The San Pedro Olympic Classes Regatta, held July 19–24 and part of the Sailing Grand Slam Series, marked a significant step for the ILCA class: the first major regatta at which an ILCA fleet raced under the Vakaros RaceSense starting system. Held at one of the venues slated to host sailing at the LA 2028 Olympic Games, San Pedro gave some top sailors a valuable opportunity to see this technology tested at scale and consider what it could mean for how ILCA racing is started in the future.
One of the persistent challenges with our sport is managing large, competitive fleets at the start line fairly and efficiently. General recalls, uncertain OCS calls, and the time lost re-starting entire fleets have long been a source of frustration for sailors and race officials alike. Vakaros RaceSense, a World Sailing-approved system, was built to address exactly that problem, and the organizers of the San Pedro Sailing Grand Slam used it as an opportunity to test the system at scale on the ILCA fleet.
The system works by linking every part of the starting sequence together: two fixed units mark either end of the line, each boat carries its own onboard unit, and the Race Officer’s tablet ties it all together with a real-time view of where every boat sits relative to the line.
When the start signal fires and the line goes “open,” the system flags any boats that are over early — individually. Rather than calling a general recall and resetting the whole fleet, only the sailors who jumped the gun are notified. They can dip back, clear the line, and rejoin the race while everyone else keeps sailing.
For ILCA, the appeal is straightforward: fewer stoppages, faster racing, and starts that reward clean execution instead of penalizing the whole fleet for a few early boats. It also gives race officials a much stronger evidentiary basis for starting decisions.
Fred Hagedorn, SPOCR Event Director and President of the Pan American Sailing Federation, saw the system in use across two 63-boat ILCA fleets and called it a genuine turning point for event management. He questioned why any large ILCA regatta should still rely on “letter scores” or General Recalls at the start. He pointed to one race with 15 boats over the line, all of which were identified, cleared, and restarted in well under a quarter of a minute. He also credited Vakaros for its support throughout the event as a key factor in how smoothly it ran.
San Pedro was an important proving ground, but it’s only the start. Vakaros RaceSense will make its debut at an ILCA-run World Championship this summer, with the 2026 ILCA 7 Men’s World Championship in Dun Laoghaire, Ireland, running August 23–30, followed by the 2026 ILCA 6 Women’s World Championship at the same venue from September 5–12 — both Olympic-class championships and both major tests of the system on the world stage.
Sailor Reactions
Marie Barrue, FRA: “Vakaros RaceSense is really impressive. One of the things that stood out immediately was how clearly race management information is displayed. If a race is abandoned, the device shows it instantly. If the race committee posts an AP, ‘Race Postponed’ appears prominently on the screen. It means sailors no longer need to rely on flags or sound signals, you simply look at your display and know exactly what’s happening. It makes race management much more efficient and gives sailors immediate clarity on the water.”
Mari Erdi, HUN: “It was an interesting venue to try it at, with the race course being so right-hand-side favoured and the starts being super important. I did get two OCSs, and it was a grind to get back through the fleet, but it was great to have the option to clear the line and keep racing. I’m looking forward to testing the units more at different venues.”
Fabrizio Lazzerini, ITA, Coach of Mari Erdi: “Vakaros RaceSense definitely gives a different perspective on the starting process. It will be interesting to train with it and see how it influences racing over time, but overall I only have positive things to say. Eliminating general recalls means racing moves along much faster, which is a real benefit for both sailors and race officials.”
Filip Jurišić, CRO: “I like it a lot, it is definitely a game changer. I’m looking forward to racing with the Vakaros RaceSense system more in the future.”
As a class, we see San Pedro as an encouraging first chapter — and Dun Laoghaire this August and September as the next, much bigger one.
For more information on the upcoming championships, visit:
2026 ILCA 7 Men’s World Championship — https://2026ilca7men.ilca-worlds.org/
2026 ILCA 6 Women’s World Championship — https://2026ilca6women.ilca-worlds.org/
Original report courtesy of Vakaros.com | Photos by Colin Grey.