Subject: rec.boats Frequently Asked Questions (Part 1 of 5)
Date: 6 Oct 1995 19:30:08 GMT

Posted-By: auto-faq 2.4


Chapter 1 

Pre-introduction 

The following is an FAQ for rec.boats. Next to each item in the 
table of contents is  a symbol. A '+'  means that I've answered 
it. A '-' means that someone  else has promised to answer it. A 
``0'' means that I intend to write it but have not gotten to it 
yet. A '*' means that someone  else has provided it already. No 
mark at  all indicates  that I do  not have  the information to 
answer the question, but that no one has volunteered to provide 
it. In some cases, this means  that I have written something to 
fill  the  gap, but  it's  not  at all  authoritative.  This is 
especially true in the powerboating section. 

Many folks  have sent  contributions, some  of which  have been 
included. In  some cases  I left  things out  because I thought 
they were not of general  enough interest. In other cases, I've 
left them out because I have not yet gotten around to inserting 
them. 

This document  will be  reposted about  every three  months. In 
addition, a copy will live at wilma.cs.brown.edu, available for 
anonymous ftp in the file rec.boats_FAQ.Z. 

Last posted: 7/1/95 

This posting: 10/6/95 

.

Chapter 2 

Introduction 

I have  been reading and  saving selections  from rec.boats for 
about 8 years, and operating various watercraft for far longer. 
I  volunteered, in  August  1992, to  maintain  this Frequently 
Asked Questions list  for rec.boats, with  help from many other 
people on topics where they know much more than I do. 

The contents  of the posting  below consist  of the information 
sent  to me  by many  people; less  than  1/4 of  it is  my own 
writing.  I  am  especially  grateful  to  Michael  Hughes  (no 
relation) for providing much of the bibliography. 

If you  have constructive  comments please  let me  know. (I am 
John  Hughes, jfh@cs.brown.edu).  If  you have  additions you'd 
like to see, please let me know. 

Several people have  asked that I mark  the recent changes with 
some sort  of symbol to  indicate the changed  passages. As you 
can see from the  dates above, I'm finding  it tough to keep up 
with the "every three months" schedule as is, and I'm reluctant 
to add any more work to  the task. I've therefore not done what 
they have asked, alas. 

The information in this posting comes in three forms. There are 
facts (addresses  and phone numbers,  etc.), generally accepted 
information (``How  can I  get into  sailboat racing  as a crew 
member?''),  and  opinions (``Is  this  magazine  any good?''). 
Following a lead of Wayne Simpson, I've put the initials of the 
provider of the information or opinion in parentheses following 
the statement (e.g., (jfh)). There's  a list of contributors at 
the bottom. Since I  only started doing this  *after* I had put 
together much of  the list, a  good deal of  the information is 
unattributed, especially  in the  book reviews.  I apologize to 
the original authors for this. 

By the way, my own bias is towards sailboating. This means that 
the powerboating  information is scantier  than the sailboating 
stuff. 

In this edition, I've deleted a few questions that seem to have 
faded from currency, and replaced  them with others that seemed 
more relevant. 


2.1 TABLE OF CONTENTS 




Sailing stuff:
       3.1) What are the addresses of class associations for
          class XXX of sailboats?
       3.2) How can I get into sailboat racing as a crew member?
       3.3) Is the MacGregor 26 a good boat? It seems too good
          to be true. Does water ballast really work?
       3.4) What's a good first sailboat?
       3.5) How do those rating systems -- PHRF time-on-time,
            time-on-distance, Portsmouth, IOR -- and all that
             stuff work?
       3.6)  Who/What is US Sailing, how do I join, should I join?
       3.7)  Where can I find out about collegiate sailing?
       3.8)  What about keels?
       3.9)  Sailing simulators? 
       3.10) Chartering and learn-to-sail schools
       3.11) Formula for hull speed based on length (and its limitations)
       3.12) Sailing in other countries.
       3.13) Sailing in Chicago
Powerboating stuff:
       4.1) What is better? An I/O or an outboard? What's
            cheaper?
       4.2) Are Doel Fins a good thing?
       4.3) What is a Hole Shot? Will a Stainless prop add to my
            high end speed? 
       4.4) Is VRO a good idea?
       4.5) What's a good first powerboat?
       4.6) Can I put unleaded gas in an old outboard? 
       4.7) Are there any powerboat class associations

General Information:
       5.1) What are the addresses, phone numbers, 800 numbers,
            for suppliers of boating equipment?
       5.2) What organizations can help me learn about safe
            boating?
       5.3) Should I get GPS or Loran? 
       5.4) What other newsgroups discuss boating stuff?
       5.5) What's the 800 number for the User Fee Sticker?
       5.6) What's it cost to own a boat? 
       5.7) Who can tell me about boat X?
       5.8) What are the laws about boats? Is there anything
            I have to get before I operate my boat?
       5.9) What's a formula for top speed, given lots of
            other info?
       5.10) How do find out what time it is, accurately,
            for navigation?
       5.11) Winter storage for batteries, and their state of charge.
       5.12) Online sources
       5.13) Should we split rec.boats?
       5.14) What sextant should I buy to practice with?
       5.15) Boat Pictures, and ftp sites for boat info.
       5.16) Propellor selection
       5.17) Binocular Selection
       5.18) Blue book values of boats
       5.19) Interfacing NMEA0183 to your computer
       6) List of Contributors

Bibliography:
      7.1) Journals
      7.2) Nonfiction books about sailing trips
      7.3) Books about racing
      7.4) Books about maintenance 
      7.5) Fiction about boats 
      7.6) Books about design, seaworthiness, arts of the sailor
      7.7) Films/videos about sailing
      7.8) Misc



.

