PRELIMINARY REGULATIONS

EDITION 2008

(Version updated the January 2008)

1- Introduction

The event will be organised with the spirit of a Raid, an extreme competition where Sport, Nature and Adventure are closely associated.

2- Organisation

The “Archipelago Raid” is organised and produced by Atlant Ocean Racing, in cooperation with ÅSS (Åland Yacht Club) and LSS (Lidingö Yacht Club).

3- Location and dates

The Raid will take place in the Stockholm, Åland and Finland Archipelagos, from the Friday 13th June to the Wednesday 18th June 2008.

4- The boats

Formula 18 International Class with certificate.

The competitors will provide their own boat.

5- The teams

Two crew-members, older than 18 years old.

A “Rocky team” is a team with the 2 crew-members competing for the first time in the Archipelago Raid.

6- Regulations

6.1               Regulations

The Archipelago Raid will be governed by the following Regulations:

6.1.1.            The ISAF Racing Rules of Sailing 2005-08, except Rule 42

(Means of propulsion).

6.1.2             The F18 Class Regulations except if they are modified in the

Archipelago Raid Regulations and amendments

6.1.3.            The Archipelago Raid Regulations and amendments

6.2 Means of propulsion

Amendment is done to Rule 42.

6.2.1. Paddling is allowed but only with one or two simple paddles (double paddles not allowed) and not longer than 1, 6 meters.

Connecting two simple paddles to make a double is forbidden.

Rowing is not allowed.

6.2.2. Only the mainsail can be hoisted when paddling.

For the purpose of limiting the paddling, each time, when a team starts to paddle, both jib and gennaker have to be completely furled or down, no sail area exposed.

Fully battened jibs are not allowed.

This rule is valid even for a short time or to avoid an obstacle.

6.3 Crew weight

6.3.1. Crew weight controls can be organised in the first 12 hours period. A team measured under the F18 Class weight limit will be penalised.

6.2.3 Considering the long distance characteristic of the Archipelago Raid, “Camel bags” are allowed and will not be considered as water ballast systems. A maximum of 2 litres capacity bag per crew member is permitted.

7- Registration

7.1. For safety reasons, a maximum of 35 teams will be allowed to compete in the Archipelago Raid 2008.

7.2. 30 places will be available and 5 wild cards may be allocated after the decision of the organizer.

7.3. All the teams that have not been competing in previous editions of the Archipelago Raid will have to send their sailing references to the organisation.

7.4. Pre-registration

15th of March is the deadline for a preliminary registration to book a place for the Archipelago Raid 2008.

7.5. If more than 30 teams are preliminary registered the 15th of March, a selection will be done before the 30th of March. This will take in consideration the Archipelago Raid previous participation, the Formula 18 (or multihull), offshore and general sailing (miles, competition, results…) experience of the team.

The non acceptation of a team is the sole decision of the organizer.

7.6.  Registration

The registration has to be completed before the 1st of May (see detail in the Notice of Race)

7.7. For any reason (for example: not enough experience, too tired, technical problems, medical reasons…), the organisation reserves the right not to accept a team to continue in the race.

8- Definition

8.1 Islander

The Islander is the person from the organisation responsible for a checkpoint or a headquarter. The non respect of the instructions of the islander will be penalised.

8.2 Check-point (CP)

CPs are manned controls along the course. The CPs are numbered. They have to be passed in the order defined by the organisation.

CPs are identified by a flag (see article 11). The islander will be located next to the flag.

A CP can be on shore (beach, pontoon, bridge…) or on a boat.

At some CPs, the competitors will have to stop 3 minutes or 1 hour. Theses “3 minutes CPs” and “1 hour CPs” will be marked with a specific flag (see article 11)

The 3 minutes CPs are made to give time to the TV team for short interviews.

The competitors will get the definition of the CP (3 minutes or one hour CPs) as part of the course instruction before the start of each section of leg, at the HQ or 1 hour CP.

8.3 Headquarter (HQ)

HQs are manned controls where the competitors have to stop. The finishing line of each leg will be at a HQ.

The organisation will provide the teams with a hot meal once a day at the HQ. The rest of the day the teams will organise their own food (power-bars, sandwiches, freeze dry food…).

After a resting time the organisation will give a restart that will be the start of the following leg.

The ambition is to have a 3 to 6 hour stop counting from the first team’s arrival. Competitors will be informed of the time of the restart when they arrive at the HQ.

The headquarters and the checkpoints will be marked with a specific flag (see Rule 11).

