All races will be governed by The Racing Rules of Sailing, the prescriptions of the United States Sailing Association (except as any of these are altered by these sailing instructions) and by these sailing instructions. The racing program is designated Category C.

2. Entry.

Entry in the MSC J/24 Class is open to club J/24s only.  J/24s are assigned to "Racing Team Captains" who build their crews from other club members. 

Entry in the PHRF Classes is open to all boats in the harbor which have submitted a PHRF Entry Form.

3. Entry Fees.

For MSC J/24s, the entry fee is $250 per series for boats which race out of North Cove and $150 per series for boats which race out of other locations.  Entry fees are billed to the account of the Team Captain.

Because racing is  so popular among MSC members, Team Captains should build their crew from other members.  Occasional guests are allowed to race on the J/24s and there is a guest fee of $25 per person per day.  Guests may not steer the boat.

4. Notices to Competitors.

5. Changes in Sailing Instructions.

Any change in the sailing instructions will be posted before 5:00 PM on the day it will take effect, except that any change to the schedule of races will be posted at least one day before.  Changes to the Sailing Instructions after the start of the sailing season will be posted on Notice to Competitors page and will appear in these Sailing Instructions in this color type (purple).

6. Signals

Signals made ashore will be displayed from the floating clubhouse at North Cove.  Code Flag "AP" with 2 sound signals (one sound signal when lowered) means "The race is postponed, do not leave the harbor."  If the Race Committee flies Code Flag "AP," it will also attempt to announce this over VHF-CH 69. In the event of questionable weather which may postpone the start, the Race Committee will attempt to fly Code Flag "AP" around 6:10 p.m. so that yachts departing from other marinas will be able to receive notification by VHF.  The time of the warning signal will be posted before the lowering of "AP."

Code Flag "Y" flown from the committee boat before the warning signal means "150% genoas may not be used by the MSC J/24 Class".

Code Flag "Z" flown from the committee boat before the warning signal means "Spinnakers may not be used by the MSC J/24 Class."

7. Schedule of Races.

2008 Schedule

Tuesday Evenings
Spring Series: May 13, 20, 27, June 3, 10, 17 & 24
Summer Series: July 1, 8, 15, 22, 29, August 5, 12 (Short-Handed Championship on August 19)
Fall Series: August 26, September 2, 9, 16, 23, 30 & October 7

Wednesday Evenings
Spring Series: May 14, 21, 28, June 4, 11, 18 & 25
Summer Series: July 2, 9, 16, 23, 30, August 6, 13 (Ladies Championship on Monday August 18)
Fall Series: August 27, September 3, 10, 17, 24, October 1 & 8

8. Divisions.

On Tuesday, there will be 1 Division:
MSC J/24 Division

On Wednesday, there will be 2 Divisions:
1 - MSC J/24 Division
2 - PHRF Spinnaker & Non-Spinnaker

9. Racing Area.

The racing area will be in the lower Hudson River and Upper Bay of New York Harbor.

10. Courses.

The course shall be around government marks or inflatable buoys as detailed in the Course Sheet.  The identifying number of the course selected will be displayed from the race committee boat before or with the warning signal.   The Race Committee will also announce the course over VHF CH 69 immediately after the warning signal for the first class.

10a. Gate.

If the first leg of a race is to Mark Z and downwind, and the Race Committee deems it appropriate, a "Gate" may be used in place of the single Mark Z.  Mark Z is an orange inflatable cylindrical buoy 4 foot high.  If a gate is used, the southern mark of the gate will be a yellow inflatable cylindrical buoy 4 foot high.  The Race Committee will announce a "Gate" when announcing the course number.  When there is a gate, boats shall sail between the gate marks from the direction of the previous mark and round either gate mark.  A gate will only be used for the first rounding of Mark Z.  If yachts are required to round Mark Z more than once during a race and the gate is used, they shall disregard the yellow gate mark for the second and any subsequent roundings and instead just round Mark Z as normal.  The yellow gate mark may or may not be removed from the course after all yachts round it the first time.

11. The Start.

The starting line will be set in the general vicinity of the cove south of the Liberty State Park ferry Terminal and north of Ellis Island.  The starting line will be between an inflatable buoy dropped by the race committee and an orange flag on the Manhattan Sailing Club barge.  A boat shall start no later than five minutes after her starting signal.

On Tuesday, the order of starts will be:
Start 1 - MSC J/24 Class

On Wednesday, the order of starts will be:
Start 1 - MSC J/24 Class
Start 2 - PHRF Spinnaker & Non-Spinnaker Class

On Tuesday and Wednesday, the Warning Signal for the first class will be fired at 6:25 p.m. 

