GBCA Discussion Forum

WNR awards are being postponed this week. Come get them next week (7/19) after the race.

Updated SIs here - https://www.regattanetwork.com/event/25920#_docs

https://www.regattanetwork.com/event/25920#_docs

Feedback appreciated.

Wednesday Night Racing Series #4 is officially kicked off.  We have updated the SIs with two important changes.  We have added SP22 class for the J22 one design fleet, and removed the SPPU handicap fleet.  All handicap boats will be in the SPRD (Spin Red) fleet.  See you next week.

https://www.regattanetwork.com/clubmgmt/regatta_uploads/24978/2022WNRSIAmend27_13_2022.pdf

https://www.regattanetwork.com/clubmgmt/applet_regatta_results.php?regatta_id=24058

Spin start - https://youtu.be/TI1wSJRJ71A
Port start - https://youtu.be/cLEucxmXfuo
NS start - dang it... uploaded the wrong vid.
Finish - https://youtu.be/dMVSXm15yJ0

Non Spin Start - https://youtu.be/ElqBWZiyNbU (neat 360 video!)
Portsmouth Start - https://youtu.be/W5U7IJ9suuQ
Spin Start - https://youtu.be/ZKeBCuJxMbs
Sorry Carl, I don't know why your finish was sped up.
https://youtu.be/AGT5CWJdRn4

https://www.regattanetwork.com/event/24058#_newsroom

https://www.regattanetwork.com/event/24058

SIs have been amended to add the course in the sequence notification.

It is looking like a downwind start for our first race.  Should be interesting....

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1MtYC_4ZsBt9V1NI55-qp90kvA-fgTcN-CTwJdIiY8dc/edit?usp=sharing

Also, for real, the SIs are posted.
https://www.regattanetwork.com/event/24058

As mentioned in the NOR, we are simplifying much of WNR to make it more manageable.  For the first series, these are the only two courses:
https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/edit?mid=1Qeav-Vhr42irDlH5-NqUkOE-8wXtJMNa&usp=sharing

Course 1 (Clear Creek Park):
Start between PVC Starting Pin and Markbot, round Kemah Cut Red Nun (keep to startboard), round White Sailboat (keep to port), back to Kemah Cut Red Nun (keep to port), finish between Barge 295 and No Wake buoy.  4.9 Miles.

Course 2 (Shoals)
Start between PVC Starting Pin and Markbot, round Kemah Cut Red Nun (keep to startboard), round PVC Rounding Mark (keep to port), back to Kemah Cut Red Nun (keep to port), finish between Barge 295 and No Wake buoy. 2.9 miles.

We are starting to formalize the SIs, so now is a good time for feedback.

https://gbca.org/Wednesday-Night-Races

https://gbca.org/resources/Documents/NOR_2022WNR_Final_2.23.2022.pdf

I don't know why, but google is blocking my results page.

Until I figure it out..

2018 Cruzan Rum Race 7
Club Handicap
Escape Hatch   444   Gilbert Garcia   151   18:58:37   21:26:05
Gemini   55   Jim Hammond   296   18:27:52   21:30:25
Renaissance   4398   Jim Miller   160   18:56:41   21:32:20
Stellar of Course   133   Ron Eddleman   176   18:53:16   21:33:23
Leopard   31630   Bob Hunkins   108   19:07:47   21:34:47
Wave Dancer   23   Doug Cain   162   18:56:16   21:38:00
Ox-Bow   196   Andrew Clark   250   18:37:28   21:38:12
Sunspot Baby   360   Bill Tarnick   172   18:54:08   21:38:49
Thumbelina   40   Charles Blakeley   195   18:49:13   21:43:45
Sea Gypsy   3371   Bill Jenko   234   18:40:53   21:44:00
BAG   None   Darin Keever   107   19:08:00   21:48:53

