Conduct of a Race

25 Sailing Instructions and Signals
Sailing instructions shall be made available to each competitor before a race begins. The race committee shall conduct the race using visual and sound signals defined in the Race Signals and any other signals included in the sailing instructions.

26 Starting Systems
  26.1 Starting a Race on the water.

    (a) Signals for starting a Race with the entire fleet. (Course Racing).
    Signals shall be made at three-minute intervals. Times shall be taken from the visual signals; the failure of a sound signal shall be disregarded. Signals shall be:

    Each signal shall be lowered one minute before the next is raised. The green flag shall remain displayed for the period the race committee deems reasonable.

    When divisions are started at six minute intervals, the starting signal for each division shall be the warning signal for the next. The green flag shall be lowered two minutes after the valid start, and one minute before the yellow flag is displayed. When divisions flags are used, they shall be displayed with the preparatory signal of the division.

    (b) Signals for starting a Race with Half Fleet, 16 or 8 ,or similar number of competitor heats (Slalom).

    The interval between the starting signals is at the discretion of the Race Committee and shall be posted on the Official Notice Board, or as described in the Sailing Instructions. Each signal may be lowered when the next is raised. It shall be the sole responsibility of each competitor to know in which heat he/she will be racing/starting. Signals shall be.

26.2

   (a) Each Board in any heat shall be randomly assigned its starting station at the line by drawing a number directly before its start. Starting station no.1 shall be the most windward one, unless described otherwise. It shall be the sole responsibility of each board to know in which heat and in which position it will be racing/starting.

   (b) After Boards of a heat have been called to take their starting positions, the starting officer will give a preparatory signal by the raising of a red flag and giving a sound signal. At any time there after the starting officer may give the starting signal by lowering the red flag and giving one sound signal.

   (c) Once the starting signal has been given, each board shall take the shortest possible route from its starting position to its windsurfing position in the water (both feet on the board). This will normally be a course directly from its starting position to the first mark.

27 Other Race Committee Actions Before the Starting Signal
  27.1 No later than the preparatory signal, the race committee may move a starting mark.

  27.2 Before the starting signal, the race committee may postpone (flag AP) or abandon the race (flag N) for any reason.

  27.3 Raising of the 'Fun Flag' before the start of a race means: 'The following race shall be an unofficial race and shall be held for fun, training and press/spectator purposes only'

28 Sailing the Course
  28.1 A board shall start, pass each mark on the required side in the correct order, and finish, so that a string representing her wake after starting and until finishing would, when drawn taut, lie on the required side of each mark and touch each rounding mark. It may correct any errors to comply with this rule, provided it has not already finished. The board shall clear the finishing line and not re-enter the course area.

  28.2 A mark has a required side for a board only when it is on a leg that the mark begins, bounds or ends, except that a starting mark begins to have a required side when the board is approaching the starting line from its pre-start side to start.