Facebook

Login

Support Sailonline

If you haven't already - join the SAILONLINE YACHT CLUB!

Please also consider making a donation - all amounts are greatly appreciated!

Board » General Discussion » Navigation problrm

If I set a course on the goal line I expext to end up in the goal not 15 nm to the north. I had activated Great circle navigation and saw tyhat the course line was curved but when I
checked why my boat was stranded I saw
that it had sailed in a stait line not as shown on the map when a doid set the course (last rare to Boston previouse race same problem on Hawai).

Can anybody telll me the purpose with great circle navigation idf the boat do not follow the coures set.

Looking forward to some good piece of advise in this matter.

Regards

ETXNEBE
Attachments
Hi etxnebe!
Great circle course is not a "straight" line as CC are!
Following a GC course forces you to change CC now and then.
Try to use the ruler and click along the May Transat rhumbline every 250Nm for example. You will find that you have different CC in most of the "boxes" created by each click!
Any help to You?
clash2
Hi!
Great circle nav is just so you can see the "bent" closest route over earth a flat earth and with the course tool pick the initial course.
Lust like in real life you have to alter course manually to follow the great circle.

Compass course is just a angle from magnetic north.

Yeah both remarks are correct.

Great circle nav will give you a indication how your track would be like if you optimize it to take in account the earths bend.

I can understand your confusion becouse it gives a bit the impression this will be the actual course. As said this will require constant adjustments allong the path.

Hope this helps to clear up, sorry to hear you mist the finnish by this.



--- Last Edited by Jeroen Tiel at 2008-06-03 12:03:15 ---
I am a ex-admin of SOL who joins in from time to time.
Hello!

Thanks for all the good explanations to my problem. Shall I conclude this matter by saying that if I set a strait cource to the finish line(no Great circel nav. on) the system will get me there but not on the shortest way. If I use Great circle navigation I will get the shortest way but I have to update the compass cource in regular intervalls to hit the target.

Very best regards

Etxnebe

Please login to post a reply.

Races

Next Race: 00d 00h 00m


Current Races:

Cross the Convergence 2026 - Robinson Crusoe to Galapagos


Welcome to our first race of a new series of ocean voyages across the World’s convergence zones, this first race taking you north from south of the Tropic of Capricorn to the Equator-straddling Galapagos, home of magical iguanas and other exotic fauna (but no mythical kings, Dory) Departing from the island where in 1704 adventurer Alexander Selkirk inspired Daniel Defoe to write the best-seller "The Life and Adventures of Robinson Crusoe", by debarking off the unsound "HMS Cinque Ports", four months before she foundered off the coast of present-day Colombia, we will sail the 2200nm in our decidedly sounder and faster than the " Cinque Ports",
Ocean 50 !
Race #1983
INFOby brainaid.de
Ocean 50 PARTICULARS
WX Updates:
0430 / 1030 / 1630 / 2230
Ranking: CCZ - SYC
Race starts: Jan 16th 18:00 Registration will open soon
▶ Flash
GO TO RACE

Bight of Bonny TIMED Race 2026

Welcome to the first TIMED race of 2026! Our race finds us in the Gulf of Guinea and the Bight of Bonny. Starting in Douala, Cameroon the 170 nm course takes us around the island of Bioko with its Caldera and tropical rainforests finishing in Calabar, Nigeria. The boat for this race is the sporty Farr 30. This is a TIMEDrace so you may RE-REGISTER HEREto try again after finishing a run. You will have 13 days and 11 hours to test your skill and decision making after the race opens.
Race #2004
INFOby brainaid.de
Farr 38 Particulars
WX Updates:
0430 / 1030 / 1630 / 2230
Ranking:
TRQ1 - TRCH - SYC
RACE CLOSE: Saturday,
24 January at 23:00 UTC
Race starts: Jan 11th 12:00 Registration Open!
▶ Flash
GO TO RACE

Natuna Sea Race 2026


At 4.0N 108.2E lies the island of Natuna Besar, Great Natuna, surrounded by at least 154 islands, of which 127 uninhabited, Indonesia’s Natuna Regency, and all around this archipelago, the Natuna Sea, bordered by Borneo to the east, the Java Sea to the south, and the Malay peninsula to the west, and extending north to cross a disputed international border with China into the South China Sea. And it’s a border that matters, there’s gas here! But why worry, let’s race – 2050nm in our goo’ol’ Open 60s in between the production platforms, prowling destroyers and submarines.
Race #1997
INFOby brainaid.de
Open 60 PARTICULARS
WX Updates:
0430 / 1030 / 1630 / 2230
Ranking: SYC
Race starts: Jan 06th 17:00 Registration Closed
▶ Flash
GO TO RACE

Cape Town to Rio 2026

Welcome to South Africa and RCYC's classic transatlantic Cape2Rio Race from Cape Town, South Africa, to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. First run in 1971, this run is buddied with the IRL, Cape2Rio 2025 arranged by the Royal Cape Yacht Club with the cooperation of the
Iate Clube do Rio de Janeiro Despite this being announced the 2025 race (starting dec. 27) it is the 2026 SOL championship kickoff. This virtual version, will be raced once again in Mark Mills' 74ft speedster, the stunning C2R74.
Race #1996 INFO
by brainaid.de
C2R74 PARTICULARS
WX Updates:
0430 / 1030 / 1630 / 2230
Ranking:
OCQ1 - OCCH - SUPBUD - SYC
Race starts: Dec 27th 12:00 Registration Closed

▶ Flash
GO TO RACE

Go to race archive

SYC Ranking

  1. Sailonline Yacht Club Member KaSToR
  2. Sailonline Yacht Club Member WRmirekd
  3. Sailonline Yacht Club Member CriticalHippo
  4. Sailonline Yacht Club Member rafa
  5. Sailonline Yacht Club Member vida
  6. Sailonline Yacht Club Member bonknhoot
  7. Sailonline Yacht Club Member Sax747
  8. Sailonline Yacht Club Member rumskib
  9. Sailonline Yacht Club Member CollegeFund
  10. Sailonline Yacht Club Member Panpyc

View full list

Series

Mobile Client

SYC members have the benefit of access to our mobile/lightweight web client!

The mobile client