2023 Notice of Race

RenaissanceRe Invitational Junior Gold Cup Royal Bermuda Yacht Club, Bermuda October 3rd – 7th, 2023

ORGANISING AUTHORITY (OA)

The regatta is organized by the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club (RBYC).

NOTICE OF RACE

All times are Atlantic Daylight Time (ADT). The notation ‘[NP]’ means Rules that are not grounds for protest by a boat (This changes rule 60.1(a)). The notation ‘[DP]’ means that the penalty for a breach of that rule may, at the discretion of the International Jury, be less than disqualification.

RULES
1. The regatta will be governed by the ‘rules’ as defined in The Racing Rules of Sailing (RRS).
2. Bermuda Sailing Association (BSA) Prescriptions shall apply and may be found at www.sailing.bm/governance .
3. The class rules of IODA shall apply and may be found at www.optiworld.org .
4. Appendix G3, Chartered or Loaned Boats, will apply.
5. RRS 40.1 will apply.
6. The first three sentences of RRS 61.1(a) are changed to ‘A boat intending to protest shall inform the other boat at the first reasonable opportunity. When her protest will concern an incident in the racing area that she was involved in or saw she shall hail ‘Protest’. She shall inform the Race Committee at the finishing line immediately after finishing of the boat/s being protested or as soon as practicable after she retires.’
7. If there is a conflict between languages the English text will take precedence.
ADVERTISING
1. Boats may be required to display advertising chosen and supplied by the OA.
2. The OA may provide bibs that competitors are required to wear as permitted by the World Sailing Regulation 20, Advertising Code.
SAILING INSTRUCTIONS
1. The Sailing Instructions (SIs) will be available on the Official Notice Board (ONB) before 1700 Tue 3rd October 2023. Printed copies of the SIs will not be made available to competitors.
COMMUNICATION
1. The ONB is located at: https://rb.gy/xazt7
2. On the water the Race Committee (RC) may make courtesy broadcasts to Support Persons and competitors via VHF radio. The channel will be stated in the SIs.
3. The RC & OA may make courtesy broadcasts to a WhatsApp group located here:
  
  https://chat.whatsapp.com/L2XgDmCUNt0DmfuEaZW79W Competitors and Support Persons are encouraged to join this channel.
4. [DP] [NP] From the first warning signal until the end of the last race of the day, except in an emergency, a boat shall not make voice or data transmissions and shall not receive voice or data communication that is not available to all boats. This includes the use of mobile telephones.
ENTRY & ELIGIBILITY
1. Entry to the regatta is by invitation only.
2. Invitations for International competitors (non-Bermuda residents) will be communicated through the respective countries’ National Optimist Class Associations.
3. Invitations for Bermuda competitors will be communicated through local sailing programs and clubs.
4. The age of a competitor at the end of the year in which the event occurs shall not exceed 15 years.
5. All competitors shall be members in good standing of the Bermuda Optimist Dinghy Association (BODA), or their respective Country of Residence’s Optimist Class Association.
6. To be considered an entry in the event, all competitors must complete all registration requirements, including confirming their entry details, paying all fees, and submitting a completed Guardian Release and Declaration Form. This must be done before the conclusion of onsite registration.
7. Acceptance of an invitation for entry shall be made by returning a completed entry form to the RBYC Sailing Office (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) by Fri 15th Sept @ 1300.
FEES
1. The entry fee is BMD 160.
2. The following is included in the entry fee: Registration dinner, t-shirt, water bottle, hat, sailors box lunch each race day, and dinner at Social Party.
3. The OA will pay for the coaching, entry, and charter fees for one international competitor from each country that it invites. Any additional international competitors from that same country who are invited by the OA will be responsible for their own costs.
4. All fees shall be paid to the RBYC; either on account, or by other arrangement with the RBYC Sailing Office (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.).

SCHEDULE

Registration: Tue 3rd Oct 1700 – 1830.
Competitor Welcome Dinner: Tue 3rd Oct 1800 – 1930.
Support Vessel briefing each day, following the Competitors Briefing.

Dates of racing:

Date	Scheduled Races per Day	Time of Competitor Briefing	Time of 1st Warning Signal	Location
Wed 4th Oct	4 races	0930	1100	Great Sound
Thu 5th Oct	4 races	0930	1100	Great Sound
Fri 5th Oct	4 races	0930	1100	Great Sound
Sat 6th Oct	1 race	1200	TBC	Hamilton Harbour

13 races are scheduled.
The target time for races will be 45 minutes.
Competitor Social: Fri 5th Oct following the conclusion of racing.
Prize giving will be during the prize giving for the World Match Racing Tour Bermuda Gold Cup.

