Each week this season, we will offer a “quiz” question regarding the Racing Rules of Sailing. Read the scenario below, formulate your answer, then move your mouse over the box to reveal the correct answer.
Need further explanation?
something we can discuss on the porch on Sunday.
This Week's Question
Red and Green are sailing upwind. Red starts to bear off to go behind Green. Green also bears off. Red then heads up, and Green also heads up. There was no contact.
Which boat should promptly take a penalty?
Answer
Green broke Rule 16.1, Changing Course, which states, in part, that when a port-tack boat is keeping clear by passing astern of a starboard-tack boat, the starboard-tack boat shall not change course if as a result the port-tack boat would immediately need to change course to continue keeping clear. At position 3, Green changed course, forcing Red to immediately change course to keep clear. Note that at position 2, even though Green changed course, no foul occurred, since Red did not immediately need to change course in response.
This quiz was borrowed from the Inland Lake Yachting Association‘s #FairSailing initiative
Learn more at sailzing.com