When the wind shifts during a sailing championship, the clock starts ticking.
Mark-laying crews must recover anchors, move buoys and reset the course while competitors wait. At the Grant Thornton ILCA Irish National Championships on Dublin Bay, much of that process was completed electronically.
GPS-controlled robotic race marks were repositioned from the committee boat, allowing the race management team to alter course angles and leg lengths without lifting anchors or delaying the next start.
The championship provided a significant test of the latest-generation GipsyBuoy marks before they are used at the Men’s and Women’s ILCA World Championships in Dún Laoghaire.
Robotic Marks Tested in Strong Winds
International Race Officer Con Murphy first used robotic marks at the 2024 Scottish Series in Tarbert.
The deep water of Loch Fyne made conventional mark-laying difficult, prompting organisers to hire the system from Kenneth Rumball’s MarineServices.ie.
“Their use was so successful that they have been used again at the 2025 and 2026 Scottish Series,” Murphy said.
The marks were subsequently used at the 2025 Under-21 ILCA World Championships on Dublin Bay.
Murphy was impressed, although earlier models left him with reservations.
“They were susceptible to seaweed blocking the props, water ingress and sometimes struggled to reposition against strong winds and tides,” he said.
That could require a support RIB to intervene and return the mark to its intended position.
The marks supplied for this year’s ILCA Nationals were fitted with four electric motors rather than the two used on earlier versions. Murphy also noted improved waterproofing and fewer problems with weed fouling the propellers.
“There were no position-holding issues in the 20 to 30-knot breeze with this year’s GipsyBuoy model,” he said.
“They held position absolutely perfectly.”
Buoyed Up – The Navigator carries a fleet of GPS-controlled GipsyBuoy robotic marks out of Dún Laoghaire Harbour during the Grant Thornton ILCA Irish National Championships. Photo: Con Murphy
More Accurate Championship Courses
For race officials, the principal advantage is not simply the removal of anchors.
It is the ability to position marks accurately and adjust a course quickly when conditions change.
“They ensure that a windward-leeward or trapezoid course, particularly leeward gates and wing marks, is perfectly positioned, square to the wind and the correct distance apart,” Murphy said.
“With conventional laid marks, gates are very difficult to set correctly, particularly in stronger currents and winds.”
The effect can be seen when competitors reach a leeward gate.
“With robotic mark gates, the fleet generally splits to round each gate in even numbers, something that is hard to achieve with conventionally laid gates,” Murphy said.
An uneven split can indicate that one end of a gate is substantially favoured. Accurate positioning gives competitors a genuine tactical choice and reduces the risk of congestion around one mark.
The wind during the ILCA Nationals remained reasonably steady from the west and northwest, so wholesale course changes were unnecessary.
However, the race management team made minor adjustments to course and gate angles during racing. Beat lengths were also increased from 0.7 to 0.8 nautical miles between races without delaying the programme.
Such adjustments would have taken longer if crews had been required to lift and reset conventional marks.
“You just ask the robotic mark operator standing beside you on the committee boat to set or move their position, and they start moving instantly,” Murphy said.
“There are no multiple calls on the VHF to mark layers giving instructions to lift or move a mark.”
Radio communication can become particularly difficult in strong winds, when instructions may have to be repeated between the committee boat and several mark-laying crews.
Gate Expectations – ILCA sailors converge on an orange GPS-controlled robotic gate mark during the Grant Thornton ILCA Irish National Championships on Dublin Bay. Photo: Afloat
Course Changes by Drag and Drop
The GipsyBuoy contains a high-precision satellite positioning receiver, an electronic compass and an inertial measurement unit.
Before deployment, it establishes its position and heading. A target location can then be assigned through RaceDesigner software or through an onboard “Press & Stay” function.
The buoy’s controller continually compares its assigned coordinates with its actual position.
Four electrically driven tilting thrusters then counter the effects of wind, waves and tidal current. Thrust is reduced when the mark reaches its assigned position and increased again when another correction is required.
Kenneth Rumball of MarineServices.ie compared the process with the dynamic positioning systems used by offshore vessels, although on a much smaller scale.
The latest production model is designed to hold position in winds of around 35 knots and currents of up to 3.5 knots.
Rumball said the marks generally retained about 90% of their battery charge after a normal racing day, although MarineServices.ie recharges them every night during an event.
RaceDesigner allows complete courses to be prepared in advance on an iPad or tablet.
Templates can be tailored by changing the wind direction, first-beat length, downwind leg length, start-line width, gate width and offset distance.
“The slightest wind changes allow the course to be altered easily with essentially a drag-and-drop facility when moving the buoys,” Rumball said.
