ARA Points

Getting the point about crew status

This has been updated for the 1997 changes

The ARA office is often called with questions concerning status of crews and individuals. Thanks to the traditions of the previous forms of classification, people still see themselves as having a particularstatus. Individuals have no status (except when they are novice). Individuals carry points up to a maximum of 12. It is only when crews are formed that a status appears. The status of a crew is based on the total number of points within that crew.

As an example, let us place Charlie*, a 5-point rower, at 3 into two different eights.

		bow	2	3*	4	5	6	7	StrCrew A pts	1	1	5	0	0	0	8	1	= 16 total.This crew could race in a Senior 2 event.		bow	2	3*	4	5	6	7	StrCrew B pts	8	12	5	12	12	12	12	9	= 82 total.This crew could only race in Elite events.

Charlie himself does not have a status. His points and those of his co-rowers, when combined, determine the status of the crew.

How do you know how many points you have? The ARA Rules of Racing, under section 4: Classification of Events, tell you which wins do or do not count towards your points totals. Rowing points and sculling points are held separately.

Your first novice win does not count as a point. It does, however, disqualify any crew you are in from entering Novice again. The first win in a Novice event moves you from "Novice" to 0 points.A way of seeing this difference is as follows:

bow 2 3 strokeCrew C Nov Nov Nov Nov = NoviceCrew D Nov 0 Nov Nov = 0 points but not Novice.Crew D must race in Senior 4 events (men hwt) or Senior 3 events (women and lightweights) or higher.It is possible to win two Novice events. This can only be done if they are both won on the same day.For example, four people double up in Novice Fours and Novice Eights on the same day and win both. The first win moves each crew member from "Novice" to 0 points. The second win, however,moves them from 0 to 1 point each.

The first junior win of MJ18A or Sch/J in a year counts for one point. A junior win of J16, WJ16, WJ18 or MJ18B disqualifies you from entering novice events, but does not increase your points total. A junior win of J14 or J15 neither counts for points nor prevents you from racing novice in the future.

All qualifying points rely on the fact that four or more crews have to have raced in your event.

You lose one point for each calendar year without a qualifying senior win, down to a minimum of four points.

Let us suppose you are a novice. Your first win is in Senior 4 fours, because you could not find three other novices to row with. This win counts as a point. You now have 1 point. You cannot race novice. It is only novice and Junior wins which move you from "Novice" status to having 0 points.

Having worked out the points total, how do you know which is the lowest status your crew may enter? Follow these steps:

Multiply the number of people in the boat, excluding the cox, by 8. This is the maximum points allowable to race at Senior 1. Above this, a crew must race Elite.
Halve that number. This is the maximum for Senior 2 events.
Divide this new number by four. This is the maximum for Senior 3 events.
If you are racing in men's heavyweight sweep events, you may be able to enter Senior 4, a special category with maximums of 4 points for an 8+, 2 points for a four or one point for a pair.

This formula can also be used for the London Rowing Club 12-oar race, which does not appear in the table in the Rules of Racing. In this case, Senior 1 status is 96 points or fewer, Senior 2 is 48 or fewer, Senior 3 is 24 points or fewer.

The Rules of Racing contains a table to show these calculations. Since no individual can have morethan the maximum of 12 points, the Elite maximum has been corrected.

_____________________________________________________________________Max points		1x	   2x, 2-, 2+	4x, 4-, 4+	8x, 8+_____________________________________________________________________Elite			12		24		  48		  96Senior 1		 8		16		  32		  64Senior 2		 4		 8		  16		  32Senior 3		 1		 2		   4		   8Senior 4 (hwt men only)	n/a		 1		   2		   4_____________________________________________________________________

As an example, two coxed fours enter a regatta on Saturday. Crew E = 28 points = Senior 1. Crew F = 29 points = Senior 1. On the Saturday, Crew E wins the event. Each member of thecrew now adds 1 point to their individual total. Crew E now = 32 points after Saturday. This crew is now at the maximum for Senior 1 and can still race in the same event the next day.

On Sunday, crew F wins the event. Each member adds 1 point to their individual totals: Crew F now = 33 points after Sunday. This is above the maximum for Senior 1, so this crew must race Elite at the next regatta if they stay together.

When you fill in your registration forms, please put the number of points. You do not have a status as an individual, until you get into a boat. If you write "Senior 2" under the scullingpoints heading, the staff at the ARA will have to assume that you are at the maximum for a Senior 2 single sculler, and will accord you 4 points, in order to ensure that you are not disqualified at a regatta for having too many points.

[Article reproduced with a few minor amendments from N. Weare's original. An added comment: Rowers and scullers who represent Great Britain at senior international level are automatically awarded themaximum 12 points, and cannot race as novices. However, international sweep oarsmen and women may scull as novices until they have won or otherwise qualified as above, and vice versa. Rowers and scullers who represent Great Britain at junior international level are automatically given 6 points and cannot race as novices, with the same exception as above. In addition, mixed races do not add points to your records.]

If you don't understand the new ARA rules of racing then email David Biddulph, an ARA umpire who can give expert advice. It is probably a good idea to ask him if you are unsure of your status as an overseas international or as a junior moving to senior.