Chapter 3 

Sailing Stuff 


3.1 Addresses of class associations for sailboats 

Here are some answers  culled from the net,  but there are also 
two other  sources: The  Sailing World  Buyer's Guide  and SAIL 
Magazine's Sialboat and Equipment Directory. Both are published 
annually. 


International Etchells Class Association

Pam Smith, Executive Secretary
HCR 33 Box 30
Rte. 102A
Bass Harbor, ME 04653


Tanzer 22 Class Associataion
P.O. Box 22
Ste-Anne de Bellevue
Quebec, CAnada H9X 3L4



Laser mailing list: laser@polecat.law.indiana.edu
signup: listproc@polecat.law.indiana.edu; mesage should sat
   "subscribe Laser Firstname Lastname''   Contact Will Sadler 
(will@polecat.law.indiana.edu) for help accessing the system. 

Laser Class Association:

ILCA
8466 N. Lockwood Ridge Road, Suite 328
Sarasota, FL 34243
Phone & FAX (813) 359-1384

Send them your name, sail number, type of boat, age, address, phone
and $25 for a regular membership, $15 for junior (16 and under), $40 for
family membership and list other people in family.


J/24
612 Third Street
Suite 4A
Annapolis, MD 21403-3213
301-626-0240
(Steve Podlich or Sally Scott)


J/80 Class Association
27 Clifton Rd.
Bristol, RI 02809
PH/FAX (401) 253-4874


J-30 Class Association
Terry Rapp
309 Berkley Ave.
Palymra, NJ  08065
(609) 786-8958 (h)
Annual dues: $25.00


U.S.Swan Association
55 America's Cup Avenue
Newport, R.I. 02840
(401) 846-8404


505

President 
Meade Hopkins            Phone:  (H)  510  256-8349
2575 Myradie Road                (W)  415  739-8142
Walnut Creek, CA  94596
                        Email:bussdev@aol.com             

Recently we have made a real effort to us the facilities of Internet
and other networks to connect 5-oh sailors.  We have temporarily
established an EMail forwarding list through the help of Peter
Mignerey at the Navy Research Labs (usa505@wave11i.nrl.navy.mil).
Other good contacts for the class at the moment are myself
(stetson.1@osu.edu, David Stetson and Ali Meller (am eller@shl.com).

To get on or off of the 505 email list send the following:
To: 505world-request@andrew.cais.com
Subject: un/subscribe
-------
No message is needed.

Post messages for the fleet to: <505world@andrew.cais.com>

Please report any problems to: <mignerey@wave11i.nrl.navy.mil>

Web addresses:
USA:    http://skipper.biosci.ohio-state.edu/0c:/505.htm|/

Swiss:  http://www.ee.ethz.ch/~umrothac/505home.html



US Flying Dutchman Class
(Official name is I.F.D.C.A.U.S - International FD Class 
Association of the US)
Contact:
Guido Bertocci
168 Overbrook Drive
Freehold, NJ  07728
(908)303-8301 H
(908)949-5869 B
guido@blink.att.com

Available info:
   General class info 
   Promotional video - $14
   Class membership $46/year


Montgomery Owners Newsletter 
c/o John Anastasio
1000 W. Clay St.
Ukiah, CA 95482
Subscriptions are $15 year (4 issues)
e-mail to: John_Anastasio@RedwoodFN.org


INDIYRA
International DN Ice Yachting Association
Contact person changes from year to year, but you can always
find out who's currently in charge by calling Gougeon Bros.
Boats in Bay City, MI.
For 1994-1995 it's
Lee Ann and Eric Armstrong
224 Plainview Drive
Bolingbrook, IL 60440
708 759 0023 (phone)
708 759 0026 (fax)


Catalina 42 National Association
Bob Zoller
339 Sharon Road
Arcadia, CA 91007
Annual Dues: $25


Catalina 38 National Association
Joe Degenhardt
1524 Santanella Terrace
Coronado del Mar, CA 92635
Annual dues: $25


Catalina 36 National Association
Ed Hoffman
10710 Montgomery Dr.
Manassas, VA 22111
Annual dues: $25


Catalina 34 National Association
Jim Kennemore
910 Orien Way
Livermore, CA 94550
Annual dues: 1 year $20, 2 years $36


Catalina 30 National Association
Doris Goodale
9141 Mahalo Dr.
Huntington Beach, CA 92646
Annual dues: $20
$28 (Canada & Mexico; US funds)
$29 (outside continent; US funds)


Catalina 28 National Association   < NEW ASSOCIATION!
Judy Western
128 Biddle Drive
Exton, PA 19341
Annual dues: $25
$29 (Canada & Mexico; US funds)


Catalina 27 National Association
Fred Rector
21 Lawrence Ave.
Annapolis, MD 21403
Annual dues: $20


Catalina 25 National Association
Richard Henderson
514 East Belknap Street
Fort Worth, TX 76100
Annual dues: $20
            $26 (outside US; US funds)


Catalina 22 National Association
Joyce Seale
P.O. Box 30368
Phoenix, AZ 85046-0368
(602) 971-4511
Annual dues: $25


