Miami Skud meeting

[Jackie]

Hi everyone

I made some notes at the Skud meeting in Miami which I promised to pass on.

The gist of the discussion was we all want to race on a level playing field and no one wants to get tangled up in protests at the Paralympic Games so we should all ensure that our boats & equipment are class legal and compliant at all times.

There was a measurer at Miami OCR who (and this is hearsay, don't quote me) said that half of the crew seats were illegal, most of them because of the 10cm rule, which was brought in by IFDS at Halifax and relates to crew restraints or seatbelts which should not allow the crew to move more than 10cm forward of the seat's backrest. It is recommended that teams make themselves a 10cm block or other device so that this can be measured easily and non-intrusively.

It was also noted that crew seatbelts should be attached to the back of the seat and the seatbelt secure the hips within the seat, not just legs.

If saddle seats are used then it was suggested that the Hansa supplied seat be a model, in the interests of equalization. However ITA noted supply issues with this.

Another issue was spinnaker poles not retracting fully. 

Here is the rule on the bowsprit

6. USE

   1. (1)  The bowsprit shall be capable of retracting to an extension of no more than 100mm beyond the bow when on a windward leg of the course.

   2. (2)  The bowsprit shall be extended only when setting, flying or lowering the gennaker.

   3. (3)  Bowsprit extensions or ‘sheet-keepers’ may be fitted but shall be of a flexible material and extend no more that 150mm from the outboard end of the bowsprit. 

so your pole must be set up to retract to max 25cm including 'sheet-keeper' at all times in order for your boat to be legal.

Compasses: the rule is 

2. Electronic compasses with functions beyond heading and timing are prohibited 

There was a lot of discussion about the helm seat too - the argument being that helms who are able to hike their bodies or use their arms to hold themselves to windward have an advantage. The suggested answer to this was for helms to wear a chest strap (even if they don't need one) to prevent them hiking out of their seats.

I am not sure how many of the sailors actively use this forum so would be grateful if Tim as class chair could make sure this discussion is passed on widely within the class.

Thanks

See you on the water

Jackie