MEASUREMENT
1. [DP] Boats shall comply with RRS 78.1.
2. Competitors shall use only one hull, daggerboard, rudder (with tiller and extension), mast, boom, sprit, and sail during the regatta.
3. Sails shall display the number as submitted on the competitor’s entry.
VENUE
1. The event is hosted by the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club, 15 Point Pleasant Road, Hamilton HM11, Bermuda.
2. The racing area will be in the Great Sound&/or Hamilton Harbour.
COURSES
1. The course will be an outer-loop trapezoid with the finish line at the end of the second windward leg except the final race of the series in Hamilton Harbour when the course will be a W/L course finishing downwind.
PENALTY SYSTEM
1. Appendix P “Special Procedures for rule 42” will apply. P2.2 “Second Penalty” is changed to “Second and Subsequent Penalties”. There will also be an addition to the end of the first sentence, “unless her penalty is signaled after she finishes, in which case she shall promptly notify a race committee finish boat that she is retiring”. Appendix P2.3 will not apply.
2. A boat that has taken a penalty under rule 44.1 shall complete and submit a Penalty Report form on the ONB before the end of the protest time limit.
3. An International Jury will be appointed in accordance with RRS 91(b). Its decisions will be final as provided in RRS 70.5.
SCORING
1. Six races are required to be completed to constitute a series.
  1. When six or more races have been completed, a boat’s score will be the total of her race scores excluding her worst score.
CHARTER BOATS
1. A limited number of charter boats are available and are reserved for invited overseas competitors.
2. Failure of charter equipment will not be grounds for redress.
3. Charter boats will be supplied to selected overseas competitors and will include the hull, daggerboard, rudder (with tiller and extension), mast, boom, and sprit. Competitors shall provide their own sails and all other required equipment.
[NP] [DP] BERTHING AND LAUNCHING
1. All boats shall be stored and launched from the RBYC during the regatta. When on shore, boats must be kept in the assigned area from the start of the event until the completion of the final race.
SUSTAINABILITY
1. Use of single-use plastics are discouraged. Refillable water bottles will be provided to all registered competitors and refilling stations will be available on-site.
2. Fresh water is in short supply in Bermuda. Rinsing boats after racing may be limited by the OA.
[NP] [DP] SUPPORT PERSON VESSELS
1. Support persons (any person who provides, or may provide, support to a competitor) shall register with the OA and identify which boats they are supporting.
2. Support person vessels must be equipped with a VHF radio and be prepared to monitor a designated VHF channel. The VHF channel to be used will be communicated at the support boat briefing.
3. If called upon, support person vessels will be required to act as rescue boats. See RRS 37.
4. Every person on board a support vessel less than 6m in length must wear a properly secured PFD of an appropriate size for that person at all times the engine is running.
5. Support person vessel’s driver shall use the kill cord at all times the engine is running.
6. Support persons are required to provide at minimum 1 support boat for every 10 competitors they are associated with. Support persons are responsible for overseeing the safety of their competitors on the water, including knowledge of who is afloat and ensuring their safe return to the venue.
PRIZES
1. Prizes will be awarded for:
  1. Overall 1st, 2nd, & 3rd place.
  2. Highest overall finishing female skipper.
  3. Highest overall finishing Bermuda skipper will be awarded the Dick Kempe Memorial plaque.
  4. 1st place finisher in final race.
RISK STATEMENT

RRS 3 states: ‘The responsibility for a boat’s decision to participate in a race or to continue to race is hers alone.’ By participating in this event each competitor agrees and acknowledges that sailing is a potentially dangerous activity with inherent risks. These risks include strong winds and rough seas, sudden changes in weather, failure of equipment, boat handling errors, poor seamanship by other boats, loss of balance on an unstable platform and fatigue resulting in increased risk of injury. Inherent in the sport of sailing is the risk of permanent, catastrophic injury or death by drowning, trauma, hypothermia or other causes.
DISCLAIMER OF LIABILITY

Sailing is an activity that has an inherent risk of damage and injury. Competitors in this event are participating entirely at their own risk. See RRS 3, Decision to Race. The race organizers (organizing authority, race committee, protest committee, host club, sponsors, or any other organization or official) will not be responsible for damage to any boat or other property or the injury to any competitor, including death, sustained as a result of participation in this event. By participating in this event, each competitor agrees to release the race organizers from all liability associated with such competitor’s participation in this event to the fullest extent permitted by law.
INSURANCE

Each participating boat shall be insured with valid third-party liability insurance with a minimum cover of BMD 250,000 per incident or the equivalent.
RIGHT TO USE NAME AND LIKENESS

By participating in this event, competitors grant the OA, Host Club, event sponsors, media outlets, and competitors national class associations the perpetual right to use and publish their names, likeness, voice, and image in any photography, audio, or video recordings, or other reproductions made at the venue or on the water from the time of their arrival at the venue until their final departure, without compensation.
PRIVACY STATEMENT

The personal information you provide to the OA will be used to facilitate your participation in the event. If you have agreed to be bound by the Racing Rules of Sailing and the other rules that govern the event (the rules), the legal basis for processing that personal information is contract. If you are not bound by the rules, the legal basis for processing that personal information is legitimate interest. Your personal information will be stored and used in accordance with the OA’s privacy policy. When required by the rules, personal information may be shared with the BSA, your national authority and/or World Sailing. The results of the event and the outcome of any hearing or appeal may be published.
CODE OF CONDUCT

[DP] Competitors and Support Persons shall comply with any reasonable request from a regatta official. Failure to comply may be misconduct.
FURTHER INFORMATION

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END OF NOTICE OF RACE