Take your sailing analysis a step further
PesceSpada puts every sailor's GoPro video on one GPS clock, then compares sailors, tacks and metrics side by side. It runs in the browser, with nothing to install.
Works with GoPro HERO cameras that have GPS. Use Chrome or Edge on a laptop.
The starting point
Where the time goes in a video debrief
Hours of footage
Each camera records a session as several 4 GB files. Finding the start, or one particular tack, means scrubbing through them.
Numbers elsewhere
Speed and tracks usually live in another app or logger, with its own clock, so video and data are looked at separately.
Syncing by hand
Comparing two sailors means lining up their videos manually, often on a sound or something both cameras happen to see.
PesceSpada does the syncing, the measuring and the searching, so the debrief time goes to the sailing.
Compare sailors
See who gained, where, and why
One column per sailor, each measured against a reference sailor you choose.
- Distance gained along the wind, tacks and gybes included
- Upwind and downwind VMG, speed, wind angle and heel side by side
- Compared over the same minutes of steady sailing, so a wait or a capsize doesn't skew it
- Key moments: where each sailor gained and lost most, and the fastest ten seconds
- Leg by leg: average VMG and metres gained on every leg
- Click any row to watch it in the video
Tacks and gybes
What every turn cost
Every tack and gybe is found automatically and measured, so you can see which ones to work on.
- Distance lost, speed kept, VMG and turn angle, using entry, turn and exit phases
- Tacks and gybes shown separately, with the average for each sailor
- Every turn as a curve, with the average dashed, to see how sailors differ through the turn
Metrics
The numbers that set sailors apart
Steady stretches of sailing are compared across sailors, so you can see who sails faster, who sails higher, and what each is worth.
- VMG, speed, wind angle and heel for each sailor, with the spread of each
- Box plots, violins and scatter plots, port against starboard, to show tack bias
- Up to six metrics on one page, including steering, speed and heel stability, polar score and pitch
- The whole session, a leg, a race or any stretch you pick, or only the best 50% or 20% of the sailing
Races
Score practice races and starts afterwards
Set up the start, marks and finish from the recording, with a start line or a rabbit start.
Start and line
Set the gun at the playhead and nudge it by seconds; the video shows each nudge. Click the ends of the line on the map, or let the rabbit's tacks set the gate.
Marks and legs
Click the marks in rounding order. Legs are built from them, and splits show each sailor's time at every mark.
Results
Early or late at the gun, distance from the line, speed and VMG off the start, and finish times. Every leg can be analysed like any other part of the session.
GPS estimates for training, not official results.
One screen
Map, video and timeline move together
Video
Up to four sailors' videos side by side on the same clock. Speed, heel or VMG can be shown on the video.
Map
Every sailor's track with tacks (T) and gybes (G) marked, a trail behind each boat and the estimated wind.
Timeline
The whole session: legs, each sailor's turns and a speed chart. Scrub, zoom, or click a tack, a leg or the track to jump there.
Nothing extra to buy
Wind and heel from the camera you already have
GPS and sensors in every file
A GoPro already records GPS and an accelerometer in every video file. That is all PesceSpada needs, so there is no logger to buy or fit.
Wind from the GPS tracks
PesceSpada works out wind direction and speed from the angles and speeds the sailors sail. This is what makes VMG, wind angle and leg detection possible, with nothing to enter.
Heel and pitch, no set-up
How the camera sits on the boat is worked out from the recording itself, so there is no calibration step before going out.
How it works
From the boat to the debrief in four steps
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Record
A GoPro fixed to each boat, with GPS on. One camera per sailor.
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Import
Drop the files or a whole SD-card folder. Split files are joined into one clip. Name each sailor once.
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Sync
Each camera's video time is matched to GPS time, so the videos line up with no manual offsets.
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Debrief
Compare sailors, tacks and metrics, and click anything to watch it in the video.
The footage it works with
Ordinary GoPro video, straight from the card
GoPro HERO with GPS
Switch GPS on, fix the camera to the boat, and record as normal. Long recordings that the camera splits into several files are joined automatically.
One camera per sailor
Each camera becomes one sailor. Up to four sailors' videos play side by side.
Quick to open
Only the data inside each file is read, not the whole video, so even a 4 GB file opens in a second or two, and sessions reopen from cache.
Who it's for
Sailors, coaches and squads
Sailors
Go through your own session at home: where you lost on your training partner, which tacks cost most, and the video of each.
Coaches
Debrief a group from the cameras on the boats. Compare sailors on the same leg, score practice starts, and show the exact clip.
Clubs and federations
The same measurements across camps and sailors, with no instruments to buy or maintain beyond the cameras.
Try it
Bring the footage from one training session
Open the site in Chrome or Edge and drop in the files. A short tour shows the rest.
Questions, or want to try it with a group? Write to olstadlarsmartin@gmail.com.