A GREAT REGATTA

 

ORGANIZATION COUNTS

 

You of course want your regatta to be a great success.   To do so, according to Phil Richmond of Annapolis, it must have: 

                                         1. Perspective (A reason for doing it plus its own personality)

                                         2. Personnel

                                         3. Planning

The Race Management web pages will help you focus on how to achieve a successful regatta.  This article is on the Organizing Authority, its duties and responsibilities.  Other articles to follow will center on the Notice of Race, Sailing Instructions, Registration, Scoring, Logistics, and Safety. Also to be considered are items that fall under budget considerations such as food, hospitality, trophies, t-shirts, etc.

 

The Organizing Authority as stated in the Racing Rules of Sailing 88.1 shall be one of the following:

                   1.  The International Sailing Federation (ISAF)

2.       A member national authority (US SAILING)

3.       A club or organization affiliated with US SAILING

4.       A class association either with approval of US SAILING or in conjunction with an affiliated club.

5.       An unaffiliated club in conjunction with an affiliated club.

This article will assume the Organizing Authority will be number three.  (A club or local sailing organization.)  The emphasis will be on a clubÕs weekend regatta.  Obviously a Wednesday night club race will not be this involved, but a SAYRA or National Championship would be more complex.

 

The following are responsibilities of the Organizing Authority.   Your club may not follow the order given here, but these topics need to be considered early.

  1. Selecting the Date - If the date is not set by long-standing tradition, the following should be considered in setting the date: 

1.       Is there generally a favorable wind pattern at this time?  In coastal areas are the tides favorable?

                            2.  Are there conflicts with other scheduled club events?

3.  Are there conflicts with other regattas in the area or events drawing the  same sailors or race management people?

4.       Avoid conflicts with school events or local celebrations.

 

  1. Selecting the Regatta or Event Chair – This person will oversee all aspects of the regatta

from its early planning stages to the final clean up and storage of equipment.  He will work with the club to establish budget guidelines.  He should be someone who understands the needs of sailors, a good organizer that can delegate responsibilities, supervise people with respect, and follow budget restraints.  The Event Chair will need to be able to determine this structure and then appoint volunteers to chair the various committees and sub-committees.  He should then consult with these committee chairs to offer suggestions and to ensure they are fulfilling their duties.

 

  1. Determine the Type Regatta – If this has not been predetermined, then your club must decide whether to have a one-design class or classes, PHRF, or a combination of these.  The type of sailors coming (youth, masters, women, open) will impact on not only the racing, but on safety issues and shore events.

 

  1. Publishing the Notice of Race – Rule 88.2(a) of the Racing Rules of Sailing states that the

Organizing Authority should publish The Notice of Race.  Guidelines for this function will be given in another web page article.

 

  1. Appoint the Race Committee – Rule 88.2(b) also gives this function to the Organizing Authority. Most regattas will generally break the Race Committee into two major committees.  One is the On the Water committee comprised of all the activities related to being on the water and racing.  This Includes the Principle Race Officer and his staff of people on all support boats, scoring, equipment and Protest Committee.  This committee is also responsible for writing the Sailing Instructions, which will be covered in a later article.  The early selection of the PRO can be of great assistance in all aspects of a good regatta.  The other major committee is the Venue or Shore committee.  This group is responsible for registration, food, trophies, housing, launch and recovery, clean up, etc.  If the regatta is large, each of these may be a separate committee.

 

  1. Appoint a Protest Committee – Except for an International Jury, the term Protest Committee can refer to a group of sailors selected when the need for such a committee arises, or it can be a group of certified judges who have been selected prior to the event to handle any protests arising, confer with the PRO when asked, to offer advice on the Sailing Instructions, or judge Rule 42 on the water.  The Organizing Authority appoints this last group.

 

  1. Establish the Operating Budget – The Organizing Authority will work with the Event Chair to Determine what funds will be generated by the event through registration and sales of hospitality tickets and merchandise, and possibly sponsorships.  From this amount the OA can budget what may be spent to fund the event, and what amount the club can afford to underwrite if there is a shortfall in receipts.

 

These are a few of the components that lead to a successful regatta; where the sailors experience fair racing, good race management, and fun shore activities.  In other words the sailors had a good time.  This will lead them back to your regatta year after year.  Failure in any one of these areas could lead to fewer sailors in the future.