NOTICE OF RACE

1. The Organizing Authority (OA) is Tred Avon Yacht Club (TAYC) in association with Shields Fleet 21 of Oxford, MD.

2. Races will be governed by the rules as defined in The Racing Rules of Sailing for 2025-2028 (RRS) and the Shields Class Association Rules, as posted on the Class website, https://shieldsclass.com/bluebook/.

3. RRS 60.4 (a) (2) is changed as follows: “if it alleges a breach of a rule of Part 2 or RRS 31 and is from a boat that was not involved in and did not see the incident, or.”

4. The Official Notice Board will be at https://www.tayc.com/shields-nationals.

5. Each boat shall carry a VHF radio capable of transmitting and receiving on all standard marine channels.

Sailing Instructions will be available after 1600, September 18, 2026 online on the Official Notice Board.

Except in an emergency, boats shall not have any outside communication while racing that is not available to all boats. This restriction applies to all outside communication, including but not limited to mobile phones.

1. The regatta is open to Shields Class boats and crews who have satisfied the requirements for entry under the provisions of Shields Class Sailing Association Rules, Section VI, Rules Governing the National Championship Regatta. This includes that skippers, helmsperson, and professional crew must be paid Class members and must have competed in ten or more sanctioned races in the calendar year of the Regatta, as certified by a Fleet in accordance with Shields Class rules. A request for a waiver of any qualification requirements must be submitted to the Shields Class Governing Board by September 8, 2026 (Section VI 1.2a).

2. Eligible skippers may enter by completing the entry form, with payment, available online at https://shieldsclass.com/regattas/2026/.

3. Registration and payments after September 18, 2026 1800 may be allowed only by the consent of the OA.

1. The entry fee will be $900 for early registration, $1,000 for regular registration, and $1,200 for late registration. The entry fee includes tickets to all social events for up to five crew members, including the skipper. Extra tickets for Crab Feast and Banquet will be available.

   Registration Type	Registration Before Date	Payment Before Date	Amount
   Early	March 2, 2026	August 17, 2026	$900
   Regular	August 17, 2026	August 17, 2026	$1,000
   Late	September 18, 2026	September 18, 2026	$1,200

2. Slips will be provided for free.

3. Complimentary launching and rigging facility is available at Tred Avon Yacht Club. Additional facilities for launching and rigging are available at other locations in Oxford.

4. Complimentary housing will be provided during the regatta from Tuesday through Sunday morning. To request housing, complete the housing section of on-line registration. Requests received after August 17, 2026 will be filled on a space available basis.

5. Additional tickets for the Banquet at $100 and Crab Feast at $50 can be purchased from Tred Avon Yacht Club. Further information is provided on the regatta Official Notice Board.

6. Box lunches can be ordered from Tred Avon Yacht Club for an additional fee. Further information is provided on the regatta Official Notice Board.

1. Advertising is restricted in accordance with World Sailing Regulation 20, Advertising Code.

2. Boats may be required to display advertising chosen and supplied by the Organizing Authority.

1. Schedule Details

   * Box lunches will be available for purchase Wednesday through Saturday.

   Monday, March 2, 2026
   	1800	Deadline for early registration if paid by August 17, 2026	Online
   Monday, August 17, 2026
   	1800	Deadline for regular registration and early and regular payment	Online
   	1800	Deadline for loaner boat requests	Online
   	1800	Deadline for housing requests	Online
   Tuesday, September 8, 2026
   	1800	Deadline for request for a waiver of any qualification requirement (Section VI 1.2a)	Email to Governing Board
   Friday, September 18, 2026
   	1800	No registrations will be accepted after September 18, 2026
   Tuesday, September 22, 2026
   	1800	Registration and housing assignments	TAYC
   Wednesday, September 23, 2026 *
   	0730 - 0830	Complimentary coffee & bagels (breakfast sandwich available for purchase)	TAYC
   	0900 - 1700	Registration and housing assignments	TAYC
   	1100	Skippers’ Meeting for Practice Race	TAYC
   	1300	Practice Race
   		Complimentary keg of beer and snacks after race	TAYC
   		Participants make their own dinner plans, hamburgers and hotdogs available to purchase at TAYC
   	1900	Shields Class Annual Meeting	TAYC
   	1930	Skippers’ Meeting for Championship Regatta	TAYC
   Thursday, September 24, 2026 *
   	0730 - 0830	Complimentary coffee & bagels (breakfast sandwich available for purchase)	TAYC
   	1030	First Warning Signal
   		Complimentary keg of beer and snacks after race	TAYC
   	1800	Crab Feast	Off-site
   Friday, September 25, 2026 *
   	0730 - 0830	Complimentary coffee & bagels (breakfast sandwich available for purchase)	TAYC
   	1030	First Warning Signal
   		Complimentary keg of beer and snacks after race	TAYC
   		Participants make their own dinner plans
   Saturday, September 26, 2026 *
   	0730 - 0830	Complimentary coffee & bagels (breakfast sandwich available for purchase)	TAYC
   	1030	First Warning Signal
   	1400	No further Warning Signals
   		Complimentary keg of beer and snacks after race	TAYC
   	1800	Awards Dinner (jacket and tie or equivalent)	TAYC

2. The social event calendar will be published in a future amendment to the NOR on the regatta website.

3. The schedule published in the Sailing Instructions will take precedence in the event of differences between it and the schedule posted in the Notice of Race.

