THE NOTICE OF RACE

Revised for the RRS 2009-2012

The Notice of Race (NOR) is generally the first contact between the event and the competitor.  It has quite often been described as a contract between the regattas’ organizing authority (OA) and the competitor.  This document should provide sufficient information to allow the competitors to decide if they want to participate in the event and what conditions will apply.  The U. S. Sailing Race Management Handbook recommends that for a major regatta the NOR should be published six months in advance of the event and for smaller events, three months in advance.  It definitely should be published two months before the event even for a small regatta.  RRS rule 25 now requires that the NOR shall be made available to each boat before a race begins.

The definition of “rules” in the Racing Rules of Sailing (RRS) includes the Notice of Race as a rule.  This means that now the Protest Committee/Jury must enforce the NOR and that boats may be protested or redress given for violations of the NOR.  Unlike previous editions RRS rule 89.2(a) now allows the NOR to be changed provided “adequate notice” is given.  “Adequate notice” is not a defined term, but in my opinion a month would be a minimum time period.  At the event if there is a conflict between the NOR and the Sailing Instructions (SIs) rule 63.7 allows the protest committee to apply the rule that it believes will provide the fairest results.   Extreme care should always be exercised in preparing the NOR.

Rule 89.2(a) of the RRS states in part that “The Organizing authority shall publish a Notice of Race that conforms to Rule J1.”  The writer of the NOR should review and be familiar with Appendix J1.1, J1.2 and Appendix K “Notice of Race Guide”.  This is an instructional guide that can be edited to fit your event.  In addition the writer should be familiar with the applicable class rules.  The use of a previous NOR’s should be limited to use as a reminder to check for special circumstances involved with the regatta.  Pulling a copy of a past NOR and then just changing the dates is NOT the way to prepare the NOR.  Prior to publication a draft copy should be given to the Event Chairperson, the Principle Race Officer, and the Chief Judge for their review and comments.  These review comments should be resolved and incorporated in the NOR as required prior to publication.

Appendix J1, Rule J1.1 contains the following five items that shall be included in the NOR. (Remember that when the word “shall” is used in the RRS it means mandatory.)

(1) The title, place and dates of the race and name of the Organizing Authority.

(2) That the race will be governed by the rules as defined in the RRS.

(3) A list of any other documents that will govern the event to the extent that they apply.

(4) The classes to race and any handicapping and rating system to be used in scoring, conditions of entry and any restrictions on entries. This may include age (i.e. youth or masters), sex (i.e. women), qualifying events, limit to number of entries accepted, etc.

(5) The times of registration and warning signals for the practice race or first race, and succeeding races if known.

Rule J1.2 lists an additional 14 items that shall be included when it would help a competitor decide to attend the regatta.  These include:  advertising, competitor classification, advance registration procedures, an entry form, measurement procedures, when and where the Sailing Instructions will be available, changes to RRS and,  types of courses to be sailed and the racing area, Part 2 penalty other than the two-turns penalty, denial of appeal, scoring system including number of races scheduled, minimum number of races required to constitute the regatta, and a statement concerning excluding any scores, and prizes to be awarded.

Although not referenced in the RRS, but a very important item that must be included is the entry fee.   This should also indicate what is included in the fee. (i.e. lunches, social events, T-shirts, etc.)  There should also be a comment concerning a $5.00 discount for U. S. Sailing members and any other special discounts the OA. might want to offer.

Some organizing authorities also include in the NOR as part of the schedule the social events of the regatta.  This certainly may be helpful to the sailor in making a decision to attend.  It may be a good idea to list such shore events under a separate item in the NOR titled “Events Ashore” in order to keep the actual items on racing uncluttered.  If housing will be provided, details of how to obtain it should be included.

Generally the last item on the NOR is an indication of the Point of Contact.  This may be the Event Chairperson or someone on an office staff who is knowledgeable about the event and can answer questions.  In addition to the name, the address, email address, phone number, and possible fax number should be shown.

The Notice of Race should be tailored to fit the event it is for.  It should be carefully prepared and reviewed by people who are familiar with the event and the rules.  As we will see in the next article the NOR and the Sailing Instructions must work together.