Sailing Instructions

Spring Regatta 2026

Incorporating the ORC Sportboat Championships

SAILING INSTRUCTIONS v1.0

Dates: 23 (Registration) to 27 September 2026
Organizing Authority (OA): False Bay Yacht Club (FBYC)
Venue: Simon’s Town, Western Cape, South Africa
Website: https://www.fbycspringregatta.co.za/

The notation ‘[NP]’ in a rule means that a boat may not protest another boat for breaking that rule. This changes RRS 60.1(a). The notation ‘[DP]’ means that the penalty for a breach of that rule may, at the discretion of the protest committee, be less than disqualification.

1 CHANGES TO SAILING INSTRUCTIONS
1.1 Any change to the Sailing Instructions will be posted 2 hours before it will take effect on the Official Notice Board (ONB), except that any change to the schedule of races will be posted by 18:00 on the day before it will take effect.

2 COMMUNICATIONS WITH COMPETITORS
2.1 Notices to competitors will be posted on the ONB.
2.2 The online Official Notice Board (ONB) will be the “Intasure Spring Regatta Official Notice Board 2026” WhatsApp Group. Entrants can register at: Click here to join the group
2.3 On the water, the race committee intends to monitor and communicate with competitors on VHF radio channel 6.
2.4 The following communications may be made by the race committee on VHF: time checks and starting times, starting order and designation of race areas, confirmation of any visual signal displayed, courses including bearing and distance to the first mark, change of course, shortening, postponement, abandonment and other information explaining the intentions of the race committee.
2.5 A delay in the broadcast of these calls, or the order in which they are made, or any omission or failure in the transmission or reception of these, will not be grounds for a request for redress by a boat. This changes RRS 61.1(a).

3 SIGNALS MADE ASHORE
3.1 Signals made ashore will be displayed on the mast located in front of the False Bay Yacht Club Bridge on the upper deck of the club house.
3.2 When flag AP is displayed ashore, “1 minute” is replaced with “not less than 60 minutes” in Race Signals AP. This changes Race Signals AP.

4 SCHEDULE OF RACES
The schedule of Races is defined in the Notice of Race sections 7 and 10.
Note: See definition of courses in SI section 7.
4.1 There will be no more than two Inshore races and one Coastal race per day for the Racing Fleet and no more than one Coastal race per day for the Coastal Fleet.

5 CLASSES AND FLAGS
5.1 The fleets will be divided into classes according to ORC APH TOD, or the criteria in Notice of Race paragraph 4.4 for the Sportboat Class Divisions, as extracted from the certificate submitted by an entrant. (Also see NOR).
5.2 Classes and flags are defined as follows:
5.2.1 Racing Fleet:
Class A – Pennant 1: CLUB APH TOD < 565 s/NM
Class B – Pennant 2: CLUB APH TOD >= 565.0 and < 640 s/NM
Class C – Pennant 3: CLUB APH TOD >= 640 s/NM
5.2.2 Coastal Fleet:
Class D – Flag T : CLUB, NSCL, or DHCL APH TOD < 640 s/NM
Class E – Flag W: CLUB, NSCL, or DHCL APH TOD >= 640.0 s/NM
5.2.3 Sportsboats will use the class flag of the Racing Fleet Class they fall under. (See NOR.)

6 RACING AREA
6.1 The racing area to be used for each class will be announced one hour before the start of the first race of the day.
6.2 The Racing Fleet will race in an area as determined by the Race Officer on the Bridge boat using laid marks. Fixed and laid marks may be used in the event of a Coastal Race being scheduled.
6.3 The Coastal Fleet will sail a course to fixed and laid marks as announced before the race on the ONB.

7 COURSES
7.1 Definition of Courses:
7.1.1 Inshore courses, incorporating Windward/Leeward (WL) or All Purpose (AP) using laid marks.
7.1.2 Coastal courses, incorporating Medium Distance (MD), will be approximately 3 to 6 hours and use a combination of laid and fixed marks.

