The Club relies on the services of volunteer Race Officers on a rota basis (see Fixture List). More volunteers are needed, and help is always welcome. Novices are encouraged to come forward, experienced help is available. Any Race Officer who is unable to perform his duty on the allocated date should arrange a substitute or contact the Duty Officer as soon as possible.

First of all you will need to get out the committee boat and at least one safety boat (the committee boat is not a safety boat, and as such does not carry the same amount of safety equipment as the dories).Which dory you pick is up to you, but bare in mind you have to attend every capsize within three minutes. The slower dory will not be able to do this if multiple boats capsize at the same time, so if anymore than five boats, or a moderate wind strength, then get the 30hp dory out just to be on the safe side, but again use your own judgment as these guidelines vary a lot... you may decide to have the 30hp when it's only two boats out for example.

Check the course you are going to set, the first leg of the race should be a beat (e.g. the first mark should be directly upwind of the starting line). After rounding the first mark it is much up to personal preference as it is types of boat racing. Check that the marks are in your intended positions. Don't get too picky about it – it is often more important to get on with the race rather than try to create the perfect course.

Put the course up on the blackboard for everyone to see in plenty of time before the start, and decide how many laps you want to do. It is generally a good policy to set an overlong course, which can easily be shortened, rather than risk setting a course, which is never going to be long enough. For that reason, it is often appropriate for the Race Officer to shorten the course during the race. These decisions are often difficult, as you have to consider the boats at the back of the fleet as well as the boats at the front. It is generally agreed that people would rather have a race that was a little too short, than one which was a little too long, so bear that in mind

It is quite important that the race starts at the published time unless there is a really good reason not to, therefore you have to be ready to make the first sound signal five minutes before the start time. Please look near the base of this page for the starting procedure, what flags to fly and when.

After starting the race keep an eye on how many laps each boat has done so you don't get confused. Remember to keep an eye on safety at all times, and also on the security of the car park and club house.

When the right amount of laps have taken place (or when shorting a course - see below for the flag sequence showing how to do this) pick a finish line between the committee boat and a mark and sound a short bip, or ring the bell, as every racing boat crosses the finish line and record its sail number and finishing time (including seconds) on the race results sheet.

Please make sure that before going home the results sheet is stuck to the results notice board for the handicapper to collect, that all the cupboards in the sail shed are locked, and that everything is secure and tidy.

For the official racing signals & flags, please open this page.