Starboard gybe versus port gype at leeward gate mark to starboard

[Terry Connell]

Why does a Port gybe boat have inside rights over a starboard gybe boat when the port gybe boat must gybe on to starboard tack for the next mark?

 

Edited April 17 by Terry Connell

[John Ball]

HI Terry,

The answer is in the preamble to Part 2 of the RRS, which says that certain rules place a limitation or obligation on a ROW boat.

SECTION A
RIGHT OF WAY
A boat has right of way over another boat when the other boat is
required to keep clear of her. However, some rules in Sections B, C
and D limit the actions of a right-of-way boat.

The ROW rules are in Section A, but the rules in sections B, C and D may limit the actions of a ROW boat. Mark Room is in Section C.

So while the stbd gybe boat has ROW over Port, under R 10, if Post has gained mark room under R 18.2(b) then STBD has to give room for port to sail to and around the mark, including room to gybe.

There are a couple of additional factors to consider.

As this is a gate mark, R18.4 does not apply.

If this were a beat to windward, then R18 is turned off for boats on opposite tacks. But as this is a run, R 18 applies and places the restriction on the ROW boat.

John

 

Edited April 17 by John Ball
added comments

[John949]

If you are asking why this rule exists:  The purpose of Rule 18 is to promote the orderly rounding of marks and giving port gybe boats mark room is considered to be the best way to achieve this.  Imagine two boats overlapped on port gybe heading for a mark to be left to port.  The inner boat has mark room and continues to sail towards the mark.  if the outer boat now sails further away from the mark then gybes early and heads to the mark on starboard, if the starboard gybe boat has ROW, then where is the port tack boat supposed to go?

I seem to remember that years ago starboard did have ROW but it was changed to avoid situations like this and because of the difficulty in deciding which gybe the other boat is on - don't forget that the gybe is decided by where the wind is coming from not which side the boom is on.  I remember a few cases of people running by the lee on port whilst yelling starboard.

[John Ball]

8 hours ago, John949 said:

I seem to remember that years ago starboard did have ROW but it was changed to avoid situations like this and because of the difficulty in deciding which gybe the other boat is on - don't forget that the gybe is decided by where the wind is coming from not which side the boom is on.  I remember a few cases of people running by the lee on port whilst yelling starboard.

Almost - but not quite correct. Here is the definition and note than when sailing directly downwind or by the lee, the leeward side is where the boom is.

John

Leeward and Windward A boat’s leeward side is the side that is or, when she
is head to wind, was away from the wind. However, when sailing by the lee or
directly downwind, her leeward side is the side on which her mainsail lies. The
other side is her windward side.
 

[John949]

I'm sure a read a definition that said port & starboard were defined by the wind direction alone, but I can't remember where now.  The one you quote is from the RRS so that's the one we have to use.  I don't actually like it because it can encourage deliberately running by the lee, which can be dangerous in some types of boats.