Capri 26 National Association
Steve Cooper
2403 Salem Court
Bettendorf, IA 52772
Annual dues: $20 


Capri 22 National Association
Dan Mattaran
888 Blvd of the Arts #204
Sarasota, FL 34346
Annual dues: $15


Coronado 15 National Association
Colleen Dong
26181 B Las Flores
Mission Viejo, CA 92691
Annual dues: $29


Capri 14.2 National Association
Dave Dodell
10250 No. 92nd #210
Scottsdale, AZ 85258
Annual dues: $15


Capri 26 National Association
Guy McCardle
529 Sycamore Circle
Ridgeland, MS 39157 (sc)


U S Sabot National Association
Dan Howard
457 Sherman Canal
Venice, CA 90291
(310) 305-7666
(No dues specified, assumed to be $12)


International Sunfish Class Association
1413 Capella S.
Newport, RI  02840



O'Day/CAL Boat owners association
(email burati@apollo.hp.com for details)
$18/yr - 6 newsletters, Boat/US discount, 
Organized rendezvous...
Captains Log
P.O. Box 15
Raynham, MA 02767-0015 (mb)


Thistle Class

Class Secretary, Honey Abramson
1811 Cavell Avenue
Highland Park, Il. 60035
(708) 831-3304

$35/year, includes monthly COLOR magazine.


For owners of  Catalina and Capri sailboats  for which there is 
no national association listed  above, contact Catalina Yachts, 
P.O. Box 989,  Woodland Hills, CA 91367.  Annual dues are 12.00 
and include a one year subscription to MAINSHEET, the quarterly 
magazine of the Catalina and Capri owners associations. 

See   also:  The  Sailing  World  ``Buyer's  Guide''  and  SAIL 
Magazine's ``Sailboat  and Equipment  Directory,'' and Cruising 
World,  particularly  for  classes  that  are  no  longer being 
manufactured. All are available in many US libraries. 


3.2 How can I get into sailboat racing as a crew member? 

The racers  on the  net seem  to have  a concensus  on this (at 
least   for  crewing  on  large  boats).  Since  I  wrote  this 
originally, I got the following  words from mp, which seemed so 
relevant that I've put them first: ``you should add that if you 
want to get  experience as neophyte  crew, you need  to show up 
consistently. Most owners  can put up with  you not knowing the 
ropes and would be  willing to teach you  what you need to know 
as long as they know you'll be there every week.'' 

(1) Go to local  yacht clubs that have  regular race series and 
post an index  card on the  bulletin board saying  that you are 
new  to racing,  but  would like  a  crew position.  Give phone 
numbers where you can be reached, and put a date on the card so 
that people know it's active. (Ask the club steward about where 
to post the card, and whether it's OK). 

(2) Go hang out on the dock on whatever evening the local fleet 
races,  and ask  around if  anyone knows  of someone  who needs 
crew. Come dressed for the  occasion; bring a foul-weather suit 
if it's windy, and wear tennis shoes or boat shoes. Have a hat. 
If you bring other stuff (sweater,  dry set of clothes) pack it 
in a  small athletic  bag or knapsack.  Show up  an hour before 
race  time  and  let  various people  know  you  are  there and 
available.  The  club  steward, the  launch  boy/girl,  and the 
dockmaster are all good choices. 

(3) Make  it clear  that you  are serious--if  the skipper says 
``can you  be there an  hour before  the race to  help pack the 
'chute?'', say ``Yes.'' Volunteer to  help out with Spring work 
on the  boat. If you  have to  miss a race  on a  boat on which 
you've been racing  regularly, let the skipper  know at least 3 
days in advance. Let  people know that you  are willing to come 
out  every single  week  to race.  If  not, word  that  you are 
unreliable will get around. 

(4)  Listen  and  learn.  Don't  go  aboard  expecting  to tell 
everyone everything  you know.  If it  turns out  that you know 
more than they  do, keep quiet about  it. Your quiet competence 
will eventually show through. 


3.3 Is the MacGregor 26 a good boat? 

The MacGregor  26 has a  very low price  for a lot  of boat. It 
also, like any  boat, has a  number of flaws.  The equipment is 
not as  tough as  that on some  other boats  of comparable size 
(compare it  to a Pacific  Seacraft to see  the other extreme), 
and the fiberglass  construction is not  as substantial either. 
If you are planning to do lake sailing on lakes of modest size, 
perhaps it is  the boat for  you. If you  are planning on going 
into the ocean, perhaps it is not. The Mac26 is quite large for 
a trailerable boat, which is one of its big advantages. it uses 
water  ballast,  in  part. It  is  more  stable,  even intially 
stable, with its tanks full than with them empty. See below. 

If you  are considering  a Mac26, you  should also  look at the 
Catalina  22.  Compare  the  solidity  of  the  structures, the 
hardware, the  rigging, and also  compare the  resale values of 
similar boats in your area. 

