SIs for club racing
Sailing Instructions for Club Racing
- Races will be sailed under the current ISAF rules except as varied in these instructions.
- All yachts racing must have a valid class measurement certificate, including all relevant endorsements or variations.
- Members are reminded that it is a condition of membership that they carry appropriate insurance cover. Failure to do so will be grounds for disqualification from any race organised by the Club.
- All competitors must wear a BSI/CE approved buoyancy aid or lifejacket while racing.
- The safety of a yacht, her crew and their management, including insurance, is the sole responsibility of the person in charge of that yacht.
- The start of a Club race will normally be between the mast of the Committee Boat and an adjacent turning mark or other convenient buoy OR using the Club fixed line.
- Courses will usually be defined by boards displayed at the start showing the first letter of the turning marks, the positions of which are shown on the chart on the inside front cover of the handbook. Letters will be shown on either a red or green background indicating the side on which they are to be left.
- Important information concerning the day's racing will also be shown on the Clubhouse noticeboard, and all competitors should check this noticeboard before going afloat.
- The Stone Bank buoy should always be passed on the deep water side. A yacht passing between this buoy and the marsh to the south will be disqualified.
- For Club handicap racing, the PYs posted on the Clubhouse notice board will apply.
- Club racing will be subject to a time limit of two hours for any race, except in the case of Round the Island or Thornham Crusher races, where the time limit will be specified at a pre-race briefing. Boats not finishing within the time limit will be scored as Did Not Finish (DNF).
- The Exoneration Penalty, and the Advisory Hearing and RYA Arbitration procedures, of the RYA Rules Disputes Procedures will be available for all Club racing. See the Clubhouse noticeboard for details.
Starting Procedure
Club races will be started using the Starting Procedure described in the Racing Rules of Sailing.
This procedure is:
| WARNING | Class Flag | 1 Sound 5 minutes before the Start |
| PREPARATORY | Flag P | 1 Sound 4 minutes before the Start |
| ONE-MINUTE | Flag P removed | 1 Sound 1 minute before the Start |
| STARTING | Class Flag removed | 1 Sound The Start |
For multiple starts the WARNING signal for each subsequent start will be the STARTING signal of the preceding start.
Start lines for each race will remain open until five minutes after the final start.
Severals Order and Ternery
An area of the foreshore and seabed is covered by the Brancaster Staithe Fishery (Variation Order) 1994 for the protection of local fishermen's oyster, mussel and other commercial interests. Members are asked to comply with the regulations by not landing, walking on, removing, or otherwise disturbing shellfish and generally respecting the area which is shown by the shading on the chart on the inside front cover of the handbook.
The western tip of Scolt Head Island is a renowned breeding ground for terns and other wildlife. Other than in an emergency, members are asked not to land boats in this area until the middle of August to avoid disturbance during the breeding season.
Scolt Head Island Races
The Island Race has always been one of the most attractive features of the sailing calendar. The race is unique in its potential dangers being sailed over unfamiliar and sometimes difficult water. Nevertheless, these are the very factors which significantly contribute to the attractions of the race and which a large majority of members wish to preserve. These conditions also dictate that we must take special steps to ensure that competitors are aware of what they are taking on. Since each individual Island Race is also unique, a pre-race briefing is the only effective way to pass on to competitors relevant and up-to-date information and recommendations. Times of briefings are published in the sailing programme.
Scolt Head Island races will be subject to a time limit to be specified at the pre-race briefing (see Sailing Instructions for Club Racing Point 11 above). The Club has limited scope to enforce safe practices so it must rely largely on persuasion. However, in order to bring such persuasion to bear as forcefully as possible, it is mandatory to sign on for an Island Race at the pre-race briefing.
Boats with a PY of 1150 and higher will only be permitted to enter at the Race Officer's discretion.
Coastal Race: "The Thornham Crusher"
Due to the difficulty in setting manageable courses round Scolt Head Island in certain weather conditions and with increasingly large fleets, an alternative sea course to the west of Brancaster harbour may be set on scheduled Island Race days. This can be an equally challenging event, being sailed close to the beach towards and perhaps into Thornham Harbour. This race will be subject to the same requirements as a Scolt Head Island Race for a pre-race briefing and signing on at the briefing.
Sail Training
Sail training for younger members will be arranged on the dates shown in the Club sailing programme. Bookings can only be made online using the members hub between 1st and 10th March for all courses, including the Assistant Instructor course. As numbers are limited, it is recommended that members study the selection criteria on the sail training website. For further information, please refer to the club website or contact Georgie Child and Rob Honan at bsscsailtraining@yahoo.co.uk.
Powerboat Courses
Powerboat courses including RYA Level 1, 2 and Safety Boat are available to book through the members hub. Information is available on the club website and additional questions can be answered by Nick Williams at bssccourses@gmail.com. Private tuition for two or four hours in members' own boats can also be arranged.
Upon successful completion of the RYA Powerboat Level 2 Course, candidates may then apply for a RYA International Certificate of Competence (ICC) for powerboats up to 10m.
Radio Training
All regular radio users should complete a proper training course and obtain a licence.
Typhoon Series
The Typhoon Trophy is awarded to the helm and boat (no change of boat allowed) with the best five results out of twelve designated races. Any starter in any designated race will be deemed to have entered the series for the purposes of the scoring system. This results in an entry list of around fifty boats, causing a heavy penalty for a "Did Not Start".
Class Designated Weekends
Some weekends have been identified in the programme as ones which the prominent classes in the Club have adopted. This is intended to influence sailors in these classes to make a special effort to sail on these weekends, thereby creating the largest possible fleet gatherings. However, racing will also be provided for allcomers on these dates, and no member should feel that they are being discouraged from sailing at any time. Class designated weekends are usually well supported, and those who wish to meet others of their kind, or who may wish to try crewing should really try to attend on these occasions.
Portsmouth Yardstick Handicap System
The Portsmouth Yardstick (PY) is the method used in club racing to correct times in handicap races. A boat's elapsed time for a race, which is measured to the nearest second, is corrected using the following formula:
| Corrected Time = | Elapsed Time x 1000 |
| PY Number |
The corrected times for each boat can then be directly compared.
Portsmouth Yardstick values for the year only become available in March. Class PYs will be posted on the Clubhouse noticeboard and Club website as soon as they are available. These will be the values used in the calculations for all handicap racing through the year.
Scoring System for Club Race Series
The scoring system used will be the Low Point System of the ISAF Racing Rules of Sailing, amended as follows:
| First Second Did Not Start (DNS) Retired (RTD) Disqualified (DSQ) | 1 point 2 points, etc Number of starters for the series plus 3 Number of finishers for the race plus 3 Numbers of the finishers for the race plus 5 |
Number of Races to Count for Club Points Series
| 7 or 8 races sailed in a series 4, 5 or 6 races sailed in a series 3 or fewer races sailed in a series Typhoon Series | 2 discards allowed 1 discard allowed All results to count 5 results to count |
Last updated 17:51 on 26 March 2025
