I

 

INTERNATIONAL 505 CLASS YACHT RACING ASSOCIATION

 

28 January 1999

Dear 505 Sailor,

Ballot on Rule Changes.

At the AGM in Hyannis a number of rule changes were approved. The Rule change necessary to make all future International Championships OPEN was approved by the meeting and no further action is necessary. However, although other changes were all approved at the meeting, these now have to approved by a ballot of the whole membership.

What are the Changes?

The detailed proposals are set out later. There are changes proposed to the Constitution to bring the way the class is governed up to date. There are proposals to change the way in which we measure sails to bring us into line with the ISAF system. Finally there is a proposal to introduce a fixed levy for boats advertising at international championships instead of the current system of charging a double entry fee. Notes explaining the reasons for the changes follow each proposal.

Who may vote?

All boat owning members, or part boat owning members may vote for the Constitutional and Measurement Changes. All members may vote on the advertising levy.

How do I vote?

A ballot form can be found on page 6. This can be returned by post to your National Secretary or to me at the International Office. You can also vote by E Mail - make sure you put all the information on the form in your message. All votes must be with either your National Secretary or me NO LATER THAN 1 APRIL 1999.

When will the Changes take effect?

If approved the change to the Advertising Levy will take effect from 1 May 1999. All other changes will be effective from 1 January 2000, subject to ratification by the ISAF.

Please Vote!

Regards

Chris Thorne

International Secretary

1: Resolutions to change Constitution

Amend existing Rules as follows:

7.0 Officers of the International Association

Officers

7.1 The officers, whose terms of office shall commence on 1 January, shall be:

7.1.1 an International President,

an International Vice President,

an International Secretary,

an International Treasurer, who shall reside in the same country as the International Secretary,

a Chairman of the International Rules Committee.

7.1.2 All Officers shall be elected for a term of two years. The President and Vice President shall be elected in years of even number, the remaining officers in years of odd number.

Auditor

7.5 An Auditor shall be appointed by the Association at each Annual General Meeting and shall audit the annual accounts of the Association. The International Treasurer shall complete the draft accounts and arrange for these to be forwarded to the Auditor as soon as possible after the end of each year, together with any records and receipts requested by the Auditor On completion of the Audit the International Secretary shall immediately send copies to all Members of the IGC and the National Secretaries. The Treasurer shall arrange for presentation of the audited accounts to the next Annual General Meeting of the International Association.

Note:

At present there is no provision for a Vice President, which is clearly sensible for continuity. It is also felt that the Chairman of the Rules Committee should be an Officer elected by the membership - at present it is not clear by who or how he is appointed. The Auditor is currently shown as an Officer. This is incorrect. The Auditor is appointed by the members to keep a check on the financial dealings of the Executive and therefore he must be independent, not part of it.

 

9.0 International Committees

9.1 International Governing Committee ('IGC")

9.1.1 This Committee shall consist of the International Officers and a representative of each National Association.

Note:

The existing rule stipulates that the President of each National Association shall be on the IGC. The proposal allows each country to nominate whom they like.

 

9.2 International Executive Committee ("IEC");

9.2.1 This committee shall consist of the five Officers elected or appointed in accordance with Rule 7.

9.2.2 Under delegated Authority from the IGC the IEC shall be responsible for the management of the International Office, the issue of sail numbers and the registration of boats.

9.2.3 Meetings shall be held upon giving of not less than seven days notice in writing.

9.2.4 The Committee may delegate its powers to any one or more of its members, or co-opt any other Member.

Note:

Currently the IEC is the Int Secretary and Treasurer plus the President and Secretary of the country where the Int Secretary lives. The International President is not involved. In the past this has meant that the class has effectively been controlled by the UK. With modern communication there is no longer any practical reason for the existing arrangement. All countries should have the opportunity of nominating and electing the Officers of the IEC

 

9.3 International Rules Sub Committee ("IRC")

9.3.1 This Sub Committee shall consist of the Chairman elected or appointed under Rule 7.1.3 and four other Members whose appointment shall be confirmed by the IGC

Note:

The IRC does not currently have a clear relationship with the IGC and IEC. This proposal rectifies the situation. Also the existing rule provides for a committee of at least eight (four each from Britain and France). The weighting in favour of these two countries is inappropriate and the Committee does not need to be as large.

Ballots

Insert additional Rule:

11.3 No ballot may be held within three years of a previous ballot on the same or a substantially similar proposal, except with the approval of the IGC.

Note:

This is to prevent repeated attempts to push through a motion defeated at ballot, which is wasteful of time and resources.

Subscriptions

Amend existing Rule:

14.3.2 The amount of any change in the annual subscription shall be determined by IEC and ratified by Members at the Annual General Meeting.

