Nautical Cloud Long Series System
The Nautical Cloud Long Series System is a high-points scoring method designed to reward both finishing position and the number of boats competing in each race..
How The System Works
Each boat receives points for its finishing position in each race. The better the finishing position, the more points the boat receives. The number of starters is also taken into account, so a strong result in a larger fleet is worth more than the same position in a smaller fleet.
This is a high-points system. The boat with the highest accumulated points is ranked first.
Why use it for a long series?
The logarithmic calculation provides meaningful separation between leading boats while still awarding points throughout the fleet. It also allows races with different fleet sizes to contribute fairly towards the same series.
Points Formula
Points for a finishing boat are calculated using the following formula:
Race Points
101 + 1000 × log10(S) − 1000 × log10(P)
- S is the number of starters used for the calculation.
- P is the boat’s finishing position.
- log10 means logarithm to base 10.
- The result is rounded to the nearest whole point.
Example:
In a race with 20 starters, the winner scores 1,402 points. A boat finishing 10th scores 402 points and the boat finishing 20th scores 101 points.
Number of Starters
The formula uses a minimum of 10 starters and a maximum of 30 starters.
| Actual Starters | Starters Used in Formula | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| 1–9 | 10 | The race is treated as having 10 starters. |
| 10–30 | Actual number | The actual number of starters is used. |
| More than 30 | 30 | The first 30 finishing positions use 30 as the fleet size. |
The minimum protects races with small fleets from producing very low scores. The maximum prevents very large fleets from creating an excessive fleet-size advantage.
Fleets Larger Than 30 Boats
Where more than 30 boats start, positions 1 to 30 are calculated using 30 starters. Positions after 30th use the following points:
| Finishing Position | Points |
|---|---|
| 31st | 90 |
| 32nd | 82 |
| 33rd | 76 |
| 34th | 72 |
| 35th–50th | Reduce by 2 points for each additional place. |
| After 50th | Reduce by 1 point for each additional place. |
For example, 35th place scores 70 points, 40th scores 60 points and 50th scores 40 points.
No finishing boat receives fewer than 1 point.
Non-Finishers and Other Scores
| Score | Treatment |
|---|---|
| DNF – Did Not Finish | Receives the points for the place immediately after the last finishing boat, or 50 points, whichever is lower. |
| RET – Retired | Receives the points for the place immediately after the last finishing boat, or 50 points, whichever is lower. |
| DNC – Did Not Compete | 0 points |
| DNS – Did Not Start | 0 points |
| DSQ – Disqualified | 0 points |
| DNE – Disqualification Not Excludable | 0 points |
DNF and RET example:
If the points for the position below the last finisher would be 101 points, each DNF or RET boat receives 50 points because 50 is lower. If that position would score 38 points, each DNF or RET boat receives 38 points.
Using the System for a Long Series
The points earned in each counting race are added together to form the boat’s series score. The boat with the highest series total is ranked first.
The scoring method rewards consistently strong results, while the fleet-size calculation recognises that achieving a position in a larger fleet can be more difficult than achieving the same position in a smaller fleet.
Series configuration
Discards, minimum race requirements, qualification rules and other series conditions are configured separately. They do not change the calculation of the points awarded for an individual race.
Worked Examples
1st of 10
1,101
The minimum fleet size is 10, so the winner scores 1,101 points.
1st of 20
1,402
The larger fleet produces a higher winning score.
1st of 30+
1,578
The fleet-size calculation is capped at 30 starters.
| Position | 10 Starters | 20 Starters | 30 Starters |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 1,101 | 1,402 | 1,578 |
| 2nd | 800 | 1,101 | 1,277 |
| 3rd | 624 | 925 | 1,101 |
| 5th | 402 | 703 | 879 |
| 10th | 101 | 402 | 578 |
Points Calculator
Use this calculator to illustrate the points awarded for an individual race result.