Marathon Trackers ??

Goinglean · 11-01-2011, 01:19 PM

Every Marathon race that is arranged now immediately gets asked..... will you be using trackers.....

I personally think that they are great for safety and could well be the new way for people to follow offshore racing..... However

To hire the trackers is £300 -500 for each boat plus deposits..... this is fine for the big budget races CTC... CMC... RB12 but it challenging for the club races that have a total race budget of £2500 - £4000..... in fact it is impossible

So..... for our own safety..... is it time to Choose the tracker system that we want. (The one to be used in CMC looks good)...... pull all the race organisers together to agree it and then all use it.... then......

All the marathon racers buy there own system (approx £1000.....This looks like the only solution to me..... each club could buy 1 tracker to allow somebody to try Marathon (Maybe... just an idea)

I recognise that the thought of shelling out a grand on a tracker is mind blowing to some teams...... thats fine...... can we get this thread going to discuss other options please

ATB

Mike Lloyd · 11-01-2011, 10:30 PM

All I do remember from RB08 was that the tracking system was a real pain. We had to almost bully some teams to return theirs. Some were damaged and others never ever appeared so WE had to pay for them, the same applied to the satellite phones.

This time round the race teams are going to have to buy their own and fit them, that has to be a mandatory safety item as with life rafts and EPIRB's. That's not to say that we won't try to negotiate a VERY good deal with the manufactures.
ML.
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dowdy · 11-01-2011, 11:12 PM

FTC Vehicle Tracking Solutions. From £5.85 per month. 08443767000 Worth a call?

nickfarrell · 12-01-2011, 05:37 PM

Hi

Just a quick reply on this one to clarify and so people aren't misinformed... as an example of a powerboat event we tracked last year, the Cowes to Torquay, it cost around £80 per boat to track, on 5-minute intervals... it doesn't have to be ridiculously expensive.

It is certainly true that satellite trackers are more expensive than mobile phone based devices, as the data and devices are much more expensive, but the prices are still achieveable and nothing like the £300 to £500 quoted.... some may disagree, but experience has proved that satellite-based options are really the only reliable option, since mobile coverage offshore is patchy at best (dependent on location obviously).

Kind Regards

Nick Farrell
-
Yellowbrick Tracking
www.yellowbrick-tracking.com

larby · 12-01-2011, 05:58 PM

Hi All,

Colin Le Conte over here owns Digimap and developed a tracking system specifically for powerboat use which he demo'd at the '08 worlds here in Guernsey.

Although I haven't worked with the system myself I'm told it is absolutely fantastic and actually designed to be able to cope with the strain of powerboating.

Should you wish, I'm more than happy to speak to colin to get info and prices or put you in touch.

Cheers, James

Goinglean · 12-01-2011, 06:13 PM

Hi Nick thanks for the info

I do not believe that every 5 minutes will be acceptable..... we can cover up 6 - 8 miles in that period and drive through a conservation area without being spotted.... or even worse... NOT drive through one & it looking like you have.

In the US we used Kat Track.... that updated live...... it worked really well.... but I am not sure if it was mobile phone based.....(it certainly looked like a phone).... or satellite

I think the system has to update every 60 seconds

How much does it cost to purchase The yellow Brick system for each boat

James..... I'll give you a buzz to discuss Digi - Map... sounds good

ATB

Cookee · 13-01-2011, 09:11 AM

With the rate of development I really believe purchasing units until they have reached an acceptable level in terms of performance and price to be wrong. I am sure that within a couple of years these things will perform perfectly and be a fraction of the cost.

Johnny Rocket · 13-01-2011, 09:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Goinglean

I do not believe that every 5 minutes will be acceptable..... we can cover up 6 - 8 miles in that period and drive through a conservation area without being spotted.... or even worse... NOT drive through one & it looking like you have.

Whatever live tracking system you go for, I would suggest that you have a separate track logging system on each boat.

That way you can easily verify the actual track taken even if the live data link goes down. The Dakar Rally has been doing this for years in some of the most challenging conditions you'll find anywhere. Even now their live tracking is notoriously flaky but they seem to be able to verify track and timings at the end of each stage without any trouble by downloading the info direct from the car/truck/bike.

Atlantic Xpat · 13-01-2011, 12:30 PM

I note that the Yellowbrick system uses the Iridium sat network. I'll be at an Iridium trade event in a couple of weeks time. I'll keep my eyes open for any other suitable hardware for you.

nickfarrell · 13-01-2011, 03:29 PM

Sure - appreciate the update time is a concern.

Our kit can go up to speeds of 5 second updates, but it comes down to cost at the end of the day... the more transmissions, the more satellite time used, and the more it costs

It comes back to your first point, the system has to be affordable for an event to hire, and for this a compromise has to be made somewhere - for public viewing, 5 minutes is acceptable. For a safety officer, they might want every 1 minute...

Johnny Rocket makes a good point about the logger. A logger which can verify data at the end of a stage (non broadcast but downloadable) to the 1 second nth degree is useful, whilst having live tracking every few minutes attracts more interest to the sport through public viewing, and adds to the safety aspect.