Flying Start replaces Sailwave, clipboard finish sheets, and Sunday evening data entry. Create series, capture finishes on your phone, score results, and publish — all from the water.
Sound familiar? It doesn't have to be this way.
Six steps from blank calendar to prize-giving. Each one takes minutes, not hours.
Set up fleets, handicap system (PY, IRC, NHC), scoring rules, and discard profile. Takes two minutes.
Share a link. Sailors sign up, pick their series, confirm their handicap. No more chasing.
Tap sail numbers on your phone or tablet as boats cross the line. Auto-timestamped. Haptic confirmation. Audio recording for disputes.
Corrected times, positions, and points calculated automatically. PY, IRC, PHRF — it knows the rules.
One tap. Results appear on your club's event page at flyingstart.app. Sailors notified instantly.
Discards applied, tie-breaks resolved per RRS Appendix A. Prize-giving sorted.
Sailwave served clubs well for two decades. But race management has moved on.
| Sailwave | Flying Start RC | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Platform | Windows desktop only | Phone, Tablet, Web |
| Finish capture | Separate process (clipboard / Excel) | Integrated — single tap |
| Online entries | Not built in | Built in — share a link |
| Live results | Not built in | One-tap publish to web |
| GPS tracking | Not built in | Built in — live map |
| Scoring engine | Yes (complex UI) | Yes (automatic) |
| Export to Sailwave | — | Yes — .blw export |
| Audio recording | No | Yes — replay disputed finishes |
| Multi-device | No | Yes — multiple devices on RC boat |
| Works offline | Yes (desktop) | Yes — local-first, syncs when connected |
And yes, you can export to Sailwave format if you still need it.
Every feature designed for cold, wet hands on a bouncing committee boat.
Large sail numbers, colour-coded status, auto-incrementing position. Designed for cold, wet hands on a bouncing committee boat. No stylus required.
Capture timestamps first, assign sail numbers after. Decouples timing from identification for close finishes. Sort it out once the fleet is through.
Advisory OCS flags based on GPS positions — accurate to 1–2 metres, so a useful guide but not a replacement for eyes on the line. Timer shows how long since flagged. Integrates with penalty system and scoring engine.
Mark races as postponed, abandoned, or general recall with a tap. Status syncs to your event page in real time.
Continuous recording from countdown to scoring. Jump to any finish time during replay. Settles disputes in seconds, not committee meetings.
Two devices on the committee boat? Both capture finishes, sync in real-time. Master/helper architecture. One device goes overboard, the other has everything.
The part that used to take all evening now takes seconds.
No trial period. No feature gates. No card required.
Set up your club in two minutes. Run your first race this weekend.