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Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race
COMING SOON
18 March, 2026
View Results

Home Race 1945 Tracker Faq

Tracker FAQ

COG - this is the direction (in degrees) that the boat is travelling over the surface of the earth.  It may be different to the heading due to the impact of current on the boat.  When presented in a tracker or standings it is the COG at the time at which the position was taken by the satellite unit.

Heading - this is the direction (in degrees) that the boat is heading or pointing.

SOG - this is the speed that the boat is travelling over the surface of the earth.  As with COG, it may be different to the boat speed due to the impact of current on the boat.  When presented in a tracker or standings it is the SOG at the time at which the position was taken by the satellite unit.

Each boat has a satellite unit that periodically reports its GPS position, SOG and COG, usually every 10 minutes (the timepoint).  That data is used to populate the various trackers and as the basis of the calculations for the presentation of the standings.  If the unit fails to report, other position information, if available, is used failing which the position is determined by a form of deduced reckoning which seeks to replicate the calculations that a navigator might make on the boat.

Velocity Made Course.  VMC is the speed at which the boat is effectively moving toward the finish line, not just how fast it’s going, but how fast it’s getting closer to the finish. It’s calculated over the time since the last position check.

VMC can be positive (meaning the boat has made progress toward the finish) or negative (meaning it has actually moved further away). A negative VMC usually happens because the crew has made a tactical choice, like sailing away from the finish to get better wind or positioning on the race course.

This is the time by which a particular boat must finish in order to beat the current leader in a handicap category or division.  It displays in a category or division when the first boat finishes in that category or division.  If a boat does not have a Time to Beat it means that that boat cannot win that category or division.

Yes, for the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race.

Viewers can if they wish consider accessing our Google Earth based yacht tracker instead of the tracker embedded in the race website.  Each has the same automatic update function.

If you are using our desktop or mobile site, please use the following process to access yacht tracker via Google Earth.

  • Download Google Earth onto your desktop, or if using a mobile device, it is available at the Apple App Store for iOS or Google Play Store for android users.  Links are below.
  • Return to the Google Earth Feed option on our website and click on Rolex Sydney Hobart KML file below.
  • That will take you back to Google Earth to follow the race, with the race rhumb line and boats presented on the satellite image in Google Earth.

Key links below

Google Earth.

Download the Google Earth application, then download the Rolex Sydney Hobart KML file to open it in Google Earth.

A download of Google Earth is available at the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store.

The rhumb line is the most direct course between the start line and the finish line.  It is marked in blue and may be de-selected in Tracker.

A red sail is for the line honours leader and a green sail represents a boat leading its handicap category or division.  Retired boats have a grey sail and the rest of the fleet have a blue sail.  The orange sail represents the race record holder - the year of the record is added to its name in the tracker window.

Choose the category or division you want (for example IRC, ORCi, PHS, Corinthian, Sydney 38, depending on the race year) using the Filter (Tracker) or the dropdown menu under Fleet (Legacy Tracker), then choose the division you want (or "All" if you want to see all the boats in the category).  The map will automatically populate with those boats competing in the category or division you have selected.

Click (or tap for tablets and smartphones) the heart icon beside the name of the yacht.  Your list of favourites can then be found in the drop down selection which is found at the top of the fleet list, under "Filter".

Click (or tap for tablets and smartphones) the row of that yacht in the table in Tracker.  A dialogue box will open with boat data and you will see a green tracking line which represents that yacht's route from the start.

Choose the category or division you want using the Filter and then toggle "Tracks" in the Tracker window.   

Yes.  The race time for what you can see in the Tracker window is indicated in the bottom right hand corner.  You can adjust that time in 10 minute increments by moving the slider under the map.  To show the last recorded timepoint move the slider to the right hand end.

Select the race year in the drop down selection at the top of the Tracker window.  The map will open showing the last time point in the race, and you can adjust the presentation from there.  If you want to view a boat's entire race, select the relevant race year and then move the slider to the left hand end, which will then show all the boats at the time of the race start.  You can then advance the boats in 10 minute increments - see the explanation above.

Click (or tap for tablets and smartphones) the wind icon in the Tracker window to display the current Bureau of Meteorology forecast.  The + sign advances the forecast by 2 hours out to a maximum of 16 hours from the current time.

The Live Finish Tracker shows the positions of boats in the last part of the course based on the most recent reports received from satellite units on the boats.  Those positions are up to 10 minutes earlier than the positions reflected in Standings and Tracker.  A boat whose unit is not reporting may not show on the Live Finish Tracker or may show a position that has been manually entered.

  • Pan: Pan the map by clicking and dragging the cursor.  On a touch device, use one finger to drag and pan the map.
  • Zoom: Use mouse scroll-wheel, or two-finger pinch gesture to zoom in or out.  Double-click to zoom in. Hold down Shift and drag the cursor to zoom to a selected area.
  • Rotate/pitch: Rotate the map by clicking and dragging with the right mouse button, or by clicking and dragging with the left mouse button while holding down the Ctrl key.  On touch devices, use two-finger rotate gesture to rotate the map; use two-finger up/down dragging to change the pitch.