At their arrival to the HQ, the competitors will get the instructions for the next course section (list of CP, definition of the CP, deadlines, boat CP, 3 minutes CP, 1 hour CP, gate…)

Before the restart at each HQ, weather information, course information and potentially other important information will be given during a short briefing. It is mandatory for all the teams to have at least one crew present at the briefing. The competitors will be informed of the time of the briefing when they arrive at the HQ.

The arrival at each HQ will be determined by crossing a finishing line. The location of the lines will be described in the course instruction.

8.4. “Gate”

A “gate” is a mark in the course that has to be left to port or starboard according to the course instruction. A gate is defined by its latitude-longitude.

There is no scoring at the gate.

8.5 Racing time

The time between the start and the arrival of each leg.

9- Official language and time

The official language is English.

The official time is the Swedish time (GMT+2)

10- The course

10.1. The course will be organised in the Stockholm, Åland and Finnish Archipelagos

10.2. The course will pass by checkpoints and headquarters (around 25-30), located on islands.

10.3. The organisation will adjust the course along the way. The instructions will be given to the competitors by the Islanders, responsible of CP or Headquarter.

10.4. The competitors will receive course instructions (list of leg’s CP, position latitude,-longitude CP, length of the stop…) for each section along the course; normally from one headquarter (or “1 hour CP”) to the next one.

10.5. The organisation will provide the maps (1:50000) on a laminated A3 format. They will be availabe in Stockholm, the week before the start.

10.6. The teams are free to choose their route between two checkpoints unless “required route” or rounding is specified in the course instructions.

Course modification

For safety reason:

All the teams may be forbidden to proceed on some sections, during the night or the day.

Some teams may be forbidden to proceed on some sections. They have to follow the instruction of the islander. They will not be penalised.

The organiser can stop or freeze the race at any CP, “gate” or HQ. In this case a restart can be organised.

Any leg may be shortened by moving the finishing line from the HQ to any CP or “gate”.

11- Registration at the CP and HQ

11.1. Registration time

At each CP and HQ the Islander will register the exact time of passage.

The time registered by the islander at the onshore CP will be the time when the competitor presses the horn.

At the HQ, it will be when the boat crosses the finishing line.

And at the pass by CP, bridge CP or boat CP it will be when the boat crosses the fictive line (see definition later).

Both competitors and the boat of each team have to be physically present at each CP and HQ and physically not stop further away than 100 m from the CP or HQ.

11.2. CP and HQ definition

Each CP or HQ will be marked by a flag. The exact definition of the flags (flag 1, 2 and 3) will be determined during the team’s briefing.

11.2.1. If flag 1 is hoisted, you have arrived to a HQ. You have to pass the HQ finishing line. The islander located by the flag will give you the time for the restart, the briefing and also the instruction for the next leg. It is each team’s responsibility to go to the islander and get this information.

11.2.2. If flag 2 is hoisted, you have arrived to a CP where you have to go onshore and press the horn located close to the islander. Then, according to the course instruction you have received:

a.  If you have arrived to a CP, you can continue directly to the next CP

If you have arrived to a 3 minutes CP, you have to check out after at least 3 minutes by pressing the horn when the islander will confirm that 3 minutes have passed.

If you have arrived to a 1 hour CP, you have to check out after at least 1 hour by pressing the horn when the islander will confirm that 1 hour have passed.

The islander will be the only person allowed to give the instruction for the timing. It is mandatory to follow his/her instruction.

11.2.3. If flag 3 is hoisted, you have arrived to a pass by CP, a bridge CP or a boat CP. You don’t have to stop; you just have to pass by the CP (boat or islander position) and to continue your course to the direction of the next CP.

If the CP is a boat, flag 3 will be hoisted on the boat. In addition to that, when a red flag is hoisted you have to leave the boat on your port side and when a green flag is hoisted you have to leave the boat on your starboard side. The order of arrival to a boat CP will be determined when passing in front of the boat (the continuation of the fictive line mid-ship of the CP boat). You have to pass the CP not further away than 30m from the boat CP. The islander will press the horn to confirm your passage. In any case, you have to follow the instruction of the islander.

If the CP is onshore. In the case the next CP is in the same direction as your direction of arrival you have to pass the CP not further away than 30m from the Islander. In the case the next CP is the opposite direction to your direction of arrival, you have to pass a fictive line before changing your course to the next CP. This fictive line is determined by the position of the islander and a line drawn 90 degrees to the shore line or pontoon. You have to cross the fictive line not further away than 30m from the Islander. The islander will press the horn to confirm your passage

If the CP is a bridge, the flag 3 will be on the bridge. You have to pass under the bridge and the islander will press the horn to confirm your passage.

