When A’s spinnaker guy touches the mark, she breaks rule 31. A boat
touches a mark within the meaning of rule 31 when any part of her hull,
crew or equipment comes in contact with the mark. The fact that her
equipment touches the mark because she has manoeuvring or sail-handling
difficulties does not excuse her breach of the rule.
When contact occurs later between the two boats, rule 18 no longer applies.
Because A’s spinnaker is not in its normal position, the boats are not
overlapped and, therefore, rule 12 applies. That rule requires B to keep clear
of A, which she is doing because nothing B did or failed to do required A
‘to take avoiding action’ (see the definition Keep Clear). This is shown by
the fact that the contact between them results exclusively from A’s
equipment moving unexpectedly out of normal position. Therefore, B did
not break rule 12.
Rule 14 also applied. A broke rule 14 by causing contact that she could have
avoided. However, because there was no damage or injury, A is exonerated
(see rule 43.1(c)). It was not reasonably possible for B to avoid contact with
A’s spinnaker as it streamed astern, and so B did not break rule 14.
Note that Case 91 also addresses an incident involving equipment out of its
normal position.
|