LVC Sailing Instructions Issued

This evening Regatta Director Dyer Jones (USA) issued the Sailing Instructions for the Louis Vuitton Cup. [Update 16 Feb 10:05 -- As the website CupInfo.com has nicely put it, the SIs "are the last major piece in the rules puzzle for the conduct of the Louis Vuitton Cup regatta, detailing many practical aspects of the competition."]

The document is available as a .pdf file here.

Our thanks to Dyer and Principal Race Officer Peter "Luigi" Reggio for, as always, meeting the stipulated deadline -- in this case, 15 February per the NOR -- and for working closely with the Challenger Commission to arrive at rules that all involved are comfortable with.

Of particular interest will be the amended (from the Acts) procedure for advance approval of an "18th person" guest crew spelled out in SI 16. ACC Rule 37.2 states that individuals with "acknowledged technical or tactical skill" cannot serve as the 18th person. Guidelines to further define "acknowledged technical or tactical skill" are called for in SI 16.2, and these are currently under discussion by the Challenger Commission in consultation with the Regatta Director, Jury and Defender. The goal is to have the same guidelines for Act 13, the LVC and the AC Match.

Otherwise the SIs are pretty straightforward, and complement nicely the LVC Notice of Race issued by the Regatta Director on New Year's Eve.

One more document done and checked off the CC's "to-do" list.