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Overview

The Finger Lakes Yacht Club Race Program consists of multiple events that span the available boating season. Race activities are managed by the FLYC Race Committee and many volunteers, most of whom are the racers themselves. One particularly attractive aspect of the FLYC program is the camaraderie between competitors and the degree to which they help one another improve their skills. This provides for an environment where the racing is enjoyable, yet still competitive.

Races are organized into four general categories, which are detailed elsewhere in this document:

  • The FLYC Summer Series
  • The “Fun Race” Series
  • The Commodore's Cup
  • Invitational races organized by other clubs

FLYC racers are handicapped using a modified US Sailing's Portsmouth Yardstick. Scoring is done using a low-points system, also with some local modifications.

Protests are strongly discouraged.

 

Race Program Objectives

The topic of sailboat racing, handicapping, and scoring is rife with opportunities to explore topics in extreme depth. (I.e., go down a bottomless rabbit hole.) Therefore, the authors believe it’s important to state high level objectives of the FLYC racing program so that a tempting rabbit hole doesn’t turn into a needless distraction or point of contention.

Program objectives can be summarized as follows:

  • Have fun. Our #1 objective. This is supposed to be a recreational outlet, not a cause of stress or dissention.
  • Fleet growth. The program should be structured in a way that makes it inviting to new sailors and provides a path for all participants to grow and develop their sailing skills.
  • Participants should have the opportunity to understand how the program is structured, how it works, and why things are the way they are.
  • Codified, consistent processes. In support of transparency, participants should be aware of the processes used in the daily operations of the FLYC racing program.
  • The program should promote participants to seek out ways to build their skills in both sailing and general seamanship.

 

Beginning in 2026, the FLYC will require all racers to register their boats for competition. The purpose of this registration is to ensure that each competitor is assigned an accurate handicap. Applications are good for the current race year and must be renewed each season to make sure the boat data used for scoring stays current.

Click on the form image to download and print out the application. Follow the instructions below. 

Instructions

  1. Please provide the information requested. If you’re not sure, leave blank. Sail measurements must be witnessed by a member of the race committee or certified by a sailmaker.

  2. Attach any previous handicap/rating certificates or measurement forms, if available.

  3. Submit form to any member of the FLYC Race Committee.

Once received, the Race Committee will make arrangements to perform any additional measurements, if required. Data submitted on the form is subject to verification and validation by the Race Committee. 

The FLYC Handicapping Process

Here’s what happens once you turn in this form:

A member of the Race Committee will look up critical data about your boat from verifiable sources such as US Sailing and SailboatData.com. Data include dimensions such as (but not limited to) length, beam, draft, displacement, reported and measured sail area, principal rig dimensions, and precomputed ratings (if any).

Since US Sailing is the governing body for the sport of sailboat racing, data from that organization is given precedent over data from other sources. However, if there is a significant difference between US Sailing and other sources, the Race Committee may elect to measure the questioned data directly on your vessel. If found to be inaccurate, actual measurements will be used and US Sailing will be contacted.

Principal measurements from your boat, rig, and sails will be used to compute a “derived rating” (DR) for your vessel. This will be used later in the process.

If your boat (Note: Your specific boat, not someone else’s) has been previously handicapped by an organization recognized by US Sailing, and there have been no changes to your hull, rig, or sails since that certificate was issued, that rating will be assigned to your boat. You will need to submit a copy of your rating certificate with your application for this to occur. If the certificate is for a rating system other than Portsmouth Yardstick (e.g., PHRF, ORR, IMS, etc.), the rating will be converted to a Portsmouth Yardstick rating using formulas from the Portsmouth Yardstick Handicapper’s manual.

If there is no evidence of a prior rating assignment, the Race Committee will use the published rating in the most recent issue of US Sailing’s Portsmouth Yardstick (PY) handicap document.

If your vessel make/model does not have a precomputed PY rating, then the Race Committee will look for a precomputed Performance Handicap Race Fleet (PHRF) rating. Since these ratings are assigned by region, we will attempt to find a rating assigned either in the Great Lakes or on the Chesapeake before resorting to rating assignments from more distant regions. The Race Committee reserves the right to take PHRF ratings from various regions and average them.

In all cases, the assigned ratings will be compared to the derived rating computed above as a sanity check to ensure they are reasonably similar.

If no preassigned handicap ratings can be found for your boat from sources recognized by US Sailing, the Race Committee will assign a provisional rating based on the derived rating computed from principal boat and rig data. This rating will be subject to review at the end of the season. Rating adjustments will be based on “Moss Factors” generated by the FLYC scoring program over the course of one or more sailing seasons.