Greg  Fox  has kindly  written  a short  dissertation  on water 
ballast, which summarizes the wisdom  of the net on the subject 
(including at least one  practicing naval architect). It really 
*is* correct, and you should read it carefully before you start 
disagreeing. Here it is: 


3.3.1 Does water ballast work? 

Yes, but not nearly as well  as a more dense ballast like lead. 
We are talking here  about a fixed tank  of water placed as low 
in the boat as possible and completely filled. An air bubble in 
the tank means  that the some of  the water is  free to move to 
the low side and  in this case stability  can actually be worse 
than if  the tank  were left  empty. If  it is  kept empty, the 
entire boat will float too high, reducing stability. So if your 
boat has a ballast tank,  keep it *completely* filled while you 
are afloat. To answer the question  in more detail, it needs to 
be broken  down into  two questions,  one comparing  water with 
lead ballast and another comparing water with no ballast. 


How does a  water-ballasted boat compare  with a lead-ballasted 
boat of  the same length,  beam, draft,  freeboard and interior 
headroom, and the same weight of ballast? 

Water  ballast is  much lighter  for trailering,  as it  can be 
drained. A water tank is cheaper  than the same weight of solid 
lead. These benefits are purchased at a cost however. 

The water-ballasted boat will  have less static stability, This 
is because the less dense ballast cannot be concentrated as low 
in the boat. The water-ballasted boat therefore cannot carry as 
much sail  as the  lead-ballasted boat,  but will  have similar 
resistance to  motion. This  means decreased  speed. Also, this 
ballast  occupying  relatively  high  areas  of  the  boat will 
require a  deeper shaped  hull for  the same  interior headroom 
which leads  to a shorter  (vertically) fin  or centerboard for 
the   same  total  draft.  This   adds  up  to  worse  windward 
performance.  These  are  the  costs  of  the  more  convenient 
trailering and lower expense. 


How  does a  water-ballasted boat  compare with  an unballasted 
boat of the  same length, beam,  draft, freeboard, and interior 
headroom? 

If  designed  to  do  so,  water  ballast  could  make  a  boat 
uncapsizable.  At least,  it will  increase the  capsize angle. 
Water ballast also  adds mass and therefore  easier motion in a 
sea and  better way-carrying in  a lull  or a tack.  It will do 
this for little increased expense and trailering weight. 

Basically,   the   advantages  are   bought  at   the  cost  of 
performance.  A water-ballasted  boat can  carry little  if any 
more  sail than  an unballasted  boat. This  is because  it has 
little if any more stability  at small angles of heel. However, 
for the same length, headroom, freeboard, etc. it must displace 
a greater  amount of  water equal to  the tank  of ballast. The 
same length, combined with  greater displacement and no greater 
sail-carrying  ability  means  less  speed.  Compared  with  an 
unballasted    boat   even   more   than   compared   with  the 
lead-ballasted boat, the hull must be deeper, which again means 
less   of  the   draft  constraint  can   be  allowed  for  the 
centerboard. This  means poorer windward  performance. Also the 
draft with centerboard up must  be greater than the unballasted 
case. The better carrying  of way and easier  motion are at the 
cost  of  slower  acceleration in  puffs  or  after  tacks. The 
increased mass is a double-edged sword. 

Why does it add little if any more stability at small angles of 
heel?  Remember  we  are comparing  a  water-ballasted  with an 
unballasted boat of the same length, freeboard, cabin headroom, 
etc. The increased weight of water  must be put in an increased 
underwater volume of the hull  located as low as possible. This 
added  volume  of water  underneath  what could  have  been the 
bottom of the  unballasted boat has  no net gravitational force 
under static conditions as long  as it is completely submerged. 
That is, neglecting the additional weight of the tank and added 
hull material, the increased weight  is exactly balanced by the 
buoyancy of the  increased volume to hold  it. It therefore can 
have no effect on either heeling or righting moment if the tank 
is full  of water of  the same density  as that in  which it is 
submerged. Another  way to  think of it  is that  the center of 
buoyancy is lowered by exactly the same amount as the center of 
gravity. 

Then how does it increase the capsize angle? At large angles of 
heel more or less of the  water tank rises above the waterline. 
Now  the relationship  between the  center  of gravity  and the 
inclined  center of  buoyancy becomes  more favorable  than the 
unballasted case. All of  the weight of the  water is no longer 
balanced by its buoyancy. 

Summary 

Could you make a SHORT summary of all this? 

Yes. Just consider a water-ballasted  boat to be an unballasted 
boat but  with improved capsize  angle and all  the plusses and 
minuses of added weight while  afloat but not while trailering. 
There is a cost in performance. (gf) 


3.4 What's a good first sailboat? 

The Sunfish and boats like it---very simple, easy to rig and to 
move around---make great learning boats  for one or two people, 
but not for  a family. The  Laser is a  tougher first boat, but 
there's likely to be a racing  fleet nearby, and you can get an 
old one that's still plenty strong for very little money. 

My own belief is that a somewhat tired old boat is a good first 
one. It will teach you something about maintenance, and it will 
let  you take  some  risks as  you're  learning---scratching an 
already-scratched hull is far  more tolerable than scratching a 
brand-new one. 

In general,  a boat  that can be  trailered and  handled by one 
person is  probably best;  you'll sail  lots more  if you don't 
have to get a friend to help out. 

