Eliminating hurdles to participation

There are several events hosted by San Diego Yacht Club (San Diego, CA) that are in the low key, fun category. These are PHRF handicap events, but if an entrant lacks a rating, the club handicapper will assign an event rating to the boat based on the PHRF data submitted and/or best available information.

The mission is to get boats on the line, and not allow the hurdles of forms and fees, and the time required to process handicap applications, hinder participation. An update from the United Kingdom appears to share this view…

The RORC Rating Office, the technical and administrative hub for all things Spinlock IRC rating-related in the UK, is re-badging its Limited Validity TCC (LV TCC) as the Single Event Rating (SER) with immediate effect.

The LV TCC scheme was an initiative launched two years ago as a means of introducing new owners to the benefits of racing under IRC without them having to apply for a full certificate. If owners only wanted to race in one or two events in the year they could apply for an LV TCC, with an upgrade to a full IRC certificate offered at a reduced rate.

The change of name is primarily being introduced to provide a more understandable and user-friendly path to build on the success of the past two years. 2014 saw 81 events accepting LV TCCs with 117 certificates being issued, compared with 54 events and 124 LV TCCs being issued in 2013.

The newly branded SER is being rolled out to regatta and race organisers across the UK, with encouragement to include it in communications with their members and potential race and regatta entrants.

In spite of the LV TCC option already being widely available at club events and having been taken up by most major events over the past two years, the vast majority of interest has been from those run in the Solent region e.g. Aberdeen Asset Management Cowes Week, the J.P. Morgan Asset Management Round the Island Race and Panerai British Classic Week.

The LV TCC has given owners the opportunity for a memorable day or week of IRC racing at minimal cost. However, it is positive to note that a small number of boats that held LV TCCs in 2013 have upgraded to full IRC certificates in 2014 and as the Rating Office Technical Director, Mike Urwin, comments, “We may not yet be seeing vast numbers but it is satisfying to have made some converts.”

He continues, “Noting the apparent strong Solent/major event bias, while the significant increase this year in the number of events accepting LV TCCs confirms that Clubs around the UK are keen to get more people racing, we recognise that many potential racing owners are not aware of the SER option, or the help and advice they can get from their local IRC Advocates or the Rating Office.

“We hope that the change of name will make SER more accessible and widely recognised, and. we will also be talking further to club officials and members at the regional level including seminars to be jointly held with the RYA this winter.”

Additional information on the Spinlock IRC Single Event Rating: https://www.rorcrating.com/ser