The Starting Sequence shall be as follows:

10 minutes before start - Warning Signal - Yellow flag - sound signal
6 minutes before start - Yellow flag lowered
5 minutes before start - Preparatory Signal - Blue flag - sound signal
1 minute before start - Blue flag lowered
Start - Red flag - sound signal

The second (PHRF) start on Wednesday will be 5 minutes after the first start.
1 minute before start, Red flag lowered
Start - Green flag - sound signal

13. The Finish.

14. Time Limit.

On weekday evenings races, the time limit shall be 30 minutes after sunset, as published in Eldridge.  Any yacht in a J/24 One-Design Division not finishing within 20 minutes of the first boat in their division will be scored as "Did Not Finish."  On weekend races, the time limit shall be 3 hours.  The Race Committee has the authority to cancel any race at any time when it believes the race will not be finished within the time limit.

15. Change of Course After the Start

Code Flag "S"  The Race Committee reserves the right to shorten the course at any mark and at any time. The Race Committee will signal with horns blasts and fly Code flag "S." The finish will be between the Committee boat and that mark of the course.

16. Retirement

A yacht that retires from a race is asked to notify the race committee before leaving the race area. 

17. Special Rules & Penalty System.

The following special rules and penalty system apply:

17.1 - 360 Degree Turn - A boat that may have broken a rule of Part 2 while racing may take a penalty at the time of her incident.  The penalty must be taken immediately and the infringing boats shall get clear of other boats and take the penalty without continuing to sail forward in the race.  If there was no contact, her penalty shall be one 360 degree turn instead of a 720 degree turn.

17.2 - No Touching Rule - If a MSC J/24 touches any other vessel or a government mark, the J/24 shall retire from the race and sail clear of other race boats immediately.  A touch is defined as any contact between boats, including rigs, sails, crew, etc.  Failure to retire immediately following a touch will result on the first occasion in suspension from the next week of racing and on the second occasion of suspension from the series. 

17.3 - Right of Way for Commercial Traffic - All commercial vessels shall have right of way over all racing sailboats. If a racing sailboat crosses the bow of a commercial vessel and that vessel alters course or speed as a result, the sailboat may be disqualified by the race committee.  If any sailboat decides to take the stern of a commercial vessel, all sailboats in the same location or subsequently arriving on the scene must also take the stern of the commercial vessel unless sufficient proof can be provided by a sailboat that taking the stern would have caused increased risk.  If a commercial vessel slows or comes to a stop when approaching sailboats, sailboats must still continue to take the stern so as to clear a path for the commercial vessel to move forward and clear.  The race committee may disqualify a yacht at its discretion without a hearing for any interference with commercial vessels.

17.4 - Dangerous Events & Safety - If any yacht goes turtle or swamps in the harbor, collides with commercial traffic resulting in damage, or experiences some other situation which could result in significant danger to sailors, racing shall be automatically cancelled and all boats should drop their sails and proceed under engine power to the location of the incident in order to render assistance if necessary.  All yachts should stand-by in order to provide assistance if required but not in a manner that would cause congestion to the area.

17.5 - Assistance from Race Committee - The Race Committee is allowed to respond to any questions from sailors even after the race has started and any such answers from the race committee will not be considered outside assistance.   However, sailors are responsible for knowing the rules and incorrect or misinterpreted information from the race committee on the water is not grounds for protest and does not circumvent the sailing instructions.

17.6 - Crew - After departing dock, MSC J/24s may not accept any more crew onboard.  Crew may not be transferred from a powerboat or from another sailboat.

17.7 - Breakdowns - Breakdowns during a race are scored the same as DNFs.  This is because Team Captains are responsible for their boats and for helping identify possible repair items and working with the club staff to effect repairs.  If a boat breaks, the Team Captain should make a careful assessment as to whether to continue sailing.  If the Team Captain chooses to continue sailing and this results in additional damage to the boat, the Team Captain will have failed in their responsibility to operate the boat in safe and proper manner.

17.8 - Security Zones - Since 9/11, there has been a security zones established around Ellis Island and Liberty Island.  No boat is allowed to sail within 150 yards of Liberty and Ellis Islands.  This zone is marked by white buoys.  All boats must stay outside this security zone and entering the security zone will result in disqualification from the race. 

17.8.a - Protocol for Security Zone Disqualification - If a yacht is observed by the Race Committee to enter the Security Zone around Ellis or Liberty Island, the Race Committee shall immediately hail the yacht on VHF CH 69 and announce their disqualification from the race.  Whether a yacht has entered a security zone is the sole discretion of the race committee and a security zone disqualification is final and cannot be appealed by a yacht.  Every yacht must understand the seriousness of maintaining good relations with our harbor partners and yachts should not even present the appearance of infringing upon the security zones.   The disqualified yacht shall make IMMEDIATE alteration of course to remove itself from the security zone and if wind is not sufficient, shall immediately start their engine to get clear.  The disqualified yacht shall also stop racing and clear itself out of the path of other racers still competing.