Sailing clubs can be a great way to learn. (jh) 


3.5 How do those rating systems and all that stuff work? 

[ Contributed by Roy Smith ] 

PHRF  (pronounced  ``perf'')  is  Performance  Handicap  Racing 
Fleet.  Unlike  other  rating  systems  (IOR,  IMS,  etc), PHRF 
ratings are not assigned based on some sort of measurement, but 
rather on past performance of  similar boats. If you are racing 
in a club  race or a  local weekday evening  or weekend series, 
where different  kinds of  boats race  against each  other, the 
odds are that PHRF is the  rating system you're using. In PHRF, 
boats are assigned ratings in  seconds per mile. Your rating is 
the number of  seconds per mile your  boat is supposedly slower 
than  a theoretical  boat  which rates  0.  Most boats  you are 
likely to sail  on rate somewhere  in the range  of about 50 to 
250. All ratings are multiples of 3 seconds/mile (i.e. the next 
faster  rating than  171 is  168). I  think this  is done  as a 
recognition that the rating  process just isn't accurate enough 
to justify rating boats to 1 second/mile resolution. 

Typically, a certain type of boat is given a stock rating based 
on past  experience. Just  to make  it a  bit more interesting, 
ratings vary  somewhat depending  on location;  each YRA (Yacht 
Racing Association)  can assign  its own  rating to  a class of 
boat depending on  their local experiences  and conditions. For 
example, Western Long  Island Sound, under  the jurisdiction of 
YRA of LIS,  is famous for  light wind, which  tends to give an 
advantage to certain types of boats,  and YRA of LIS takes that 
into account when assigning ratings. 

On top of  your regional stock  rating, there are  a variety of 
standard  rating  adjustments  depending on  how  your  boat is 
rigged. The  standard PHRF  rules allow you  to have  a 153 but 
take a rating  penalty for it.  Likewise, you can  chose to not 
carry that  big a  sail and  get a  rating advantage.  Having a 
non-standard keel, extra tall or  short mast, a fixed prop (the 
stock ratings assume a folding  or feathering prop), extra long 
or short  spinnaker pole,  etc, all  result in  rating changes. 
Some  boats have  several  stock ratings  for  different common 
variations. For example, there  are 4 configurations of J/29's; 
masthead or fractional rig and inboard or outboard. 

Once you've  got your basic  rating, adjusted  for location and 
customizations you may have done,  you still have the option of 
petitioning for a rating change  based on whatever evidence you 
might care to present to prove that your rating is too fast (or 
the other guy's  is too slow),  an area that  quickly gets into 
politics  and  boat lawyers.  There  are two  flavors  of PHRF, 
Time-on-Distance (TOD) and Time- on-Time (TOT). TOD is the more 
traditional and easier to understand,  so let's start there. In 
TOD, you get a handicap equal  to the length of the race course 
in nautical  miles multiplied  by your  rating in seconds/mile. 
Thus, for a 6 mile race, a  boat that rates 120 would get a 720 
second handicap,  i.e. her corrected  finish time  would be 720 
seconds less  than her actual  time to complete  the race. What 
people tend to do is think not so much about the actual rating, 
but rating differences, i.e. if you  rate 120 and the other guy 
rates 111,  he owes  you 9 seconds  per mile,  so for  a 6 mile 
race, as long as  he finishes less than  54 seconds in front of 
you, you will correct over him and win. 

The other  flavor of PHRF  is Time-on-Time (TOT).  In TOT, it's 
not the length of the race course that matters, it's the amount 
of time the  race takes. To  do TOT, first  you have to convert 
your normal rating, R, in seconds  per mile to a factor, F. The 
formula to convert R to F  varies from place to place, but it's 
typically something like  F = 600  / (480 +  R). Actually, it's 
really something like F = 600 / ((600 - Rav) + R), where Rav is 
the average rating of  all the boats in  the fleet. Locally, we 
use an Rav of  120 which gives the formula  with the 480 in the 
denominator. For reasonable values of R,  you get an F which is 
a number close to 1. For example, a J/24 rating 171 has an F of 
0.9217, while  a Newport-41  rating 108 has  an F  of 1.020. To 
score  the race,  you take  each  boat's finish  time, subtract 
their start time  (giving their raw  elapsed time) and multiply 
by  their F,  giving their  Corrected  Elapsed Time  (CET). The 
theory behind TOT is that in a slow race (i.e. light wind), the 
boats tend to spread out but since the amount of time each boat 
owes the others is  fixed by the length  of the race course (in 
TOD), slow  (i.e. light  wind) races  tend to  favor the faster 
boats. 

On of  the problems  with TOT is  that there  is no universally 
accepted  formula  for converting  R  to  F. With  the  sort of 
formula used above, you can argue about what should be used for 
Rav. What we  do locally is  use one Rav  for the entire fleet, 
which is 8 divisions with ratings  ranging from 36 to about 250 
or so. Some  people think we  should calculate an  Rav for each 
division, for example.  Some people think TOT  is a total crock 
and want to go back to TOD. 

Contributed by Stephen Bailey (sb) ] 

Sailboats racing  under a  ``handicap system''  have a function 
applied to their elapsed  time, producing a ``corrected time,'' 
and the  boats place  in corrected  time order.  This function, 
which differs among systems, attempts to fairly represent speed 
differences among boats. 

There are two  major handicapping philosophies: ``measurement'' 
rules which  handicap based  upon measurements,  and ``rating'' 
rules which handicap based upon observed performance. 

The International Offshore Rule (IOR) is a measurement rule for 
racing boats. The IOR evolved from the Cruising Club of America 
(CCA) rule for racer/cruisers. 

The  IOR concentrates  on hull  shape  with length,  beam, free 
board  and  girth  measurements,  foretriangle,  mast  and boom 
measurements, and stability with an inclination test. 

