A certificate of measurement, mandatory for the regatta
Regatta is a sport fabuleux?! You learn to improve in many areas such as boat handling, manoeuvres, game strategy or weather. We also discover strong emotions, the adrenaline of a fleet determined to turn the buoy to the front, the joy of surpassing oneself, the delivery of a foghorn at the finish line... Whether for a sausage or for the competition, what counts is the pleasure of being on eau?!
So to race we will register for an event like a Tour du Finistère à la Voile or a club program with local winter training sessions. There is a wide choice of more or less prestigious races, in which you can participate with your boat.
Whatever the event, if you are not racing in one design, to manage the fleet of heterogeneous yachts, the organizers will ask you for a handicap measurement certificate when you register. The gauge allows different boats to race together by compensating for the time of the slowest boats compared to the fastest: these are handicap gauges.
Two systems are mainly used in France:
- OSIRIS (Organization of the Information System for Inter-Series Regattas)
- IRC (International Rule Club).
Why do you need a jauge??
Many factors, such as length, weight or sail area, directly influence the performance of a boat without being related to the crew. In 15 knots, a 20 m sailboat will always be faster than an 8 m sailboat, because the theoretical speed is highly dependent on the waterline length.
Handicap gauges are therefore there to establish a balance between different boats, by compensating for performance criteria.
Many gauges exist throughout the world, but some have won in regattas. If you decide to participate in a race where the fleet is heterogeneous, this will lead you to participate under one or other of the handicap gauges that are OSIRIS and IRC. Both are recognized by the World Sailing (ex-Isaf).
How did we arrive at two jauges??
We're lucky, it could be pire?! Throughout the world, in every country, every club can have its own gauge. In France, for example, the HN (ex-Osiris) was a national gauge (among many others) that allowed boaters to race occasionally and locally in their club.
These gauging systems had to be easily accessible, i.e., not very constraining and economical (but unreliable) to attract boaters. They were mainly aimed at sailboat owners who find that a regatta is a good excuse to go for a round in the water.
But, through the filter of globalization, certain so-called "scientific" gauges, essentially from Anglo-Saxon culture, have succeeded in establishing themselves, despite their complexity, and are now a reference.
These scientific gauges are mainly intended for sailors who are sharp as their machines, because they are quite advanced and require a lot of measurements to report. By their relevance, they are intended for those who want to optimize their racing performance by customizing their boat.
Currently in France, there are two gauges that cohabit in coherence:
- the IRC of Anglo-Saxon origin, is managed in France by UNCL (Union Nationale pour la Course au Large).
- oSIRIS of French origin, is governed by the French Sailing Federation.
Historically, these gauges have competed with each other. They try to impose themselves by offering the best compensation system.
