Annapolis to Newport Race Using ORR-EZ Rule in 2017

NEWPORT, R.I. - April 12, 2017 - PRLog -- It has been called one of the world's most challenging races; however, the 2017 Annapolis to Newport Race scheduled to start on June 2nd is making it easy for competitors to try something new. All Boats registered in either IRC or PHRF (A2N version) can compete for some more silver under the new ORR-EZ rule which will be dual scored by the Offshore Racing Association (ORA) for all boats that have a 2017 ORR-EZ certificate.

"ORR-EZ is the little brother to the Offshore Rating Rule, in effect, a kinder, gentler ORR rating, and we at ORA believe that it's the proper rating system for use in dual scoring the 2017 Annapolis to Newport Race," said Bjorn Johnson, ORA's Executive Director.  The Offshore Racing Association – which manages the ORR-EZ rule – states that ORR-EZ does not have to measure every boat for EZ like other measurement rules. Instead, it uses standardized hull data from measured boats it has in its database. It finds a boat of the same design and makes changes based on sail inventory, sail size and how much crew a boat will carry. If it's a one-off boat, ORA creates a model of it with the help of the boat's designer or with its in-house design team. If a boat already has an ORR rating certificate the conversion to EZ is even simpler.

"ORR-EZ is not an observed performance rule like PHRF, where the age of your sails, or the condition of your boat's bottom, or the capability of your crew is figured into your rating. It's the next step up, but it's not a full-blown measurement rule either," said Jim Teeters, Technical Director of ORA. ORR-EZ is also easy on the budget. It costs only $100 per ORR-EZ Application ($75 for renewal), and the ORA is offering select discounts to Annapolis to Newport Race competitors.

For more information, please visit the ORA website or contact ORA here.

About the Offshore Racing Association

Formed in 2005, the Offshore Racing Association (ORA) is a not-for-profit membership organization working as a liaison between sailboat owners, rating rule administrators, US Sailing, yacht clubs, sailing organizations and organizing authorities for offshore and round-the-buoys events. The ORA, recognized internationally as one of the premier rule developers, is dedicated to improving current rating rules -- both in their content and administrative processes -- while making provisions for new high-performance boats to compete in more events. The ORA provides promotion and development of objective, science-based rating systems for fair handicapping of offshore-capable racing yachts, and guides the management of these systems at all levels, serving not only as advocate for the concerns of competing sailors but also as evaluator of technical input.