Ellen MacArthur wrote:
"DSK" wrote
| Agreed, if they're not racing, then ColRegs says A is not
| under command and B should give way.

Doug, you win. The Sunfish in irons is N.U.C. and a sailboat mustn't hit N.U.C. boats of any sort.
I knew you were intelligent. (wink)

Sorry, NUC is reserved for "exceptional circumstance." There are far
more appropriate reasons in the regs to avoid the collision. "Special
circumstances" or "limitations of vessels" would apply. And
certainly, any vessel with the ability to avoid the collision is
required to do so.

If the rudder or mast had broken, or if the skipper was injured, you
might be able to claim NUC status applied, but simple incompetence is
not enough. Also, on this boat with a breeze there is no reason to be
in irons for more than a few seconds.

However, there is nothing in the rules that explicitly covers the
situation of in irons, it is not port/starboard or windward/leeward
and the various powerboat rules don't apply. In these cases, "special
circumstances" apply. Some people think these cases are rare, but in
practice, special circumstances situations are very common, and we
deal with them without thinking. For example, we wait for boats
backing out of slips and maneuvering in tight situations without
considering exactly which rule covers this. Human powered rowboats
and kayaks have no special status, but we usually avoid running them
down.

Thus the answer is not that boat B be should avoid the collision
because boat A was NUC, its that boat B should avoid the collision
because it can.

BTW, NUC is a condition that implies other should avoid hitting you.
It does not absolve you of responsibility. Consider this
situation: a 25 foot sloop crosses a major shipping lane at night and
becomes becalmed in front of an oncoming tanker. They try to start
the outboard and break the throttle. The tanker runs aground to avoid
collision. Who is at fault?