Sportsim Weblog

Live tracking of 150 yachts

Today at 17.00 CET starts The Watski Skagerrak Two Star 2006 regatta in Skagerrak from June 14th-17th.  Skagerrak is the sea between Norway, Sweden, and Denmark and this could very well become the largest live tracked regatta this year.

The race is a doublehanded-regatta where the yachts are manned with 2 sailors. A GPS tracking unit is placed on each boat and communicate geographical positions through the wireless network.  History, current position, and estimated progress - can then be viewed on the web through a Google Maps Mash-up already mentioned in the Google Maps Mania blog.   The live tracking system is earlier tested with success on 50 yachts only two weeks ago in The Frydenbo Doublehanded regatta.

As this is a live race it can be followed live on the Internet, but the tracks are posted as files for post-race analysis in the free software's from Sportsim and Google Earth.

This regatta with approx. 150 tracked boats and high traffic peaks will put the live system to the test.

The system is developed by Guard Systems ASA with Sportsim development assistance.

New live tracking system for yacht races

Frydenbo Doublehanded is a 4-day regatta that starts today.

50 sailing boats are lived tracked with a new developed system at the west coast of Norway. This is a new way for spectators to follow the yachts live. Go to the live link, but also view how they split up on the left screen shot as a result of different sailing strategies.

Guard Systems ASA has brought in Sportsim consultants and together developed a new and cool live tracking system targeted at regattas. The race can be followed through a simple web interface that applies Google Maps API.

Spectators can also follow a link to Google Earth for the 3D fly-through experience.

Yes, we know there have been other Google Maps mashups for yacht races (e.g. Volvo Ocean Race), but never this organized for a local regatta!

As an extra value for the racers can .gpx track files be downloaded from the web and imported in Sportsim for post-race analysis.

Guard Systems ASA has developed their own GPS enabled trackers that apply the local wireless network for server communication. The company is a leading Norwegian company on asset tracking.

Good luck with the launch guys!

cheers,
Team Sportsim

Update on Friday, June 2nd:
This race is now finished, but there will be an even larger live yacht tracking (approx. 200 boats, The Watski Skagerrak TwoStar 2006) in a couple of weeks.

What about a sport GPS with online capabilities?

Every week we receive new request for live tracking of sport events and for training purposes.  We have conducted some live beta testing this summer, but a returning problem is to find suitable hardware.

Now with Google Maps, Virtual Earth and Yahoo Maps open API's available it’s possible to make nice combined solutions to replay GPS tracks on maps on a web site.

OK, but what about cell phones?

Sure, maybe in 2-3 years? Until then will cell phone location based services just be that – location based with services.  I mean - we want to know where we are, request information about local facilities, and get directions from A to B on maps, and we want it on the fly. This is the focal point for cellphone vendors since it provide important content for the operators.

All very well, but this does not make them suitable for activity monitoring and tracking for sports.

OK, this is what we want:

An athlete GPS watch with GPRS (2,5 G) tranfer capabilities.

Capabilities (short list):

-         GPS watch with display for time, speed, distance, and heart rate

-         suitable for all kind of weather conditions

-         transmit position data every 5 sec

-         sufficient battery capacity and memory backup

It’s possible to manufacture such a device with today’s new GPS chip set technology and if the price is right it’s also an interesting market out there.

Sportsim and others will provide suitable applications for it - thats our job.

So, what can we use it for?

-         live racing -  follow race on web site or big screen

-         family tracking while training – security

-         all data online when finished training session – no more cable transfers, analyze your training when you want - it's already stored and online available!

Have nice weekend J

Gjermund