The operator can monitor the marks on screen while the course is being established.
Murphy said this also confirms the location of marks that may be out of sight because of poor visibility or their position on the outer loop of a trapezoid course.
Course Control – RaceDesigner software allows championship courses to be prepared in advance, with leg lengths, gate widths, wind direction and mark positions adjusted electronically. Image: MarineServices.ie
Position Report – A RaceDesigner display shows the live position of robotic race marks, allowing course officials to monitor and reposition them as sailing conditions change. Image: MarineServices.ie
Experienced Race Team Oversees Test
MarineServices.ie technician Ciarán Campbell operated the robotic mark system during the ILCA Nationals.
He worked from the committee boat alongside the race management team, receiving course-setting instructions directly from Murphy.
Experienced National Yacht Club race official Mal Nowlan was also involved in the operation.
Nowlan has extensive experience as a sailor, mark layer and race official. He developed the mark-laying qualification system for Irish Sailing and has served on its Race Officials Policy Group.
The Nationals allowed the team to test the marks, control software and operating procedures under championship conditions before the ILCA Worlds.
Brains Behind the Buoys – MarineServices.ie technicians Ciarán Campbell, left, and Kenneth Rumball with the GipsyBuoy robotic race marks used at the ILCA Irish Nationals. Photo: Con Murphy
Course Team – MarineServices.ie technician Ciarán Campbell, left, and National Yacht Club race official Mal Nowlan with the robotic marks used at the ILCA Irish Nationals. Photo: Con Murphy
Robotic Marks Still Need Support Crews
Robotic marks do not remove the requirement for experienced mark-laying crews.
RIBs are still needed to transport the marks to the race area, signal course changes and respond if equipment develops a fault.
A crew may also be required to right a mark after a collision or assist when a boat becomes caught around it.
The technology is also considerably more expensive than a conventional inflatable mark and anchor.
Murphy estimated that an individual robotic mark costs approximately €8,000. Hiring enough marks for a major championship can cost about €5,000 for one week.
The marks require daily charging, careful storage and more maintenance than conventional equipment.
Their operating technology is also developing quickly, which can make purchasing a permanent set less attractive for individual clubs.
For major events, Irish organisers have so far hired marks through MarineServices.ie.
Earlier Mark Failure Led to Redress
Murphy said the technology was not infallible, particularly in its earlier generations.
At a Dragon event in Kinsale before the 2024 Dragon Gold Cup, one robotic gate mark drifted downwind as the fleet approached.
A Dragon rounding the mark lost several places and was subsequently awarded redress.
Murphy said no comparable loss-of-control incident occurred with the latest marks used at the ILCA Nationals.
Sailing instructions for events using robotic marks now commonly state that routine movement of the marks is not grounds for redress.
This includes minor adjustments and marks returning to station after being pushed away by a competing boat.
Holding Station – ILCA sailors round an orange GipsyBuoy robotic race mark during testing in fresh conditions at the Irish National Championships on Dublin Bay. Photo: Afloat
ILCA Worlds Will Expand Robotic Mark Use
The robotic marks will next face a longer test during the Men’s and Women’s ILCA World Championships in Dún Laoghaire.
Murphy said the performance at the Nationals had increased confidence ahead of the international event.
The championship start line is planned between two robotic marks fitted with Vakaros units. The committee boat will sit approximately 30 metres outside the line rather than forming one end of it.
MarineServices.ie plans to have a spare robotic mark and replacement inflatable sections available because the World Championships will run over 14 days.
The marks are also scheduled for use at the GP14 World Championships at the Royal North of Ireland Yacht Club on Belfast Lough.
Rumball said one operator could theoretically control several marks and multiple racecourses, provided accurate instructions and feedback were available from each race officer.
Sponsorship May Support Wider Adoption
Murphy believes robotic marks could become increasingly common at major Irish sailing championships.
However, a series of events would need to commit to using them before bringing a set to Ireland for a full season would make financial sense.
Specific sponsorship has supported their deployment at the ILCA championships.
Grant Thornton sponsored the robotic marks used at the Irish Nationals, while XOcean is supporting their use at the ILCA World Championships.
“This is possibly the way to continue until the time comes for a club or group of clubs to acquire a permanent set,” Murphy said.
Cost means conventional marks will remain part of most club racing for the foreseeable future.
At major championships, however, the latest robotic systems can improve course accuracy, reduce delays and allow race officials to react more quickly to changes in the wind.
For Murphy, the technology has now moved beyond novelty or convenience.
“They without doubt improve the quality of race management,” he said.
