Pinpoint weather
For our leg starts we were only worried about a very small geographic region and for a relatively short duration, so we could scale the resolution of our modelling to an exceptionally high
300m grid and nest that inside broader spatial resolutions of 1km, 3km, and 9km, with each broader geographic scale extending further and further forward in time. This enabled us to see potential variations in wind speed and direction that may otherwise be missed by the major models at our disposal. The more information you have, the more confidence you can have in the plan when the team leaves the dock.
Any time a new weather model is produced its accuracy is studied intently, and initially there was a healthy dose of scepticism across the team as to whether their custom models were going to be beneficial. That scepticism was quickly erased when the model helped to pick up a key shift in the Mediterranean, which helped us win the first leg from Alicante to Lisbon.
When passing Cabo de Gata we’d been tipped by Vestas modelling that there was potential for a left-hand shift to be gained by being the most inshore boat, and that the land breeze running down slope at night would increase in pressure. There were low risks associated with putting our toe into the bay to see if the shift was present – and sure enough it was, enabling us to sneak around the competition and build a lead that we held to Lisbon. Ultimately, as the race has progressed, we have worked together to refine the meteorological variables that we want to see within the GRIB files. By the final leg the process was as simple as providing a lat/ long grid, and we receive back a link to the next geographic region in which we are interested.
The partnership has had great benefits to both sides. We’ve received information unavailable to our competitors with proven value in points on the scoreboard. Vestas has gained a perspective that it would not normally see in how weather files can be utilised by racing sailors. They’ve received real time feedback from the race team, which in turn helps refine their modelling of coastal environments. It has been a partnership unlike any other in the history of the Race.
ANDERSON REGGIO is shore-side navigator and performance analyst for the Volvo Ocean Race team Vestas 11th Hour Racing, and was previously a winning navigator for maxis, superyachts and TP52S. He is also a highly sought-after race officer