diff --git a/docs/ci-and-releases.md b/docs/ci-and-releases.md
index 572f79b3..0155696f 100644
--- a/docs/ci-and-releases.md
+++ b/docs/ci-and-releases.md
@@ -16,7 +16,9 @@ git push origin main
                                              + republish the `latest` pointer
 ```
 
-Workflow: [`.gitea/workflows/ci.yml`](../.gitea/workflows/ci.yml). A red gate
+Workflow: [`.gitea/workflows/ci.yml`](../.gitea/workflows/ci.yml). Docs-only
+pushes (docs/, the memory trees, markdown) skip the pipeline entirely — no
+test can fail on them and a run costs ~7 minutes plus a 121 MB release. A red gate
 cannot publish: `release` uses `needs:`, not a `workflow_run` trigger, whose
 Forgejo support is unreliable.