Sailwave: a practical guide and exercise for regatta scoring

From the entry list to publishing the results: this page provides a guide to using Sailwave, along with sample files for practice.

Follow the instructions in the PDF and use the attached materials to create a new series, import competitors, enter finishing orders and check the results.

Materials to download

• Guide to using Sailwave – PDF
  Illustrated instructions for setting up a regatta, importing competitors, entering results and publishing results lists.
• Sample entry list – Excel
  Competitor data to use for the exercise.
• Finishing orders for races 1 and 2 – Image
  Finishing orders for the first two races.
• Finishing orders for races 3 and 4 – Image
  Finishing orders for the third and fourth races.
• Criterium Invernale 2023/24 Notice of Race – PDF
  A sample document for identifying the scoring provisions and configuring the series.

Note: the Notice of Race relates to an event held in the 2023/24 season and is provided as training material, not as the Notice of Race for a current event.

1. Create a new series

Open Sailwave and create a new series using the icon in the top-left corner. Set an initial number of competitors and races. You can change these numbers later.

For this exercise, set up four races and give the series an easily identifiable name, such as “Sailwave practice – four races”.

Open the series properties to enter the event header information. The guide also explains how to replace the default logos with the event logos.

2. Set up the scoring system

Open the scoring system settings (“Sistema di punteggio” in the guide) and configure the series using the attached Notice of Race and the screenshots shown in the guide.

The sample Notice of Race specifies:

• The Low Point System.
• One discard once four races have been completed.
• A second discard once nine races have been completed.

As the exercise includes four races, you will be able to check that the first discard is applied at the end. The second discard does not apply in this simulation.

3. Prepare and import the entry list

Open the Excel entry list and check the columns containing the class, sail number, names and sailing club.

The procedure described in the guide uses a CSV file with a comma separator. Save a copy of the Excel worksheet in this format, checking which separator is used.

1. From Sailwave’s “File” menu, start the CSV import.
2. Select the file you have prepared.
3. Check the field names.
4. Map the columns to the corresponding Sailwave fields.
5. Complete the import and check the imported data.

Check the sail numbers particularly carefully: you will use them to identify competitors when entering the finishing orders.

4. Arrange the columns

Before entering the results, organise the competitor table. You can change the order of the columns, rename them and choose which ones to display on screen or in print.

Check that sail numbers, classes and names are correctly matched. For the entry list, check that competitors are sorted by sail number; for the results, check that they are sorted by rank.

5. Enter the finishing orders for the four races

Use the first sheet for the finishing orders of races 1 and 2, and the second sheet for races 3 and 4.

1. Open the results entry function, identified in the guide by the pencil icon.
2. Check that you have selected the correct race.
3. Select the sail number as the search field.
4. Enter the competitors in the order shown on the finish sheet.
5. If the program displays more than one match, select the correct competitor.
6. Continue until you have entered the last finisher in the race.

Sailwave assigns finishing positions sequentially as you enter competitors. If you search using only the last few digits of a sail number, check any multiple matches carefully.

6. Recalculate and check the results

Once you have finished entering the results, use the recalculation command (“Ricalcola” in the guide) to calculate the scores. Then check the finishing order using the function shown next to the pencil icon in the guide and compare it with the race finish sheet.

To correct a result or apply a scoring code, follow the procedure illustrated in the guide by right-clicking the relevant cell. Do not add penalties that are not specified in the exercise.

After the fourth race, also check that the first discard is applied according to the settings required by the Notice of Race.

7. Prepare the results for publication

Before publishing the results, check:

• The event header information.
• Competitor details and sail numbers.
• The results of each race.
• The scoring settings and discards.
• The columns displayed in the published results.
• That the results are sorted by rank.

The aim is to complete the entire process, from importing the entry list to preparing the results for publication, checking each step against the source documents.

A note on corrected-time results

The attached Notice of Race also provides for corrected-time results. However, the supplied finish sheets contain only positions and sail numbers, not the times needed to calculate those results. The relevant ratings would also be required.

Use these materials to practise entering finishing orders and managing points scoring, keeping this separate from calculating corrected-time results.

Additional Documents