The  IOR also  identifies features  which  are dangerous  or it 
can't fairly rate, and penalizes or prohibits them. 

The measurements and penalties are used to compute the handicap 
number which  is an  ``IOR length'' in  feet. A  typical IOR 40 
footer (a ``one tonner'') has rating of 30.55 feet. 

In a  handicapped race,  the IOR  length is  used to  compute a 
``time allowance,'' in seconds per nautical mile (s/M) which is 
multiplied by the distance of the race, and subtracted from the 
boat's  actual  time,  to compute  the  boat's  corrected time. 
Longer IOR length gives a smaller time allowance. 

The IOR is also used to define ``level classes,'' where no time 
correction is  used. Every  boat in a  class has  an IOR number 
less than some number. The Ton Classes, (Mini Ton, 1/4 Ton, 1/2 
Ton, 3/4 Ton, 1  Ton, and Two Ton),  as well as 50-footer, ULDB 
70 and Maxi classes are examples. 

To account for improvements in  design and materials, boats are 
given an ``old age allowance'' which decreases their IOR length 
as time passes.  In spite of  the old age  allowance, about 3/4 
s/M/year on 40 footer, boats over several years old are usually 
not competitive, which is why IOR handicap racing is dead. 

Peculiarities   of  IOR  designs  result  from  features  which 
increase actual performance more than they increase IOR length, 
or  other  odd  rules; IOR  hulls  bulge  at  girth measurement 
points; a reverse transom moves  a girth measurement point to a 
thicker part  of the hull;  waterline length  is measured while 
floating  upright,  so  large overhangs  are  used  to increase 
waterline sailing at speed;  the stability factor ignores crew, 
so IOR  designers assume lots  of live ballast;  after the 1979 
Fastnet race  excessive tenderness  was penalized;  full length 
battens were  prohibited to prevent  main sail  roach area, but 
short battens  became strong enough  that the IOR  had to start 
measuring and penalizing extra main  sail girth; main sail area 
adds  less IOR  length  than jib  area,  so new  IOR  boats are 
fractionally rigged;  The IOR  encourages high  free board, and 
high booms and prohibits keels wider  at the bottom than at the 
top (bulbs). 

The Midget  Offshore Racing Club  Rule (MORC)  is a measurement 
rule for racing boats no longer  than 30 feet. The MORC rule is 
similar to the IOR. It  computes a handicap length from various 
measurements, which is used to  define level classes and derive 
time allowances. 

MORC seems to work  better than IOR because  the range of boats 
it attempts to handicap is not as large, and it is more quickly 
modified when  problems arise.  For example,  the MORC recently 
adjusted their  old age allowance  to permit older  boats to be 
competitive. 

The  International Measurement  System  (IMS) is  a measurement 
system intended  for racer/cruisers.  The IOR  was not  fair to 
racer/cruisers, so  the Measurement  Handicap System  (MHS) was 
invented, in 1981, and accepted  internationally, as the IMS in 
1985. 

With a diverse collection of boats, relative performance varies 
not  just with  design,  but also  with  race conditions.  A 33 
footer can beat a 40 footer upwind in moderate wind, but the 40 
footer will probably come  out ahead in heavier  winds, or on a 
reach. 

The IMS  uses a  Velocity Prediction  Program (VPP)  to predict 
speed on different points of  sail in different wind strengths. 
From the  predictions, and the  distance, course  type and wind 
strength of a race, a time  allowance is computed for each boat 
and subtracted from  the boat's elapsed  time to give corrected 
time. 

IMS  rule  designers  believe the  key  to  fairly handicapping 
diverse hull shapes  is measuring a large  number of points all 
over the hull  and appendages, measuring  sail area accurately, 
and using an inclination  test (which is the  same as the IOR). 
The VPP uses these measurements to account for heeling, crew on 
the rail, the immersed shape, and other factors. 

The IMS  VPP doesn't  yet account  for dynamic  drag of  a boat 
pitching in  waves, nor  for appendage  shapes which  result in 
reduced   drag.  Some  parameters  are  based  upon  incomplete 
experimental evidence. For example,  the VPP predicts a greater 
benefit from full battens than is realized in practice. 

IMS defines a ``General Purpose  Rating,'' which is a predicted 
time per mile around a particular  course, in 10 knots of wind. 
A typical IMS 40 footer has a GPR around 595 s/M. 

The Performance Handicap  Rating Factor (PHRF)  is a subjective 
rating  rule. PHRF  was  developed to  handicap  monohulls that 
didn't fit under  the rubric of other  handicap systems. It has 
since become  the most popular  handicapping system  in the US, 
being almost universally used in club racing. 

PHRF assigns a  boat a rating,  in s/M, which  is multiplied by 
the length of the course and subtracted from the boat's elapsed 
time to give corrected time. 

Ratings  are  assigned  by  a  committee  of  the  local racing 
authority, formed from representatives of the member clubs. The 
initial  rating  for  a  boat  is  based  upon  any information 
available, such as  the boat's rating  in another area, ratings 
under other  handicap systems,  information from  the designer, 
ratings of similar boats, and  a set of standard adjustments to 
basic ratings  (e.g. fixed prop,  extra large  sails, etc.) All 
ratings  are multiples  of  3 s/M.  For  example, a  J/24 rates 
around 171 s/M, and a J/35 around 69 s/M in many areas. 

