Know Your Rules

Andrew Alberti is a Member of the Club, a National Umpire and an International Judge. He is a member of both the Sail Canada Rules and Appeals Committee. The explanations given in the articles are his and not those of any committees he serves on.

The Racing Rules of Sailing are updated every four years. Articles are written based on the rules in effect at the time the articles were published and have not been updated to reflect the most recent rules. Articles starting in January 2021 were based on the Racing Rules of Sailing 2021-2024. Articles starting in January 2025 are based on the Racing Rules of Sailing 2025-2028.

May 13, 2025

Mark-Room – An Introduction to Rule 18

In this article and the next several I will talk about mark-room. Marks are often the most crowded part of the race course and they are where most of the trouble happens. Writing rules for this is complicated, since there are so many different ways that boats can interact. The “When Boats Meet” section (Part 2) of the Racing Rules of Sailing is just over seven pages long. Two full pages are devoted to Mark-Room (Rule 18). Various attempts over the years, including past four years, have been made to simplify these rules, but they usually end up leaving loopholes that then have to be fixed. I have avoided articles on rule 18 for the past several years since I knew that a new version was coming out. Now it is time to tackle it.

April 14, 2025

The rules have changed – Rule 19 and some definitions

In the last article, I discussed the changes to rule 18, mark-room. This time, I am going to discuss the change in the definition of mark-room, obstruction, continuing obstruction and a change in rule 19, obstructions.

March 10, 2025

The rules have changed – Rule 18 – Mark-room

In the last article, I discussed the changes to rules 17 and 20. This time, I am going to discuss mark-room or rule 18. If you look at a marked-up version of the changes to Rule 18, it will appear that almost the entire rule has been rewritten. Most of the changes involve sequence, formatting and numbering.

February 26, 2025

The Rules Have Changed - Summary

I started this series of articles in January 1997 when the Yacht Racing Rules were completely rewritten to create the Racing Rules of Sailing. Every four years since then there has been a new edition, published the year after the Olympic Games. Every edition has some changes. Most of them have very little effect on how we sail. Usually, they close up some loopholes or attempt to make the rules easier to understand. The new edition has now been released and it takes effect January 1, 2025. The Sail Canada printed version should be available soon. The full new book can be found at https://d7qh6ksdplczd.cloudfront.net/sailing/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/12231159/2025-2028-RRS-with-Changes-and-Corrections-v-2.pdf Some regattas over the winter may elect to use the 2021-2024 rules so check the Notice of Race (always a good idea). I expect that any races at RCYC this year will use the new book.

February 09, 2025

The Rules Have Changed – Rule 17 and Rule 20

In the last article I discussed the changes to rule 14. This time I am going to discuss two changes. Rule 17 On the same tack, proper course and Rule 20 Room to tack at an obstruction. Rule 17 is the rule to discuss who has the right to luff. It says that if a leeward boat establishes an overlap from clear astern within two boat lengths of the windward boat, then the leeward boat cannot go above her proper course. There was an exception to this in the 2021-2024 rules which has disappeared.

January 06, 2025

The Rules Have Changed - Rule 14 Avoiding Contact

This is the first in a series of articles describing the changes in the rules for 2025. The new rules take effect on January 1^st. They can be found here.