Note: These guidelines are for recording results and scoring races for Division 12 points standings. These guidelines do not restrict you in any way from ordinaling and awarding any way you want at your regatta. These guidelines will establish a consistent method for creating documents and generating scores for division championship points for our racing classes.
If you have never done scoring for the Hobie Points Regatta series, don't question these guidelines, follow them without fail! It is for your own good!
1. Preparing for your regatta:
In Division 12, we do not use the NAHCA order of finish form. We use
our own form. It has a place to put the times of the open class boats.
We also use a "judges form" for each race. The judge's form helps the tabulator
make adjustments to the scoring program while doing data entry.
2. Making copies of the forms for your regatta - make the following:
Div 12 score sheets - 30 copies - each race uses 3, 1st place judge,
2nd place judge and the timekeeper's copy. Div 12 judge's sheet - 10 copies
- each race uses 1 for the race officer.
Div 12 event sign-up sheet - make 100 copies (or enough to more than cover your expected turn out. You must edit these to reflect your event costs, dinner charge and raffle ticket $. NAHCA - registration slips - will be provided by the division commodore.
3. Beach registration
The Div 12 sign-up form, should be filled out by both the skipper and
crew. We would like to capture e-mail addresses and demographic information
about people racing in Division 12. The standard "Hobie registration slip"
must be filled out for "legal reasons". At the close of registration, print
out a master registration list for the race committee to refer to. Give
it to the race officer. Use only the following designations for racing
classes: H-16A, H16-B, H16-C, H-17, H-18, H-20, H-21, N.A.6.0, and OPEN.*
(And A-CLASS if applicable.)
5. Getting things started out on the water
There will be 2 forms you will use on the Water. The Division 12 "Order
Of Finish form" and the Division 12 "Judge's form". The Chief Race Officer
uses the judge's form to monitor and document key aspects of the race.
Later, the tabulator uses the judge’s form to adjust the computer finish
data entry for disqualifications and other problems. The place judges and
timekeeper use the order of finish forms to list finishers and their times.
6. Duties of the chief race officer - judging races!
The Race Officer should monitor the starts and the races for problem
protests and penalties. If a boat commits an infraction, the "judge’s form"
provides a mechanism to connect the penalty or problem to the data entry
phase of the scoring process. NAHCA does not have a form like the DIV12
judge's form. The judge’s form is used by the tabulator to adjust score
sheets for problems, penalties and protests. The race officer should keep
track of the races using the judge’s form. Make sure that each fleet sails
the correct course. Keep an eye out for the penalties indicated on the
judge’s form. DSQ boats that break the rules listed. Document any errors
or discrepancies on the judge’s form. The Race Officer must fill out a
judge’s form for each race.
Note: per the "course tracking section" of the judge’s form. Never let H-16C race alone. Always combine them with H-16B. The B fleet will lead them around the course quicker. If B-fleet complains, tell them to race hard and qualify for A-fleet next time. (You can create serious delays by letting H-16C race alone.)
7. Recording race placements and times on the water -
For redundancy, have 2 place judges and one timekeeper during the finishing
sequence. The race officer sights the line and calls the sail numbers.
Place judge #1, also sights the line as a back-up to the race officer during
close finishes. Place judge #2 and the time keeper focus on writing correctly
and neatly. When a timed boat crosses the line the race officer shouts
"time!" Then the sail #. This is the time keepers cue to write a time,
then the sail number. The timekeeper should also write every sail number
called - but focus mainly on times. Place judge #2 should have the master
list and help find and fill in any "partial" sail numbers that were recorded.
Place judge #1 is the custodian of the tape recorder and should start the
tape when mass finish is pending. As soon as possible after each race,
all three order of finish forms should be "reconciled" by the team. Refer
to the audiotape if needed. Staple the judge's form and the 3 finish sheets
from each race together into a packet for the tabulator. Make sure all
information is correct and all proper info is filled in.
8. Entering order of finish data into the scoring program
The race officer and the race committee team should take a moment to
review the data from each race and insure that all information is accurate
and complete. Verify there are no order of finish discrepancies on the
three order-of-finish forms. Make sure that any penalties or disqualifications
are noted on the judge’s sheets. Tell the tabulator verbally to take note
of anything that will require an adjustment to the results being computed.
If there are protests which must be settled, hold off turning over the
protested race's paperwork to the tabulator.
To enter order of finish data into the scoring program, the tabulator will use the completed document sets from each race. The tabulator must pay careful attention to the notes on each race's judge's sheet so as not to improperly enter sail numbers of boats which have been, DNS’d, DNF'd, DSQ'd or DSQ-C'd.
Note: what you don't want to have happen is, to have a penalized boat awarded a non-penalized finish placement in a race they should receive a penalty.
