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Technology for the Fastnet
Nigel, our Business Development manager, is racing in the Fastnet, a famous offshore yachting race. The race takes place every two years and covers a course of 608 nautical miles, starting at Cowes on the Isle of Wight, rounding the Fastnet Rock off the southwest cost of Ireland and then finishing in Plymouth. Good luck Nigel from all the team.
Sun 9th Aug - Cowes is the start of the Fastnet and I am aboard a 32" racing yacht "Scarlet Jester". This year instead of the standard instruments we have gone high-tech with a laptop on board to assist with weather tracking and course planning. To save on power consumption and not to drain the batteries (no engines will be running, unless last resort charging required) we have solar panels mounted to the inside of the deck windows for a trickle... and at 1.7W it will just be a trickle charge. This year 302 boats are competing and we all have Satellite/GPS tracking devices aboard which means the race can be tracked live.
Weather planning is all about analysing what is actually happening on the water visually, what strength and from which direction. We also need to look at any forecast information available, and we have a 3G dongle on board to keep up to date with the synoptic charts from the Met office, France Metro and NOAA data from the US. GPRS/3G is available up to approx 10-15 miles offshore in good conditions, so we should be able to connect to the internet at various close passing points along the south coast to Lands End. If all else fails it is possible to get limited email via our VHF setup but this is very limited data. Every few hours the coastguard will give an area weather update on VHF and this has ship observations.
The most important point of the trip will be at Lands End, where we turn to face the 170 mile passage across the Irish Sea to the Fastnet Rock on the southern tip of Ireland. We round the Fastnet Rocl lighthouse and retrace 150M to the Isles of Scily and on to the finish at Plymouth. We will be analysing GRIB data which is binary encoded weather data that with suitable software gives us weather data with additional information such as rain fall, wind speed and a graphical animation. By analysing many sources as possible from different weather models we can decide if our course plan and weather tactics are OK, or if we need to adjust for the forthcoming changes. Then we need to factor in tides, land and and sea breezes and it becomes a big game of chess on the ocean. Our course tactics are via a handheld GPS which we track our course tactics to waypoints. As navigator and tactician is my job to provide all the information in a way that the skipper can tune the boat to it's optimised speed so his course is in the best direction reach the finish in the shortest time..... which is not always in a straight line or the shortest route!
From a safety point of view, which is now mandatory since the disaster in 1979 where 15 members of crew lost their lives, we carry a EPRIB (emergency position indicating radio beacon) which when activated gives a distress signal and GPS position. We also have Personal EPRIB just in case we 'loose a man over board' - rescuing within minutes can be a mater of life or death. But with all this technology onboard, the most important is the Ship's Log - a notebook and pencil - the only tried and tested method of logging information that does not rely on batteries at sea!
All ships above 300 tonnage it is mandatory for them to have AIS (Automatic Identification System) transponder for short range coastal tracking, as a sailing yacht it is an option. We have installed a system for tracking ships, useful in fog and bad weather, and that shows our position. Not fool proof but gives another level of safety. As with all systems on board they cannot be relied upon, but are an aid for safety and navigation.
