Rabbit starts

[PaulK]

Our club's racing season is winding down. The Race Committee has stopped manning the RC boat, so the rabid racers continue to go out on Wednesday nights (a bit earlier than midsummer, because it gets dark) and have "rabbit" starts. Are other clubs doing that when the RC crew gets scarce?

 

[Davidasailor26]

This time of year we switch from Thursday nights to Sunday afternoons, and the fleet gets a bit thinner. Our courses all summer finish between a mark and a flagpole, so this time of year that’s the start line too. One boat hangs the letter boards near the flagpole for the course, and takes the automated horn box out with them to start while they sail.

If we didn’t have the automated horn or the well aligned flagpole the rabbit start would be a pretty good option.

 

[PaulK]

Interesting to have one of the competitors run the automated horn. Makes it easy if the starting line is already in place.

 

[Davidasailor26]

Interesting to have one of the competitors run the automated horn. Makes it easy if the starting line is already in place.

Yeah, it works pretty well. We’ve been taking it on our boat most weeks for the last couple years. Key things to remember are to turn it off after the start (before it goes to the next horn after a minute) and point it away from the cockpit.

 

[FDL S2]

We do staggered starts based on PHRF ratings, highest PHRF boat goes first down to the lowest starting last.

Ideally all boats should finish at the same time….

 

[Davidasailor26]

We do staggered starts based on PHRF ratings, highest PHRF boat goes first down to the lowest starting last.

Ideally all boats should finish at the same time….

That can be fun. Our club does that once a year, usually during July 4th week when attendance isn’t that high.

Because of how the handicaps line up that scheme usually puts me starting less than a minute before a competitive group of J24’s. So they’re all buzzing around the start line just as I’m trying to get through. In a fleet with well spaced out handicaps it probably works even better.

 

[FDL S2]

We usually don’t get a lot of congestion at the line in staggered starts because of the wide difference in ratings and low number of boats-usually 6 to 10 racing. In a recent 10 mile race we had a 28 minute difference between the first and last starters. Those two boats finished 2nd last and last.

 

[PaulK]

Pursuit starts (based on rating, with the slowest boat starting first) can be fun. We sometimes add a line to the SI's and make people start at anchor. Of course the hot shots take the anchor out of the RIB and have it on deck in about 10 seconds. The problem with pursuit starts is ensuring that boats are actually starting on time. They could be early (or really late) and how could you tell? Rabbit starts avoid this problem.

 

[NCBrew]

what is a rabbit start

 

[danstanford]

A boat is nominated to be the rabbit and all boats advised. At the prescribed time the rabbit sails a port tack across the area of start and the starting line then forms immediately behind the rabbit. Normal starting rules otherwise.

 

[shemandr]

Rabbit starts are good for when there is no race committee and no starting line.
All of the pursuit races I've been in have a race committee which has published a starting time for each boat and is on station at the start to administer the start. It takes pre race preparation by the RC to convert ratings into time deltas for the start sequence - a bit of an arbitrary process since the length of the course could change (Time on distance) or the speed of the boats could vary (Time on time). It could be done on the honor system - no one would cross early - right?

 

[PaulK]

Rabbit starts are often used in large fleets, when a RC would have trouble identifying boats that are over early. They're typically used at International 505 World Championships where more than 100 boats might be competing. In this video a RIB follows the rabbit to make sure no one clips his tail off by mistake!