Since ratings are assigned  and administrated locally, they may 
account for local conditions. A  good heavy air boat would rate 
faster in San Francisco Bay, than in Long Island Sound. 

A member may appeal a rating, presenting evidence, such as race 
results,  which  supports  the  appeal.  The  local committee's 
decision may  be appealed to  a committee  of PHRF handicappers 
from all over the country. 

Although  PHRF is  subjective, it  still  attempts to  rate the 
boat, in racing trim, with a  perfect crew. Just because a boat 
never wins,  or always wins  doesn't mean its  rating should or 
shouldn't be adjusted. 

Using  this  system,  the  slower  the  race,  the  smaller the 
percentage by which a  faster boat must beat  a slower boat. To 
correct this, some PHRF races  are handicapped by multiplying a 
boat with  rating R's elapsed  time by (C  / ((C -  Rav) + R)), 
where Rav is  the fleet's average  rating, and C  is a constant 
around  600-700,  to  compute corrected  time.  This  system is 
called ``time on  time'', the previous,  more common, system is 
``time on distance.'' 

The two systems  only differ substantially  when ratings span a 
large range (> 30 s/M), or races  are long (in time). It is not 
clear which system is ultimately fairer. 

The Portsmouth Yardstick  (PY) is a  statistically based rating 
rule. The  PY was  developed by  the Dixie  Inland Yacht Racing 
Association to  handicap any boat,  including multihulls, which 
are   excluded  from  all  the  previously  described  handicap 
systems, based on performance in races. 

The PY begins with a boat which is well sailed, and ubiquitous, 
called  the  ``Primary  Yardstick.'' This  boat  is  assigned a 
Portsmouth Number  (PN), which  is the  time the  boat takes to 
travel  a  fixed,  but unspecified  distance.  In  the  US, the 
Thistle the primary yardstick, and its PN is 83. 

Elapsed times are collected for races. The fastest boat of each 
type in a  race is assumed  to have sailed  a perfect race. The 
ratios  of the  fastest boat's  time  to the  fastest yardstick 
boat's time, normalized by the yardstick boat's PN are averaged 
over   all  races  to   compute  that  boat's  PN.  Statistical 
techniques are  used to discard  outlying data  points. A class 
with a large quantity  of data, and no  recent change in PN may 
become a ``Secondary  Yardstick,'' used in  the same fashion as 
the  Primary  Yardstick. The  Laser  and J/24  are  examples of 
Secondary Yardsticks. 

The  usual  way  to  handicap  with  Portsmouth  numbers  is to 
multiply elapsed  time by  100/(PN) to  compute corrected time. 
This is a ``time on time'' system (see PHRF). 

In addition, PY has begun to compute numbers for different wind 
strengths. The  Primary Yardstick is  defined to  have the same 
number for all  wind strengths. Using  these numbers, clubs can 
more fairly handicap races in various wind strengths. 

Since  the PY  data  are not  broken  down by  course  type, it 
assumed  that  boats racing  under  the PY  are  racing courses 
similar to an Olympic, triangle or Gold Cup course. 

Below  are  formulas for  converting  among  different system's 
ratings. Accuracy of  these conversions may  vary. (And indeed, 
the last one  has been called  into question by  one reader, so 
you should probably treat it as suspect). 

PN = PHRF/6 + 55 PHRF = GPR - 550 PHRF = 2160/sqrt(IOR) - 198 

Since we  know that the  IMS GPR is  the time taken  to cover a 
mile (of  a particular  course), in  10 knots  of wind,  we can 
estimate a boat's speed over this course given its PHRF rating: 

v = 3600 / (PHRF + 550) 

So, a J/24's (171  s/M) speed is 4.99  knots, a J/35's (69 s/m) 
is 5.81 knots. The J/35 is 16 of 3 s/m represents around a 0.4 

Using  the IOR  conversion,  a one  tonner  might rate  72 s/M, 
whereas they are actually much  faster than that, rating around 
54 s/M PHRF.  This illustrates the  ``advantage'' designers can 
take of the IOR. 


3.6 Who/What is US Sailing, how do I join, should I join? 

United States Sailing Association (US Sailing), formerly USYRU, 
is the governing body for sailboat  racing in the US. Its goals 
are to  govern, promote, and  represent sailboat  racing and to 
promote  the  sport  of  sailing.  Activities  include  sailing 
courses; certification  of instructors,  race officers, judges, 
etc; holding  of various national  championships; management of 
the olympic sailing  team; and updating  and publication of the 
International  Yacht  Racing  Rules  every  four  years.  Basic 
membership  is  35/year,  but  various  discount  programs  are 
available through many  yacht clubs. All  active racing sailors 
should  be  members  of US  Sailing.  (sc)  The  directory they 
provide has the  addresses of every racing  class known to man. 
(wh) 

Address: US  Sailing Box  209, Goat  Island Marina  Newport, RI 
02840 (401) 849-5200 Fax: (401) 849-5208 

telex: 704592 USYRU NORT UD 

compuserve :75530,502 email  or "Go SAILING  FORUM" for the "US 
SAILING  connection."  Executive  Director  monitors 75410,2126 
three times daily for members' or organizations' queries. (tl) 


3.7 Where can I find out about collegiate sailing? 

US Sailing publishes a college sailing directory, available for 
7 from the address above. (sc) 

Jay Allen also says: [ There is a college sailing mailing list. 
The address to subscribe is: 

majordomo@westweb.com 

and one should write in the message: 

subscribe icyra 


3.8 What about keels? 

Courtesy of Matt Pedersen: 

(Definitions used in this discussion: length refers to the fore 
and aft length  of the keel,  depth refers to  how far the keel 
sticks into the water, width is side/side width) 

General discussion of Keels: 

Keels help you sail  in a straight line.  They are also a great 
place to put a bilge, bilge pump, and tankage. What you want is 
a keel that is very narrow  in width when going to weather, and 
a little  fatter going  downwind. I don't  know how  to make my 
keel do this, but  when I do figure it  out you'll be the first 
to know. Narrow width keels  also stall out (lose their lifting 
ability) at lower  speeds when compared to  a fatter keel. This 
is a negative. 

