Fleet 413 2022-2023 Laser Frostbite Sailing Instructions
Dates: Sundays, Nov. 6, 2022, through April 23, 2023. There will be no sailing on December 25th, Jan 1, or Easter Sunday April 9, 2022 unless otherwise announced. Cancellations for weather will generally be made on site in the morning. If a call is made to cancel the day before, an e-mail will be sent out to the list.
Location: Boats launch from Sail Newport and sailing takes place in/around Newport Harbor
First Signal: 1 p.m.
Registration: Each sailor must register and complete a liability waiver. Failure to properly sign a waiver will nullify registration. Any competitor under 18 years of age must have a waiver signed by a parent/guardian.
Registration is available online at www.newportlaserfleet.org
Payment: Can be done online with credit card via Paypal when you register atwww.newportlaserfleet.org or by a check, made out to Laser Fleet 413. Cash is accepted onsite only by a Fleet 413 fleet captain (Christine Shope or Scott Pakenham)
The 2022-2023 Fleet 413 fee structure is as follows:
- Adult, Racing & Storage $200
- Adult, Racing Only (no storage) $125
- College, Racing & Storage $160
- College, Racing Only (no storage) $75
- Junior, Storage (racing is free) $100
- Junior (no overnight storage) $0
Storage: All Fleet 413 boats shall be stored in the space northeast of the old fenced-in area and east of the sail storage shed. If you have any questions, please ask a veteran member of the fleet or a Sail Newport representative. Storage starts on Nov. 6, 2022, and ends on April 30, 2023. ALL BOATS AND EQUIPMENT MUST BE REMOVED ON April 27, 2023. Any boats stored on the property before Nov. 6, 2022, or after April 30, 2023, are subject to Sail Newport transient storage fees.
Eligibility: Open to registered sailors in Laser and Laser Radial rigs. Competitors are welcome to switch between Full and Radial rigs as conditions dictate.
Safety & Responsibility: Frostbiting can be hazardous. Competitors choose to sail in this series entirely at their own risk. Life jackets are to be worn by each competitor the entire time they are on the water. This includes sailing to the racing area and practicing, as well as racing. Sailors are required to wear adequate protective gear (e.g. wetsuits or drysuits, hats, neoprene gloves) to ensure their own safety and to gauge their own suitability to participate. Sailors agree to indemnify and hold harmless Sail Newport, Fleet 413 and any and all officers, employees and members of these organizations. The hazards of sailing are exaggerated when the water and air are cold. Help keep others safe by keeping yourself safe. Don’t go sailing on a day when you feel you are likely to be capsizing. Sail back to the beach if you are cold, tired, or having trouble getting around the course, and let the RC know you are getting off the water.
When the conditions warrant, the RC may implement the fleet “3 and done” rule. This generally means if you flip 3 times you’re done for the day. While this isn’t a hard and fast rule, the intent is that when a sailor is out of control, safety becomes a risk as it ties up the crash boats if assistance is needed and it delays racing which results in the entire fleet getting cold (particularly on the colder days). Keep in mind that the amount of energy expended righting the boat in extremely cold conditions (both water and air) drains strength exponentially and increases the likelihood of more swimming which isn’t good for anyone.
Race Committee Responsibility: Each competitor is asked to perform Race Committee duty once during the season. If you are not comfortable leading the RC, please indicate this when signing up and you will be paired with someone who is able to lead the RC. Sailors doing RC will be scored first for the day on the day they do RC.
Sail Newport Notice: Competitors are reminded to respect Sail Newport facilities and staff. We are dependent on this facility for the fleet’s continued success.
Sail Numbers: Scoring is recorded using the last 4 digits of each sail number. Please use a unique sail number.
Rigs: Sailors may switch between full and radial rigs as desired. Radials and full rigs will start and be scored as one fleet and rigs will be designated on the scores. Please inform the RC if you are sailing a Radial.
Protests: Any boat that thinks it has broken a rule in Part 2 of the Racing Rules of Sailing may make a 360-degree penalty turn (as opposed to the normal Two Turns Penalty described in Rule 44). In the spirit of Pete Milnes and Fleet 413 frostbiting, protests must be settled on the water. Should a protest not be resolved amicably on the water, a race committee official may be available for consultation after racing. If you foul and don’t do your penalty turns (or later withdraw) you have cheated everyone else and yourself. Remember, “If in winning the race you have lost the respect of your fellow competitors then you have not won at all.” – Paul Elvström
Unsportsmanlike Behavior: Will not be tolerated in Fleet 413. Foul language, intimidation, and/or a general lack of respect for fellow competitors may result in a suspension from Fleet 413 activities. Don’t be that guy (or girl)!
Racing: Usually there are 6 races sailed, sometimes 7. Races start as soon as possible after the last boat finishes, so don’t sail too far away.
The Start: The Start Line will be between an orange flag on the RC boat and a white class flag on the pin buoy to the left of the RC boat. The ‘I’ flag (around the ends) is in effect for all starts. In the event of a general recall, the next start the ‘Z’ flag (20% penalty) is also in effect with the ‘I’ flag. In the event of another general recall, the ensuing start will be under the Black Flag. These flags will not be flown but will be announced by the RC. Starts are audible 3 min dinghy starts with an Ollie box sounding the following horns:
5 short: get ready
3 long: 3 min
2 long: 2 min
1 long – 3 short: 1 min 30 sec
1 long: 1 min
3 short: 30 sec
2 short: 20 sec
1 short: 10 sec
1 short: 5 sec
1 short: 4 sec
1 short: 3 sec
1 short: 2 sec
1 short: 1 sec
1 long: Go
Courses: Courses will be designated by a course board on the committee boat. Courses generally include a start/finish line half-way between the windward and leeward marks with the start to the left of the RC, and the finish to the right. The start and finish lines are un-restricted when not starting or finishing. See course diagrams at the bottom.
- W – Windward/Leeward: Windward (to port) – Leeward Gate – Finish
- T – Triangle: Windward (to port) – Reach Mark (to port) – Leeward mark (to port) – Finish
Note: If a leeward gate is still set, the leeward mark is the right-hand mark looking downwind.
- H – Harry Anderson: Windward (to port)– Reach Mark (to port) – RC Boat (to starboard) – Leeward Gate – Finish
- M – Modified W/L: Windward – Leeward – Finish Line (as a windward gate) – Leeward – Finish
The RC has discretion to combine courses (i.e. HW), make courses with multiple laps (i.e. W2), and finish races at any mark. For example, when the M is the second letter in a course designation it adds to the course the following: Finish Line (as a windward gate) – Leeward – Finish
In addition, the RC may announce course modifications or courses other than those outlined herein. The RC’s decision on courses is entirely at their discretion. The RC has the option of using gates for leeward marks and offsets at windward marks.
On a Southerly, it is typical for the RC to announce ‘Finish at the beach’ before the last race of the day and move the finish up to the beach for a long last windward leg.
Scoring: Each individual day will be scored using low point scoring with no throw out races. The season will be scored as a separate Fall and Spring Series (Fall 2022 and Spring 2023) as well as overall. Series scoring will be low point with one throw out day for each three days of sailing. For the series scoring, a DNC for any day will be equal to one more than the maximum number of boats that participated that day. Sailors doing RC are scored a 1 for the day (only one per year).
Festivities: Begin promptly at the IYAC on Thames Street immediately after sailing
Fleet Contacts: Contact your fleet captains Scott Pakenham and Christine Shope at laserfleet413@gmail.com
Course Diagrams:
