This is Tom Boussie. I am SSS Race Chair for the 2020 season and the Corinthian race was my first experience running a big fleet race. I wanted to first thank everyone who volunteered on the race deck: Greg, Kristen, Don, Joe, as well as Jim Vickers who did all of the work setting up the race. It is a madhouse starting and finishing 130 boats and we definitely needed all hands on deck!

I have been following the discussion on the forum regarding ideas to mitigate SH/DH conflicts at the start and on the course as our fleets grow and, in particular, the number of DH boats increases. These include (among others): 10 min starts, separate SH/DH courses, separate SH/DH race days, eliminating SSS races as season-counters for one design fleets, and better educational outreach to the DH sailing community. As the Round The Rocks race has historically attracted nearly as many entrants as the Corinthian, I think that we need to consider these options as soon as possible.

In addition to opening up the Corinthian awards meeting to this discussion, I would like to form a small working committee of experienced SSS skippers to formulate specific options for consideration by the SSS Board and myself. If you are interested in participating in this effort, please PM me on this forum or contact me via email at tboussie at gmail dot com.

On a side note, I personally think this is more about density of dissimilar boats rather than strictly SH/DH conflicts. There were several protests and two collisions in this race, with equal fault on SH and DH sides. I am confident that we can make adjustments to our racing format to increase the safety and enjoyment of our races, while at the same time making our series welcome to the widest possible audience (with particular emphasis on our foundational SH community). I welcome everyone’s help in making this happen.