The RPAYC Cruising Safety Working Group has been working on the production of a document that defines the standards and requirements for cruising events conducted under the auspices of the Club. The Working Group is a sub-committee of the Cruising Committee and was formed earlier this year under the chairmanship of the Club Commodore, Angus Gordon, to investigate why there was a reduction in the number of cruising boats complying with YA Special Regulations and then to identify and implement appropriate risk mitigation measures in the context of On-Water Risk Management.
Investigation into the reduced safety audit compliance numbers indicated a high level of dissatisfaction with the YA Special Regulations, otherwise known as the "Blue Book", and this, in the main, was attributable to a failure of the Blue Book to recognise the essential differences between racing and cruising risk profiles.
The Working Group identified that the application of many of the Blue Book regulations to the RPAYC cruising environment was considered inappropriate by cruisers given the perceived difference in the range and level of risks likely to be encountered during participation in Club on-water cruising events. The Working Group considered that some requirements could be relaxed without compromising safety and that other requirements would need to be more demanding, especially where consideration of the implications of the usual minimal crewing of cruising boats was concerned.
The YA Special Regulations are based on the ISAF Offshore Special Regulations. The ISAF Special Regulations Sub-Committee was created in 1967 by the then newly formed Offshore Rule Co-ordinating Committee, later the Offshore Racing Council and now the Offshore Racing Congress. Given this background and review of the content of the ISAF regulations, it was apparent that the ISAF Special Regulations publication is focussed on offshore racing event requirements rather than "mom and pop", non-competitive, and usually time independent, cruising event requirements.
The main element in the risk mitigation work of the Cruising Safety Working Group is the production of a freely available, clear and comprehensive document that defines the regulations and standards, which when considered as a whole, will serve as a reasonable safety baseline for Club cruising events. The title of this document is The RPAYC Cruising Safety Standards". It is otherwise known as the RPAYC "Green Book".
The majority of other cruising observations regarding the YA version of the ISAF regulations that were passed to the working group related to the obligation to purchase the Blue Book to comply with YA safety equipment audit requirements and that the wording and layout of both the Blue Book and its ISAF parent document were considered unnecessarily complex and the related requirements were often located in different sections of the publication. Despite this criticism the recently released ISAF Offshore Special Regulations 2006-2007 is considered far more readable and better laid out than its predecessor and the publication may be accessed at http://www.sailing.org
The RPAYC Green Book addresses many of the specific equipment gripes expressed by cruisers and these include:
- stern light below the working deck;
- coated lifelines;
- storm/heavy weather jib;
- cockpit drains; and
- HF radio.
In its coverage of the common gripes, the RPAYC Green Book relaxes some of the ISAF requirements and identifies alternatives whereby the risk covered by the ISAF regulations may be managed in an alternative way. It clarifies many of the requirements so that both the requirement and the reason for it may be more easily understood and identifies referenced standards by their title so that readers may gain an idea of what the standards actually cover.
The RPAYC Green Book adopts an holistic perspective of safety in the Club cruising context. One can have the best designed built and equipped boat but if the crew cannot operate the boat safely then the risk profile has not been mitigated. The Green Book is but one part of the work to increase awareness of adoptinf an holistic approach to cruising safety and you may have noticed an increase in the number of safety-related cruising training events and First Friday presentations available to members - these are all part of the strategy to raise awareness and mitigate the cruising safety risk profile.
As we all know the sea is an unforgiving environment - extreme conditions are rare but we have or will be caught out at some time if we regularly venture forth. The scout's motto of "be prepared" is particularly apt.
The Green Book contains eight sections that more or less mirror those of the ISAF Special regulations - Scope, Responsibility and Definitions, Application and General Requirements, Structural Aspects, Stability and Fixed Equipment, Portable Equipment and Supplies, Personal Equipment, Medical, Training, and Appendices covering Liferafts, Man Overboard Recovery, Hypothermia, Drogues and Sea Anchors, and Stability. The Appendices are provided for information and guidance.
The planned way ahead is to complete the draft, post it on the Club website for public review and comment, and in parallel, undertake OWRM review and subsequently Board consideration. The schedule objective is to have the Green Book promulgated for use prior to the RPAYC 2006-07 "Sapphire Coast" Cruise which departs on 29 December.
I encourage all those who have an interest in cruising safety to review the draft RPAYC Green Book and provide comment to me via the link on the RPAYC website.
Eoin Asker
Chair, RPAYC On-Water Risk Management Committee
12 Oct 06
[27/11 UPdate: Draft Green Book released: see here]
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