Facts
In races when the first leg is a beat to windward against adverse current and the wind is very light, some boats anchor at or near the starting line to prevent the current from sweeping them downwind. When the wind freshens or the current eases, they pull up their anchors and start to sail.
Question 1
Is a boat that is anchored still "racing" as the term is used in the preamble to Part 4?
Answer 1
Yes. In the preamble to Part 4, the word "racing" is printed in bold italics and, therefore, it is being used in the sense stated in the Definitions (see Terminology in the Introduction). The definition Racing makes no mention of a boat that is anchored, aground, capsized or otherwise not progressing in the race. Therefore anchored boats are still "racing", which means that they are protected by rule
22 and governed by the racing rules including rules
42.1 and
45 .
Question 2
Is a boat required to sail to a point above her anchor before she pulls it up, or can she recover her anchor even if the action of pulling in the anchor line results in her being propelled through the water or over the bottom?
Answer 2
Actions that are permitted by rule
45 are exceptions to rule
42.1 . Rule
45 permits boats to anchor. To anchor a boat in a seamanlike way, additional anchor line must be let out after the anchor touches the bottom. Rule
45 requires boats to recover their anchors before continuing in the race unless unable to do so. To recover an anchor, it is first necessary to pull in the additional line, and that action will move the boat to a point above the anchor. As this action is permitted by rule
45 , it does not break rule
42.1 .
However, i f the additional line is pulled in so forcefully or rapidly that after the anchor is lifted off the bottom the boat clearly has been propelled to a different position from where the anchor was lowered, she has continued in the race before recovering her anchor, and her action breaks both rule
42.1 and rule
45 .
Revised by World Sailing 2012