11.3. In case a CP or HQ is not marked by a flag, you have to follow the instruction of the islander.

11.4. In case of divergence, it is the flag that counts and has preference over the leg instructions

11.5. If, for safety reason the organisation has to change a CP to a pass by CP, the islander will hoist the flag 3, in addition to the normal CP flag, and will press the horn to confirm your passage. In this case you don’t have to go onshore and you consider the CP as a pass by CP

11.6. If a team misses a CP, they will be scored DNF for the leg.

12- Deadline

12.1. Some CPs or HQs will be closed after a deadline (counted from the first arrival). The boats that will clock in after this deadline will have to take a short cut. The competitors have to follow the instructions of the islander concerning the short cut. They will be allowed to continue the Raid with the rest of the fleet, but will have a penalty (see article 17 Ranking).

If a team has been delayed too long to be in time for the next restart, for any reasons, the organisation can decide and oblige a team to join the course to a specific CP or to the next HQ. The competitors have to follow the instructions given by the islander.

12.2. All the starting lines will be open during 30 minutes after the start.

12.3. The deadline for crossing the finishing line at each HQ is 15 minutes before the start of the next leg.

13- Starting lines

The starting lines will be described in each leg instruction.

14- Starting procedure

- 5 minutes XX flag hoisted + horn (the flag will be determined during the team’s briefing)

- 4 minutes P Flag hoisted + horn

- 1 minute P Flag removed + long horn

- 0 minute XX Flag removed + horn

15- Outside assistance.

15.1 Outside assistance is forbidden.

15.2 Teams can repair the boat or part of the boat during the competition but they have to do it on their own. For the reparation, they cannot be assisted by a third person organised specifically for their team or anyway that is not available to all the competitors under the same conditions.

15.3 All spare F18 specific equipment (for example dagger board, gennaker, rudder…) has to be carried on board from the start to the finish of the race.

Food, drink and equipment/spare parts may be acquired anywhere as long as it is not organised specifically for the team by anyone.

15.4 No accommodation along the course can be organised specifically for the team before or during the Raid

15.5 No deposit of material is allowed along the course.

15.6 GPS is allowed. Plotter or any GPS with the possibility to charge or display electronic charts is permitted. Teams have to write the references of their GPS in the registration form.

15.7 It is forbidden to leave any equipment on the way.

15.7.1. If a team forget any equipment at a CP or HQ, they have to return and get it back.

15.7.2. If the equipment is brought back by someone else, it will be considered as outside assistance and the team will get a penalty on the leg.

15.8 Weather information can only be received by VHF or radio while racing. Mobile phone can only be used for safety reasons while racing.

15.9 The official filming team (accredited by the organisation) is allowed to give video equipment to the competitors during the navigation. The teams have to accept to carry the equipment required.

16 Protests

16.1. A team wanting to protest should give the written protest to the islander responsible of the nearest HQ. A protest cannot be given to a CP, for logistics reason.

16.2. The protesting team have to display the red flag and to yell to the protested team according to the ISAF Racing Rules of Sailing 2005-08

16.3. All the hearings will be made in Mariehamn. The name of the jury team from ÅSS (Åland Yacht Club) will be communicated during the team’s briefing.

16.4. If a protest needs to be heard after Mariehamn, it will be done after the arrival in Sandhamn.

17- Ranking

17.1 The point system will be used to establish the ranking of the Archipelago Raid.

17.2 The course will be divided in several legs, according to the decision of the organisation.

17.3 At each CP, only the first team will get 0, 5 point bonus.

17.4 At the arrival of each leg, the teams will be given the points according to their position.

The first team of a leg will get “the number of teams who start the leg” + 3 points. For example 15 competitors to start the leg + 3 = 18 pts, the second team will get 17 pts, the third team 16 pts, etc.

17.5. A team that has to take a short cut will get “the number of teams who start the leg” + 3, minus number of teams who have finished the leg without shortcut, minus 1 for the first team of the shortcut, minus 2 for the second team of the shortcut etc.

17.6. A team that do not finish the leg will get 1 point.

17.7. A team that do not start one leg will get 0 point.

17.8. An accumulation of the points will be done at the end of the competition to determine the overall ranking of the Archipelago Raid. The team which has accumulated the most points will win.

18- Safety

18.1 Safety means

The safety is a priority for the organiser.

The organisation will do its best to keep the safety on a high level. Competitors must respect that, due to the nature of the Raid, rescue operations may be difficult and take time.

