Reservation states
The lifecycle of a reservation — draft, confirmed, needs skipper, completed, and cancelled.
Every reservation moves through a small set of states. Knowing them explains why a sail can or can't be confirmed, and what happens to it over time.
The states
| State | What it means |
|---|---|
| Draft | Created but not yet meeting the boat's crew/skipper requirements. Still being assembled — its details (boat, time, purpose, notes) can still be edited. |
| Confirmed | Requirements met — the sail is on. |
| Needs skipper | A confirmed sail lost its required skipper. The club's grace window is running while a replacement is found. |
| Completed | The sail's time has passed; it's now part of history. |
| Cancelled | Called off, by a person or by the system. |
How a reservation moves
Draft → Confirmed
Happens once the crew meets the boat's rules: confirmed crew within the min/max, and enough eligible skippers aboard. See Building your crew.
Confirmed → Draft
If the crew drops below the minimum — someone leaves, or the skipper or an admin removes them — the sail reverts to draft until the gap is filled.
Needs skipper → Confirmed
Any member cleared to skipper that boat can rescue the sail by taking the helm — from the sail's own page, or from Open sails on the club calendar. One tap makes them the lead skipper and confirms the sail. An admin can also reassign the skipper.
The claim is held to the same bar as any other confirmation: the claimant must be eligible for that boat, free at that time (not already skipper or confirmed crew on an overlapping sail), and the sail must still meet the boat's crew rules — confirmed crew within the min/max, and enough skipper-qualified crew aboard if the boat requires more than one. If the crew has thinned out during the grace window, fill the gap first.
Confirmed → Completed
Automatic once the sail's time window has passed. No action needed.
Anything → Cancelled
A responsible member can cancel (with a reason). The system can also cancel a confirmed sail that loses a required skipper and isn't fixed by the club's grace deadline — a set number of hours before the sail's start. While the grace window runs, the sail shows a Needs skipper status in the calendar and sail lists.
A cancelled sail stays visible on the club calendar — dimmed and struck through — while its slot opens back up for booking, and its page carries the cancellation notice.
Why automatic cancellation exists
A confirmed sail promises a boat to a crew. If the only eligible skipper drops out and no eligible replacement steps in by the grace deadline — a number of hours before the sail's start that each club sets in Club settings — Zeil cancels the sail rather than leave a boat blocked for a sail that can't legally go out. The freed slot becomes available to others.
Cancellation reasons
Cancellations capture a short reason, shown on the cancelled sail's page along with who cancelled it and when. Over time this helps a club see patterns — weather, crew availability, scheduling — and plan around them.