Here's what Quantum Racing Tactician, Scott Nixon had to say about the role played by the Velocitek SC-1 in their outstanding performance...

"We relied on the Velocitek SC-1 to help us determine how much current we were sailing in. Since the SC-1 accurately shows the direction that the boat is traveling, rather than where the bow is aimed, we could determine if the current was pushing us to the lay lines or holding us off. This feature was key to helping us win the North Americans on a very tricky Chesapeake Bay with lots of shifts, strong currents, and tough competition." - Scott Nixon, Tactician, USA751

Annapolis, MD – Day 2 of the Melges 24 North Americans. Unlike the last two days of brutally gusty conditions when Velocitek devices were logging maximum speeds north of 20 knots, day 2 was all about efficiency.

"I am continually impressed with the focus of the Melges sailors whether they are sailing at the top end of the wind range or in a standard sea breeze they are always focused on getting every last fraction of performance out of the boat. At Velocitek, we are more than happy to help in this quest to maximize boatspeed." - Alec Stewart, President and Founder, Velocitek

With $1,000 in cash on the line, the top Melges 24 teams were working hard to eke out that critical extra 10th of a knot in the 10-12 knot marginal planing conditions. In these challenging conditions the real-time performance feedback provided by the Velocitek SC-1 high-accuracy GPS speedometer proved to be extremely useful in getting the most out of the Melges 24's. At the end of the day the fastest boat proved to be West Marine Rigging/New England Ropes skippered by Chris Larson with a best 10 second average speed of 14.9 knots.

Full Results for the Velocitek Speed Challenge are available here.

Three years ago, Velocitek released the world’s first GPS sail training tool, creating what has become a whole new instrument category. Today Velocitek is shaking things up again by releasing its own race replay application called Velocitek SpeedPlay.

Velocitek SpeedPlay is fully integrated with Velocitek GPS devices to make the process of getting GPS data off a group of GPS devices and formatted into a replay as fast and convenient as possible. SpeedPlay allows users to download GPS data from up to 21 Velocitek GPS devices in one batch using USB hubs. Once the data has been downloaded race start and end times can be specified with a single mouse click and marks can be added using a convenient drag and drop interface.

As an added bonus, when connected to the internet, detailed, accurate map backgrounds are automatically imported into race replays from Microsoft Virtual Earth, providing an interested geographical context for any event. Watch the demo video below to see how this works or click here to download a 30 day free trial of Velocitek SpeedPlay.

• The prize for top speed achieved at this event is one thousand US dollars and will be presented at the final awards ceremony of the 2008 Melges 24 North American Championship.
  
  
• The Competition will take place at the 2008 Melges North American Championship on Oct. 30.
  
  
• Competitors’ top speeds must be presented to the Velocitek Speed Challenge Race official before 6:00pm on October 30th.
  
  
• Participants must register for the Velocitek $1000 speed challenge in order to be eligible for the competition. Registration will take place on Oct. 30 from 8am to 9am.
  
  
• Top speeds must be recorded between 9am and 5pm on the day of the event.
  
  
• Competitors must be sailing out of Eastport Yacht Club, the 2008 Melges 24 North American Championship venue.
  
  
• Competitors must use only equipment that is legal for racing in the Melges 24 class and be powered by wind only.
  
  
• Top speed is defined by the boat with the highest 10 second average speed (in the event of a tie the tie will be broken by the boat with the highest instantaneous recorded speed).
  
  
• Participating boats can use any Velocitek device to record their speed (for those without a Velocitek device a limited number of demo units can be reserved on a first come first served basis by filling out the online form at: store.velocitek.com/fastcash
  
  
• Top speeds will be checked with the Velocitek device best 10 second average speed recall. For the top three competitors Velocitek device data will be downloaded to a PC in order to verify the results.
  
  

Photos: Alinghi.com

The current custodians of the Auld Mug and their Velocitek SC-1's on Lago di Lugano in Switzerland.

Velocitek has supplied the Kite For Sail kiteboat program with an SC-1 to help them test their experimental kite-propelled Corsair F-24 hull in the waters surrounding the island of Maui. Please see www.kiteforsail.com for more information about this fascinating new technology.

The Velocitek SC-1 recently received some great coverage in a Dinghy Sailing Magazine feature on GPS devices. Click here to read the full article.

The US 470 Team McNay-Biehl are training with an SC-1 to help them prepare for the Beijing Olympics.

Here's what Graham Biehl had to say about training with the SC-1:

"In the last few weeks we have replaced our tacktick compass with the SC-1 VELOCITEK unit. One valuable piece of information we picked up immediately was a recognition of boat speed. We never had a boat speed read out and this is a tremendous help. We found that 470 planing speed occurs when you reach about 9-10 knots.

