From the feedback - 12/04/01

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Weight stacking. Clearly there are sensible limits to what could potentially be movable but then you are back to the enforcement issue, especially in a cruiser-racer handicap class. Unless you have inspection of every boat before and after every race you will be back to square one. There are a number of areas already where we rely (perhaps naively) on honesty and fair play such as rounding offshore marks at night, not removing items which were onboard when the boat was weighed, not obtaining outside weather routing assistance, having the right sail measurements on the certificate etc. If someone is so desperate to win that they cynically cheat and can still feel good about themselves then perhaps they should go and find another sport as they are missing the point of what we do. On a more constructive note, I have two suggestions. Weight stacking should perhaps be allowed in IRM, as there is more chance that inspection could be practical in a "grand prix" context and therefore sensible controls over what can be moved could be enforced. Secondly, perhaps we could help enforce the current rules by making an explicit reference to the rule in our offshore racing crew declarations. Most people I meet in sailing do have a significant degree of integrity and honesty, especially if reminded, and if we encouraged crew to take more of a personal responsibility then we might be getting somewhere.

From Mike Ketley
Weight stacking. I have competed in three Fastnets and am about to compete in a fourth. In the last Fastnet we were third in IRC2. Whilst never having stacked sails or gear I have also never used an engine. The use of an engine is (at present) as difficult to police in an offshore race as the stacking of gear. A quiet night, just charging the batteries and creeping along a little bit faster than the opposition - who would know? I would, and hence would never do it. Our sport is essentially self-policing at the level of a Fastnet race (predominantly an amateur race) and our sport works solely because of the honesty of our competitors. If we start to accept that some people will start cheating by stacking sails then why bother going all the way up to the turning mark when no-one is looking, why not use the engine? The implied suggestion by the article that in some circles it is acceptable to stack sails and gear when the rules state that it is not also suggests that the scenarios I have outlined are acceptable. I think this is just a question of perception - to all of us using the engine is abhorrent, but stacking is not so obviously cheating. But it is cheating. There is a debate about stacking that perhaps should be had, but it is filled with difficulties as different boats benefit differently from stacking and how do you police people taking extra gear for heavy weather races purely for stacking? The RORC cannot be expected to weigh in every participant in the Fastnet (1,000 plus people).

From Christopher Butler
Weight stacking. I believe that in general weight stacking ought to be illegal. If it were legal, it would raise the bar even higher for racer/cruisers; yet something else the crew and owner need think of. It would also likely raise costs even more. As one of the previous writers noted, boats would start moving everything about. Eventually owners would claim that they have very thirsty crews such that they need 1000 kilos of drinking water. Hypothetically, when does weight stacking become water ballast? In Seattle, where I race most often, entrants are down for most races for precisely these sorts of reasons (stacking, no crew weight limits, issues over symmetrical/asymmetrical sails) - the bar is being raised too high. It is simply not fun any longer for the average weekend racer. I would hate to see what has occurred here also occur elsewhere. That said, I also believe that in grand prix classes, where gear is more tightly regulated, stacking is fine. The key is, of course, limiting what goes on the boat. But the regulation would have to cover everything - personal gear, etc. If not, every crew would then need at least two sets of gear for long races, as well as their own personal supply of water, etc. But, provided the regulations and inspections work and are consistent - no problem.