17.9 Use of Motors Before Start - Motors may be used up until one minute before the starting signal to assist a boat getting to the starting line.

18. MSC J/24 Equipment.

MSC J/24s will be provided for all club teams and the following rules shall apply:

18.1 - Modification to Boat - Teams shall not modify the J/24s or cause them to be modified in any way except for modifications approved in advance by the Manhattan Sailing Club.  This includes drilling new holes, affixing new turning blocks, etc.  Teams shall not cut or cause to be cut any lines, sheets or halyards on the boat.

18.2 - Adjustment to Stays & Lifeline - Teams shall not remove any rigging tape or attempt to adjust the sidestays, backstays or lifelines. All stays and lifelines will be tensioned by the MSC staff.

18.3 - Lines & Sheets - Teams may use their own lines or sheets provided that the MSC supplied equipment is carried while racing and the boat is returned to original condition after racing. Teams shall carry while afloat all equipment, including extra sails, provided with the yacht for sailing purposes.

18.4 - Tape & Markings - Teams shall not apply any tape or make any marks or writing on the boat, spars or poles.

18.5 - Pre-Departure Check - Teams are responsible for ensuring that all equipment is onboard and functioning prior to leaving the dock.

18.6 - Reporting Loss or Damage - Teams shall report any damage or loss of equipment, however slight, after securing the yacht ashore. The report must be made in writing in the Maintenance log maintained by the club.

18.7 - Cost for Repairing Damage - The cost for repairing any damage to the boats caused by a collision shall be split equally by both boats unless the skippers involved agree otherwise.

19. Protests - The club discourages protests.  The spirit of our racing program is embodied in this rule used by the Chicago Yacht Club for their Beer Can Races, "There will be no protests.  Skippers are responsible for knowing the "rules of the road."  In the case of flagrant violation of the rules, the Race Officer of the day and an advisory committee can ask the involved skipper(s) to refrain from further participation in the Belmont Series.  Collisions must be avoided.  All boats involved in a collision will be disqualified.  In the case of damage, a committee composed of the Race Office of the day and an advisory committee of participants will investigate factors involved in the collision for fact-finding purposes only."

Protest flags are not required to file a protest but the race committee must be notified in the proper manner. If a team needs to protest, they must deliver a written protest to the club by 9 a.m. on the following morning.  Email is permitted and should be delivered to the Race Committee Chair.

Message From Patrick Davis, Race Committee Chair:

"In an effort to make our club races as safe and professional as possible the Race Committee will seek to establish an official club protest system per the ISAF Racing Rules of Sailing for PHRF racers to handle charges of Gross Misconduct and recklessness.  A $20 fee will be charged to each party involved.

"It should be noted that a protest is basically a disagreement and we like to think of ourselves as so civil that we defer to each other and that there are no disagreements.  A person who does not defer to the other is not the best they can be.  Therefore, we encourage racers to work disputes out amongst themselves at the bar, a much better use of $40."

20. PHRF Ratings & Calculations.

Yachts in the PHRF classes must have a current PHRF-MA certificate.  A PHRF-MA certificate application can be obtained at www.phrfma.org. A copy of the certificate must be fax to MSC at 212-786-1743 or mailed to: Manhattan Sailing Club, 385 South End Ave #7G, New York, NY 10280. 

For all PHRF classes, the time on time scoring system will be used.

21. Scoring & Standings.

The Low Point Scoring System will be used with overall standings determined by average finish.  Any boat scoring DNF, DNS, BKDN, DSQ or other special finish will be given one more point than the number of finishers with no additional penalty points assigned (i.. if only 1 boat finishes the race, everyone else will be scored as 2nd).  If a team does not leave the dock on a specific week, they will be given a BYE and no score counted.  To qualify for a series, a team must participate in at least 5 races (races not completed due to weather or other circumstances count as a participation date for all teams). If 5 or more races are completed in a series, teams which participate in 6 or more races will be allowed to drop their worst finish including finishes of DNF, DNS, BKDN & DSQ. If less than 5 races are completed, there will be no drop race.

22. Prizes.

Prizes will be awarded to the top finishers at the end of every night.  For fleets with 4 or fewer boats, only first place will receive a prize.  For fleets between 5 and 7 boats, the top 2 boats will receive a prize.  For fleets between 8 and 14 boats, the top 3 will receive a prize.  For fleets larger than 15, the top four will receive a prize.