Are you entering the 2021 Vineyard Race?

The complex strong tidal currents at the eastern end of Long Island Sound can be challenging for even the most experienced race navigators.

Key questions need to be considered. Will you depart Long Island Sound via The Race, Plum Gut, or The Sluiceway? What are your tactics for the return back into Long Island Sound on the way home? How you negotiate these complex and strong tidal currents could be the difference between a good race and a Great Race. 

Fortunately, Tidetech has accurate high-resolution tidal current forecast models for the entire course available in GRIB format. This allows you to make the best navigation decisions giving you more time to simply sail fast and gain an advantage over your closest competitors. 

We are very pleased to release a new model of Chesapeake Bay in time for the Annapolis to Newport Race! Sourced from NOAA the model covers the entire bay in incredible detail, showing for the first time the complexity of the currents everywhere in the Bay from Annapolis to Cape Charles, including the Potomac River.

Whatever craft you sail, currents can have a significant effect on your transit times across an ocean, particularly where the major ocean currents such as the Kuroshio and Gulf Stream flow. However, the beginning and end of most ocean crossings transit coastal waters, where there can be strong tides. Understanding how and why each type of current forms and where they occur increases the likelihood of a successful passage - whether it be a 'just-in-time' arrival on a ship or a podium finish in a yacht race.

Credit: NASA

Due to high demand we have released a limited edition high resolution tidal model for Narragansett bay and Rhode island Sound in time for the Rolex New York Yacht Club Race Week.  The region covered includes all racing areas in the Bay and to the South at 110 m resolution at 60 minute intervals.

Data is available as GRIBs or PDF images like the ones below, for the North and South race areas.

We are very excited to release our new model of Long Island Sound. With a resolution of 110m the model covers whole Sound in incredible detail, showing for the first time how the tidal currents flow around key locations across the region.

How tricky currents play a part in the closing stages of the Rolex Sydney to Hobart Race

The last few miles of a Sydney to Hobart race has often determined the ultimate winner. Capricious, shifty wind and 'bullets' - gusts that come screaming down the steep hillsides lining the course are often to blame. Not to mention the notorious night time 'shut-down' - where the wind disappears entirely.

The role of currents here has been overlooked - most likely because little information has been publicly available. This is set to change thanks to a new hydrodynamic model produced by the Coastal Environmental Modelling Team at CSIRO which Tidetech will be making available for the Sydney, Melbourne and Launceston to Hobart races this year as part of a package of Grib files and analyses.

We will shortly be announcing a collaboration with Adrena, one of the leading tactical navigation software providers.

The last 10 miles of the Rolex Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race (from Iron Pot to the finish) has often been the graveyard of ambitions for many competitors. With the finish line in sight, fickle winds and tides make it a tactician’s nightmare, potentially wrecking an otherwise well-sailed race.

East Australian Current – it’s the EAC … dude!