Apart from boat speed we are starting to realize the information that is collected while sailing on the unit can be even more valuable. When we replay the info on my computer at the end of the day we can clearly see all the shifts and information about our sailing on that given day.

We look forward to exploring the possibilities of the unit within our training and cant wait to realize its maximum potential.

As for the CAN 630, they used to be training partners. Unfortunately they didnt qualify for the Olympics and they have been kind enough to loan us some of their equipment while our is in transit from Australia. We do have our own sail for competition, but on the particular day it was a little to windy to use a brand new sail. Luckily they had the same model, but a little more used."

“We are currently training in Hyeres, located in southern France about an hour’s drive east of Marseilles. We've been getting some pretty breeze conditions here for training and it recently has been blowing off the land. It was pretty gnarly offshore so we decided to keep close to land to minimize damage if we did happen to wipe out.

We only managed 3 upwind tuning runs on starboard because my newly installed jib cleats weren't angled properly so they weren't cleating. After we turned downwind I kinda figured this was the best opportunity to try to officially break 20 knots in the 470. We set our kite in a lull then hooked up for a wild ride. Even in the flat water we were steering all over and going through so much sheet it was crazy! We got one major puff that shot us down another 20 degrees and that’s when Stu made the call to drop because the rudder was about to wash out.

After we got on land he told me the rudder was pretty much washed out from the beginning, we just happened to be balanced the whole time. He wanted 20 knots too. We quickly pressed the + button on the VELOCITEK and were so psyched to see a 21.0 top boat speed. We checked the 10 second average to verify, and found it to be 18.6! Previously our top boatspeed was 18.8 and we almost matched that over 10 seconds! Next up, the 25 knots mark. Now that'll be hairy ride.”

-Graham Biehl

The Velocitek team recently returned from the Velocitek Musto Skiff and Swift North Americans in Florida, where we had a great time sailing, training together and hanging out in the April sun – what a way to shake off the winter ice cubes and get back into the warm weather sailing gear!

The Seattle area Musto and Swift fleets have been going strong and there were enough boats going to Florida that we were able to get together and hire a semi trailer. We arrived in style – support boats, BBQs, coolers, bicycles, boats and all – and immediately got out on the water for a free sail in 12-14 knots of breeze and 75 degree weather.

Before the regatta Paul Clements and I ran a training session to get everyone psyched up for the regatta. We used a combination of techniques for coaching: two up sailing, shore exercises, sailing together with other boats on the water and, most importantly, heated discussions at the local pubs every evening! The Velocitek units scattered throughout the fleet proved to be great training tools. The end result was a great improvement in skills.

Over the next three days racing we saw a great range of conditions: from light and drifting with a strong current, to 25-30 knots with flat water. The mix kept things interesting and each race was a new playing field, favoring a different sailor and allowing us to try out our new boat handling techniques in every type of condition. The best conditions were on the final day as the sea breeze came in and built throughout the day, with the last race offering up the best breeze yet – despite the fact that we were all exhausted by that point!

Congratulations to the organizers and everyone who participated in this fabulous event – the largest single-handed skiff gathering to date in North America! We can’t wait to do it again next year.

Full event details can be found at www.mustoskiff.com

Thanks Velocitek!

Ron Radko

As a younger sailor it is not often that you hear a boat full of experienced sailors spill out the words; “I’ve never seen anything like it”, or “Impressive”. These reactions are exactly what I got from the crew on Caribbean Soul 2 at Charleston Race Week. After spending time familiarizing myself with the Velocitek in my back yard and car I packed it up and headed to Charleston last Thursday for a great PHRF race that wound up tied for third. I can say that I believe that the Velocitek SC-1 truly helped us attain this result.

As I arrived Thursday to the boatyard where we were launching, I saw a really cool boat, and the standard mess of things to be done in prep for the next day of racing. One of the things to be done was to repair or replace the wind meter and compass receiver at the top of the mast which had been damaged while the rig was being stepped. As I heard this I slapped some batteries in the SC-1, put a patch of Velcro in the cockpit and stuck the Velocitek there.

The reaction at first was that of standard questions ... Where are the wires? ... How does it know your speed? ... Distance to startline?!?! ... I just smiled to myself and thought; “these people will be addicted like me by the end of this regatta”

After the first day of racing, I asked the crew what they thought. Instead of getting replies I was answered with questions. “How much does it cost?”, “Do you sell them?”, and “What else does it do, clean the bottom?!?!” (My personal favorite). After answering all of these questions in one way or another, I brought the SC-1 back to the hotel, plugged it into a laptop and went over tactics and our decisions made on the race course with some of the crew. They were genuinely impressed at the accuracy of the unit to record and replay the boats actions. We also used the real-time playback to help play out a circumstance involving redress for the first start sequence.