Non-Spinnaker
Flyer   398   Ben Miller   190   18:50:17   21:10:12
Tenacious   12440   Jim Apple   195   18:49:13   21:20:20
Bad Girl   60120   Nicole Laster   168   18:54:59   21:22:18
Dragoon   303   Bill Mead   195   18:49:13   21:27:47
Osprey   168   Walter Barnett   95   19:10:34   21:28:49
Other woman   1   Brantly Minor   137   19:01:36   21:37:47

Spinnaker Sprit
Stinger   296   Bee Bednar   78   19:14:12   21:16:50
Pingo   5101   Pedro Gianotti   84   19:12:55   21:18:02
Honey Badger   537   Scott Tuma   120   19:05:14   21:19:19
Mojito   850   Kelly Gray   114   19:06:31   21:20:54
77   77   George cushing   108   19:07:47   21:22:45
Doodah   537 (ex 287)   Giorgio Martelli   120   19:05:14   21:35:42

Spinnaker Non-Sprit
Hayes Rigging   338   Kevin Hayes   175   18:53:29   21:13:00
Yikes!   2624   Cliff Rademaker   171   18:54:20   21:15:17
Leading Edge   32581   Tom Sutton   72   19:15:29   21:19:54
Hamburg II   51709   Al Goethe   42   19:21:53   21:20:18
Press to Meco   178   Bentele/Stromme   114   19:06:31   21:22:45
Muse   70   Lamar Felder   48   19:20:36   21:29:28
Firewater   21335   Horton   129   19:03:18   21:30:10
Bohemian Mermaid   72   Darryl Hanus   122   19:04:28   21:43:12

Shorthanded
OnTheGo   97450   Thomas Sharkey   171   18:54:20   21:31:52
Concussion   202   Jason Seibert   99   19:09:43   21:33:04
Dram Buoy   84   Peter Larabee   196   18:49:00   21:35:03

Multihull
Sea Ya   M002   Robert Fulmer   48   19:20:36   21:24:04
sailoryogi@gmail.com   49   Mike Johnson   78   19:14:12   21:32:37

Anything that planes or foils.

The SIs have been amended:
http://www.gbca.org:80/resources/Documents/2017%20Rum%20Race%20SIs%20Amendment%2020170719.pdf

We will use any existing phrf (or portsmouth conversion) as the initial base. 

As mentioned a few months ago, I have changed all scoring to show Shorthanded instead of SOS-TEX.  This aligns the scoring with the SIs.

For all you lone wolfs out there, please use that class when scoring.

Howdy,

Before the first Rum Race, we are holding the Sailboat Racing 101 course for novice sailors/crew.  As part of that seminar, we will try to place sailors on boats.  This includes veteran sailors on novice boats and novice crew on salty boats.  If you are a Rum Race guru or have a few spots available, please contact me - commodore@gbca.org.

Thanks and see you out there!

-Darin

The Rum Race Series is quickly approaching, and I would like to have an open discussion about the upcoming changes and the reasoning behind them.

Major Changes:

• 16:30 start time
• Must upload Start/Finish times to be scored for series
• 7 places for series scoring
• 1 point for finishing
• 3 places for race trophies
• First place must record next two finishers in class
• SOS-TEX is now the Shorthanded Class
• Suggest all racers use RaceQs

Start time change.  Depending on who you ask, there is a different suggested start time.  As of now, it seems to be swinging back to "let's start a little later."  The wind is better, it is a little cooler, and the race takes up a little less of the entire day.  Note, we did not change the finish time of 9.  A counter argument for keeping the time earlier has been lights on boats, but https://www.amazon.com/Innovative-Lighting-Portable-Light-Suction/dp/B00108UN9Y

Uploading times.  If you didn't see this coming, you haven't been paying attention   See here:
http://discussion2.gbca.org/index.php/topic,1943.0.html
Additionally, we will allow you to change your results up to the awards.  So, if you notice that your standing is wrong, you can open the webpage back up and verify your time is entered correctly.  You can make these changes up to the time of awards.  You can submit your time for a full 24 hours after the awards, you just can't change your time.  To make a change after the awards, you will need to email me - commodore@gbca.org.  Having supporting evidence will go a long way in that conversation.  The 24 hour time limit for initial upload is for those who may not make the party, but still want to be considered for the overall standings.  Past 24 hours, it will be difficult to monitor, so we limited it to that.

