SailX online racing

Our Review
If you want to go sailing, but are stuck at home in front of your computer SaiX is for you. The image shows the prizes, which were awarded to the top finishers in the SailX world championships, just completed. There are many more events sailing online right now. SailX will help you with sailing fast, tactics and the rules.

SailX comes from the creators of Tacticat. If you have not tried the best online racing simulator, then try now.

To check a race in progress click on the Sail button and then select sailing Fields. Scroll down to the bottom to active fields (i.e. active races). Click on the button for a race under SailX. You can watch the race without registering.

SailX is governed by the RRS racing rules of sailing, just like you would on the water. There is a protest tab, where you can see protests still to be decided.

Below is a description of how to use SailX or you can view the ” Power Point Presentation ”

When you enter a sailing field you will be presented the area (the race course), the buoys, the boats.... You will be using what we will call the sailing interface (a description of all visual elements are described in that page). Use the button on the top bar (Get-A-Boat) to try to get a boat. If you have success - because you are allowed in that field and because there are available boats at that time - your boat will be in the center.

Press the Space bar. This will turn your boat to the optimal upwind angle. Boats begin heading much too close to the wind to prevent them from sailing away immediately.

Try the Shift key. It toggles between two states: perfect sail trim and sails eased. You will be using that key only in prestarts to avoid an early start. To drive the boat you need to have the sails trimmed.

The most important key is the Space Bar. When you press it you are asking the skipper to navigate looking to the telltales, to correct with the rudder when wind shifts and to stay in the groove. If the order is sent when the boat is above a beam-reach the skipper will turn upwind to a close-hauled course. If the order is sent when the boat is deeper than a beam-reach the skipper will steer the boat to an ideal broad reach (for that particular boat type).

The second important key is ENTER. This key is used to change tack. And it is the only way to do it! Tacking or gybing will be performed by the skipper at your request based in the current angle of the boat. If the boat is closer than 90 degrees to the wind a tack will be done, but if the boat is further than 90 degrees the result will be a gybe.

Up and Down arrow keys are like asking the skipper Up! or Down!. When you use these keys, the boat changes its heading a small amount and will keep the new heading unless another key is pressed, for instance the Space bar. DONT USE THE ARROWS TO TACK OR GYBE. Use ENTER instead. The last key you have to remember: the Shift key. It asks the skipper to change the sails trimming from perfectly trimmed to completely eased, and viceversa. You have no direct control of the boat, let the skipper adjust the sails once you are moving. SHIFT key is only used in the pre-start, to stop or slow-down the boat.

Messages

To show messages to nearby boats, press the M key, enter the message then press the ENTER key (or ESCAPE to ignore) To show messages to the fleet, use the N key as above. While typing a message the boat receives no orders, you will have to press either ENTER or ESCAPE to stop messaging and return to boat handling.

Other important keys

Press W several times to see the wind in two different ways (only visible if zoom is close enough). Press U to see currents near your boat (only visible if zoom is close enough). Use Z and X to zoom in and out. F1 shows the help page. When the Rules Engine finds your boat guilty of a rule and applies a penalty, your boat name will be blinking. Get clear of other boats and press the O or the Q key to exonerate from the pen.

And also

If you are alone, you will be using the top bar menus: Admin > Reset: Resets everything, all boats are placed near the start line and clock to minus 5 minutes. PLEASE DO NOT RESET IF ANYONE ELSE IS ON THE RACING FIELD. IT IS VERY INCONSIDERATE. Admin > Advance clock to 2 minutes for the start. Clock to -120s Login: When you click the Remember Me checkbox your Internet browser will try to store the neccessary info (user, password and current time) encrypted into your hard-disk using a cookie. It is a standard practice but as it is an access to your resources some requirements have to be met: Your Internet browser has to be configured to allow cookies (most of them do it by default) Your Operating System or embedded Antivirus has to allow cookies (most of them do). If either browser or anti-virus are not cookies-enabled your personal info cannot be stored and youll be promted again next time.

 Home | Newsletters | About | FAQ | Contact Us | Site Map