Rolex Sydney Hobart - ORCi in its second year

by Dobbs Davis on 24 Dec 2010 Rolex Sydney Hobart - After introducing a dual-scoring option last year, entries in this year’s RSHYR once again have two choices for scoring in measured handicap rules: IRC and ORC International (ORCi).

IRC has for years been the benchmark system used for the race, but some members of CYCA and others wanted to try ORCi for its ability to offer more predictable handicapping compared to the IRC’s 'black box' approach, its tendency to be less type-forming than IRC, and that stability measurements are used in the rating calculations for each boat.

So after a modest introduction in last year’s race, which saw Andrew Saies’s First 40 Two True prevail in both systems, there has been an increase this year in entries wishing to also be scored in ORCi: three divisions have been formed with a total of 32 entries among the 90 total in the fleet.

Like IRC, ORCi entries will be scored with a single-number time-on-time handicap called the Offshore GPH (General Purpose Handicap), which is calculated as an average of the time allowances of 8 and 12 knots true wind speed for a Circular Random course, which is a hypothetical course type in which the boat circumnavigates a circular island with the true wind velocity held constant.

So, if the two systems are using a single number general handicap, what is different about ORCi than IRC?

There are several differences, mainly in the approach and philosophy of each rule. While IRC promotes simplicity in measurement and scoring, it remains a secret rule intended to discourage designer manipulation and optimization. But human nature being what it is, this process happens anyway among IRC designs, so type forms have therefore emerged which optimize a boat’s performance to its rating. These include, for example, a strong tendency to favour heavier cruiser/racers in the 40-foot range, while lightweight high-performance boats are generally favoured over 50 feet.

The problems arise when one has a boat which is not in the type form, such as Ed Psaltis and Bob Thomas’s AFR Midnight Rambler, a modified Farr 40. This boat is lighter than what IRC would like, so Psaltis has been an early supporter of trying out ORCi to get better equity among the variety of boat types in his fleet.

The reason for this difference comes back to the rule philosophy, where ORCi attempts to model boat performance using a sophisticated VPP approach, using a wide variety of measurements of the boat, the rig and the sails. Among these measurements is a stability test to measure righting moment, an important element to boat performance that IRC ignores.

In fact, measurement of stability is what enables boats with canting keels to usually get a better break in ORCi: note that the difference in rating between two Cookson 50’s - Chris Bull’s Jazz and Nicholas Bartels’s Terra Firma – is much less in ORCi than in IRC.

But often these differences can be overwhelmed by the more essential aspects of winning offshore races: preparation, sailing skill, navigation, strategy, etc…or in a long race like the Hobart, just being in the right place at the right time.

But the debates between IRC and ORCi may become moot in a year or two, as the offshore rating rule world has been rocked by the recent news that the world’s two major rating rule authorities – RORC with IRC and ORC with ORCi and ORC Club – are in merger talks, with the goal to have one single rating rule authority among their two constituencies. Primarily IRC has been strong among the Anglo-based cultures, whilst ORC has been strong in the non-Anglo cultures, with both sides claiming about 7-8000 certificates issued worldwide yearly.

Once merged at the business level, however, it will take some considerable effort to reconcile the differences in technical handling of the rules, so stay tuned for long debates as this process unfolds. But the prospect of having a single rating authority has enough strong support worldwide to keep the momentum pushing this way, especially in cultures where both systems are used without enough critical mass in either to support large fleets and good racing.

But let’s see what happens on the race to Hobart…its up now to the weather and the racers to help show us the way forward.

ORCi Division 1
Sail No		Boat Name	Owner	Design	ToT
SM	5252	Calm	Williams / Van Der Slot / Ainley	Farr Tp52	1.2882
	5299	Jazz	Chris Bull	Cookson 50	1.2762
	10081	Lahana	Peter Millard & John Honan	Bakewell - White 30m	1.6343
	98888	Limit	Alan Brierty	Reichel-Pugh 62	1.4537
	10007	Pretty Fly III	Colin Woods	Cookson 50	1.2798
AUS	70	Ragamuffin	Syd Fischer	Tp52	1.2709
M	330	Shamrock	Tony Donnellan	Reichel Pugh	1.2261
SM	24	Terra Firma	Nicholas Bartels	Cookson 50	1.2450
GBR	6821R	Titania Of Cowes	Richard Dobbs	Swan 68	1.2168
ORCi Division 2
Sail No		Boat Name	Owner	Design	ToT
	8338	AFR Midnight Rambler	Ed Psaltis & Bob Thomas	Farr/Welbourne 40	1.0954
R	420	Cadibarra 8	Paul Roberts	Jones 42	1.1429
R	33	Chutzpah	Bruce Taylor	Caprice 40	1.1670
	46	Exile	Robert Reynolds	DK46	1.1614
S	390	Jazz Player	Andrew Lawrence	Bakewell-White Z39	1.0806
	360	Patrice Six	Tony Kirby	X-41 Od	1.0705
	8975	Salona II	Phillip King	Salona 44	1.0653
	8300	Secret Mens Business #1	Curtis/Ross/Trembath	Murray 42	1.1048
	370	She's The Culprit	Todd Leary	Jones 39	1.0950
	1545	Victoire	Darryl Hodgkinson	Beneteau 45	1.0781
ORCi Division 3
Sail No		Boat Name	Owner	Design	ToT
	6321	Allegro	John Taylor	Cavalier 395	0.9618
SM	2004	Another Challenge	Chris Lewin	Sydney 38	1.0477
	407	Blunderbuss	Tony Kinsman	First 40.7	1.0098
	6834	Chancellor	Ted Tooher	Beneteau F40	1.0310
	142	Crossbow	Cutcliffe/Stenhouse/Murray	Beneteau First 36.7	0.9584
AUS	169	Nautical Circle	The Crew	Archambault 40	1.0351
	11407	Shepherd Centre	Hugh Torode	Beneteau 40.7	1.0090
	6338	Shining Sea	Andrew Corletto	Sydney 38	1.0434
	6073	Swish	Steven Proud	Sydney 38	1.0430
YC	400	Two True	Andrew Saies	First 40	1.0450
	5900	Wahoo	Graham Mulligan	Frers 40	0.9746
	7407	Wave Sweeper	Morgan Rogers	Beneteau 40.7	0.9966
SM	5558	Young Ones	Ian Miller	Young 11	1.0118