Question
Blue on port tack and Yellow on starboard tack are approaching the windward mark on a collision course. The umpires agree that Yellow sails beyond the point where her proper course would be to tack to round the mark. Blue tacks to starboard and keeps clear of Yellow. There is a Y-flag at position 4.
What should the call be?
Answer
Penalize Yellow.
When Yellow first enters the zone overlapped inside Blue, she is entitled to mark-room under rule
18.2(a)(1). However, as an inside overlapped right-of-way boat, Yellow breaks rule
18.3(b) by sailing farther from the mark than needed to sail her proper course before she tacks, and in doing so she affects Blue’s course. Display the yellow flag.
A boat is in a “controlling position” when she is ahead and able to manoeuver towards the next mark without impediment, or she is in a position to be able to impede, affect or change the actions of the other boat without breaking a rule. Because Yellow could not force Blue to tack without breaking rule
18.3(b), she was not in a “controlling position” in this situation. By breaking rule
18.3(b) and forcing Blue to tack Yellow gained a controlling position.
If, after displaying the yellow flag for her breach of rule
18.3(b), the umpires were satisfied that Yellow has broken rule
18.3(b) deliberately or has gained an advantage by breaking the rule after allowing for a penalty, they would give Yellow a second penalty under rule
C8.3. See also MR CALL
M2.
If the umpires were not satisfied that either of these conditions existed, the umpires would give Yellow a red-flag penalty under rule
C6.5(b).
Published: 10 May 2018