THE SCIENCE

ORROA works in close cooperation with the Offshore Racing Association (ORA) and the Offshore Racing Rule (ORR). The following information is an excerpt from the ORA and ORR website.

Three major US yacht clubs, the Chicago Yacht Club , Cruising Club of America and Transpacific Yacht Club , joined forces in the Fall of 2004 in an alliance called the Offshore Racing Association (ORA). ORA was formed to promote and support the use of VPP-based handicapping and has undertaken the task of developing a new measurement-based rating rule that provides the fairest handicapping possible. This rule is called the Offshore Racing Rule (ORR) and is administered by the Offshore Racing Association (ORA). ORA and US SAILING, the national authority for sailing in the United States, are both responsible for its implementation.

The ORR predicts relative time allowances between boats to permit boats of different sizes, types and ages to compete with the fairest ratings possible.

The ORR is an objective rule. Its ratings are based on full measurement of all the speed-related features of sailboats and on a Velocity Prediction Program (VPP) that calculates the speed potential of each boat at any combination of wind speed and course direction. The VPP is a set of algorithms developed through systematic research that use fundamental scientific methods.

The ORR Rulebook provides details about measurement, restrictions, ratings and everything else required to race under the ORR. Owners, sailors, designers, sail-makers and builders should consult the rulebook to prepare and race their boats. This Quick Start Guide provides an overview to help owners understand what they need to do to race under ORR.