The entire regatta included the same style of usefulness for the SC-1 and the same reactions towards the product. I can truly say that Velocitek helped Caribbean Soul 2 attain good results, understand their tactical decisions better, and race a well informed regatta.

The SC-1 has a few great advantages in bigger boats as well as dinghies. Over the entire regatta the primary functions used were compass, speed, timer, and the distance to start line. As a tactician it allows you to take the focus of instrumentation from the crew and deal with it yourself, especially during starts.

The most surprising part of this weekend was how easily the crew learned to use the device. With a few minutes of simple instructions they were operating it like pros. The biggest advantage I found however for the SC-1 on big boats was its ability to be moved around the boat. It can be carried by a crew member while they are moving weight from one side to another or while running the pit. It redefined functionality in terms of instrumentation on the race course. I am fully convinced that there is not a sailing program in existence that shouldn’t have a SC-1 in their inventory of tools.

Much thanks to Alec Stewart from Velocitek, David MacAleer, the crew of Caribbean Soul 2, and HO1Designs.com, for making the Charleston experience wonderful!!

Written by: Patrick Gavin-Brynes
Aided by: Velocitek
High Octane 1 Designs

Velocitek has also sponsored the Offshore Rules Melges 24 Worlds daily updates which will provide perspective from Justin Chisholm sailing aboard Team Barbarians (GBR 691). The Offshore Rules daily reports can be viewed at: www.offshorerules.com

Photo: Paul Todd

The Melges 24 World Championship starts on Sunday 1 June and runs through until Friday 6 June with twelve races scheduled. Follow the racing action at:

Justin Chisholm’s daily updates at: www.offshorerules.com.

Sailing Anarchy which is providing extensive live coverage with their “On the Water Anarchy - sponsored by Ullman Sails” at: http://forums.sailinganarchy.com/index.php?showforum=39

Velocitek was on board some of the top boats at the 2008 Mount Gay Rum Catalina 22 National Championship Regatta held last week, May 26-30, on Lake Grapevine, Texas. Grapevine Sailing Club and Catalina 22 Fleet 30 were thrilled to have Velocitek as a sponsor. After Monday's Memorial Day practice, Tuesday's race started off the week with a stiff breeze that died shortly after the start. Wednesday didn't give us much wind either, but Thursday and Friday's races couldn't have been much better and we were able to squeeze in some additional races to make up for earlier in the week. Randy Pawlowski on 'Gold Rush'was a brand new user that got his Velocitek on Monday night just in time to set it up for the first official races. After the races, he had nothing but good things to say and wished he'd bought it sooner. He primarily used the countdown timer to sync up with the race committee for starts and the compass upwind to help identify lifts and headers. He ended up finishing 7th of 27 in the gold fleet and commented that the knot meter especially helped keep boat speed up during the races, proving the Velocitek's usefulness right out of the box. Now we're all reviewing the tracks in preparation for next year's championship in San Fransisco.

Thanks again Velocitek!

-Jonathan Phelps
Organizing committee for the
2008 Catalina 22 National Championship Regatta
(www.catalina22fleet30.com)

With two months left before the games, most of our training is happening in Qingdao. The weather tends to be hazy, but the statue of the Mazu, goddess of the sea (below) is still bright most days.

So far we've gotten lots of hours on the water, and we're looking forward to racing and training in whatever currents, ocean waves, and winds Qingdao has in store for us.

After more than a year of planning and development, today Velocitek released Version 3.0 of the Velocitek Control Center – a fantastic leap forward in race replay capability. Users will now be able to download, manage and play back information from multiple devices at once, allowing them to easily recreate races and training sessions involving multiple boats.

“While some great technical race analysis software has existed to date there has been no simple solution which allowed users to easily download, edit, combine and store race replays from a large group of boats – I am excited that we have been able to achieve this with the Velocitek Control Center 3.0” - Alec Stewart, President and Founder Velocitek.

The built-in race editor and creator allows the combining of multiple Velocitek GPS tracks into one replay which can easily be edited and replayed in the Race Player or exported to other GPS track analysis programs such as Google Earth or GPS Action Replay. This new feature makes it possible for a whole fleet to review their racing and training sessions – every tack, wind shift and change in boat speed! To see this in action, check out the demo video

As an added bonus, Velocitek also offers users the opportunity to publish their race or training sessions online, so anyone can watch and comment on the action. All sailors need to do is submit their Velocitek replay track files via email and Velocitek does the rest, compiling and publishing the tracks online at their race replay forum. Go to velocitek.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=181 to see an example from a race in Hawaii at the Lahaina Yacht Club.

