Dear Nacra 17 Class,
With the first Nacra 17 full foiling regatta scheduled for late July, 2017, we must make a number of changes to our class rules in order for the championship to proceed properly. Therefore, your class executive has scheduled an Extraordinary General Meeting for July 6, 2017. Like we did for the foiling vote, we will host a conference call for all sailors to attend, where we will have the opportunity to discuss each rule change. Then we will open up voting for a 3 day period.
Unlike the Foiling vote, however, we now have a functioning constitution. Therefore, we will use the constitutional method of voting, meaning that each nation will have to nominate a representative to the World Council to vote your nations behalf. Sailors should send their national rep nominations to Ben Remocker prior to July 6th and sailors should make sure they become class members for 2017 to ensure your nation has as many votes attributed to it as it should.
Your executive, the staff at World Sailing, and the technical committee have all had a chance to weigh in on what items need to be changed. As sailors though, you are much closer to the boats and may have ideas of your own for what needs to change. Therefore, published below are 3 categories of changes:
a) items that need to change for the class to function
b) items we should choose to vote on before we start racing
c) items that we think need more time so we suggest holding the votes at the AGM during the World Championship
We now invite all class members to request alterations or write additional questions to be voted on in any of the categories. Please note, while we also encourage you to share your views online, only formal requests for votes will be added to the EGM agenda via email at benremocker (at) hotmail.com so if you want something to be voted on formally, please write it up and submit it as such:
a) title
b) Change Requested
c) Existing Rule
d) Reason for change
Here are the rule changes as they stand now, for discussion and to be formalized when we officially call for the EGM in 2 week.
1. Required before Euros
- 1.1 Rudder Rake – The rudder rake shall not be adjusted while racing.
- 1.2 Footloops – Change class rule 7.1 (d) to be ‘three’ foot loops and change C 7.1(e) (ii) to fit the rear two foot loops astern of the rear beam. This rule means that the front of the three footstraps can be replaced for a like item, but it cannot be moved as the internal anchors are built into the boat and there is no access point to create other anchors
- 1.3 Boat weight – Class Rules 6.4 – the weight of the boat changed to XYZ and XYZ – 4 kg with carbon mast and class rule 6.5 (b) the maximums size of the corrector weights shall not exceed (ABC) on a converted boat and (EFG) on a carbon skinned boat.
- 1.4 Daggerboard Packing – delete section C 7.1 (f) and move to appendix for C board rules
- 1.5 Rudder Packing – delete section 8.1 (d) and (e)
- 1.6 Need to add something about centerboard raking to C9.1
- 1.7 Create an Appendix for C Board Racing as per the current rule book
2. Optional prior to Euros
- 2.1 Daggerboard Position – Both centerboards shall be in the full down position whilst racing, with an exception being that they may be raised to clear the boat from becoming afoul of in water items, and should be immediately placed back into the full down position once becoming clear of in water items.
- 2.2 Repairs approved by Technical Committee –
- Add section C6.3 (c) Localized repairs to damaged hulls, mast, centerboards, rudder vertical, rudder horizontal may be undertaken. Any repair shall not be used to reinforce an existing part or add a function. Before any repair is attempted, the International Class Technical Committee, or if at an event the event measurer, shall be advised and approval sought to undertake the repair.
- Add section C7.3 (a) add (i) Any repair shall not be used to reinforce an existing part or add a function. Before any repair is attempted, the International Class Technical Committee, or if at an event the event measurer, shall be advised and approval sought to undertake the repair.
- 2.3 Do we need to add something to 8.2?
- 2.4 Sanding Foils – will be allowed as per class rules C 6.2 (a) and C 8.1 (a)
- 2.5 Air on bottom of boat – each team should carry an air bottle on the underside of their boat to specification XYZ? Should we all carry a bottle of breathing air on the underside of our boats?
- 2.6 Chicken Line – Proposal is to allow teams to make chicken lines any way they see fit?
- 2.7 Fast Racing Rules – Should we request to adopt the fast racing rules?
- 2.8 Jib Advertising Policy – Adopt the following policy for the Nacra 17 class stating, which is in conjunction to the class rule allowing the class to market the jib space of each competing boat to sponsors
“The Nacra 17 Class Association will seek to market the space on the jib of the Nacra 17 to sponsors of the class, class events, and other events. The class will issue the branding plan for the jibs 28 days prior to the first day of measurement of any event where branding is required.
To encourages and promotes both individual and national team sponsors, all International Nacra 17 sponsorship contracts will aim to have the restrictions listed below. A sailor may request to be excused from event branding of conflicting sponsors subject to the following:
The branding in question is part of the same category as the sailors personal, team, or MNA sponsor
The sailor will be placing the conflicting brand on their person, hull, or main sail, thus proving trueness of a conflicting sponsorship. Note: Other forms of proof of conflicting sponsorship will be deemed acceptable upon review by class management
The Sailors have notified the class management of the conflict 21 days prior to the first day of measurement of the event in question or have obtained a general waiver for the current year
In the case of all valid conflicts:
in place of the sponsor branding, the same space on the jib will be branded to the Event or Class as deemed appropriate by the class management. For example, a “nacra17.org” sticker
3. Optional During AGM (Sept)
- 3.1 Gennaker Upwind – There is concern that the gennaker could be used to sail upwind in light winds, and then gennakers will have poor longevity due to the high loads of sailing upwind. The class will look to ask if we should restrict use of Gennakers upwind during the AGM in September, once sailors have been given access to the boats.
- 3.2 Helmet – “Each crew member shall wear a helmet that shall be to the minimum standard EN1385 or EN1077 or equivalent with at least 300 square centimeters of the exterior surface in a high visibility colour.
- 3.3 “If flag T is flown on the Race Committee boat before the warning signal of a race then helmets need not be worn.” This question we be held back to the 2017 Class AGM, since the Europeans are governed by the NoR Amendment and the Worlds are governed by French Law.
- 3.4 Body Armor – Each crew member may wear body protection, if the body protection also acts as a personal flotation device it shall comply with Class Rule 3.1” We will wait for 2017 AGM.
- 3.5 Knife to Carry – “Each crew shall carry a cutting device with a blade length of no more than 150mm.” We will wait for 2017 AGM
- 3.6 Should we allow racing with 2 females in a team at some championships