Lifting the lid off the Volvo Ocean Race

September 24, 2008 19:32 by Bang The Corner | 0 comments

A look at how Life at the Extreme will be coming to a screen near you.

Lifting the lid off the Volvo Ocean Race
By Louay Habib


For the first time in history, the Volvo Ocean Race 2008-09 will have a dedicated media crew on board each yacht, as they hurtle through the world’s oceans. Beaming back; high definition video, high resolution pictures and text of life at the extreme as the drama unfolds. This has only become possible by innovations in satellite communication technology.

“We are entering new territory, this has never been done before but we have an amazing opportunity with the on board media to reveal a fantastic story.” Commented, Volvo Ocean Race CEO, Knut Frostad. “A lot of it has never been told and it will be very personal, it will be easy for viewers to relate their own circumstances to the life on board a Volvo 70, racing around the world.

We will show how people react to disappointment or success and how people react when they get scared. We have a story to tell which will be compelling to everybody, not just a sailing audience. It will be a tough job for the journalist and it will be difficult for the teams but it is something that we must do. I look at this almost like a war reporter; someone telling the story from the front line, showing what life is really like in such extreme conditions.”



In 2005 Inmarsat launched the first of a new generation of satellites; the I-4 Satellites are the size of a double decker-bus and weigh six tons, giving 25 times the power of the previous generation. This new service can produce a data rate of 432 kbps giving the competing yachts in the Volvo Ocean Race a broadband internet service mid-ocean. Based on 3G standards, Fleet Broadband provides constant, simultaneous access to voice and high-speed data services via Inmarsat’s airtime provider, Stratos.



The SAILOR FB500 transmitter/receiver supplied by Thrane & Thrane and fitted to all of the Volvo Open 70s is far more compact than anything ever produced before; only 63 cm in diameter and weighing a modest 16kg. It also has a toughened dome, developed especially for the race, to cope with the hostile environment.

The SAILOR FB500 transmits data to the satellite in space, thousands of miles away, the data is then beamed to a ground station which then relays the data to Volvo Ocean Race HQ in the United Kingdom.

Livewire Digital, the leading provider of integrated data, voice and video broadcast services, has been appointed by the Volvo Ocean Race organisers to provide a new on-board High Definition (HD) broadcast system for the 2008-2009 event. ‘Media Desk HD’ has been developed by Livewire Digital to capture the excitement, danger and sheer adrenaline rush of the race on HD video for the first time. It will relay transmissions from participating yachts’ on-board cameras.

Whilst, the SAILOR FB500 will be used to send back details of life on board, it will also provide a vital link to weather information. Each yacht gets exactly the same weather information transmitted by the race organisers. Getting this information is crucial, as Ericsson International Team navigator, Jules Salter, explains;

“Missing a vital piece of weather information may cause you to miss a small weather feature. This could grow to a massive distance loss if a boat gets away through a change in the weather which over the long term could mean you finish days behind another boat. You may also miss a position report and lose track of where your competition are which again could lead to a boat making a jump on you.”



The crew can also use the SAILOR FB500 to receive and send emails to loved ones and in the case of a crew member becoming sick or injured, can assist in diagnosis and treatment by sending back images and even video to medical experts ashore. The unit is designed to interface with a variety of tools including laptop computers and telephones, either by USB connection or wirelessly by Bluetooth.

The SAILOR FB500 is not the only satellite antennae on board; The Volvo Open 70s are also equipped with a Fleet 33 which uses the GAN service, meaning it is total independent from the BGAN service used by the FB500, the Fleet 33 provides voice and data transfer capabilities. There are also two Inmarsat C terminals on board each Volvo Open 70 which will be used to transmit yacht telemetry back to land showing the yachts’ positions, speed, heading and other data. This will be used by Virtual Spectator, to allow race fans, a visualisation of the race, similar as in a hi-tech computer game. The Inmarsat C is also invaluable, in showing the position of a yacht in the event of a rescue situation. As Movistar found out in the last race; the stricken Volvo Open 70 had to be abandoned as she was imminently in danger of sinking. The Inmarsat C transmitter never failed, showing the position of the yacht, allowing the crew of ABN AMRO Two to effect a rescue.

Also on board is the latest in yachting navigational aids supplied by B&G, the WTP2 system uses. The WTP2 system is the most powerful and flexible instrument package for high-end racing yachts and super yachts. The system has the latest generation of the grand prix level Wave Technology Processor at its core. The WTP2 Processor increase the accuracy of the data provided by eliminating the effects of boat motion and calculates and displays data more quickly than any other system.

In short, the Volvo Open 70s, in the tenth edition of the Volvo Ocean Race, are bristling with communication and navigational aids at the very cutting edge of technology. They will provide the yachts with the ability to raise the bar in terms of performance.



Fans of the race will see, hear and read an amazing story of human endeavour, as the teams battle each other and everything Mother Nature can throw at them as they compete through the world’s oceans.

To follow the drama, as it unfolds, visithttp://www.volvooceanrace.org