In conjunction with the release of the Control Center with Race Replay, Velocitek has also introduced the “Fleet Pack”, which includes a bundle of five Velocitek SC-1 devices, mounting hardware, a USB hub and Version 3.0 of the Velocitek Control Center. Available at products section, it is priced at just $1950. “The Velocitek “Fleet Pack” and Velocitek Control Center 3.0 provides groups of sailors the opportunity to not only evaluate their individual performance on the water but to compare it with other boats in their fleet once they get back to shore” – Alec Stewart.

Photo: Paul Todd

PORTO CERVO, ITA (10 June 2008) - Friday marked the close of possibly the most competitive Melges 24 World Championship in history, as well as the final race for GBR 592 under a British sail number.

Sevenstar SLAM is already on her way North to her new home in Oslo after a strong performance in the 2008 Volvo Melges 24 World Championship. “She’s been such a fast boat, and we’ve had great times all over the US and Europe sailing her,” said owner/helmsman Simon Strauss, who took initial delivery of the boat in 2004. With San Diego’s Bill Hardesty calling tactics, Strauss helmed Sevenstar SLAM to 5th and 7th place finishes in the championship’s final two races, moving up three places to a respectable 15th place for the regatta. After three days of gear busting Mistral winds, Friday saw a mix of conditions, starting out very light and building to 15 knots. “In moderate to heavy breeze, our upwind speed was incredible, and we sailed away from some of the fastest boats on the course,” said Strauss, the third-highest finishing owner/helmsman at the World Champs. “Our downwind speed wasn’t quite up to the same pace, but considering the credentials of some of our competition, we’re certainly happy with our result.”

A look at competition adds some perspective to Stauss’s performance, as well as that of all the amateur helmsmen at the Porto Cervo Worlds. The fleet included dozens of Olympic athletes and medallists as well as countless world, national, and continental champions in a variety of classes, and a number of teams were assembled especially for campaigns that would culminate in this big event. “We built this team about a year and a half ago with the goal of winning the championship,” said Federico Michetti, trimmer and program manager for Uka Uka Racing, the 2008 World Champion. With Michetti’s help, owner Lorenzo Santini put together an impressive crew including helmsman Lorenzo Bressani, a six-time world champ in the J/24, Beneteau 25 amongst others, Louis Vuitton Cup tactician Francesco Bruni, and European UFO22 Champion Francesca Prina. Aside from being a top Melges 24 racer and team manager for years, Michetti runs Melges Europe, the European distributor of the 24, the Melges 32, and the new Melges 20. “I love the Melges 32, but the skill level in the 24 fleet is something completely unique, and we feel incredibly fortunate to have pulled off the win,” said Michetti.

Uka Uka’s luck was powerful indeed, with her top four competitors suffering from major drama on the final day of racing. Alina Helly Hanson and Pilot Italia, in 2nd and 3rd going into Friday, saw uncharasterically deep finishes in the first race, while Flavio Favini on Blu Moon starting early for each of the two’s final races was an incredibly costly mistake for the top Swiss boat. At least these teams were able to finish out the day - Italian National Champion Gabrio Zandona, helming Joe Fly, saw their late-regatta charge to the head of the fleet thwarted when a shroud turnbuckle shattered in sloppy seas during the second race, ending their event and paving the way for Bressani’s clinching of the championship at the end of the penultimate race.

Joe Fly’s equipment failure points to the importance of perfect boat preparation at this level, where every mistake is amplified by the intensity of the competition. “Our team worked incredibly hard on getting Sevenstar SLAM properly set up for Worlds,” said Strauss. “Our shore crew did a great job on the boat, and Sevenstar Yacht Transport took perfect care of the boat on her transatlantic trip so that she arrived in perfect condition.” Stauss’s crew also used Velocitek’s SC-1 GPS race computer, whose line proximity feature helped prevent early starts like those that plagued Blu Moon on the final day. “The Velocitek is a great tool for big-fleet starts and for gaining confidence when you can’t see either end of the line,” explained Sevenstar SLAM forward hand James Hill.

Sevenstar SLAM Melges 24 Team

We have just added replays of Team Sevenstar SLAM's first 9 races at the Worlds to the Velocitek Replay Forum. The data for these replays was captured using Team Sevenstar SLAM's Velocitek SC-1 There are also some great photos in the event gallery.