The Technical Committee shall include five class members, one of whom is an appointed representative of the manufacturer. The other four shall be elected by the Class along with the other officers. The Committee should be representative of the entire Class and include members from at least three regional districts. |
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Proposed rule changes
may be submitted in writing to the Vanguard 15 Class Association office
by any class member in good standing. All proposed rule changes will be
reviewed by the Technical Committee. After seeking consultation from Class
members and others that may be knowledgeable on the topic, the Technical
Committee will determine if the proposed rule change should be recommended
for adoption. If the Technical Committee recommends a proposed rule change
for adoption it will draft the new rule and then submit it to the full slate
of officers for a vote. Proposed rule changes must be approved by seven
officers to be adopted. |
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Rule Changes Passed by the 2013-2015 Technical Committee
Rule Changes Passed by the 2012/2013 Technical Committee 1) Rule Update: VANG 2) Rule Update: MAINSHEET BRIDLE The new rule will read: Rule Changes Passed by the 2005 Technical Committee 1) Rule Change: STAMASTER SHROUD ADJUSTERS. Proposed: In section 4.9 add the text - Sta/Master shroud adjusters may be used. Recommend placing the rule at the end of section 4.9 following the bullet about fast pins.
2) Rule Change: Appendix 1.0. SIX MINUTE STARTING SEQUENCE. Proposed: In appendix 1.0 - Regatta Guidelines: Delete the text "The following is the preferred starting method: A six minute starting sequence as opposed to a full ten minute sequence." We believe a deletion of the current text will serve our purpose. It is located in the guidelines for championship events. The original text is meant to reduce the old 10 minute starting time. The current standard starting Sequence (Rule 26) is 5 minutes in The Racing Rules of Sailing. Almost all regattas use Rule 26 now, it’s the default. If we delete our request to have the 6 minute sequence in championship events race committees will give us the standard 5 minutes according to The Racing Rules of Sailing. If small events wish to use three minutes they can do so by changing the SI's. Our championships have enough boats to warrant 5 minutes over 3 minutes. In addition, in the spirit of keeping our class simple, using the standard Racing Rules of Sailing is the best move. Issues discussed by the 2005 Technical Committee 3) Issue: 4.9 Sheets & Lines. Add RISERS UNDER JIB CLEATS. We have reviewed this issue and there is no new evidence to warrant making adding Jib Cleat risers legal. (I.E. it is illegal to add hardware to the boat) 4) Issue: Appendix 3.0 - OOCHING. Currently ooching is illegal unless specified by the NOR for each regatta. We have reviewed this issue and though most feel ooching should be illegal, there are still many who feel it should be left up to the individual regatta to decide. 5) Issue: Rule 4.1 Hill - SHIMMING CENTERBOARD TRUNKS. Do we want to allow Solo-flex type shimming or not? The tech committee feels this would not be within the “Spirit” of keeping the boat simple. The tech committee feels the use “Vecro” or “Tapes” inside the centerboard trunk is fine, but more permanent types of shimming the centerboard truck such as Solo-flex is modification to the boat/Hull and therefore not legal. 6) Issue: Rule 4.1 Hull. Adding a Carbon Fiber Center Seam (Nub) to the cockpit floor for the Skipper (in older boats without one). The Class rule states this item must be supplied by the builder. The tech committee determined adding a carbon fiber nub or, for that matter, any carbon fiber to the boat is illegal. |
Past Issues: During the off-season, a lively debate over proposed rule changes took place over the email list and website. Although many proposed changes were talked about, there were six issues which merited a vote by the Technical Committee, a summary of which follows. 1. New Membership Proposal:
This proposal was approved, the new rule can be found below. 2. The five other changes have to do with rigging the boats. Before going into detail, it is important to note the following: the Vanguard 15 Technical Committee welcomes all rules proposals, however, the Vanguard 15 is a STRICT one-design. We, as a class, believe that keeping the boats as uniform as possible is a good thing. Changes in the rules that effect the rigging or setup of the boat will be evaluated based on two metrics: safety or correction of an original design flaw. An example of each of these would be our trial of the Sta-Master adjuster (which should make shroud adjustment safer) and the shortening of the spreaders (which corrected a flaw in the original design). A good rule of thumb for rigging the V15 is that you can do what you want with what you have (or came with the boat), and you can't add anything else, except as explicitly permitted in the rules. If the rules don't say you CAN do it, odds are you CAN'T. All this being said, we welcome any and all rules submissions, and will evaluate all proposals. Proposal A: allow the addition of purchase to the cunningham & outhaul through the addition of line loops. This proposal was passed (see new rule below) - it