Regatta Officials

    So what is a regatta official? The officials are those Starters, Umpires and Finish Judges that are required to keep racing fair and within the rules of the association. It can be a bit like a football referee where there is always a portion of the crowd that dislikes your decision. As they say, you can't please all of the people all of the time.

    So where do infringements occur most of the time and can they be avoided? There are two main areas where issues occur: The Start and The Turns.

1. The Start

A. "Jumping the start" or "Hanging back"

    I'm sure there are a number of you out there that feel that most of the cause in this area is due to the inconsistency of the starters. While there are differences in the way we, the umpires approach starting a race I would beg to differ. No two starts are the same due to the actions of the crews and the conditions of the water. In my travels on the beech amongst the clubs there are always calls to "Let them go" when they see a line. What is not realised is that while there might be a line from there viewpoint there may not be from the starters in relation to the start posts. Basic mathematics will tell you that one boat length past the post for the inside crew will give the outside crew significant advantage. Perhaps three boat lengths! How many of you feel that you can give away that sort of distance to there nearest rivals.
    This is made all the more difficult by the crews that hang back trying to get a running start and those that press the front of the line so that those hanging back don't gain anything on them. As the sea conditions get rougher this only made more difficult. You can add rowing competency to the problem and by that I mean lower status crews rowing at higher levels to get a few points for the club. This is not true of all those that row at a higher status but they are usually the ones slower to react and seem to be hanging at the rear of the field. I can hear you say, "disqualify or leave them". In about 90% of the races someone gets left and I have heard the groans from the beech when clubs feel that there crew was disadvantaged. Mosts crews pushing the line get a warning and the crews asked to back down as all are usually past the line by this stage. In rare occasions (and this is only rare due to starters goodwill) crews get disqualified for jumping the start. Either left or disqualified usually leads to a crew at the starters tent venting there displeasure and how it wasn't there fault!
Beware, there is a growing feeling that we need to be stricter at the start which will see more crews disqualified.

B. Being part of the race

    What is meant by this in relation to the start? The rougher conditions highlight this point. If there was no rowing by a crew there position relevant to the other crews would change. Therefore action is required to continue to be part of the race. With sometimes ten crews the starter cannot give every crew stroke by stroke instructions so it is the individual crews responsibility to to "be part of the race". Your coxswain can see where you are in relation to the other crews so he or she needs to instruct you to stop rowing ir riw a few strokes. I should emphasize that this is "Light Rowing". The reason some push the start line is that those crews comming into line are rowing hard!

C. "The 5 Minute Rule" (37g)

    Do you, The competitors really understand what this rule is about? Most regatta secretairies go to great lengths to try and keep like boats and catagories apart. ie. not run fours races or Senior men's races etc consecutivly. They also try and keep an eye out for oarsmen competing in consecutive races. In most cases there should be almost no delay between races. Invariably what does happen is crews are waiting for the race preceding theres to finish before they venture onto the water. This causes the racing to be delayed and interferance with the finish of the preceding race. If the 5 minute rule is bought into play the time should be kept to a minimum and any equpiment / people changes should take place at the start line where the starters can see the change.
    This rule also stats that a crew needs to be within five lengths of the start when the race is "Under Starters Orders". For those crews that want a warm up that means that you need to have finished your warm up and waiting five lengths behind the line when the preceding race finishes. Failure to be there should result in you being disqualified. For all crews this should mean that you start going afloat when the preceding race is about to turn. If you have changes then you should be near the start line. Please - Dont impede the start line!

2. The Turns

    The main rules that affect the umpires decisions at the turns are Rule 22, Rule 23 and Rule 26. So how does this impact the turn and what basis are the umpires using these rules to make there decisions?

    The starting point for any decisions really depends on a foul as described under Rule 23 occuring. In reality the umpires have watched the crews as they approach them and looked at the race areas where there are likely to be problems. This entails looking for crews that have bunched together and seem to be heading for the same turn or crews crossing the course. Obviously, if there are no fouls committed no actions are taken. Crews heading for the same turn maye receive a warning as per Rule 24.

