IOMICA

World Council

The 2006 World council AGM has been announced. Now is the time for IOM sailors to contact their NCAs & WC representatives with ideas and suggestions for the class. It is hoped that all proposals will be discussed in an open forum by all IOM sailors, not just the WC & Exec. The more input we have the better chance we have to get this right.

The Exec as a whole is nearing completion of proposals for rule changes for a variety of reasons:

• To bring the Class Rules in to line with the changes to the ERS & RRS.
• To incorporate Class Rule interpretations.
• To finally deal with the issue of grandfathering Texalium boats.

It’s worth mentioning that the vast majority of the rule changes likely to be proposed by the Exec will be designed to bring the existing Class Rules up to date with changes to RRS & ERS. The idea is to ensure the Class Rules still achieve the intentions they where originally designed to. In no way does the Exec intend to change the way an IOM is built, measured, sailed or raced.

Any Class Rule changes that do alter the original intent will be dealt with separately & will clearly be identified as such. Hopefully after lengthy & open discussion.

Administration

All except one NCA Annual Reports have been received (you know who you are!) Those that where received before the Exec Annual report was published have been appended.

The Exec has completed setting up the bank account and the Treasurer is busy catching up with outstanding financial matters.

Technical

IOMICA recommended SSIs have been updated as an interim measure. Assuming the rule change proposals go according to plan they should revert back to their original form after the WC AGM. Although that may well be a good time for a review.

The vast majority of the Class Rule change proposals are the remit of the TSC. However, with the TSC being short an actual sub committee, all Exec officers have had an input.

Events

The ESC continues its deliberations. Some of the topics include:
• Updating the Race Management Manual.
• Proposals for Umpired / Observed events.
• The question of Race Officer qualifications.
• The ongoing concerns surrounding the running of international events.

The umpires report from the World Championships in Mooloolaba has now been received and is being studied by the ECS. It is likely that this will be made public in due course.

Infocomms

We are receiving a growing number of registrations to the IOM forum by ‘users’ who register just to advertise a product (usually medical, pornographic, etc.). The registration procedure has been changed to allow only real persons with an interest in the IOM class to register.

Andy Stevenson
IOMICA Secretary

The Exec is mindful of some concerns expressed regarding the lack of action on some fairly pressing issues. It hasn’t been an easy time for the new Exec & we have been hard at work trying to sort out a suitable course of action.

In an effort to put those with concerns at ease this will be the first of regular updates on the deliberations, conversations, thoughts & actions of the Executive Committee. It’s not intended as a complete report, more a summary of the ongoing issues that are likely to be of interest to, or have an effect on the class.

General

After the Mooloolaba vote on rule changes.

With the exception of the Texalium issue, the rule changes will be
resubmitted to be voted on, as before, at the next AGM of the WC. The thinking behind this being that essentially the changes are what’s needed, the problem was the way the proposals were put forward. It seems clear that a lot of people were unsure what, exactly, they were voting for. Dealing with Texalium separately will, hopefully, make things a little clearer. There has been a great deal of discussion within the Exec surrounding the Texalium problem. While it would be far from desirable to exclude those boats now no longer legal, it’s also a very worrying prospect setting a precedent for not only introducing brand names as permitted materials, but also the wider issue of rule changes to allow innovations previously interpreted as class illegal.
The Exec proposes to reintroduce the grandfathering of Texalium hulls, with no event exceptions or time limits. It should be pointed out that this is an exceptional circumstance; similar situations that may occur in the future are unlikely to be dealt with similarly. If a class rule interpretation renders a boat illegal, it will probably remain so.

For the time being the Exec will post recommended alterations to NOR & SI’s. This should appear on the IOMICA web site shortly.

Events

The Events Sub-Committee is deep in discussion. It is becoming clear that NCA’s are unable or unwilling to host international events. While some of the reasons are fairly obvious, this is probably a very complicated issue that is unlikely to have an easy solution. I’m sure this issue will be opened up for WC / public input once the ESC has a better idea of the situation.

InfoComms

The IOMICA public & WC forums have been very quiet. Probably due, in some part, to the Exec’s lengthy deliberations & lack of public communication.

Measurement / Technical

Waterless measurement & in-house sail certification are still ongoing and some discussion has taken place. However, with the Exec being tied up with more pressing matters, little real progress has been made towards working solutions.

World Council

A WC AGM will be required this year. The Exec hopes to announce a date in the near future. The intention being to give the WC members plenty of time to formulate proposals for resolutions. We are hopeful that this meeting can be held electronically.

Andy Stevenson
IOMICA Secretary