on the fact that if a boat has crossed the line twice, she has done something in between to comply with the last part of the definition. From this particular diagram she's corrected a error under rule 28.1 (sailing the course) made at the finish. So the committee should cross out the finish in position 4 and tell the scorer to record the second finish. In my opinion the correct answer is answer 3 : in position 10.

If I have to input a finish list as a scorer, with twice the same number on it, I always record the second position. If that turns out to be a mistake in writing, I will have one boat left over at the end. I can then check against the second list or ask the finish committee. Or the sailor will claim redress after the result is published. In 90% of the cases however, it is because the boat had to take a penalty or correct a course error.

Have a look at Q&A 2006-003 on this page, which deals with this issue also.

Finished?

Trying out a new feature: Polling
You can answer the following question in the sidebar:
(click on the picture)

Answers after the week has run out.