One shipowner vents, “How difficult it is to do regattas!”

Why does one have to be an expert in tonnage rules to participate in regattas in addition to wasting time and spending a lot of money? This is how you disincentivize the passion for sailing!

Why do people turn away from regattas?

This is a summary of the countless complaints we have been constantly receiving for years from passion-driven owners who, when they decide to participate in an offshore boat race are faced with cumbersome tonnage rules and, above all, the bureaucracy that the owner has to deal with. With the result of driving owners of standard, so-called “normal” boats away from the world of racing.

We chose this letter because it exemplifies the Odyssey a first-time owner must undergo when deciding to participate in a regatta.

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Regattas & Certificates

Good morning,

I am an owner of an Elan 340. Let me explain why I have abandoned the idea of participating in a regatta with my standard boat. I remember that until a few years ago (three, more or less), in order to receive the basic tonnage certificate I had approached my club and in no time at all I had been provided with the magic number that determined my fee, so that I could participate in the regatta with compensated time rankings. I had only needed to state what standard boat I had and whether I had made substantial modifications or not.

Today I have discovered, despite myself, that this is no longer the case.

I went to the organizing club who told me that to be able to participate in regattas, even in the “flatbread and white wine” classes, such as the Grand Cruiser, you need a tonnage certificate and to do so you have to go through the UVAI (Unione Vela Altura Italiana).

It is certainly not because of the cost (100 euros certificate + 80 euros UVAI membership, for a 10-meter boat like mine, the price of a dinner for three in a good restaurant) that I decided to write to you.

I’m bitter because, formally, you can fill out the certificate yourself, but essentially you can’t.

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They ask to fill out three forms and especially measurements that a poor Sunday boat owner like me can’t even imagine. But what do I know about MHB, MUW, DiaT, DiaL, HLP (see attached photo?). Worse than doing tax returns! To get the propeller diameter (which must be accurate to the millimeter), you would even have to wing the boat! It is obvious that someone like me must necessarily turn to the staffer….

What a great desire to do only sailing without bureaucracy has come over me! You tell me if this is not the best way to get people away from the world of racing….

Dino Tosi

We urge readers of “normal” boats participating or wanting to participate in a regatta to comment on this reader’s negative experience. For better or for worse!