What’s new

A wider weather picture

Forecast wind

• Explore NOAA forecast wind around the world in Plan and on the chart, with regional detail near the race.
• Wind arrows and speed contours remain readable as you zoom. Scrub time to follow the forecast ahead.
• Forecast times load on demand and stay cached. Currents and tides retain their regional coverage.

Consistent presentation

• Gameplay fonts are included with the client. Boat transoms use the same flag artwork as skipper listings.
• Local clock time uses AM/PM; UTC uses 24-hour time. Local defaults to your time zone, with a race-area option in Settings.

Mobile optimizations

Improved on phones

• More room for sailing: compact steering and view controls stay visible, with advanced tools and preferences in the menu.
• Chart starts at your boat and Camera follows it. Drag and pinch to explore, without a view picker covering the screen.
• Plan brings plotting controls and a compact forecast timeline directly onto the sailing view.
• A compact steering polar shows your selected course against the wind.
• Fleet radio has a cleaner conversation view and message composer.
• Back and Close are easier to find, and preferences return to the menu you came from.
• Zoom buttons are optional in Chart preferences. Scroll and pinch zoom remain available.

Chart and Camera

• Switching views keeps an active blend, makes the selected layer more visible, and gives it mouse and touch control.
• Country flags and key control icons render consistently across devices.

More sailing, a clearer chart table

Improved

• Faster chart detail loading, with regional and world context as you zoom.
• Chart, Camera and transparency controls stay together, with separate view presets and a movable floating chart.
• Plan brings plotting tools, forecast time and scheduled turns onto the chart table.
• Clearer wind contours, marine reports, a wind vane and a local or UTC clock.
• Simpler connection, sound and Help controls, finer steering and a lighter fleet display.
• Captain’s log focuses on your own boat’s recent incidents. Aim at mark previews a direct approach with buoy clearance.

During beta

• Animated crew are temporarily disabled while we rework their rendering for smoother sailing.
• This release starts a fresh beta database. Sign up again to join the new race calendar.

A clearer view from the helm

Improved

• A larger steering compass and clearer wind, current, and boat-speed readings make it easier to plan your next turn.
• Fine steering, Aim at mark, Best VMG, and Tack or Gybe stay together, with scheduled orders just below.
• More consistent crew appearances aboard boats joining scheduled races.
• Smoother boat movement through brief connection delays.

More at your fingertips

Aboard your boat

• Navigation, Sails, and Fleet radio now share one Helm station, with more comfortable controls on phones.
• Read the telltales on your mainsail and jib as you adjust the trim, or leave the crew on automatic.
• Change sails without disturbing your heading, wind-angle steering, or planned turns.
• Send text messages to other skippers in your race through Fleet radio.

A clearer view

• A simpler Layers menu keeps everyday choices close, with depths, navigation marks, and other chart details still available.
• Weather reports follow your sailing area, with clearer issue times and forecast coverage.
• Race results update as the fleet finishes, and your finishes and wins appear in your racing record sooner.
• A smoother arrival at the helm, consistent dark controls and surroundings, and clearer finish messages on every screen.

Racing together

Find your next race

• One race list brings together New England and Chesapeake Bay, with course previews, posted start times, and a direct Join button.
• The schedule includes all nine courses, from the Wednesday Night Club Race to the Governor’s Cup, with short club sprints between longer races.
• New race starts are scheduled on the hour.
• Join early and sail freely with the fleet. In new races, boats return behind the line five minutes before the posted start. The two-minute countdown follows without another reset.
• Arrive after the horn? Join while entry is open and sail from the starting line. The original finishing deadline still applies.
• The fleet grows as people join. Every skipper races the same OFFSHORE 44, in the same conditions, on a real-time clock.

Make yourself at home

• Open Me for your skipper profile and Boathouse for your boat. Choose hull, sail, and deck colors, then learn what each of the eight crew stations does aboard.
• New skippers start with the chart open over the sailing view. Adjust its transparency or hide it for an uninterrupted view of the water.
• Clearer results show the finishing order, boat and skipper names, and elapsed times from the horn.
• Find controls, illustrated lessons, and answers in the Sailing guide. Sailing tips can be hidden and brought back when you need them.
• A clearer homepage on phones keeps the sailing footage, headline, and entry buttons together.

Time on the water

Improved

• The homepage now shows actual gameplay footage, from close racing in daylight to sunset and night sailing.
• Improved nighttime lighting on boats, buoys, and navigation markers.
• A fuller night sky, with the Milky Way visible when conditions are dark enough.
• Smoother crew movements and sail changes.

Added

• Adjust the chart’s transparency while sailing, or expand it to fill the view.
• Choose automatic sail trim or adjust the sails yourself.
• Search the illustrated Sailing guide by topic, or open it directly from the helm.

Look to the horizon

Added

• Use steadier binoculars from the deck to take a closer look at boats, landmarks, and stars.
• The Sun, Moon, and stars follow your sailing location and time of day.

Improved

• Zoom out to see the whole course and the surrounding coast.
• Keep the chart within reach while sailing.

Keep sailing

Improved

• Resize the floating chart with your finger on a phone, or hide it when you want more room for the sea.

Added

• Take a photo with your phone or webcam in Change portrait. Review it or retake it before creating your skipper portrait.

Your boat, your view

Added

• Choose hull, sail, spinnaker, and deck colors for your OFFSHORE 44. Your boat name and flag appear on the transom.
• Move and resize the chart over the sailing view while keeping your boat in sight.