8 places for series.  Uploading times makes this possible.  The more the merrier.  Though, I think 8 is a good limit, since more would make missing a single race problematic.

1 point for finishing.  If you went to the trouble of preparing you boat, finding a crew, forgoing your honey dos, getting the starting line on time, and finishing the course; you deserve something.  Call it a participation prize if you like, but this is more than just showing up.  Everyone gets to see their name in lights!  If you make all the races, you'll get a trophy at the ball.

3 deep for rum.  Since we can assume that the scoring should take less time, we can have a better schedule for announcing results.  This means less "throw down" rum and more prize rum.  Who doesn't like more prizes?

First place records next two finishers.  This is the compromise between the old and new, but I think it is a great one.  This will alleviate the issue with finish times being incorrect at the party for the rum.  Also, in the case of a tie for 2/3/4, first place breaks it. 

We have removed SOS-TEX in favor of a Shorthanded Class.  The SOS-TEX bylaws are great for offshore shorthand racing, but are a bit overkill for a rum race. http://gbca.org/resources/Documents/sos-texbylaws.pdf  I mean, I didn't see many jacklines out last year.  It saddens me a bit to make the change, but I think it makes sense.  Besides the name, nothing changes.

RaceQs.  This app kicks ass.  In addition to being a means to verify your start and finish times, it is fun to watch the fleets at the clubhouse - both during and after the race.  Also, RaceQs uses CST synced with the GPS, which is what you need for both start and finish.

http://www.gbca.org/resources/Documents/2017RumRaceSeriesSailingInstructions.pdf

Your commode-ore,
Darin

Congratulations to our winners. 
http://results.gbca.org/series.html?regatta=2017%20Cruzan%20Icicle%20Series

Let me know if you see any issues with the scoring.  That tie-breaker logic is a little tricky.

We have changed the results for Icicle Series #3 Spin Non-Sprit.  I just wanted to let everyone know what happened, but in the end, Fleet Captain and Former Fleet Captain both agree on the updated results.

Blue Freers finished first and did not present any results.

Southern Cross finished second, uploaded their results, including boat ahead and boat behind.  They then came to the club and present acting Fleet Officer (myself) with the finish times of the first few boats, though at no time presented themselves as first place.  They also did not submit the results in paper.  They did show me finish times for all the boats in the area, including boats in their class which finished after them.

Fast forward an hour and 4 additional class submissions and a number of position changes after the fact, Southern Bell submits written results for Spin Non-Sprit.  He has crossed third in his class, but first to submit written results.  There are a number of changes to these results after the fact, but Southern Cross is not included in these results.

It is time to start closing the party down, so I announce results, using the results submitted by Southern Belle.

We believe that not giving first place to Southern Cross would be unfair.  They did their best to submit results, and had I been more aware of the situation, they could have easily presented in paper the correct results.

Last, this is the chaos of scoring results using paper and the current SIs.  Had everyone uploaded results, this would have been a non-issue.  I'm not saying there aren't other problems with the electronic system, but this mess would be avoided.

To start, I don't think this algorithm would be good for a general purpose recalculation of handicap.  I'll post below what would be more interesting in my opinion.