Longer keels are harder to knock off course than shorter keels. 
Longer  keels are  harder to  put back  on course  than shorter 
keels.  Longer  keels  have more  wetted  surface  than shorter 
keels, which hurts light air performance. 

Deeper keels go  to windward better  than shallow keels. Deeper 
keels  get the  ballast  lower in  the  boat, which  helps sail 
carrying  ability. Deeper  keels  find the  bottom  sooner than 
shallow keels. 

About wing keels: 

Winged keels have a lot more weight down low which dramatically 
increases the stability they provide. The wings supposedly help 
hydrodynamics.  I  don't think  it's  all that  great.  They do 
increase draft a  little going to weather  (the wing hangs down 
lower as  you heel).  I'm not real  convinced that  a wing keel 
when heeled and slightly  deeper, but with a  right angle in it 
is more  efficient at  getting lift  than a  standard fin. Wing 
keels are good  at catching kelp, or  anything else floating in 
the water. They  also stick in  the mud better,  if that's what 
you want. To  be fair they are  a way to get  shoal draft and a 
little stiffness too. 

Bulb Keels: 

These are basically  a keel with  a big torpedo  shaped blob of 
lead at the bottom. They are not more efficient than a straight 
fin. They  do get  more weight  down low,  which helps  in sail 
carrying ability. 

Scheel keels: 

Scheel keels are kind of like  bulbs at the bottom of the keel, 
but   they  look  cooler.   They  may  have  some  hydrodynamic 
improvement over a straight fin, I don't know. They get ballast 
way down low. It's interesting that many designers use a Scheel 
keel instead  of a wing  keel, even  though they have  to pay a 
royalty on it. That says something about how difficult it is to 
design a truly good wing keel.  By the way Henry Scheel designs 
great looking boats. 

Recent history of keel design: 

Now if you look at the design  of fin keels over the years, you 
will see a  great deal of  theory being applied  to get you the 
fastest shape  possible. Let's  see, there  was the  swept back 
``Sharks fin" of the early  seventies. It looks fast, therefore 
it must be fast.  They were ``proven" to  be slow, so you don't 
see  them much  anymore. However,  David Pedrick  (who designed 
Dennis Conner's Stars and Stripes) has resurrected them for the 
latest Freedom boats. Gee, maybe they are fast after all. 

Then  there  was  the  ``Peterson"  fin.  Straight  leading and 
trailing edges.  High aspect ratio.  Still pretty  fast, but it 
doesn't put most of its weight down low, where it does the most 
good. But then the IOR rule really didn't care about that. 

Then there was the winged keel  of the eighties. They are great 
on big tubby meter  boats with draft limited  by some rule, and 
you want a  lot of weight down  low (like 60+ %  of the boat is 
ballast). You can do that by  either increasing the size of the 
bulb/blob at the bottom of the keel, or you can spend thousands 
on tank testing your  wings, get the weight  down low with them 
instead, and psych out your competition at the same time. 

Today the latest theory has  keels of the semi-elliptical form, 
where you have the leading edge straight, and the trailing edge 
gently curved. Except  for some of  Bruce Farr's designs, which 
have a gently curved leading edge and straight aft edge. Wait a 
minute, that doesn't fit the theory! Farr's boats don't seem to 
notice that they don't fit  the latest theory though. They just 
leave everybody else behind them  and go to the winners circle. 
They  are using  bulbs today  instead of  wings on  the hottest 
racing boats, to get more stability with less total weight... 


3.9 Sailing simulators? 

There are  Posey simulators as  well as  nav packages, hardware 
and  software  in  Dave  and  Judy  Crane's  Nautical Computing 
catalog, available from DF Crane Associates, 2535 Kettner Blvd; 
PO Box 87531, San Diego CA 92138-7531 Phone 619/233-0223. 

Dennis Posey  also sells  his collection  of race  and cruising 
simulators  by  direct  mail  from  Posey  Yacht  Designs,  101 
Parmelee Rd., Haddam,  CT 06438 or 203/345-2685.  He has a half 
dozen different versions for different levels and interests, PC 
and Mac. (rs2) 


3.10 Chartering and learn-to-sail schools 

In the  US, various  people on  the net  have spoken  highly of 
Womanship (and one of their  instructors is a regular reader, I 
believe). In the Virgin Islands, the general summary of charter 
operations  seems to  be  that you  get  what you  pay for--the 
lower-budget operations have less-well-maintained boats. 

Can one become  competent for a bareboat  charter in two weeks? 
You   may  be   able  to  do  so   (according  to  the  Charter 
operation---i.e., they may let you charter a boat), but I would 
not count on it. (jfh) 
