Not every hail or claim is valid or true. Sometimes the alleged foul is
really not a foul. The current structure of protests and protest
hearings is a chance for the alleged wrong-doer to present a reasonable
defense. Some fleets produce lots of protests and protest hearings and
some fleets don't produce any protest hearings.
The second fleet is where I prefer to sail. Most of my fleet-mates know
the rules and don't foul other boats because circles are slow and
protest hearings waste drinking time. Most of the circles in my fleet
are due to misjudging mark roundings. But there are times when a
properly run protest hearing is necessary. If there is damage to one or
more boats, that protest hearing may be necessary for a proper claim to
be presented to an insurance company.

The red flag is the only rational way to give the alleged wrong-doing
boat, a chance to exonerate itself with circles, alternative penalty,
or attendance at a protest hearing. Boats that "deserve" DSQ will
usually repeat the offenses. Your fleet should have multiple chances at
the miscreants over a season.

Roy Smith wrote:
DSK wrote:

I've always thought this was just a cop-out. Some of the protest committees
I've been on have siezed on this as a reason to avoid disqualifying an
offender who deserved it.


My personal opinion is that as long as the prostestee knows he's being
protested, the protest should be valid. The idea of the flag is to
transmit information -- it tells the protestee that he's being
protested, and gives him a chance to do a 720 to exonerate himself. As
long as the information gets transmitted, the actual means used to
transmit it should be unimportant.

So, if I'm 6 feet away from the other skipper, and we have the following
conversation:

"Up, up, up!"

"You can't take me up that quickly!"

"Yes I can. Come on, stay up, stay up! OK, that's it, PROTEST!"

"Protest!? What'ya mean protest? There no way I fouled you".

It's pretty damn clear that the other guy knows he's being protested,
and he's got all the notice he needs to decide if he wants to play it
safe and do a 720 or take a chance and duke it out in the protest room
later.

But, that's not the way the rules read. The rules say I gotta put up
some stupid red piece of cloth. One of the dumber rules in the book,
IMHO.