RegattaCentral

2023 Meadow Lake Masters Regatta Rules and Racing Packet

Hosted by Row New York

June 10, 2023

Registration Information

https://www.regattacentral.com/regatta/?job_id=8480

 

Registration opens on May 1, 2023 and closes on June 6, 2023.  

This is a USRowing registered regatta.

Date: Saturday, June 10, 2023

Location: Meadow Lake, Queens, NY

Race Length: 1000m

Race Type: Sprint

 

Questions: Contact events@rownewyork.org

Chief Referee: Stacey Ornitz

 

Rules and Regulations – USRowing rules will be used.  Please see additional information detailed below.

 

Entry Information:

 

• All entries must be made on Regatta Central
• Entry Deadline – Entries are due no later than June 6 at 11:59pm EST.
• Waivers – All USRowing waivers must be completed online at Regatta Central by June 6 at 11:59pm EST in order to race.  Once completed, the online waiver applies to ALL USRowing registered regattas in 2023.
• No competitor will be permitted to race without a signed waiver on file.
• Clubs and individual competitors are welcome.
• Events must have a minimum of two entries.  Races with only one entry may be combined with another event or canceled.  In the event of cancelation due to insufficient entries, the entry fee will be refunded.
• No late entries will be accepted.
• USRowing organizational membership
  • USRowing requires all participating organizations at registered regattas to be USRowing members.
  • All Unaffiliated entries must be USRowing members.
• All entry fees must be paid when submitting entries in Regatta Central and must be paid in full before athletes will be permitted to race.  Crews with an outstanding balance will not be permitted to race until the balance is paid in full.
• No refunds will be given once registration has closed.

 

Affiliation: 

A competitor shall represent only one organization at the regatta. 

 

Composite Entries: 

• Composite entries are allowed to compete at this event. 
• Composite entries must include the affiliation of each member of the crew. These affiliations must comply with the affiliation rule listed above. 
• Crews may row under their club name with a coxswain from a different club (the boat will not be considered composite). Crews must provide the accurate name of that coxswain. Composite crews will receive an exception from being required to wear matching uniforms.

 

Mixed Events: 

A crew competing in a mixed event must be 50% male and 50% female, not including the coxswain. 

 

Entry Fees:

 

Cancellations/Withdrawals

• Teams are responsible for 50% of their entry fees if the whole team withdraws AFTER the entry deadline closes.
• If the regatta is canceled due to inclement weather, all entry fees are non-refundable.

 

Bow Numbers

• No shell may race without a bow number.
• Crews are responsible for supplying their own bow numbers; the course uses lanes 1-4.
• All crews must have their assigned number securely fastened to the bow of their shell.
• Bow Balls – No shell may launch without a bow ball.

 

Medals

All medals will be awarded per event.

• All events with first place finishes will be awarded a gold medal

 

Hot Seating

• Coaches have full responsibility to schedule crews appropriately to hot seat
• Allow a minimum of 1 hour between races if racing more than once
• All reasonable measures will be taken to accommodate a hot-seated boat at the start line
• If your boat requires 'hot seating', please let the dock master know and have those going into the boat ready or the boat will have to be pulled off the dock. Talk to the other crews and let them know you

 

Breakage

• Should the breakage zone not be clearly marked there will be a 20-second equipment breakage rule.  If you break equipment in the zone, stop, raise your hand, and notify the officials immediately.  Jumped slides, crabs, and problems with the cox box do NOT count as breakage.