7.2 Courses to be sailed by Fleet:
7.2.1 Racing Fleet Classes A, B and C (including the Sportboat Class):
7.2.1.1 Inshore Courses: Courses shall be Windward/Leeward (WL) or All Purpose (AP) using laid marks per Course Card in Appendix A
7.2.1.2 Coastal Courses: A combination of laid and fixed marks, as defined in Appendices A and B, will make up Medium Distance (MD) courses. The RO will announce the course no later than 10 minutes before the Warning signal.
7.2.2 Coastal Fleet Classes D and E:
7.2.2.1 Coastal Courses: A combination of laid and fixed marks, as defined in Appendices A and B, will make up Medium Distance (MD) courses. The RO will announce the course no later than 10 minutes before the Warning signal.
7.3 No later than the warning signal, the bridge vessel will display the approximate compass bearing of the first leg for the Racing Fleet.
7.4 The final decision on the nature of the courses and the number of races on a day will remain with the Race Committee and will not be cause for redress. Final course changes will be communicated via the ONB.

8 MARKS
8.1 Laid Marks: Rounding marks 1, 2, 3 & 4 (also a finish mark) (see Appendix A) will consist of inflatable yellow conical buoys. Yellow cylindrical buoys may also be used.
8.2 Fixed Marks: See Appendix B for all fixed marks with their GPS co-ordinates.
8.3 The Start mark for all Races will be an orange spherical buoy flying a yellow flag at the port end.
8.4 The Finish mark for all Inshore races will be a yellow conical buoy which is left to port. The Finish mark for all Coastal Races will be an orange spherical (Emergency) Buoy at position 34°11.273’S 18°25.928’E.

9 THE START
9.1 When the INTASURE flag is displayed it replaces the Orange flag in Race Signals.
9.2 The starting line for all Classes will be between the staff displaying an Orange (or INTASURE) flag on the race Committee Boat at the starboard end and an orange spherical buoy flying a yellow flag at the port end.
9.3 (DP) Boats whose warning signal has not been made shall avoid the starting area during the starting sequence for other races.
9.4 If any part of a boat’s hull is on the course side of the starting line at her starting signal and she is identified, the race committee will attempt to broadcast on VHF her sail number, bow number or the name of the boat. Delay in the radio broadcast of these calls, or the order in which they are made, or any omission or failure in the transmission or reception of these, will not be grounds for a request for redress by a boat. This changes RRS 61.1(a).
9.5 A boat that does not start within 5 minutes after her starting signal will be scored Did Not Start (DNS) without a hearing. This changes RRS A5.1 and A5.2.
9.6 If more than one race is started, the starting order for subsequent races will be according to class flags displayed.

10 SHORTENING COURSE
10.1 When shortening courses RRS 32 will apply, and any shortening of course shall be broadcast on VHF Channel 06 and be posted on the ONB.

11 THE FINISH
11.1 Inshore races: The finishing line for all Inshore races, will be between a staff displaying a blue flag on the race committee vessel at the Starboard end of the line and a laid, inflatable yellow conical buoy (mark no 4) at the port end of the line, leaving the buoy to port.
11.2 Coastal races: The finish line for all classes doing Coastal races (Racing and Coastal Fleets), will be between the FBYC club mast, flying a blue flag and the orange spherical (Emergency) Buoy at position 34°11.273’S 18°25.928’E, leaving the orange buoy to Stbd.
11.3 (DP) Boats finishing Coastal races shall announce their approach to the finish line 5 minutes before crossing, calling “Dolphyn Bridge” on VHF channel 06.
11.4 (DP) If the race committee is absent when a boat finishes, she shall report her finishing time, and her position in relation to nearby boats, to the race committee at the first reasonable opportunity.

