Common Calls

This is a bit of fun

It's a miscellany of cries (the things commonly shouted by sailors), their 'legal' standing, where they are useful and where not, and what the umpires hear.

Which is sometimes the opposite of what you meant

The late Bill Brockbank put this together, and deserves full credit

Remember.

Just by participating you delegate the finding of facts to the umpires.

On water, there's no mechanism to take evidence, or to question or disprove your rival's story. What the umpires saw, happened. What they didn't see, didn't happen. It's really that simple.

This page outlines how you can, should and sometimes must make your opinions known by unpicking some of the more commonly heard shouts.

Mandatory calls (and they are few) are required. After that, the most useful calls precede an incident, e.g. if you think you have newly acquired luffing rights. Calls after the incident (what you think happened - but the umpires have already made up their minds) are less useful.

With this exception: If two fouls happen close together and the flags follow, tell us which one you're

There are five common traps

Waving the flag at the nearest or most visible umpire, who may not be the one who will make the call. If in doubt, persist until you get a response.

Not shouting loud enough. You overestimate what we can hear over the engine noise. This comment applies to all calls.

Having flags too small to see. ('Painted fingernails', as one umpire described them)

Protesting when you don't or won't need to protest.

I used to love being 'delay and distract' boat (3rd place with my teammates safely 1st and 2nd).

If someone fouled me, why on earth would I protest?

Click the tabs to see the different calls

Room to Tack (commonly 'Water')

Required term, in English, only at an obstruction, where you need to tack (RRS 20).

Not required at a mark, although it does no harm. Despite the Rule Nazis wanting to deprecate it, 'Water' was universally accepted but now the phrase 'Room to Tack'. is in the book, is if you need room to tack and are sailing closehaule you must use those words.

Protest!

A required term, in English. No protest exists (and so no subsequent call to umpire is valid) until Protest is called and a red flag flown.

Calls not heard and flags unseen are common reasons for a green flag meaning 'invalid protest'.

The rules require an 'immediate' hail of Protest, although in practice we allow thinking time for complex incidents.

If you were in the right and your rival got away with a foul simply because you messed up the flags, this is as heartbreaking for you as it is for the umpires. If you were in the wrong you can as of 2025 be penalised (even if the other boat spins. Learn why from the umpires and move on.

Again, if the umpires are unconvinced you called and flagged correctly, they are not allowed to give a penalty, no matter how clearcut.

Hold your course

While it has no standing in law, a useful 'peg' to hang any RRS16.1 (ROW boat altering course) protest on, if done at the right time. Meaningless when made too early, which it usually is.

To be useful, you need to make this call at the last point where any further alteration of course by your opponent would require you to immediately change course. Not binding on the other boat (only Room at an obstruction is binding), although properly done it would support any subsequent RRS14 (Avoiding Damage) claim.

My helm is hard over

Complete Bollocks. An attempt by a windward boat to prove they are now - and possibly only now - doing everything to keep clear. 99% of the time it follows the windward boat not responding - or not responding enough - to a continuing luff or to a leeward boat they didn't see coming..

Starboard

Like all such calls made by a right of way boat, not required but can be helpful in averting collisions.

Up, up!

This might follow (yet too often precedes) a pre-start overlap established to leeward. Often the overlap is established too close, breaking RRS15 (Acquiring right-of-way).

The windward boat is usually so busy trying to keep clear they forget to protest - yet it's a protest they can't lose.

OK. Next time I'll hit him. Or, even worse, 'Do you want me to hit him?'

A disgraceful response to a protest you thought you should have won, yet didn't.

Firstly, the umpires are satisfied that:-

No collision would have occurred had you held your original course. Or

You were give way or keep clear boat anyway, so your course alteration simply averted a breach.

Secondly, you are saying that you intend to break RRS14 (Damage) and Sportsmanship. Perhaps even cripple the event for yourself and others, if that damage takes a boat out of use.

Advice? Cool off, apologise and listen to what the umpires saw and why they ruled. Not what you think happened, or what you think the rule says.

Clear Ahead

If courses are parallel and boats are familiar, this call is useful (although it has no legal standing) and often accurate. It never harms to alert the umpires to what you think.

If boats are unfamiliar, sailing very fast and/or have long overhangs it's common to overestimate your length when coming from astern.

If you are trying to break an overlap by luffing higher than your opponent, 75% to 90% of such calls are hopelessly optimistic.

There was a discussion about the umpires telling the sailors when they were overlapped and when not. (Rugby referees already do - they shout to prevent players infringing.) And why not, if it helps the sailors have fair fun? If people think this worth a punt, let's at least try it.

No Water, No Room

Useful (although with no legal standing) in telling your opponent what to expect, so avoiding collisions or damage..

Don't tack in my water

Archaic and of doubtful use. It's not too different from shouting 'don't break a rule' and you can do that anytime. Your opponent can tack or gybe where he likes - what he mustn't do is break a rule

But there was no collision!

Shows a complete misunderstanding of the rules.

Always on the same tack and often at a mark or obstruction simply being too close * is an infringement. Whether there's a collision or not is neither here nor there.

The umpires decide from the point the infringement started.

If the sailor thinks back in time from the collision, not forward in time from the breach, it's harder for them to understand the penalty.

If the leeward boat can't "change course in either direction without immediately making contact" (commonly called 'wiggle room') then the give-way boat is not keeping clear.

Luffing: You tacked in my water, Tacking too close: I had to alter course

On balance, not terribly helpful - the umpires already decided based on what they saw, not what you hoped they saw!

Advice? If you're going to protest, concentrate on the words Protest, the flags and whether your opponent (or maybe, on reflection, you) admits fault.

But I called (for room [water] to tack or duck a right of way boat) first

Meaningless; No such precedence appears in the rules.

A common misinterpretation of the rules, cured by reading them or good coaching.

If the leeward boat must avoid and decides to tack her call takes precedence, and the call 'Room to Tack' is required and the windward boat MUST respond.

If on a beat the windward boat can call for room to duck, if the leeward boat ducks a starboard tacker. Technically, no call is required - but it is helpful in averting collisions.

Umpire initiated penalties

Some breaches can be initiated by umpires.

No rule forbids you from drawing them to our attention.

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