 

Objections & Protests

• Good sportsmanship must prevail at all times.
• Unsportsmanlike Conduct - The crew of any competitor caught stealing or engaging in any unsportsmanlike conduct will, at the discretion of the Regatta Committee, be disqualified.  Boats must also race at a minimum of race cadence – not doing so is also a form of Unsportsmanlike Conduct.
• Boats wishing to protest must first lodge the protest at the finish line to the finish line official(s) or finish marshal, while still on the water.  The protesting rower(s) must then submit the protest in writing, along with a $50 fee, to the Head Referee or his/her designee within one hour of reaching land.  The protest must be signed by a member of the protesting crew and represent that, to the best of their knowledge and belief, the facts contained are true and accurate.  The decision of the Head Referee/protest jury shall be final and may not be appealed.  If the decision is found to be in favor of the protesting crew or substantially justified, the protest fee will be returned to the protesting crew.  If the decision is against the protesting crew or the protest found unjustified, the fee will be retained.
• Not being ready to start will not be considered a valid protest.
• Rule 2-605 (a):  An objection involving the conduct of a Race shall be lodged by the Crew at the finish while it is still on the water and before the Referee declares the Race to be official, unless circumstances beyond its control prevent it from doing so. A Coach or other team member may not lodge such a protest on behalf of a Crew.
• Rule 2-605 (b): A crew wishing to lodge an objection shall signal to the Referee immediately after finishing the Race by having a member of the Crew raise his or her hand until the attention of the Referee has been gained.
• 2-606 (a):  Once an objection is lodged, a Crew wishing to be heard before the Jury shall submit a concise written statement, describing the facts that underlie the objection and the relief that the Crew seeks, to the Chief Judge… within one hour after it reaches land. The written statement shall comprise the protest statement. The statement shall be accompanied by cash or check payable to the local organizing committee in the amount of $50. A protest in which such a statement is not filed shall not be heard.

 

Drones – The use of drones will not be permitted.

 

Age Categories & Handicaps:

Meadow Lake Masters Regatta follows USRowing’s Age Classification and events will be ran as such.  Handicaps will not be used.

 

Rule 4-104.1 (d): A Master is a competitor who has attained or will attain the age of 21 during the current calendar year. A competitor’s age is determined as of December 31 of the current calendar year, rounded down to the nearest whole number. A competitor thus becomes a Master on January 1 of the year of his or her 21st birthday. A Masters crew shall be comprised exclusively of Masters rowers, but the coxswain need not be a Master. (1): Masters crews shall be classified by age according to the following categories: (AA) 21 to 26 years, (A) 27 to 35 years, (B) 36 to 42 years, (C) 43 to 49 years, (D) 50 to 54 years, (E) 55 to 59 years, (F) 60 to 64 years, (G) 65 to 69 years, (H) 70 to 74 years, (I) 75 to 80 years, (J) 80 and over. (2) The age category of a Masters crew shall be determined by the average age of the rowers in the crew, rounded down to the nearest whole number. The age of a coxswain shall not be counted. The ages of individual rowers need not fall within the age category, so long as each rower is a Master and so long as the average age of the crew falls within in the applicable category. (3) A Masters crew may compete in a lower (younger) age category, but not in a higher category.

 

Lightweight Events: Lightweights will be on the honor system, no weigh-ins will be done.

Rule 4-104.3 

• A men’s lightweight crew, including a single scull (1x), shall have no rower who weighs more than 160 lbs. 
• A women’s lightweight crew, including a single scull (1x), shall have no rower who weighs more than 130 lbs.

 

Coxswains:

Coxswains will not be weighed.

 

Novice Events:

A rower competing as a “novice” should be new to rowing in the past 12 months. 

 

On-Site Line-up Changes: On race day, any lineup changes should be reported via the form at the registration desk. No emails will be accepted for substitutions on race day. A crew submitting a substitution is responsible for ensuring that the average age of the crew remains within the bounds of the event in which it is participating. Crews are not allowed to switch events due to lineup changes on Saturday, so any change that would put a crew’s average age outside of the bounds of the relevant event will not be acceptable.

 

Competition Information Eligibility: 

Master: A master is a competitor who has attained or will attain the age of 21 during the current calendar year. A competitor’s age is determined as of December 31 of the current calendar year, rounded down to the nearest whole number. A competitor thus becomes a master on January 1 of the year of his or her 21st birthday. A masters crew shall be comprised exclusively of masters rowers, but the coxswain need not be a master. 