9. How to handle ordinals and scoring for the "open" class.
Running and scoring the "open class" event at points regatta has a
unique set of challenges. This is one of the areas where many errors creep
into the process. Putting one-design boats in open class causes may scoring
nightmares! It is ok to ordinal and award any way you want to, but do not
do anything which would adversely affect division 12 point series scoring!
If you have an "open class" event, open class events will be scored separately
on the Portsmouth scoring program by the open class captain. Your job is
to record their order of finish, their finish times, and the estimated
wind speed during the race. Be well aware that your registration team has
to properly identify "open" boats during the registration period. They
must make sure all open boats fly a "blue streamer" from the batten closest
to their sail numbers. This allows your race committee to identify and
accurately record start and finish times for these boats.
10. Putting "one-design" boats into the open class.
You may have a very small number of one of the hobie "one-design classes"
show up at your regatta. You may need to put these boats into the open
class event so they can race and have a start. You may elect to award these
boats an open class trophy for their performance when racing against the
open fleet. But when you compile the regatta results at the end of the
day, you must also score these boats separately as you normally would for
their one design event.
Note: if you do put Hobie one-design boats into the open class, be sure to provide the skipper with a blue streamer to tie on the batten closest to his sail number. The blue streamer tells your place judges and timekeeper to get a finish time for the one design boat which is racing as a "false-open class" boat.
11. Why scoring Hobie boats vs. Open class boats correctly is important.
We are still a "Hobie racing organization". If there are 2 of the same
Hobies in an event they can get point value toward their season points
score. Using the open class as a dumping ground when a Hobie class turns
up in small numbers does injustice to their season point standings. It
may also sleight the "true" open class racers. It is ok to do this for
the sake of fun racing competition, but we still need to maintain the integrity
of both the open class event and the one design points series. Always remember
"open class" is an event taken very seriously by it's core members. If
you combine some Hobie one-design classes in your open fleet for purposes
of convenience, you must also score (on paper only) their one design results
as well. There is still point value for these individuals in the scoring
system. Having results from one-design boats mixed into the open class
results makes scoring the open event difficult. (You don't have to award
the one-design boats separately.)
12. How the scoring program can compensate for "false-open" boats.
To do this with the scoring program, enter the boat in both the one
design fleet and the open fleet. First enter the boat in it's proper class
in the usual manner. When you enter the boat the second time in the open
fleet put an "x" after the sail number. The "x" will identify when a one-design
boat is racing as a "false-open class" boat. Time the finish as you would
for "normal" open boats. Your completed score sheets should show the both
the open class placement and the one-design placement of "Hobie boats racing
in open class" never create a class (from out of the open class) that does
not exist in the scoring system. For example at Winnepesaukee they scored
separately a "nacra 5.8 class" one-year. Without the order of finish form
and finish times to go back to there was no way to score these properly.
This may have skewed the results of the 5.8 boats for the point series.
It is ok to ordinal and award "special classes" but do not score them differently!
13. Awarding trophies for all Hobie classes.
It is my personal feeling that any Hobie points regatta chairman has
a responsibility to be prepared to give trophies to each of our one design
fleets and the open fleet. If one H-21, H-16, H-18 etc... Shows up, there
should be a 1st place trophy for that boat. They could have raced against
the open class boats all weekend and that is well and good. We are still
a Hobie racing organization we have an obligation to award all the Hobie
classes. This is my opinion; do with it what you will.
14. After the awards ceremony.
As a regatta chairman, you still have some work to do. Before people
leave, locate any division officers present. Give to the division officers
the following:
1. The results sheet from which you awarded the
events at the awards ceremony.
2. The collected order of finish forms and attached
judges sheets for each race.
3. Copies of the open class score sheets for each
race, #1-3 go to the commodore.
4. The filled out registration forms, go to the
membership secretary.
5. The division 12 boat fee monies - $2.00 per each
boat, go to the treasurer.
15. After the regatta -
We would like to improve the visibility and public image of our sport.
To that end, write an interesting and informative article about your regatta.
In the body of the article, list the number of and types of boats, describe
the sailing conditions, give some highlights of the competition, list the
trophy placements for each class, thank the various volunteers, the host
city etc...
Invite everyone back the next year. E-mail and distribute your article to the Div12 webpage editor, the NAHCA news editor, the editor of Sailing World, Catsailor Magazine, Multi-Hulls World, internet news groups, your local newspaper etc...
Division 12's perpetual championship trophies.
Remember that our perpetual trophies are meant to be won by members
in good standing of division 12 fleets who also hold NAHCA membership cards.
You can let people know they should pay up their dues to be eligible for
division 12 points awards. This is an added incentive to get sailors to
join and support division 12 fleets and NAHCA. Service on a race committee
or at a training seminar also awards points. Be sure to document who volunteers.
A true champion does more than win events on the water, they help their
peers and our sport grow and improve.
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Written by: j. Scot Mackeil - Division 12 Commodore 4/30/1999