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. 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. See also Case
135.
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.
USA 1996/73 and 2007/98