Code Flags At The Start
Be sure to have the following flags ready before beginning the start sequence
| Flag or Pennant | Code | Purpose |
 | 1 (One) | Daysailor Fleet |
 | “U” (Uniform) | J-24 Fleet |
 | 7 (Seven) | PHRF Spin Fleet |
 | 5 (Five) | PHRF Non-Spin Fleet |
 | White Flag | PHRF Non-Spin Racers |
 | P (Papa) | Preparatory Signal |
 | X (X Ray) | Individual Recall |
 | First Substitute | General Recall |
 | Q (Quebec) | End of Start Line |
Sequence of Events
Through the course of the start the Race Committee should take the following actions:
| Time | RC Action | Expected Sounds / Events |
| Before 18:05:00 | Record weather; Anchor RC Boat; Set Course; Raise RC and Quebec flags | |
| 18:05:00 – 18:14:00 | Record boats in the starting area by Sail Number, Name, and Class flag | |
| 18:14:40 | Turn on Ollie Timer | Ollie begins charging for 20 seconds. Ollie sounds 5 short blasts beginning at 18:14:55 |
| 18:15:00 | Raise Daysailor and J-24 Class Flag with Ollie sound signal  | One sound signal; Daysailors and J-24 in Warning period. |
| 18:16:00 | Raise flag Papa with Ollie sound signal | One Sound Signal; Daysailors and J-24’s are “racing” (bound by the racing rules, but not yet started) |
| 18:19:00 | Lower flag Papa with Ollie long sound signal | Long Sound Signal |
| 18:20:00 | Lower Daysailor and J-24 class flag and raise Spinnaker with Ollie sound signal   Check for any Daysailors over-early and signal recall as appropriate | One sound signal; PHRF-Spin in Warning period. Daysailors and J-24’s on first leg |
| 18:21:00 | Raise flag Papa with Ollie sound signal | One Sound Signal; PHRF-Spin are “racing” |
| 18:24:00 | Lower flag Papa with Ollie long sound signal | Long Sound Signal. |
| 18:25:00 | Lower PHRF-Spin class flag and raise PHRF Cruiser flag with Ollie sound signal  Check for any Spin’s over-early and signal recall as appropriate | One sound signal; PHRF-Spin on first leg; PHRF Cruisers in warning period. |
| 18:26:00 | Raise flag Papa with Ollie sound signal | One Sound Signal; PHRF Cruisers are “racing” |
| 18:29:00 | Lower flag Papa with Ollie long sound signal | Long Sound Signal |
| 18:30:00 | Lower PHRF Cruiser class flag and raise PHRF-NS Racers class flag with Ollie sound signal  Check for any PHRF Cruisers over-early and signal recall as appropriate | One sound signal; PHRF Cruisers on first leg; PHRF-NS Racers in warning period. |
| 18:31:00 | Raise flag Papa with Ollie sound signal | One Sound Signal; PHRF-NS Racer class is “racing” |
| 18:34:00 | Lower flag Papa with Ollie long sound signal | Long Sound Signal |
| 18:35:00 | Lower PHRF-NS Racers class flag with Ollie sound signal Check for any PHRF-NS Racers over-early and signal recall as appropriate Turn off Ollie | One sound signal. PHRF-NS Racer class on first leg |
| After all boats clear stating area | Depart starting area and return to Tidewater bulkhead to prepare to capture finish times |
Other Signals
Other flags and signals that can be used outside of the routine starting sequence
| Flag | Sound Signal | Purpose |
 | 2 blasts (raising) 1 blast (lowering) | Postponement – Races not started are postponed. The warning signal will be made 1 minute after removal |
 | 3 blasts | Abandonment – All races are abandoned |
| 1 blast (raising) | Individual recall – One or several boats (up to the whole fleet) were on the course side of the start line at the starting signal. Flag remains up until all boats have started properly |
| 2 blasts | General recall – Boats were on the course side of the start line at the starting signal and could not be identified individually, or there was an error in the start sequence requiring restart |
General Information
More information on the Ollie race timer is available at https://www.ecohsystems.com/ollieDescription.html
The Racing Rules of Sailing, including additional race signals and starting instructions are at https://www.sailing.org/tools/documents/WSRRS20212024FinalwithChgsandCorrecns201113-[26798].pdf