Model sailing rules of the road.

*Port and Starboard, the easiest way to remember which is which, is to always say it in that order. Port... then starboard. Imagine you are in a boat facing forward, then say it to yourself a million times like some kind of mantra, port....starboard....port...starboard.

What tack you are on depends on what side of the boat the wind is blowing against, if the wind is blowing against the port side, you are on a port tack, if the wind is on the starboard side, you are on a starboard tack.

Windward is towards the wind, leeward is away from the wind. Wind blowing right in your face? You are facing windward. Wind on the back of your head? You are facing leeward.

Common sense should prevail from the start, boats should avoid each other in the first place, each should alter their cource enough to let the other pass by long before right of way rules come into play.

The second rule is when two boats are on the same tack, the leeward boat (the one further downwind) has the right of way.

The third rule is the "starboard tack rule" when two boats are sailing on different tacks with the same point of sail, the one on a starboard tack has the right of way.
The port tack boat must yield.

Our line control method is unique among the other types of model sailing.
So there are some special points to consider.
In the first place the closest person to your boat in the water should be you. Swimmers and everybody else in the water have the right of way, its up to you to get out of theirs.
You can usually reel in your model just about as fast as a swimmer or someone wading through shallows. But sometimes you can be taken by surprise. Line control has the advantage over radio control here, because you have brakes! Not only that, you have a reverse, just wind the boat in.

A fast retrieval method is to wade towards the boat as you are winding it in. If its too deep to do this, wade backwards as you wind in, then wade forward again as you keep winding, then back, get the idea?
In a real pinch, you can forget the winder altogether and haul your model in hand over hand and deal with the tangles later.
Finding a good location to sail in the first place makes it all worthwhile. I often sail in a shoal area where, when the tide is right, I have an area four or more square kilometres practically all to myself. (The beach in White Rock, B.C.)

When two or more are sailing in the same location, its to no ones interest to get your lines tangled, so don't sail over someone else's line. Each sailor should lift there line to allow the other to pass regardless of who has the right of way. This situation should be avoided in the first place, but sometimes can't be helped when there is a limited sailing area.

For more about sailing your model, see "safety, and line techniques".

Racing rules (easy)

If you are looking for the Racing Rules of Sailing:(RRS) Formerly the International Yacht Racing Rules (IYRR), the officially recognized rules for racing sailing vessels. These are approved and published by the International Sailing Federation (ISAF). find it at www.sailing.org you can download a version in pdf format, an excellent cure for insomnia.

That is not what this part of the page is about...generally, racing rules are the basic navigation rules with additional rules put in place to keep them from being abused.

Line control methods do not lend itself well to large groops sailing all at once, mostly because of limited areas where groups can wade in. There are shoal areas out there large enough, but its not that common. Small groups can face off ( 3 or 4 at a time) and elimination process can done that way.

Sailboat racing usually is restricted to class rules, where everyone is piloting the same type of sailboat and all rigged the same. (referred to as, "one design"). It makes it fair for everyone, and it is the skill of the sailor that wins the day.

Our models are easy to fit into this type of race, for example, all the sails can be cut from the same pattern, the rudders can be cut all the same size, the same type of fishing line can be used etc.

As this is a creative hobby, consider a more (open class) of race. After all, you not only sail your model, you have designed it as well. Compared to "class rules" not only your model sailing skill, but your design skill can be put to the test. A MkI should go up against another MkI, however, I have made some pretty fast MkI's and some not so fast MkII's

A race course should be set to take advantage of the particular waters that are being used. If there is not much more than a strip of beach that can be waded through, a simple straight run can be used. A MARK is a target, an object that is sailed to, and then sailed around before heading off to the next mark, or finish line.

Beginning with a starting signal (someone yell GO!) The models can be held in place or right out of the water all together before the signal is given (something that can't be done with other boats, so there is no chance of a false start.) In any serious race there will be a judge who will keep an eye on things and have a final say, should any disputes arise.

A few tips for line sailing races....
-Avoid sailing over others control line, lift your line to allow someone to pass under when requested and ask the other to lift theirs when needed.
-At no point should another persons boat or control line be touched.
-In general, boats should not come within a yard (1m) of each other, this eliminates a lot of the confusion of racing rules altogether! This gives adequate space to avoid collisions and crossing lines.
-At no point during a race should you be positioned in front of the model, you should stay behind at all times, these ain't pull toys!
-A capsized boat is still in the race, time will be lost setting it back upright! It's a good idea to keep the control line lengths short, especially when rounding marks.
-You can stop to adjust your sails and board at any time, but that does not stop the race, time lost making adjustments should be worth it. You should also re-start from a dead stop.

Down and dirty! The natural flow of wind is disturbed when it hits a sail, this is called the "wind shadow". The area of disturbed air can be five times the size of the object causing the disturbance. A persons wind shadow, even when waist deep in water, can disturb wind quite a distance.

So, how about racing where there are no wading areas? This can be done in many ways, and right off of a dock or from the shoreline, provided the wind direction is suitable.
- Each contestant uses the same length of line. The models are set to sail at the same time and the one that runs out of line first wins.
- A time limit run using a stopwatch, say, 2 minutes, then use a fixed measurement like a yardstick,to measure the distance travelled. (Not as difficult as it sounds, but it takes two, one to measure and one to reel in line.)

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