At a regatta, the boats needed about 30 minutes sailing back to the harbor after racing. The protest time limit was 45 minutes after the last boat crossed the finishing line.

Question

Is it fair to the sailors with such short protest time limit?

Answer

The distance from the racing area is one of the factors that the race committee has to consider when deciding the protest time limit to be stated in the sailing instructions. Unavoidably, some boats will have more time than others, however, this cannot be considered as unfair and the protest committee has the obligation to extend the protest time limit for a particular boat if there is a good reason to do so. (See rule 61.3).