As for club, we use the algorithm created by Kevin Box that basically tries to move everyone closer to a Median finish time.  Penalize the leaders and gifts to the back of the pack.  For example, here is the current results for this week:
Tuning Factor   
28
Course Length   8.6
Median Time Behind   11.5 min
Median Elapsed   2.01 hr
Boat   Elapsed   Time Behind   Rating   New Rating   Delta
Boat 1   1.92 hr   0.0 min   191   187   -4
Boat 2   1.88 hr   1.6 min   165   161   -4
Boat 3   1.87 hr   3.0 min   150   147   -3
Boat 4   -1.10 hr   3.8 min   49   46   -3
Boat 5   1.88 hr   3.9 min   147   144   -3
Boat 6   1.82 hr   4.5 min   118   115   -3
Boat 7   1.98 hr   6.5 min   173   171   -2
Boat 8   1.86 hr   6.5 min   121   119   -2
Boat 9   2.06 hr   7.8 min   198   197   -1
Boat 10   1.93 hr   8.9 min   133   132   -1
Boat 11   2.30 hr   10.2 min   280   280   0
Boat 12   2.09 hr   10.4 min   191   191   0
Boat 13   2.24 hr   11.2 min   248   248   0
Boat 14   2.13 hr   11.2 min   204   204   0
Boat 15   2.11 hr   12.2 min   187   187   0
Boat 16   2.25 hr   12.8 min   239   239   0
Boat 17   2.27 hr   13.0 min   248   249   1
Boat 18   2.18 hr   14.4 min   201   202   1
Boat 19   2.12 hr   14.6 min   174   175   1
Boat 20   2.25 hr   15.8 min   221   223   2
Boat 21   2.24 hr   16.0 min   216   218   2
Boat 22   2.11 hr   16.3 min   160   162   2
Boat 23   2.25 hr   16.8 min   214   216   2
Boat 24   2.40 hr   16.9 min   274   276   2
Boat 25   2.52 hr   29.2 min   240   247   7
Boat 26   2.68 hr   32.5 min   282   290   8

Generally, this doesn't make sense for people who are racing near their handicap.  They will be punished for being consistent, and gifted for being slow.  New folks will move the median back or forth, and should someone not race during a big movement, they will be inaccurately gifted/penalized the next race.

It is fun though.  You get more variety of winners.  It is just unfortunate that the consistent sailors will always be mid pack.

Please let me know if you see a problem with the current standings:
http://results.gbca.org/series.html?regatta=2017%20Cruzan%20Icicle%20Series

As you may have noticed, I have been aggressively suggesting people record their finish times for the Icicle Series.  I would like to give some reasoning as to why.

Some background.  We needed a system to help with Club Handicap.  It was a bit of a mess, and there were many manual steps required each week to keep the wheels running.  I can't imagine the number of hours that Bob spent keeping that machine going.  Hats off to you Bob! 

I can tell you, with Bob's absence, nobody was excited about taking charge of that hot mess.  I took it, knowing full well that I would be able to invest some time in rebuilding it, and it would be easier to run in the long run.  As of now, we have a system that I'm proud of, and I believe the Club guys find it a good solution too.

The other part of the job is scoring the other classes.  In a perfect world, it is a simplistic, self-regulated system.  In practice, I've seen the shit show that occurs when something goes wrong.  I'll let Bob and Dees tell their greatest hits, but I've seen a leader not come by the clubhouse till after the party.  I've seen multiple, varying results from the same class.  I've seen missing boats in results.  I've seen no results submitted, then pieced together with scratches of paper by each of the next 5 competitors.

You can guess who gets to run around trying to fix this.  During a Rum Race, it is exponentially worse because there are more people and they are 2x as drunk.  So fleet captain is madly running around trying to figure out scores.. sending people to the office, asking skippers to come to the office.  Looking at GPS logs, raceQs, until the roar of the Rumless becomes overpowering and fleet captain throws up his arms and just goes with what he has.

Side note - at this point, someone might mention that these Races are just fun, easy going Saturday cruises.  I would like you to tell that to the drunk skipper who loses the a little bottle of rum because of a scoring issue.  A race is a race, and just because you aren't trying doesn't mean everyone else isn't.  There are competitors out there, and I don't blame them.

The second problem we have is data.  Or lack thereof.  How many boats participate in each class?  How many skippers are GBCA members?  What is the delta between club and the other classes?  How any boats show up during a series?  We have no idea.  I come from a marketing data background, and it is a little odd that we can't quantify who are "customers" are.

