#dbsc – Dublin Bay Sailing Club's (DBSC) will bring its starting sequence into line with world sailing norms when it starts the first race of the 2015 season tomorrow night.
All DBSC Keelboat classes will now start using the international Racing Rules of Sailing (RRS) 26 - 5/4/1/start, sequence.
Dublin Bay Sailing Club is the country's largest yacht racing organisation providing weekly racing for approximately 300 boats across 22 different classes and more than 1,300 sailors. Read a preview of the DBSC 2015 season here.
The decision to bring the capital's yacht racing into line with standard practice in all other regattas both on Dublin Bay and at other venues is to avoid confusion to competitors who regularly sail under the standard RRS26 when not competing in DBSC.
New Principal Race Officer for DBSC Jack Roy, an Olympic Games Race Officer from London 2012, believes this is a positive step in bringing less confusion to sailors and at the same time giving the many DBSC Race Officers the flexibility to use all the preparatory signals available to them for starting races. 'It is important that DBSC racing is conducted to the highest race management standards, bringing our starting sequences in line with RRS26 is an important step', he told Afloat.ie
A further benefit is that it enables Race Officers the flexibility to use alternative Preparatory Signals, if so required. The old system was restricted to a "P" preparatory signal only. There will also be a clearer sequence, as per the RRS for getting back into a sequence after a "General Recall" or "AP" signal has been displayed.
The change also brings the summer racing in line with the DBSC Turkey Shoot and Spring Chicken series.