Good starts are all about time and distance. The ProStart is specifically designed to give you the information you need to hit the line at speed, at go. One of the most exciting features on the new ProStart is the start line pacing guides.
In the final two minutes of the countdown the bar graph segments on the sides of the screen function as a pacing guide, telling you whether you are on track to be early or late to the line given your current boat speed and course. Check out the video tutorial about the new feature here:
This video was shot on an iPhone 11 in bright sunlight. The flickering in the video is a limitation of the iPhone camera and its high shutter speed in direct sunlight. The ProStart display is crystal clear in person. Thanks for watching!
What's so good about the pacing guides? They give you simple, proportional feedback that responds intuitively to your control inputs. The start of a sailing race is an extremely complex, multidimensional environment. You have to manage everything that's happening on and off your boat as well as the rest of the fleet. You are constantly making complex tradeoffs. For example, do you fight for the favored end of the line or look for a good hole that gives you more freedom to execute your gameplan on the first leg. In this environment simple, easily digestible information is critical.
A sailor who can use input from all their senses and experience is always going to be in a better position to make critical decisions than a computer with limited inputs.
"At the heart of our design philosophy is the idea that sailing instruments should support, not attempt to replace, the athlete's on-the-water decision making process." - Alec Stewart, Velocitek Founder and CEO
The algorithm behind the pacing guides is simple and completely transparent. They tell you how close you will be to the line at the gun, if you maintain your current approach. This proportional feedback is delivered through a bar graph that you can act on intuitively, without having to interpret numbers, the same way you would balance a marble on a plate.
You can decide to respond to the input from the pacing guides by changing your heading or your speed. You can also easily ignore the pacing guides in situations where they are not relevant; the critical time to start and distance to line numbers always stay front and center in the middle of the display. The ProStart keeps you in charge while making sure that you and your crew have all the information you need to confidently manage your start and hit the line, at pace, at go.