For safety reasons, extreme weather conditions or other exceptional factors, the race direction is authorised to make any decision they deem appropriate if the proper safety conditions can no longer be met.

Before the start, the skipper will sign a disclaimer. He will be aware to have the ultimate responsibility of his own and his crewmember’s safety. This includes any decision with a safety aspect including whether to participate in the race, to stop or continue racing.

All participants take part in the event on their own risk.

18.2 Seamanship.

The Archipelago Raid takes place in unprotected natural surroundings. The safety of each competitor is the sole and the inescapable responsibility of each individual team member. Competitors must halt if worsening weather conditions or any other factors create a situation in which their physical capacities or technical skills no longer enable them to proceed while controlling the risks inherent in the environment.

The organisers can under no circumstances be held responsible in case of accident, injury or material loss.

18.3 Safety assistance

A boat or competitor shall give all possible help to any person or vessel in danger.

If you need assistance from another competitor or safety organisation boat express it in the following way:

- during the day if intervention is needed, one team member must simulate the letter “Y” for YES by holding his/her legs together and the arms in a "V". If intervention is not needed, he/she must simulate the diagonal of the letter “N” (\) with his/her arms.

- At night, turn on your strobe light and place it in a clear area.

18.4 Safety equipment

A boat shall carry adequate life-saving equipment for all persons on board. Each competitor is individually responsible for wearing personal buoyancy adequate for the conditions.

18.4.1 Mandatory equipment per boat

- 1 GPS + extra batteries*

- 1 Compass

- 1 Waterproof handheld VHF*

- Paddle (at least one per boat) not longer than 1,6m

- 3 (2* + 1) Red parachute flares* (check the date of validity)

- 3 (2* + 1) Red hand-held flares* (check the date of validity)

- 1 Knife*

- 1 Waterproof flash light*

- 2 Waterproof and crush proof polyethylene containers (one small for 2 flares and one big for the rest of the equipment marked *)

- 1 Towing line (at least 12 m long, minimum 8 mm diameter, non-floating and with stretching quality rope). Gennaker sheet and floating rope will not be accepted.

- 1 Knife (diving knife type) with fixed and serrated blade and knife pocket.

18.4.2. Mandatory equipment per crewmember

- 1 Dry suit

- 1 Mobile phone in waterproof pocket*

- 1 Survival cover

- 1 Strobe light + extra batteries*

- 1 First aid compress

- 1 Life jacket and whistle

18.4.3. Highly recommended equipment

- Individual EPIRB (1)

- You are going to sail at 60 degrees north. The nights and the water can be cooooold!!! Choose good clothing.

*Has to be stored in the big water-proof and crush-proof container in hard shell. The container has to be strongly attached to the boat at an easy accessible place when the boat is sailing and in a capsized position.

One red parachute flare and/or one red hand-held flare have to be attached on each crew life jacket or stored in a small water-proof and crush proof container. It has to be fixed under the trampoline, in an accessible place when the boat is in a capsized position.

The diving knife with pocket has to be attached strongly on the front side of the front cross beam.

Between sunset and sunrise, each crewmember has to wear the strobe light around his arm or on the life jacket.

A safety equipment control will be organized before the start of the Raid. The deadline to complete the equipment control will be communicated later.

There could be an inspection of all required equipment before the start from each headquarters.

19 – Navigation lights

The navigation light has to be white, water-resistant and powerful enough to make the boat visible over 2 nautical miles. It has to be strongly attached on the top of the mast.

From the sunset to the sunrise all boats have to be perfectly visible all the time.

During the safety control before the start, the organisation will check your installation.

If, for technical reason your navigation light is not in order for part of the leg, you have to inform the organisation team (security boat or main HQ) as soon as possible by VHF or mobile phone.

The penalty for failing to use the navigation light as determined in the rules may be disqualification for the leg.

Controls can be done before the start of each HQ.

20- Behaviour

The respect of the environment is a fundamental value of the Archipelago Raid.

Any littering or other type of pollution or any deliberate damage to the natural surroundings will be penalised. Competitors have to keep their rubbish with them until it can be disposed properly.

21- Insurance

Each team has to have a valid third party liability insurance policy.

Each crewmember will participate at its own risk. The Organisation will not accept any liability for personal or material damage, injury or death, sustained in conjunction with, prior to, during or after Archipelago Raid.

22- Markings

The partners of the organisation will have an exposure on the sails of each boat. The stickers will be provided by the organisation before the start and each team is responsible for having these attached.

23- Acceptation of the rules

Starting on the Archipelago Raid means that each crewmember has read understood and accepted the present rules.