 

The age category of a Masters Crew shall be determined by the average age of the Rowers in the Crew, rounded down to the nearest whole number. The age of a Coxswain shall not be counted. The ages of individual Rowers need not fall within the age category, so long as each Rower is a Master and so long as the average age of the Crew falls within the applicable category. 

 

“Adaptive”: All Rowers racing in Adaptive Rowing Races shall be classified before competition, either by self-classification or by a USA or FISA Classification Panel. Self-classification is acceptable for this regatta. There shall be no protests over another Rower’s sport class designation. 

 

“Inclusive”: A crew entered in the “Inclusive” event must be comprised of a mixture of Classified Rowers and Non-Classified Rowers. The crew must contain an equal number of Classified and Non-Classified Rowers. The Inclusive events are open to athletes that have been classified in the PR-3, PR-2, or PR-1 sport classes included in the Rules of Rowing. The sport class requirement pertains only to the Rower who has been classified.

 

Age Categories:

 

The age category of a masters crew shall be determined by the average age of the rowers in the crew, rounded down to the nearest whole number. The age of a coxswain shall not be counted. The ages of individual rowers need not fall within the age category, so long as each rower is a master and so long as the average age of the crew falls within the applicable category. 

 

Individuals whose age places them in the AA category (age 21-26) may compete in any age category where the average age of the boat falls within that specific age category. 

A masters crew may compete in a lower (younger) age category but not in a higher (older) category. 

 

Rules: 

USRowing’s 2023 Rules of Rowing will govern this event. An online version is available at http://www.usrowing.org/rules-of-rowing/ 

 

USRowing licensed referees will officiate the event to ensure fairness and safety. 

 

Equipment: 

All equipment used in competition must meet the USRowing Rules of Rowing requirements for equipment.  Each organization is responsible for ensuring that its equipment meets these standards. 

 

Crews must provide their own bow balls. Bow balls must meet the requirements set forth in the USRowing Rules of Rowing. 

 

Bow numbers must be properly affixed to the shell in order for a crew to be allowed onto the race course.  Any equipment not meeting these standards, or judged to be unsafe by a USRowing official, will not be allowed onto the water. 

 

Boats used for Adaptive Rowing may include both recreational and adaptive racing boats as well as traditional racing boats in the PR3 Events. Whenever possible, Crews will compete against other Crews in the same sport class and type of boat (i.e. PR2 2x recreational, PR1 1x adaptive racing). If the number of entries is insufficient to run separate Events, a Race may combine entries with both recreational and adaptive racing boats. 

 

All boats used for Adaptive Rowing Races must comply with the requirements set out in Article III (“Equipment”) and Part C (“Equipment”) of Article X (“Adaptive Rowing”) of the 2023 Rules of Rowing. 

 

Inclement Weather Policy: 

 

The Chief Referee, USRowing, and the LOC will work together to monitor the weather continuously during the event.

 

Should it be determined that schedule changes are necessary due to weather concerns, the following weather plan will be utilized: 

 

Communication Plan 

Weather-related schedule changes will be announced utilizing the following media. 

• Posted on the results board at the regatta site. 
• Announced over the on-site sound system. 
• Posted online via Twitter, Facebook, RegattaCentral, and the RowNY event website. 
• Via text message. 

More information will be provided about this option closer to the regatta. 

 

Teams are responsible for staying updated on announced schedule changes. 

 

Schedule Changes will be made with the following priorities

• Delay racing later the same day, if time is available. This may include removing breaks in the schedule and reducing race centers between race times.
• Begin racing earlier than previously announced.  Announcement will be made no later than 3 hours before racing or 9:00 p.m. the evening before in the case of morning racing.
• Combine events within the same boat class, but across gender categories.
• Cancel some races, depending on time availability and weather conditions.
• Cancel regatta. 

 

At any point, race centers may be shortened in order to try to accommodate as many races as possible.