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Chinese fisherman dead after collision with Vestas 11th


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Can’t edit on phone:

 

This incident does beg the question if it is indeed wise to send a fleet of high performance racing boats into some of the world’s busiest and poorest waters where many boats will be wooden and unlit. It’s likely not considered prudent to be charging along at +20 knots in the pitch black. But the pressure of racing mean full steam ahead.

 

So where do we go from here? Mandated speed reductions at night in some areas? Better radars? High powered headlights?

 

Do Volvo race rules revert to int Colregs during hours of darkness?

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Do Volvo race rules revert to int Colregs during hours of darkness?

Colregs is the Law and you cannot

" contract out of that Law" with any other Rules. You can add to Laws/Rules other Rules to add safety for a specific situation, but they cannot override Laws, the Law remains the ultimate.

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Having been there, and lots of places in SE Asia, I can tell you that the fishing boats are a bloody nightmare, even at 7 knots, let alone 20. There are literally 1000's of them. A lot are totally unlit. Some will light  up small lights, even cigarette lighters, when and if they see you. Often there is a net streamed out, and there is a buoy at the windward end, the boat at the leeward end.  No lights on the buoy.

Heaps of cruisers have hit the nets, and or the boats. Sometimes the locals deliberately put old nets across channels, hoping that a yacht will hit them and then can be coerced into paying for them.... That happens very often.

Contrary to what some have said, the 4 G radar on Vestas would have picked up the wooden vessel if set correctly and watched, but likely only at about a mile range, which is not much at 20 knots. With a large fishing fleet around it might be very difficult or impossible to miss one at that stage. However, they are a know hazard to navigation, and should have been considered and allowed for....

This though, is a much more understandable event than the reef last time!!

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Considering two of the teams are sponsored by Chinese businesses, not a chance they'll drop a Chinese port, whether its Hong Kong, Sanya or some other Chinese mainland location, you just need to follow the money.

There sure wouldn't be any other reason to do 12,000 miles between Melbourne and Auckland....

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If that's the case then it's a failure of organisation by VOR. If they want to race up to the line then the they need to pay for the port authority to establish a clear way and supply local outrunners to go ahead of the yachts and pilot them through.

I was actually thinking about racers in general not only the ones in VOR.

 

/Martin

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