Note:

The present rule is inconsistent with rules 4.1.3 and 9.1.3.3

 

 

2: Resolutions to change Measurement Rules

Rule 8.1.1 to be deleted and replaced with:

8.1.1 Sails shall be made and measured in accordance with the ISAF Equipment Rules of Sailing and comply with their requirements. In the event of conflict with these Class Rules, the Class Rules shall prevail.

Rule 8.1.5 to be deleted and replaced with:

8.1.5 Sail reinforcement is not restricted.

Mainsail

Rule 8.2.2 to be deleted and replaced with:

8.2.2 The luff and the foot of the mainsail shall be secured to the mast and boom respectively over at least 80 per cent of their lengths.

Rule 8.2.3 to be deleted and replaced with:

8.2.3 The following dimensions, including boltropes where fitted, shall not be exceeded:

Rule 8.2.4 to deleted and replaced with:

8.2.4 Not more than four battens may be used to support the leech. At the leech, the centre of the top batten pocket shall be between 1450mm and 1550mm from the head point, and the centre of the bottom batten pocket shall be between 1250mm and 1490mm from the clew point. No batten pocket shall be located less than 1000mm from any other batten pocket. No batten or pocket shall exceed 1180mm in length

 

Headsail

Rule 8.3.1 to be deleted and replaced with:

8.3.1 The headsail shall conform with the official rules and diagrams, except that a sail smaller in any dimension except batten position is allowed.

Rule 8.3.2 to be deleted and replaced with:

8.3.2 The leech from the aft head point to the clew point shall be a straight line or concave curve.

Rule 8.3.3 to be deleted and replaced with:

8.3.3 The following dimensions shall not be exceeded:

 

 

Spinnaker

Rules 8.4.2 and 8.4.3 to be deleted and replaced with:

8.4.2 The following dimensions shall not be exceeded:

8.4.3 The half width shall be not less than 75% of the foot length.

Corresponding changes to be made to the Sail Measurement Form, Instructions to Measurers and Measurement Diagrams.

If approved, any sail bearing a measurement stamp dated prior to 1 January 2000 may be measured in accordance with the rules prevailing at the date when the sail was measured, unless it has been altered.

Note:

The International Rules Committee has proposed these changes to bring the Sail Measurement Rules more into line with the ISAF Equipment Rules of Sailing. In drawing up the changes we consulted sailmakers and others. There are no changes in the basic dimensions of the sails, apart from small adjustments necessitated by the change of measurement method.

The benefits of the changes are:

The proposed rules will be easier for sailmakers and measurers to understand, since most of the definitions are in the ISAF booklet. Some computer programmes for sail design give ISAF measurements as part of the output.

Measurement will be easier, quicker and more accurate.

 

 

3 : Resolution to change Championship Rules

Delete existing 5.7 and replace with following:

5.7 A yacht which displays a Category B advertisement shall pay an additional fee of £100 (One hundred pounds sterling), such sum being subject to annual review by the IEC. The Organising Authority shall retain half of the additional fee collected under this rule and allocate it to the Championship budget for the general benefit of all competitors. It shall forward the other half of the fee to the International Office.

Note:

This follows the ballot last year when a proposal to abolish the levy was defeated. The IGC accepts some of the problems caused by the current arrangement of charging double the entry fee, particularly where the trend has been for entry fees to increase significantly because they include many non sailing extras.

 

 

 

 

 

 

BALLOT FORM

1: Resolutions to Change Constitution - only Boat Owning Members may vote:

Rule No

Brief Description

Page No

Yes X

No X

7.1

Amend list of class officers

2

    

7.5

Appointment of Auditor

2

    

9.1

Membership of IGC

2

    

9.2

Membership of IEC

3

    

9.3

Membership of IRC

3

    

11.3

Ballots

3

    

14.3.2

Subscriptions

3

    

2: Resolutions to Change Sail Measurement Method - only Boat Owning Members may vote:

Rule No

Brief Description

Page No

Yes X

No X

8.1.1

Reference to ISAF rules

4

    

8.1.5

Sail Reinforcement

4

    

8.2.2 8.2.3

Mainsail

4

    

8.3.1, 8.3.2, 8.3.3

Headsail

4

    

8.4.2 8.4.3

Spinnaker

5

    

3: Resolution to Change Championship Rules - all Members may vote:

Rule No

Brief Description

Page No

Yes X

No X

5.7

Introduction of fixed fee Advertising Levy

5

    

 

Name: ________________________

Address: ________________________

________________________

________________________

________________________

National Association: _______________

 

 

Boat Owner or Part Boat Owner Yes/No

If yes, state Boat No: _____________