Redress and Race Officers Session Three

Redress – RRS 62.1 Rule 62.1 A request for redress or a protest committee’s decision to consider redress shall be based on a claim or possibility that a boat’s score or place in a race or series has been or may be, through no fault of her own, made significantly worse by an improper action or omission of the race committee [….]

Redress – RRS 62.1 Rule 62.1 A request for redress or a protest committee’s decision to consider redress shall be based on a claim or possibility that a boat’s score or place in a race or series has been or may be, through no fault of her own, made significantly worse by an improper action or omission of the race committee [….]

So What is the Redress Rule About? Not about:  Over-riding RO judgement, or eliminating unfairness etc.  The rule does not provide a general "the Jury can sort it out afterwards” capability.  The Race Officer has the responsibility to run and race and post results they are confident are good, and will not need to be changed even if redress is requested by a boat.  The Race Officer, not the PC, does “fairness”

So What is the Redress Rule About? It is very specific:  The PC can grant redress only when: a boat’s score or place in a race or series …. has been made significantly worse …. through no fault of her own …. by an improper action or omission of the race committee.

So What is the Redress Rule About? It is very specific:  The PC can grant redress only when: a boat’s score or place in a race or series …. has been made significantly worse …. through no fault of her own …. by an improper action or omission of the race committee. The last two tests are tough!

So What is the Redress Rule About? And if the PC decides these tests are met:  The PC grants redress, which might be: make no change to the finishing scores …. adjust some finishing scores …. abandon the race …. or some other arrangement

So What is the Redress Rule About? And if the PC decides these tests are met:  The PC grants redress, which might be: make no change to the finishing scores …. adjust some finishing scores …. abandon the race …. or some other arrangement The PC makes as fair an arrangement as possible for all boats, whether or not they asked for redress

Prepare for a Hearing Split into 3 groups: PC, boat, RO GBR 2 has requested redress. She claims her score has been made worse by an improper action of the race committee. Split into 3 groups: PC, boat, RO 10 mins to prepare Decide how you’ll address the tests in the rule

Hearing Procedure Introduce Protest Committee – objections? Is the request valid? (in time; states the request) Each party gives evidence Boat requesting redress should be prepared to answer “what is the redress you are requesting?” Parties question each other Maybe some PC questions Witnesses’ evidence and questioning Main PC questions Final statements

Hearing #1 At the last race of the UK Optimist Nationals. Each race has four fleets; gold, silver, bronze and emerald. Races are being run on a 2-beat trapezoid course. Last race of the day has begun - wind has been light and shifty all week – under pressure to get enough races to make a championship. SIs have Mark 1 time limit of 30 minutes – if not achieved then race must be abandoned for that fleet. Last race is underway - bronze & emerald fleets beating towards mark 1 against the tide. Wind drops and after a few minutes fills in from starboard side with a 40 degree shift. Bronze fleet does not reach mark 1 within the time limit - RO abandons their race. Emerald fleet leader reaches mark 1 within time limit - RO allows their race to continue. Later ashore, 8 boats from the emerald fleet (who had been on port hand side of course) request redress, asking for the race to be abandoned. During the hearing, RO says “my decision to continue the race was not one of my better decisions”. What is your redress decision?

Lesson 1 "Not one of my best decisions" doesn't make that decision "improper". ROs aren't required to have 20/20 hindsight. What should the RO have said (and not said)?

Hearing #2 Day 3 of 6 at the Laser Standard World Championships in Weymouth Due to heavy fog, the race committee (RC) has been waiting all day for racing At 1 pm finally the RC signals AP over A due to the fog. At 1.30 pm, one Laser sailor (GBR 1) decides go afloat with his coach as training. Later in the afternoon - fog begins to lift RC meets with all the sailors ashore - decides to post notice that they will run further races later that afternoon. GBR 1 (now ashore) objects - claims he is now too tired to race safely - only went training because he thought there would be no further racing that day. RC runs a further race that afternoon, all competitors apart from GBR 1 take part and finish the race. GBR 1 lodges a valid request for redress with the race office ashore.  You are hearing the request for redress. (i) is any boat / are the boats entitled to redress? (ii) if yes, what do you think is a suitable redress?

Lesson 2 What should the Race Officer say (and not say) The fact that the Race Officer broke a rule isn’t of itself sufficient for redress to be given. The other tests still apply. Redress is not there to "correct a RO mistake" - only the RO can do that! “Through no fault” means that the boat did all she could to get as good a result as possible. In this case the boat scored DNS because she chose not to take part in the race. What should the Race Officer say (and not say)

Hearing #3 You are a jury member for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. Weather on the 45-boat Laser Radial course is not ideal - foggy (visibility around 500 m / half a leg) - wind is light and shifty. Under pressure from PRO, RC starts race in these conditions. However the displayed bearing to the first mark is 20 degrees less than the actual bearing. All boats start and begin sailing upwind. Due to low visibility, five Radials on the left side of the course two-tack the beat and overstand the windward mark. The one who overstood least estimated she lost ½ minute; the one who overstood most estimated she lost 1½ minutes. All five boats request redress on grounds that RC should not have started a race in these conditions for safety reasons, and that they overstood and lost time and places as a result of the error in compass direction. You are hearing the request for redress. What is the decision?

Lesson 3 Even when the tests are met, there is sometimes no satisfactory and “fair” solution. Abandoning a race is usually unfair to the rest of the fleet. Which is fairer for the fleet: average points for the affected boats, or to let the results stand? Does it matter that one boat lost 30 seconds and another lost 90? What should the Race Officer say (and not say)

Two General Take-aways Fairness: Fairness is a Race Officer's responsibility, not a Jury's. The Race Officer can do things based on fairness (rule 32.1(d)); the Jury cannot.  The jury can only grant redress. Experts: the Race Officer is the expert when it comes to what is proper / improper for a Race Officer to do; Always have your race management guidelines with you in the hearing so you can present this as expert evidence to the jury When your action has been improper, it is far better for YOU to say that