1. In the spirit of Corinthian sailing, the regatta host is relying on the signed Certificates of Compliance (signed and certified by the skipper’s fleet captain or measurer) and Sail Inventory printouts (indicating which sails are to be raced) as evidence that all participating yachts are compliant with all rules governing participation in the National Championship Regatta. These documents can be submitted during on-site registration.

2. The OA may make measurement checks at any time to confirm compliance with Class Rules, Section IV; and required U.S. Coast Guard and Shields Class required safety equipment. The OA may also measure sails at any time to confirm compliance with the Class Rules, Section V and to confirm agreement with the Sail Inventory Card.

3. [NP] Crew weight shall be certified as part of the signed Certificate of Compliance at registration by the skipper. Crew substitutions may occur but must be certified by the skipper to be in conformance.

The races will be sailed in the Choptank and Tred Avon Rivers to the South of Tred Avon Yacht Club.

The courses will be described in the Sailing Instructions and will conform to the Shields Class Sailing Association Rules, Rules Governing the National Championship Regatta, Section VI.

The penalty system will be described in the Sailing Instructions.

1. A minimum of two races must be completed to constitute a series.

2. If four or fewer races are completed, a boat‘s series score will be the total of her race scores.

3. If five or more races are completed, a boat‘s series score will be the total of her race scores excluding her worst score.

4. No more than three races will be held on any one day, and no more than eight races will be held in the regatta.

1. Support and coach boats shall register with the Race Committee. Support boats shall display the sail numbers of the boats they are supporting.

2. All support boats are required to monitor the specific VHF channel designated in the Sailing Instructions during the regatta and respond promptly to all Race Committee or Organizing Authority directives. Additional rules pertaining to support boats may be supplied with the Sailing Instructions.

3. Except for Outside Help as defined in RRS 41, no assistance shall be given nor gear transferred between a support boat and a competing boat between the first warning signal of the first race until the boat has finished the final race of each day, without prior approval from the Principal Race Officer.

4. Support Boats shall remain 500 feet outside all lay lines and above/below all marks of the course at all times while boats are racing.

A limited number of loaner boats will be made available for the regatta. Information for eligible skippers regarding the loan or charter of boats will be on the regatta website. Each fleet shall determine which skipper will be allotted its loaner boat and the Fleet Captain will inform the Event Chair by 1800, Monday August 17, 2026. The allotment for each racing fleet‘s loaner boat shall not be impacted should any of its skippers elect to bring their own boat to the regatta. Any fleets‘ unclaimed loaner boats after 1800, Thursday August 20, 2026 shall be made available for racing by their local owners and for other qualified skippers on the basis of their fully paid registration.

[DP] Boats shall not be hauled out between the first and final races of the regatta.

1. [DP] Underwater breathing apparatus and plastic pools or their equivalent shall not be used around boats between the first warning signal for the first race and the end of the regatta.

2. [DP] No hull, topsides, or bottom cleaning shall be permitted during the event, from the first warning signal on the first day and the finish of the last boat on the final day without the written permission of the Protest Committee.

Competitors and crew members on competing and support yachts grant, at no cost to the Shields One Design Class, Shields Fleet 21, Tred Avon Yacht Club, sponsors and affiliated companies the absolute right and permission to use their name, voice, image, likeness, biographical materials and representations of the boats and their crews in any media world-wide (including but not limited to television, video, print and electronic media) for the purpose of advertising, promoting, reporting and otherwise disseminating information.

1. As a condition of entry, each participating owner, skipper, and individual crew member shall submit an online liability waiver release. The fully executed Liability Waiver Forms shall be submitted prior to racing. The waiver form link can be found on the regatta website as part of registration and at https://shieldsclass.com/regattas/2026/pdf/waiver2026.pdf. Boats shall not be scored unless the required forms have been submitted.

2. RRS 3 states: “The responsibility for a boat’s decision to participate in a race or to continue racing is hers alone.” By participating in this event each competitor agrees and acknowledges that sailing is a potentially dangerous activity with inherent risks. These risks include strong winds and rough seas, sudden changes in weather, failure of equipment, boat handling errors, poor seamanship by other boats, loss of balance on an unstable platform and fatigue resulting in increased risk of injury. Inherent in the sport of sailing is the risk of permanent, catastrophic injury or death by drowning, trauma, hypothermia or other causes.

Each participating boat shall be insured with valid third-party liability insurance with a minimum coverage of $300,000 per incident or the equivalent. By completing the registration, each skipper acknowledges that they have this insurance coverage.

1. Keeper trophies will be awarded in conjunction with each of the perpetual awards listed in the Shields Class Sailing Association Rules, Section VI, 5.0, Awards.

2. Keeper trophies will be awarded to the winners of each individual race, as well as for skippers finishing in second though fifth place overall.

3. Keeper trophies will be awarded to the crews of the top five overall finishers.

For further information please contact the Tred Avon Yacht Club.

One Dock Street, P.O. Box 337, 102 West Strand, Oxford, MD 21654
Telephone (410) 226-5269
Email: katlin@tayc.com

Regatta Chair: Annie Decker (Vice Commodore) anniedecker111856@icloud.com