12 TIME LIMIT
12.1 Inshore races: The Race Time Limit will be “N” minutes after the finish of the leading yacht in each Class where, N = E x 0.5 and where E = Elapsed time of the leading yacht in that Class. This can be adjusted at the discretion of the Race Officer.
Coastal races: The Race Time Limit will be “N” minutes after the finish of the leading yacht in each Class where, N = E x 0.5 and where E = Elapsed time of the leading yacht in that Class. This can be adjusted at the discretion of the Race Officer.
12.2 Boats failing to finish within their time limit, and not subsequently retiring, penalised, or given redress, will be scored Time Limit Expired (TLE) without a hearing. A boat scored TLE will receive the points of the last boat that finished within its time limit plus one. This changes RRS 35, A4, A5.1, A5.2 and A10.

13 HEARING REQUESTS
13.1 For each class, the protest time limit is 1 hour after the last boat in that Class finishes the last race of the day or the race committee signals no more racing today, whichever is later. The time will be posted on the official notice board.
13.2 Hearing request forms are available from the race office.
13.3 Notices to inform competitors of hearings in which they are parties or named as witnesses will be posted no later than 30 minutes after the protest time limit.
13.4 Hearings will be held in the protest room, located in the boardroom on the upper level of the FBYC clubhouse.

14 SCORING
14.1 The decision on the scoring method and scoring parameters used will be at the sole discretion of the race committee and together with length of course, directions of leg and the wind direction and speed will not be grounds for request for redress by a boat. This changes RRS 61.1(a).

15 SAFETY
15.1 (DP), (NP) A boat that retires from a race shall notify the race officer at the first reasonable opportunity.
15.2 (DP), (NP) A boat not intending to race shall inform the race office before the scheduled warning signal.
15.3 (DP) Any use of the engine for propulsion purposes for rescuing people, giving help or any other reason shall be reported after arrival in written form to the race committee stating the reasons for such procedure. If after a hearing the Jury finds that the boat did not gain a significant advantage, the penalty may be less than DSQ, at the discretion of the Jury.
15.4 Yachts shall hold and comply with SA Sailing Category ‘D’ COF requirements as a minimum or a relevant Club COF.

16 REPLACEMENT CREW OR EQUIPMENT
16.1 (DP) Any crew changes (adding new crew members, replacing or disembarking crew members) shall be notified to the race office no later than 2 hours before the scheduled time of the start of the first race of the day. Crew changes will be automatically approved provided that:
16.1.1 Crew members registered for the first race on a boat shall not be aboard any other competing boat throughout the remainder of the series.
16.1.2 The weight of all crew members on board after all crew changes shall not be greater than the maximum and smaller than the minimum (in the case of Sportboats only) as defined in ORC Rule 200.1.

16.2 (DP) Substitution of damaged or lost equipment is not allowed unless authorised in writing by the technical committee. Requests for substitution shall be made to the committee at the first reasonable opportunity, which may be after the race.

17 EQUIPMENT AND MEASUREMENT CHECKS
17.1 A boat or equipment may be inspected at any time for compliance with the class rules, notice of race and sailing instructions.
17.2 (DP) When instructed by a race official on the water, a boat shall proceed to a designated area for inspection.

18 OFFICIAL VESSELS
18.1 Official vessels will display a yellow flag. Failure of any official boat to display her flag will not be grounds request for redress by a boat. This changes RRS 61.1(a).
18.2 Vessels used by press, photographers, film crews, VIPs etc. are not under the jurisdiction of the race committee. Any action by these boats shall not be ground for request for redress by a boat. This changes RRS 61.1(a).

19 SUPPORT PERSONS VESSELS
19.1 (DP) Support person vessels shall keep well clear of the starting area and, after the preparatory signal, are not to approach within 100 meters of any competing boat. A breach of this SI may result with a scoring penalty against the boat connected and/or withdrawal of permission to be in the racing area for one or more days.

20 FURTHER INFORMATION
20.1 For further information please contact:
FBYC Race Secretary: sailing@fbyc.co.za
Phone: (021) 786 1703
Website: www.fbyc.co.za