Improved

• More detailed New England and Chesapeake charts, with clearer depths and navigation markers.
• See coastal buoys, lights, and bridges from the water, and hear nearby bells and fog signals.
• Find display, graphics, and sound options together in Settings.
• Easier boat inspection in the Boathouse and portrait choices together under Change portrait.

Fixed

• Better contact between boats, course marks, and coastal structures.
• Steadier chart controls while planning a turn.

Club cap previews

Added

• Preview club caps with OSOYC lettering or nautical signal flags, in three colors. Ordering is not open yet.

Improved

• Compare the back designs and share a link that keeps your selected color and design.

A wider view of the race

Improved

• Race overview keeps the course and fleet in view when your boat is away from the center of the action.
• The starting clock is easier to read while you prepare for the line.

A clearer helm

Improved

• A more compact helm leaves room for the water and your navigation tools.
• Compare your current speed with the expected speed on a proposed course.
• Move the leaderboard wherever it is easiest to read.
• The race clock and time remaining stay close to the sailing controls.

Fixed

• More reliable course previews while the boat is moving.
• Clear a proposed turn without removing your saved orders or closing the nav station.

Sail handling, portraits & mobile steering

Improved

• Create a painted skipper portrait from your photo and review it before adding it to your profile.
• Sail changes take time. Watch the crew hoist, lower, and trim the sails as your boat settles onto a new course.
• Let the crew choose sails automatically, or select Main & jib or Spinnaker yourself.
• Touch steering stays within reach on a phone, with fine adjustments for small course changes.
• Keep the leaders, your position, and recent tracks visible while sailing.

Smoother sailing, closer finishes

Improved

• Smoother boat movement and steering on the chart and from aboard.
• Clearer finish times make close results easier to compare.

Newport, charted in detail

Added

• More shoreline detail, depth contours, and soundings around Narragansett Bay.
• Buoys share the same positions on the chart and in the sailing view. Select a navigation aid to read its details or look at it from the water.

Improved

• Depth labels stay anchored as you zoom, with more soundings appearing as you look closer.
• Start and finish lines are easier to read at different zoom levels.
• Choose chart detail in Layers. Your choices are remembered.
• Chart detail stays visible while dragging and zooming.

More waters to race

Added

• Nine courses across New England and Chesapeake Bay, including a Governor’s Cup route from Annapolis to St. Mary’s College.
• Course previews help you see the route and its rounding marks before joining.

Improved

• Clearer mark-rounding instructions and finish lines.
• Steadier website navigation and easier browsing on phones.

Familiar faces & life aboard

Added

• Painted skipper portraits help you recognize people in the fleet.
• Gentle hull lapping in light air, stronger wash and spray under way, and occasional gulls near land in daylight.

Improved

• Mute sailing sounds from the helm. Your choice is remembered.
• Wind, deck, and rigging sounds build with the conditions.
• Fleet portraits stay steadier as positions update.

Wind, water & closer racing

Improved

• Light air, a fast reach, and beating into chop each have a different sound and feel.
• Swell, shorter wind waves, and boat motion work together for a more convincing view from the deck.
• Sea and sound change smoothly as conditions build or ease.
• More precise distances help you follow close racing.

Live instruments & the sound of sailing

Added

• Live instruments show heading, boat speed, speed over ground, apparent wind, current, and keel clearance.
• Adjust the volume and the balance of wind, hull, and deck sounds.
• A fuller starting horn marks the end of the countdown.

Improved

• Keep steering, route planning, forecasts, and reports close to the sailing view.
• Open navigation tools without changing your current course. The race keeps moving while you plan.

Nautical flag avatars

Added

• Your account avatar flies nautical signal flags for your initials, with the same account menu on desktop and phone.

Your account menu

Improved

• Open your account menu from the signal flags at the top of the page.
• Find What’s new and Beta feedback in the website footer. Feedback is also available while sailing.

Weather planning

Added

• Explore wind, currents, and tide on the forecast chart. Move through forecast times without changing the race clock.
• Plot a route and estimate your progress before deciding which course to sail.

Improved

• Wind colors, flowing currents, and tide shading make conditions easier to read.
• Keep your boat and the fleet visible while looking ahead at the weather.
• Explore upcoming weather without losing your plotted route.
• Marine bulletins and weather charts are together in Reports.

Racing controls & fleet improvements

Added

• Send a bug report, an idea, or a note from Beta feedback on the website or at the helm.

Improved

• Make small course changes with the steering buttons while your boat keeps sailing.
• Smoother chart zooming with several layers active.
• Frame your boat, the leaders, the starting line, or the whole race on the chart.

Navigation, cameras & night sailing

Added

• A nav station for steering, route planning, forecasts, and weather reports.
• Camera views follow your boat, the starting line, or the wider race.
• Night chart brightness and wider panels when screen space allows.

Improved

• Preview a course on a phone, then apply it when you are ready to turn.
• Clearer night colors in help, dialogs, and controls.
• A single Leave helm link returns you to the website while the race continues.

Public beta opens

Added

• Email sign-in, skipper profiles, country flags, and named boats.
• A chart and sailing view of the same fleet, course, and conditions.
• Wind, current, tide, and daylight information to help plan your passage.
• Timed steering orders, rounding marks, and fleet tracks.

Development begins

The idea for Offshore Sailing took shape during a vacation in Duck, North Carolina. Development began that June.