is a case of clarifying the use of supplied equipment. Proposal B & C: allow thimbles (B) or blocks (C) in vang, cunningham & outhaul to reduce friction These proposals were denied on the basis that they add additional equipment to the current setup without addressing a concern for safety or a design flaw. Proposal D: Allow/disallow tapered jibsheets. This was not a new rule, but a clarification of an existing rule. Refer to rule 4.8 "The jib sheets shall be a single line of any diameter. A single shackle may be used for the purpose of attaching the sheets to the jib. The sheets can be rigged in any manner desired, provided that no additional line or fittings of any type are used in the system to alter the friction or direction of the sheeting." Additionally note that 2:1 jibsheets are permitted under this rule, so long as they follow the language of the rule (no additional line or fittings). Proposal E: Allow risers under jib cleats This proposal has been reviewed and rejected in the past, however we elected to revisit it when more accurate data on this problem can be collected. Preliminary data indicates that the position of the jib fairlead varies from boat to boat, making cleating (or un-cleating) the jib very difficult, and highly variable from boat to boat. PLEASE see the discussion of this issue on the Techinical Board Forum of the message board and help us gather some useful data. Proposal F: Fix the position of the jib tack. This proposal was denied. There are three holes in the forward tack fitting and one should be able to choose which they would like to use. Please note, this is not intended to encourage changing the position of the tack on the water, rather it enables one to choose a tack position when rigging up. Don't be an idiot and try to change this while you are on the water - the only thing more unsafe than this would be moving the mast step while on the water. Per Class Rule 3.5 ("Class Rule Changes"), the Technical Committee respectfully submitted the following Rule Proposals for the consideration of the Class Officers: Rule Change Proposal 1: Membership Adjustment The following is a rule change proposal. The objective of the proposal is to eliminate an apparent status difference between skippers and crews in the class rules. Rule 3.3- Rule 3.4- Rule 7.4 Rule Change Proposal 2: Ability to increase purchase in outhaul & cunningham The following is a rule change proposal. The objective of the proposal is to allow increased purchase in the outhaul and cunningham. Add: The outhaul shall be rigged using only the hardware supplied with the original outhaul system, with the following exception: -Line loops may be formed in any part of the line for additional purchase 4.4.2 Cunningham The cunningham shall be rigged using only the hardware supplied with the original cunnnigham system, with the following exception: -Line loops may be formed in any part of the line for additional purchase and the line may be knotted at any point to either the cunningham cleat or the eyestrap which attaches the cunningham to the mast StaMaster Shroud Adjustments On trial basis for 2001, 1/8 in. StaMaster shroud adjustment fittings may be added to the shrouds to facilitate changing the rake IN BETWEEN races. Fittings should be chafe taped and stops inserted to prevent the mast falling if the StaMaster is loosened too far during adjustment. At the 2001 class meeting (during Nationals) the shroud adjuster issue will be voted upon for final approval. The 1/8 in. fitting was chosen over the 3/32 in. to provide a similar amount of throw to current fittings. Some boats in Fleet 11 in North Carolina are trying the 1/8 in StaMaster. Bill Wiggens, a Performance Rigging Specialist, (BillW@westmarine.com)has been doing research on the issue. Please contact Bill or members of the Technical committee with any questions. Spreaders * Effective January 1, 2000 all spreaders must comply with the 2000 standard 2000 spreader standard: A class member asked about putting wedges under the jib cleats to raise
them to make it easier for children and smaller people to cleat the jib.
The Technical Committee felt that this was not allowed under the current
rules nor that it warranted a rule change to legalize wedges, and therefore
rejected this request. Jib Sheet Interpretation Request The Technical Committee was asked if 2:1 jib sheeting was legal on the Vanguard 15. In the request, the member demonstrated that he was able to rig his jib sheets 2:1 without adding any fittings by tying the ends of the line to the recessed fairlead. The reason for this sheeting was to make it easier for a small crew to handle the jib in windy conditions. The technical committee decided that 2:1 sheeting without the addition of any fittings was legal under the current rules, but the current rules were not very clear on this issue. Therefore, we reworded the rule to make it clear that jib sheets can be rigged in any manner provided that no additional line or fitting are used in the system to alter the friction or direction of the sheeting. Specific recommendations on this sheeting from class member Paul-Jon
Patin are: 2:1 sheeting works with 32' of 1/4 prestretch or the like.
Tie the line to the leads. The key to best performance is maintaining
the sheet "overhauled" and keeping the sheet in front of the
crew on the windward |