So who gets warned or disqualified? There are three likely scenarios:
i) A foul occurs between Crew "X" and Crew "Y" on turn "3". Crew "X" has crossed the course from position "6" and Crew "Y" is on station as it was drawn in position "3" in the starting line-up. Crew "X" would probably get warned as they are deemed "Off Station". i.e. They are not on there designated turn. This still applies even if they had a lengths clear water when crossing the course as per Rule 22!
    Remember that this does not matter if you are winning or losing the race! You really need three lengths of clear water to get around a turn without impeding the crew you are leading. This also applies if you are exiting a turn and likely to cause a foul with a crew comming in. It is the off station crews responsibility to not impede those who are on-station. The crew crossing the course will face disqualification.

ii) A foul occurs between Crew "X" and Crew "Y" on turn "3". Crew "X" has crossed the course from position "6" and Crew "Y" has also crossed the course from position "9". It is clear that both crews are off-station and neither has right of way. The umpire will likely warn both crews to "watch there Course" as they approach the turn, but this will depend on what else is occuring. The likelyhood is that Rule 26 is applied and both crews should abide by there accidents.
    If there is a few lengths between the crews the following crew may be warned and a resulting foul could see the following crew disqualified.

iii) The third scenario is more difficult to handle and is where there is likely to be contention between the result. It is very dependant on conditions at the time of the race and the starting position of the crews reletive to the buoy turns. A foul occurs between Crew "X" and Crew "Y" on turn "3". Crew "X" started from position "4" and Crew "Y" in position "3".
    The positions of the other crews have some barring on the result as like in most cases, especially at senior level there crews can be bunched up. Rough conditions where the buoys are difficult to see until you are close will also be taken into account. I have picked crews "3" and "4" here as they are in the middle of the course. Most crews head in and it is probable that crew "X" has come in with the crews stationed outside. Rule 22, Second paragraph! Crew "X" has done nothing wrong and could be deemed not to have crossed the course.
    So why haven't crew "Y" moved in. It could also be that the inside crews have gone straight down the course forcing crew "Y" to stay at turn "3". The starting positions of the crews may come into play along with the race position when the reach the turn and what makes the decision very flexible.

To Re-row or Not to re-row, Thats the question?

        Well I thought it was funny anyway...

    I have heard many of you say that if we have a re-row then somebody should be disqualified. Well think of those in scenario "iii". As I have already mentioned, a lot depends on the current race positions (as opposed to lane) of the crews involved and the distance that seperates them.

Scenario 1
    Some instances are cut and dry. Take scenario "i" above with crew "X" leading by a length having cut across "Y". They may have the required length to overtake but they have still impeded "Y" at the turn. The umpire has two options and they depend on the distance back to the other crews. "X" would get disqualified under Rule 22 whatever as they have impeded "Y" who are on station. The liklyhood is that this will be a re-row unless the umpire feels that the crew can get away from the turn without loosing much distance and use Rule 26 "c" at the end if they feel that it is required.

Scenario 2
    In the case of scenario "ii" above there is only one outcome. Both crews are off station and as such Rule 26 applies without any clauses. Both crews abide by there accidents and the race continues. The only time the umpires may order a e-row is if the feel that there is a safety issue. (I have seen one incident where three crews hit the same turn with 1/2 length and the ensuing melee at the head of the race could have been dangerous had it continued)

Scenario 3
    Looking at scenario "iii" above and say the 4th and 5th placed crews are those in question but four of five lengths off the lead crew, then the umpire may choose to warn crew "4" (as we are on turn "3") to watch there course and follow "3" round. If there is a following foul then the umpire could choose the later part of Rule 23 or to disqualify the warned crew and use Rule 26 "a". Either way the race continues.

Scenario 4
    Not listed above but happens every year, Leading crews out in front by three or four lengths and on exiting the turns run into the crews following on. I would like your opinions as to what you all feel the outcome should be. Please use the rules as guidance! Who has right of way if all are on station? If the leading crews is off-station who has right of way.

The Officials - Did you Know?

1. 54% of the umpires are supplied by 2 clubs. (Folkestone 4 and Deal 3)
2. Six officials are required per regatta from thirteen umpires.
3. There are currently no trainee umpires.
4. Trainees take two years to train.