39 boats so far

4 Acats
6 F18
3 F16
7 N20
3 TheMightyHobie18
3 H16
5 Isotope
4 18square
1 H20
1 570
1 Wave
1 H17

Mark, don't you have anything better to do than bash us for having a regatta and talking about how it might be run? Fact is, I don't care how this regatta is scored out. I'll try my best to win whatever class I'm in. And, something's working - there are 39 boats signed up for what is typically one of our smaller regattas. Please stop being such a pain and put your energy into building/fixing your own area.

I couldn't decide on this event whether to take my boat off the beach or not. Seeing the registrations go up I really thought about it, but rain on Monday so I left it on the beach. After checking weather and wind forecast today I'm glad I did.

Gonna be sailing in N Myrtle if anyone is down that way.

Thanks Mike

THe wind forecast wasn't exactly enticing for Myrtle Beach - yet the rest of us from around the area came down to support a long standing renaissance of a regatta that we believed in.

Hrmph.

Hey Tad did you find a hotel?

No, I'm going to bring rum along to try and bribe my way into a RV or get one of my friends to bring a tent, or just sleep in my car.

With enough rum you probably won't care when you end up sleeping, I've heard pine straw is quite comfy

I know it and I do feel guilty.

I still don't have the main sail worked out and I know I would just get frustrated and angry at myself when my boat won't go.

And, being layed off every other week is eating up any disposable income I have, the beach is free except for gas.

I disagree. In an open invitational event such as this, there is no way the Organizing Authority can know ahead of time what boats will attend. The only reasonable course is to declare class break-out at the event. Furthermore, Race Committee is free under the rules to start multiple classes together. It wouldn't make sense to declare separate starts in the NOR.

Good Race Committees understand that their job is to serve the sailors. They are happy to provide separate or combined starts - whichever the competitors prefer. They do not dictate the racing format ex cathedra. That said, it is our responsibility as racers to tell RC our preferences. That's really why I wanted to have this discussion - so we could form our opinions in advance and be ready with them upon arrival.

When I am PRO for an event, I usually seek our "fleet captains" and ask them what their class members would like. RC wants input, and sailors want to be heard. I suggest each design decide amongst themselves what they would like, and send a representative to tell Race Committee on their behalf - preferably well before the competitors' meeting. Good, open communication can only improve the event.

Regards,
Eric

Eric
the NOR is pretty clear.

2 boats of a class make a fleet per the NOR.



Sounds like they will also create a large portsmouth race as well as a one design race.

The only question is the fleet splits.

So, the keel boat races that I attend solve this by deciding on Friday if the OD fleet has enough boats... If not, they kill it off and add the boats to the handicap class and then make their handicap splits and publish it for the participants.



Not true! they have 40 boats pre registered already.
In this example, You have 8 one design classes with 2 or more boats.



In a perfect world... perhaps... but at the Wine and Roses PRO found out... the agreement reached at the skippers meeting by speaking with a few people was not understood or accepted by all of the sailors.

I suspect the PRO knows how many starts he can manage and will just decide with out the big conference call.

The important issue to get clear is that the sailors expect to race all spin boats around the course or just their one design class. This was the fundamental problem at Wine and Roses. (The infamous... get out of here... I am not racing you problem)



Absolutely... but the other half is to tell the competitors with sufficient time so that they can choose.

I could argue about what the NOR says in terms of class breakout, but I'm not going to.


As of two days before the event. If you asked the OA how many boats of each design they would have the day before they published the NOR, there's no way they could have guessed.


Which is a problem I'm trying to avoid by polling the sailors ahead of time.


I suspect that the PRO knows she can run a better event with competitor input, than by acting in a vacuum.


I believe the NOR makes it clear that Catfest will be scored (and awards given) in multiple ways.


Choose what?

But, none of that is really germaine. I asked the other people going to Catfest what is their starting preference. Would you prefer a separate start, or a combined start? My intent was to get a discussion going before the competitors' meeting, so that we could give the OA/PRO advance input and hopefully get a better regatta.

Mark, I don't see your name in the preregistration list. Are you attending? If so, what kind of boat will you sail and what is your start preference? Would you be willing to canvas your class and relay their desires to the OA/PRO at registration so as to have an event that is better than "Whine and Roses" was?

You can complain about how RC did something that the sailors didn't like - or you can help RC run things better. I'm opting for the latter.

Mark,
Aren't you racing on Triple Threat this weekend? If your not going to Catfest,mind your own bizness.Leave em' alone.I know your still sour from the Spring Fever a bazillion years ago, but geeeez ,let it go. Bonehead! See ya this weekend.

Eric, you're wrestling with a pig.

Tad, I just figured out that I can't make it but I can send a tent up via David Strickland if you need it. But you puke in it and it's yours rumboy.

Of COurse if that were true you'd already own my RV

:guilty:

Thanks for the offer Chris - but I think I'm covered now

Trey needs crew. AlanO'saurus is sick and wont be able to make it.

Trey should sail with Jen.

Thats what I said.

Let's see if their relationship can stand up to that. But I know Jen has had to put up with a lot from you.

Trey I can give you some tips if you're interested.