The club will sponsor an onshore Race Committee training session to be held at the club, Saturday afternoon, August 15th. US Sailing certified Club Principal Race Officers (PROs) will instruct as will others who often volunteer for race committees. We will use a US Sailing race committee curriculum and make sure that participants are awarded a FBYC Trained Race Committee Member Certificate. The goal is twofold – expose as many folks as possible to the functions of the race committee to remove any existing hesitancy for doing something new and to increase the ranks of the willing for future events.

Mark Stephens and I are the Division Race Chairs for One Design and Offshore respectively. That position is responsible for ensuring that each club event is staffed with a capable Principal Race Officer and supporting race committee. This year, there are forty events where a race committee is required; Offshore, One Design, and Regattas.

These Race Committees (RC) are generally a Principal Race Officer (PRO) and five to seven others to fulfill the other roles – piloting the mark boat, setting marks, timer, recorder, wind direction and velocity, sounder, flags, photographer, and observer. There is a rhythm to it. We usually leave the dock at 9:30 for a day in the sun, surrounded by green water, with 3-5 races followed by a social time ashore. Races do not start after three on Saturday or after two on Sundays. Mr. Roberts is often the Committee Boat, complete with head and covered back deck. The PRO and the club provide lunches and drinks.