RegattaCentral

Race Day Traffic and Bridge Arch Designation:

Going to the Start:  When leaving the dock or boat ramp launch area, all boats need to stay between the red buoys (off port) and the sea wall (off starboard).

West End Buoy Line: Move your boat around to the south side of the lake. Check in with the Start Marshal and be prepared to follow his/her directions.

During the Race: At all bridges during the race, you are to use either the first or second full arches closest to shore. There will be a red buoy at each bridge; all boats *must* stay to the right of these red buoys.

Start: (Heading East) At the start, there will be two large tetra buoys that all boats must pass between to get a start time. If you do not pass through these start buoys, your time will not be recorded.

Rural Road Bridge: (heading east) Use either of the first two arches on the right, closest to the south shore. Once through the Rural Road bridge, crews should move to the right hand (south) side of the lake in order to set themselves up for the Big Turn.

Big Turn (5 total buoys): The best approach for the turn is to be fairly close to the south shore, so you are in position for a smooth swing around the turn. Once you come out of the turn, you should be pointed at the first or second arch on Rural Road bridge.

Buoy Violations: Boats cutting inside the buoys may gain an unfair advantage and may create an unsafe condition. A boat passing to the left/inside of a buoy will be penalized 30 seconds for each buoy missed. Any boat missing 3 or more buoys will be disqualified.

Rural Road (heading west): Use either of the first two arches from the right, closest to the north shore. Once through the bridge, sight the finish buoys and use those as your steering reference. As you get closer to the marina, you will see small yellow buoys on your right. Keep your boat to the left/south side of the entire yellow buoy line. (In other words, keep the buoys on your starboard side, between you and shore.)

Finish Line: Boats must pass between and all the way through the large finish buoys. If you do not pass through the finish buoys, there is a good chance your time will not be recorded.

Returning to Dock: Boats returning to Boat Beach must proceed through the bridge at the finish and work toward boat beach, watching for boats in the warm up lane. Boats returning to the Marina should go through the finish line bridge and turn between the bridges, heading back to the marina keeping the yellow buoys on the boat's right side (starboard) and the red buoys on the boats left (port) side.

Passing: A boat that is being overtaken by another boat must give way. In any passing situation, safety and situational awareness will dictate the safest route to pass and the safest side to which the slower boat should yield. All competitors must understand that a collision helps no one, and if officials are called in to make a judgment on a collision, the factors of safety and situational awareness will be evaluated above everything else.

Passing Under Bridges and at the Big Turn: Passing under bridges and at the Big Turn is allowed, with safety and situational awareness as the highest priority. There should never be more than two large boats racing simultaneously under the same bridge arch; smaller boats, when applicable, may race three simultaneously under each arch. Because there are two racing arches at each side of the Rural bridge, safety dictates that they should both be used if conditions are crowded.

Traffic Pattern Violations: Any crew rowing against the flow of the official traffic pattern will be disqualified.

Novice Category: Novice rowers cannot have participated in any type of rowing or sculling before June 1, 2012. Experience as a coxswain does not count as time rowing/sculling. 

Masters Category: US Rowing's Masters Age Categories will be followed and handicap will be based on boat age average, excluding the coxswain. All participants in a Masters boat must be at least 21 years of age. 

Awards: Medals will be awarded to all first-place finishers.