Guidance & good practice
Under the umbrella of its Racing Charter, the RYA produces a range of guidance booklets and notes on the Racing Rules of Sailing and the organisation of racing.
Contains general guidance; guidance primarily for race officials; and the RYA rules disputes procedures
Highlights good practice and acts as an aide memoir for race officers and those involved in race management
All RYA Racing Rules and Race Officials Guidance Notes are also available to download individually.
| Title | Content | Date Issued |
| Advertising | An explanation of who may choose advertising for a boat, sailboard or clothing at an event; how class rules, rating systems and handicapping systems may vary advertising rules, and the reservations for advertising by event sponsors. | December 2024 |
| Appeals and requests for confirmation or correction | Questions and answers about the appeals and requests processes. | December 2024 |
| Boats with limited visibility | Addressed primarily to boats with asymmetric spinnakers, the paper explains the obligations of such boats and of other boats sailing in the vicinity. | December 2024 |
| Championship Results | Guidance on delivering a high quality results service at championship events. | January 2013 |
| Changes to the Racing Rules from January 2025 | The main changes to the Racing Rules of Sailing effective from January 2025. | December 2024 |
| Club notice of race |
Guidance on the information required to be included in a notice of race
and an example of how the minimum requirements may be met for simple
club racing |
May 2021 |
| Competitors retiring or withdrawing a retirement | Guidance for race committees on time limits for competitors retiring or withdrawing a retirement. | December 2024 |
| Data protection for Race Officials | Guidance for race officials about their obligations and responsibilities regarding the Data Protection Act 2018 and the General Data Protection Regulations. | December 2024 |
| Environmental responsibility & trash disposal | Guidance on the Basic Principle, Environmental Responsibility, and rule 47, Trash Disposal. | December 2024 |
| Equipment cheating - Concealed correctors | Where evidence of possible equipment cheating is identified it is important that swift action is taken to investigate and if necessary follow disciplinary processes otherwise the opportunity to take action may be lost. | December 2020 |
| Gate marks | Guidance on the use of Gate Marks | October 2020 |
| Gate starts | Guidance on how to operate a Gate Start | October 2020 |
| GPS evidence in hearings | Guidance on a technical area that is becoming more common. | December 2024 |
| Hearings conducted by remote protest committees | Guidance on protest and redress hearings held by email, teleconference or video. | December 2024 |
| Information for support persons | Guidance (on one page, to facilitate handing it out) for people who may be classified as a ‘Support Person’ as defined in the RRS 2021-2024. This definition includes a parent or guardian, a coach, a medical or paramedical practitioner, a boat maintainer, a personal assistant to a disabled competitor or any other person working with or assisting a sailor prepare for or compete in a race. | December 2024 |
| IRC rating protests | Guidance on protests concerning alleged breaches of IRC measurement rules (should be read in conjunction with the RYA guidance on Measurement Protests below). | December 2024 |
| Keelboat race organisation | Supplementary guidance to the RYA Race Management Guide for Organising Authorities looking to run inshore and offshore keelboating events. | May 2021 |
| Measurement protests | Guidance on protests concerning alleged breaches of measurement rules. It does not directly address protests concerning other aspects of class rules, although some of the principles are applicable to such protests. | December 2024 |
| Outside help | Emphasises that everyone is required to give help to any person or boat that may be in danger, and that the recipient of such help does not necessarily break racing rule 41 which limits the help a boat may receive. | December 2024 |
| Permitting use of an engine | Options for, and limits on, sailing instructions allowing the use of an engine for propulsion. | December 2024 |
| Protecting boats and comittee boats before the start | Methods and penalties to inhibit interference by boats that are not racing with boats that are in their starting sequence. | December 2024 |
| Racing under the IRPCAS | Guidance about racing under the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (IRPCAS), the effect of Traffic Separation Schemes on race management and competitors, and the differences between the racing rules and the IRPCAS. | December 2024 |
| Recommendations for protest committees | Extended guidance on Appendix M regarding protest committee procedure with examples of appropriate actions in described circumstances. | December 2024 |
| Redress | Guidance about what and when redress can and cannot be given. | December 2024 |
| Restricting protests or requests for redress by boats |
Guidance on the limited number of circumstances where it is good
practice to restrict protests by boats. Restriction of request of
redress by boats is not recommended. |
December 2024 |
| Risk Management |
Guidance on a 'Risk Statement' recommended by the RYA to replace a
'Disclaimer of Liability' in Notices of Race and Sailing Instructions.
|
December 2024 |
| Rule 69 Hearings and Decisions for Protest Committees |
Guidance on the role and involvement of a complainant, the roles of a PC
member who is the complainant, when the PC should consider a warning and
what to include when publishing a rule 69 (misconduct) decision. |
July 2020 |
| Rule 69 Mini Guide | Guidance on Rule 69 (Misconduct) for Judges at Club and Class events | June 2020 |
| Rules disputes | About the use of the exoneration penalty, advisory meetings and RYA arbitration. | December 2024 |
| Rules disputes poster | A diagrammatic guide to the RYA Rules Disputes process. | December 2020 |
| Rules disputes Q&As | Frequently asked questions that arise when advisory meetings or arbitration are adopted. | December 2024 |
| Safety Flash - Starting Cannons | Race committees should be aware of the potential for damage and injury resulting from the use of starting cannons and similar devices. Due consideration should be given to the necessity of their use, their placement and where competitors may reasonable be expected to be at the time of firing. | July 2021 |
| Scoring | Guidance and detailed explanations of the scoring rules and examples of their application | December 2024 |
| Speed charts | Guidance on use of the Speed Charts. | |
| Starting penalties | Describes alternatives to returning to start correctly for boats that are over the starting line at the starting signal (OCS) | July 2021 |
| Timing & control systems for race management | Guidance to show the range of potential solutions to control the timing and starts for clubs and open event racing. | July 2020 |
World Sailing Guidance and Manuals
Judges
Judge Manuals, Jury Policies, Misconduct Guidance, Decision Standard Wordings and International Judges Manual
Measurers
Guide to Certification Control, Guide to Equipment Inspection, Equipment Inspection Policies and Measurers Manual
Race Officers
Race Management Guide and Race Management Policies
Rapid Response Calls
Rapid response calls for team and match racing
Rule 42 - Propulsion
Rule 42 Interpretations and common breaches for a range of classes
Umpires
Umpire Manuals for Fleet, Match and Team Racing.
