From the Boathouse: The ins and outs of avoiding collisions

Ahoy!

This week, I want to highlight the rules of the road after two sailboats collided in the wide-open Pacific Ocean. Both boats were entered in a yacht club’s race between two Southern California harbors just under 100 nautical miles apart. The course was a nice southerly, or downhill, direction and the seas were calm.

Both vessels were on port tacks at the time of the collision, and their skippers were flying spinnakers since they were on broader reaches.

Now, most sailors know that typically a sailing vessel on a starboard tack is the stand-on vessel, and the sailboat on a port tack is the give-way vessel. In other words, the stand-on vessel maintains course and speed, while the give-way vessel alters course and/or speed to avoid a collision. However, in this situation, the boats were on the same tack.

However, there is much more to the rules of the road than most boaters understand.

Capt. Rags Laragione, president and CEO of the Maritime Institute in San Diego, provided clarification.

I want all boaters to read Laragione’s brief, technical explanation of the rules of the road that relate to collisions. Keep in mind that we are discussing collisions and not allisions, which occur when a ship hits another that is stationary. Fault is more easily determined with allisions.

The references in Laragione’s explanation are from the Coast Guard’s “Navigation Rules International-Inland” book, which is available in downloadable PDF format at https://www.navcen.uscg.gov/pdf/navRules/navrules.pdf. Did you know that vessels 12 meters or more in length must have a copy of this publication onboard for reference at all times?

“Listening to conversations around the dock and yacht clubs, I often hear someone say, ‘I had the right of way,’” Laragione told me. “I would like to try to clear this up a bit, but there is no right of way in the rules (except Rule 9 [a] [ii]). There is the give-way vessel in Rule 16, and the stand-on vessel as mentioned in Rule 17.”

Rule 16, titled “Action by Give-way Vessel,” clearly states that every vessel that is directed to keep out of the way of another vessel shall, so far as possible, take early and substantial action to keep well clear.

“This can be accomplished by changing course or speed, or both,” Laragione added.

Rule 17, titled “Action by the Stand-on Vessel,” is more difficult to understand. However, section (a) (i) states that where one of the two vessels is to keep out of the way, the other shall keep her course and speed. Laragione further expressed, “This is simple and direct, so do not change your course or speed. This is so the give-way vessel can take early and substantial action to keep well clear and avoid the collision.”

However, the next paragraph, (ii), says the latter vessel may take action to avoid collision by its maneuver alone as soon as it becomes apparent that the vessel required to keep out of the way is not taking appropriate action in compliance with these rules.

In layman’s terms, even if yours is the stand-on vessel, you can take action to avoid a collision. Remember the old saying, “Don’t be dead right.” I constantly remind new yacht owners of this when I am training them behind the helm.

Then section (b) mentions that the stand-on vessel shall tack to avoid collision if a collision is unavoidable by the other boat.

“This is where it gets interesting,” Laragione explained. “It is at this point that the responsibility to give way changes, as the stand-on vessel now shall take such action as will best aid to avoid collision.” However, this rule does not relieve the give-way vessel of her obligation to keep out of the way.

“This is just Rule 16 and Rule 17, and there are other rules that ... cover a collision,” he concluded. “In other words, when two vessels collide, both vessels have broken a number of the rules of the road. Not everyone knows or reads the rules, and not everyone has had formal education in the rules of the road. Unfortunately, some sailboat sailors wrongly assume that they have the right of way over other vessels.”

What is your determination of the rules of the road between sailing vessels, and how can racing rules add another layer of complexity for determining who has the right of way? Let me know your experiences when avoiding or colliding with another vessel for an upcoming column.

As always, just keep an eye to the weather for any changes. Please be boat smart and boat safe. Lastly, please boat responsibly and look behind you before you turn the wheel at the helm.

The original boating program, “Boathouse TV & Radio Shows,” has stretched from coast to coast for more than two decades. See the details at https://www.boathousetv.com, https://www.facebook.com/boathouseradio and https://www.twitter.com/boathouseradio.

Safe voyages!

MIKE WHITEHEAD is a boating columnist for the Daily Pilot. Send marine-related thoughts and story suggestions to [email protected] or go to https://www.boathousetv.com.