RACE COMMITTEE DEVELOPMENT AND TRAINING
TSS has a consolidated Race Committee Consortium that coordinates events and equipment among various race committees and provides solid U.S. Sailing based training. There are three Racing Groups/Events that need Race Committees. Those are:
1. Regattas - large, regional or national events, sometimes one-design, sometimes multiple design, requiring one or two Signals boats (flags and horns, run the starts) and two or more Mark boats (set and/or move inflatable marks, act as chase boats to assist competitors with capsize, equipment failure, etc.)
2. Mutineer (Mutts) fleet - TSS has one of the largest Mutt fleets in the Country and many of our boats are national competitors. These folks are seriously skilled racers and exciting to watch in action. They race every other Sunday.
3. Club Racing fleet. Every other Saturday, several (4 - 12 or so) larger boats from the Club race around a fixed course (as opposed to inflatable marks set specifically for that day's race). This is a more casual group and they often have space for someone to go out with them. In fact, usually one or more of them is actively looking for crew on any given race day.
The Race Committee Consortium coordinates all racing events through the Fleet Captains who design the courses and times. The Vice Commodore is the Flag Officer who coordinates the various elements of Regattas (food, band, sponsors, trophies, etc.,) and interacts with the other Clubs on Tampa Bay to coordinate dates for events.
Extensive training is provided by the RCC to newcomers and old timers alike, as the Racing Rules of Sailing can be complicated and they also change every so often. Topics like right of way, starting signals, tactics and strategies, protests, and more are covered.
TSS trains and races according to the practices of the Racing Rules of Sailing, elevating the Club to the same high standards in use by the most reputable clubs around the Country and around the World. The Racing Rules of Sailing is published every 4 years by World Sailing and is used by Member Nations (some 130) including the United States, in which U.S. Sailing is our National Sailing Authority.
To learn more about Race Committee here, and arrange for a guest outing on a Race Committee boat to check it out, contact either:
1. Brian Henke, Chair, TSS Race Committee Consortium
2. Matt Dalton, Mutt Fleet, (m.dalton@leaptampa.com) or
3. Joe Benkel, Club Racing Fleet, (joebenkel@gmail.com)
The Race Committee Consortium meets on the 2nd Monday of each month, at 7:30 PM, at the Club. Visitors are welcome and that would be a fine way to start - come meet and talk with us.