Question
At a close downwind finish, Yellow eases her spinnaker halyard, sheet
and guy so that the sail is further ahead of her bow than normally. When
does she finish? What action should the umpires take?
Answer
Yellow finishes when her bow crosses the line. The definition Finish makes
it clear that as the spinnaker is not in normal position it cannot be
considered for the purpose of finishing.
Judging the finish is solely a matter for the race committee. However,
if the umpires see the halyard eased they may advise the race committee,
since the umpires may be in a better position to see the spinnaker before
the boat crosses the finishing line.
The same reasoning would apply when two boats approach a leeward mark
and there is a question about whether they are overlapped |