HANDICAP BREAKTHROUGH: Universal Measurement Form

St. Francis Yacht Club to Adopt Universal Measurement Form (UMF)

Will debut in U.S. at Rolex Big Boat Series

 SAN FRANCISCO, CALIF. (March 18, 2013) – Maintaining its leadership position in yacht racing, the St. Francis Yacht Club, host of the annual Rolex Big Boat Series regatta, announced today that it will employ the emerging Universal Measurement Form (UMF) for all handicap classes racing in the 2013 Rolex Big Boat Series taking place September 26^th-29^th, 2013.

“While world rating authorities continue on the development of a cohesive and inclusive overall rating system, St. Francis Yacht Club will be using an element of that overall project – the Universal Measurement Form, which incorporates data elements from IMS and other rating rules including, IRC, ORR, ORC and HPR.  An integrated form set on UMF will allow a single measurement to provide boat certification across multiple handicap rating rules so that a boat can be rated under any participating rule,” said Rolex Big Boat Series Co-Chair Norman Davant.  “Now with UMF, we can offer our competitors an easy solution to obtaining a rating based on certificate information they already have, eliminating the need for re-measurement.”

According to Stan Honey, Director of Technology, America’s Cup Event Authority and Vice Chairman of the ISAF Oceanic and Offshore Committee, “US Sailing has been working with ORC and RORC for several years and all agreed to jointly develop a Universal Measurement System based on the data collected on a standard form.  The UMS will allow boat owners to measure their boat once and race that boat under any handicap system, in any region of the world, without re-measurement.  Many big boat owners view the worldwide adoption of the UMS as the most significant breakthrough in the administration of handicap racing over the last decade.” Additional information can be found at US Sailing’s Offshore Office at http://offshore.ussailing.org/Offshore_Home.htm

Current ORR or ORC certificate holders have virtually all the measurements needed to get a rating under any measurement rule.  IRC certificate holders may require additional hull, rig and stability measurements in order to rate under additional systems.  All boats entering the Rolex Big Boat Series will have their data recorded on the UMF.  US Sailing maintains a large database of standard hulls and previous certificates, and is ready to offer a head start on getting boats measured using UMF.   The Rolex Big Boat Series has, and will continue to feature handicapped racing under IRC, eliminating the need for current IRC certificate holders racing under IRC to obtain additional measurement data.

About the Rolex Big Boat Series
Regarded by sailors as one of the world’s premier sailboat racing events, the Rolex Big Boat Series is part of the Rolex Yachting Portfolio that includes over 20 world-class sailing events that take place around the world. In 1964, the St. Francis Yacht Club’s Big Boat Series was established to take place annually on San Francisco Bay. In 2005, Rolex Watch U.S.A. became the regatta’s title sponsor (it was presenting sponsor for three years prior), and since, the Rolex Big Boat Series has become widely recognized as one of the most important sailing events in the U.S. The event annually attracts world-caliber sailors, all of whom are eager to win one of the six specially engraved Rolex timepieces given to winners of the St. Francis Yacht Club’s Perpetual Trophies.

About the St. Francis Yacht Club
The St. Francis Yacht Club was founded in 1927 and has been host to many of the most prestigious national and international championships in sailing. With over 40 regattas on its calendar annually, and as home to the West Coast’s premier regatta, the Rolex Big Boat Series, the St. Francis Yacht Club is widely regarded as having one of the top racing and race management programs in the country.

For more information, go to www.rolexbigboatseries.com. Find us on facebook at St. Francis Yacht Club – Racing, and follow @bigboatseries.

Media Contact:
Media Pro International
BarbyMacGowan
barby.macgowan@mediapronewport.com
Tel: +1 401-849-0220
Mobile: +1 401-225-0249

Regatta Contact:
St. Francis Yacht Club Racing
Robbie Dean
rdean@stfyc.com
Tel: +1 415-820-3710