I've been eyeballing the Velociteck Prostart but at $1k I am reluctant to pull the trigger without some more info. I understand mostly what it does but a complete description is remarkably hard to find. Does anyone out there use one? Has it been valuable in improving starts and helping to take advantage of wind shifts? Based on the videos that I have seen on what it does I am somewhat skeptical /confused on whether it really provides relevant info. Not sure how else to describe it without going deep into geometry. I assume anyone who uses it will understand where I am coming from on this. Maybe.
Velociteck Prostart
- Thread starter markwbird
- Start date
There are a few mentions in this thread . . .
Best way to track wind shifts
Hi folks, this question has been of interest to me for some time and I have asked it before in a couple of different ways to a few different audiences but it has never locked in for me. When on the upwind leg I am spending so much time looking for room, wind, and ROW situations and I find myself...
forums.sailboatowners.com
The B&G Zeus and Vulcan Chartplotters have a similar feature for the starting line. They also have the Sailsteer screen which will show tacking angles, and whatever data you program it for.
The SailSteer screen will also show current, heading and COG.
The SailSteer screen will also show current, heading and COG.
I haven’t tried one but for $1000 I’m not impressed. Like dlochner said the Vulcan and Zeus have similar sailing features. Plus they’ll actually give the time to a mark, not just distance. In tight starting situations I can’t do the math fast enough to convert time to distance myself. I know more serious racers that practice more can, and this device does seem tailored to them. I do have a Zeus3 and I really like being able to show time to a mark right next to the start timer. I know the time to the mark is only based on current speed and only to one spot in the line, but it’s been very helpful to me in getting the starts right.
Wasn't Jackdaw working with that company? Racer's will spend big money if they think they can get an advantage at the line or gain .1 kt of speed.
No, he does not work for Velocitek, he works for Vakaros. He was kinda run out of here because he gave some product updates that the mods thought were advertising. At the risk of sounding like an ad, I have no commercial interest in Vakaros. Jackdaw is just a very good friend, was in my wedding. But anyway, Vakaros is doing some seriously next level stuff, check out their Race Sense update to the the Atlas 2.
Please tell your friend that his contributions are missed. I hope the issues he might have had here do not include the general population. His thoughts on racing related topics and equipment were just as relevant as Maine's was on boat maintenance.... in other words.... valuable. At least ask him to check in and give us an update. (or was he banned?) Thanks in advance for passing on the message.