So.  I would like to use the Club system for all classes, the handicap portion obviously only for Club.  In addition to helping with the above problems, it also gives us consistent scoring and timely results.  The later is great for resolving "bad data" issues.  Also, if we can optimize this, we could get away from having first place sit around for the next 4 boats, which is a real drag even if you get a bottle of rum for your efforts.

Is this a perfect system?  Nope.

Here are all the problems I can think of and how I am trying to mitigate them:

People will fat-finger results.  Especially on a phone.
- Early results allows people to pipe up early and help alleviate some of this. 
- We will add a "boat ahead" and "boat behind" optional field to the results.  Also, I will add an "estimated" finish asterisk to results if we need to change someone's results.
- RaceQs fixes this.  I know not everyone will run it, but it does solve the verification issue. 

Some people don't have a smartphone or carry one on the boat
- Upload your results at the dock
- We will have a tablet available at the clubhouse for people to upload then

People will use finish times to affect their rating
- PHRFGB doesn't care if we post finish times.  Boat owners will get data however they can, and only PHRFGB can distinguish what is relevant.

Icicle/Rum is an easy race.  You are adding "hassle"
- First, we are trying to streamline the process as best we can to reduce "hassle."  See below for how to enter results
- Don't do it.  Go our for your cruise and don't upload your time.  Enjoy your cruise, but you won't be scored.

It is inefficient for ALL boats to have to upload times rather than the leader
- If we can get away from having the leader wait, I'm not sure that is true.  If you are in Club on a slow day, you might have to wait 30 minutes.
- This assumes that result scoring will be easy.  If you believe this, I have a board position for you next year.  You can take the club back to pen and paper.
- Again, we have multiple streamlines in place to make uploading the results easy, and it should take no more than a minute

I am unable to calculate a finish time
- You found a way to get to the start on time. 
- Club has been doing it for years.  I'm sure you can figure it out.

How do I upload results?
http://racing.gbca.org

The first time you use this page, you must fill the whole thing out.  It is a pain, but I believe all the information is needed.

The second time you come to the page, assuming you have cookies enabled, all the information should load, and you will only need to input your finish time.  If you should have cleared your cookies OR you are on another device, if you type in the email address provided previously, and all your information will load.

Again, if using the same phone, all but the first time entering data, you will only need to input your finish time.  All data should already be filled out based on your previous input.

The page is "mobile ready" so it should format well for either phones, tablets, or desktops.  On the phone, it should show BIG calculator type numbers when inputting your finish time.  This should help with fat-fingering the results.

We will have a tablet at the merchandise table to help people people enter finish times.  If it is your first time, please see Beverly.

Improvements
The board has suggested some improvements, and I'm evaluating/working on them. 

One suggestion is to have the "lookup" done by boat name and sail number.  Then, besides the first entry, anyone can score finish times.  This gets a bit tricky, because there isn't a good way to regulate who is making the changes.  With the email address as a "key," it makes regulation a bit easier, but harder for someone, like a crew member, to upload results on the skipper's behalf.

Another idea is to include an optional "boat ahead" and "boat behind" fields with the finish time.  I'm split on this idea.  What if the person behind you didn't want to score themselves?  It also adds more "hassle," which... heaven forbid.


Feedback

I don't plan to modify the SIs.  Yes, you can refuse to use this system.  The first place boat must continue to record times, and we will accept the first place sheet, and you don't need to do anything more.  However, if you upload your time.  It makes my life easier.

I do plan to vote to change the SIs for the Rum Races and require finish times.  I don't know yet about the first boat taking positions yet.  It seems like we should be able to get away from it, but the board is definitely on the fence about it.  Verification is definitely useful.

I apologize for the wall of text.  There are many points to consider.

Last, I value your feedback.  Please let me know what you think.  Though, if you are vehemently against this whole concept, I have an exciting board position available for you.