A Change to the Scoring System for TSC Dinghy Helms - TSC Sailing Committee

Published 17:40 on 31 Aug 2013

(Note this does not affect Thames A Raters)

A recent Sailing Committee, unanimously, decided to make a change to the scoring system for TSC dinghy helms which will apply to the Autumn series and future short series racing. In future, points will be awarded to a boat, regardless of the helm, and not personally to the helm, as is the case at present. Thus, points will be accumulated in the name of a boat and  prizes will be presented to boat owners and not to individual helms.

Any member choosing to sail a TSC club boat regularly in a series is requested to sail the same class of boat if they wish to accumulate points in a series ie. any Omega or any Topper but will be scored separately if they change between classes in one series.

Exceptions to this system may be permitted under certain circumstances ie. if a privately owned boat is sold / replaced during a series or is taken out of the water for a long repair. However, helms must apply to the Sailing committee and be given permission to transfer points from one boat to another, during a series.

Many of the privately owned dinghies at TSC are co-owned and helming is often shared between owners and even friends. Scoring the boat rather than the helm will facilitate and encourage this normal practice and bring such boats into a competitive situation. There are many examples of helms changing within a boat during the 2 race Sunday programme and no record of such changes noted on the race sheet (such a record will longer be needed). 

The new system will also reduce the burden upon the actual member who enters the results into the Sailwave programme (Sel Shah at present). Scoring individual helms in whatever boat they sail requires considerable data entry on each occasion and has become unrealistic, alas. The A Raters have employed this system, probably since 1870 !

Naturally, members of the Sailing committee are keen to hear your point of view so please make it known.

Ben Marshall

Sailing Secretary