Rolex Sydney to Hobart Race

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Rolex Sydney to Hobart 2009 results

Great results for yachts using Tidetech technology in the 2009 Sydney to Hobart. 30% of competing yachts were signed up to access our data. Following is the results of divisional place getters who were using Tidetech.

Why use Tidetech in the Sydney to Hobart and other Offshore Yachting events?

We introduced our GRIB products one week before the start of the 2008 race. Of the 17 yachts which used the technology, 10 of them placed in the top 20. Quest's navigator, Bruce Baker said "We have found Tidetech’s info to be very accurate. This meant that on the Sydney to Hobart race we could use it in our tactical routing software with confidence and we believe that the information made a big difference to our overall result.

Will Oxley says: "The East Australian Current (EAC) often plays a large role in success in the Hobart Race. For years, an SST image from CSIRO has been an essential piece of information for navigators. Now Tidetech's commercial product takes this to a new level and Grib files for SST and current can be seamlessly imported into Expedition. I’ve been using Tidetech’s info about the East Australian Current for the last year and have found it provides a significant advantage. For a Sydney to Hobart race I consider the Tidetech product to be an essential part of the navigator’s arsenal."

We have learned a lot since we introduced our first current files . Since then we have had numerous boats use and win with our information for Australia, sourced from the highly regarded CSIRO.

Need Help with Expedition? We are Expedition dealers and can assist you with setting up and using the software. We have special expertise in optimal routing and can assist you with refining your polars and setting up routing for the race. We can provide support at an hourly rate. Please contact us for more info.

Sample Routeing using Current and Wind GRIBS	Measured currents showing effect of SST on Current Speed

2008 results:

Overall Winner QUEST

Line Honours WILD OATS XI

IRC Div 0 1st QUANTUM RACING 2nd ICHIBAN

IRC Div 1 1st QUEST 3rd WOTNOW 5th YENDY'S

IRC Div 2 2nd WEDGETAIL 3rd RAGTIME

Three of the top four champions after handicap used Australian Ocean current GRIB data from Tidetech including overall winner Quest, third place-getter Wot Now and fourth placed Yendys.

Navigator on Quantum Racing (which won their division and came sixth after handicap overall), Bryan Northcote said the current GRIB file provided by Tidetech is the most accurate he has used.

'I was able run the Optimum route using Expedition software for Quantum Racing using the Current GRIB in combination with four different Wind GRIB files. In reality the SST and current position & direction enabled us to confidently make tactical decisions regarding wind speed & direction that are more susceptible to change.

'At sea, the information contained in the current GRIB was very accurate. Any navigator or tactician using routeing software such as Expedition could not confidently use the Optimum route program without using a current GRIB file produced by Tidetech when comparing effects of wind and current to produce an optimum route.'

Lord Howe Race Temp

Charlie's Dream found the SST to be crucial. The latest data seemed to tie in well with what was seen from the temperature gauge and COG and SOG. As a temperature break was approached the current was at its' fastest, but dropped off rapidly as they went into colder water. What was clear was that even an image a few hours old would not show the position correctly, as the image below shows (it was 8 hrs old at the time). This is why we are producing files for S2H that are much more frequently updated. (Every 2 hrs approx, depending on recent satellite passes).

Charlie's Dream went on to win her division by a large margin.