2018 Barberton Paragliding Open

Barberton, close to Kruger National Park, South Africa
24 - 30 Jun 2018
Paraglider Paraglider
Cross Country

Blog & News

Finalised scoring parameters 2018 - 2018-06-24 06:36

These are the agreed parameters that will be used for scoring in 2018

FTV (fixed total validity rating): 20%


Parameter

value

id (scoring formula)

GAP2016

min_dist

2 km

nom_dist

30 km

nom_time

1 hour

nom_launch - 70% of pilots

0.7

nom_goal - 20% of pilots

0.2

day_quality_override

0

bonus_gr

4

jump_the_gun_factor

0

jump_the_gun_max

0

normalize_1000_before_day_quality

0

time_points_if_not_in_goal

0

use_1000_points_for_max_day_quality

0

use_arrival_position_points

0

use_arrival_time_points

0

use_departure_points

0

use_difficulty_for_distance_points

0

use_distance_points

1

use_distance_squared_for_LC (leading coefficient)

1

use_leading_points

1

use_semi_circle_control_zone_for_goal_line

1

use_time_points

1

final_glide_decelerator (conical ESS)

none

no_final_glide_decelerator_reason

none

min_time_span_for_valid_task

20

score_back_time

5

scoring_altitude

gps

leading_time_ballance

0

use_proportional_leading_weight_if_nobody_in_goal

1

double_leading_weight

0

FTV explanation: http://socalxcleague.com/articles/ftv
GAP 2016 formulas: http://fs.fai.org/trac/raw-attachment/wiki/FS2016/2016%20CIVL%20GAP%20(V1.0).pdf



iPhone: FlySkyHy Setup - 2018-06-15 14:49

FlySkyHy Setup 

The options that I have found to be most effective are shown below:

Step 1: Ensure you have the latest version off FlySkyHy installed on your iPhone
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/flyskyhy/id516879039?mt=8

Step 2: Go into settings -> LiveTracker


  

Step 3: Setup enable Livetracking during flight (so your wife cant see you at the pub..).  Set LiveTrack24 as the server and provide the username and password that you entered the Barberton open with. Report interval defaults to every 10 seconds. This means the app tries to send the accumulated breadcrumbs to the server every 10s (see comments below). If your phone has battery issues you can up this to 60 seconds although that is a bit of a party pooper for livetracking spectators. That is better than your phone dying though.

 


Step 4: Set the log interval to 1 second. This is how frequently the app creates a breadcrumb for your tracklog (IGC file). This file is stored on phone in case of communications issues.


Step 5: Enable auto start under settings->other. This will allow you to "fire" the app up and then it will start logging when you take off. Disable auto-end as this can create problems. Please manually end your flight when you land.



General Note
Please make sure that your phone is fully charged and has a battery pack if its battery power is poor. Some phones will automatically kill FlySkyHy if they get to "low battery" mode which is at around 15% of power.

Final note:
PLEASE remember to turn the tracking app on. Ja Nee

Thanks




Android: TTLiveTrack24 App Setup - 2018-06-15 14:16

TTLiveTrack24 Setup 

The options that I have found to be most effective are shown below:

Step 1: Ensure you have the latest version off TTLivetrack24 installed on your Android device
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.tony.ttlivetrack24v2

Step 2: Open the app and click on settings (3 dots on top right of screen). Ensure you have the Livetrack24 option enabled. Configure your Livetrack24 username and password (the account you used to register for the Barberton open)


Step 3: Tracking Interval and Send to Server
Make sure the tracking interval is set to 1 second. This is the breadcrumb that is used to create your IGC file (i.e. your tracklog that is used for scoring). Note - this file is also stored on the phone in case of no signal etc. Send to server interval. This dictates how often your phone sends the breadcrumbs to the server. If you struggle with battery life, set this to 60 seconds. It is a bit of a party pooper for people watching but it is better than the phone dying halfway through the task.


Step 4: Go into settings , select profile settings. Select Paraglider

 Set min speed to 15kmh and uncheck auto stop. This ensures that the log doesnt stop before you even takeoff which happens sometimes. Please stop the task 'manually when you land!

 
General Note
Please make sure that your phone is fully charged and has a battery pack if its battery power is poor. Some phones will automatically kill TTLiveTrack24 if they get to "low battery" mode which is at around 15% of power.

Final note:
PLEASE remember to turn the tracking app on and to make sure that you have the paraglider mode selected. Ja Nee

Thanks



LiveTrack24 Scoring 2018 - 2018-06-15 09:52

Dear Pilots

This year the scoring team for Barberton will be Grant Smith and Andrew Taylor. We are excited to be helping out with this aspect of the competition and would like you to kindly please read the information below to make the process as smooth and pleasant as possible for all concerned.

The LiveTrack24 platform will once again be used for scoring at the Barberton Open. This means that pilots are responsible for ensuring that their valid tracklog is in the LiveTrack24 system. The role of the scorers (as per the last few comps in South Africa) is not to get the track log off your device. 

It is our preferred option from both an administrative and spectator friendliness aspect that you successfully install and operate a Livetrack compatible app on your smartphone or instrument. The list of options is here (https://www.livetrack24.com/apps/index ). Just like nobody tells you which wing to fly, we don't prescribe an app. That said, I have personally had great success with the following two apps and have put together some short guides on the most effective settings for each option.

For Android users: TTLivetrack24
I have used this successfully over the last 3 South African comps with a mid-level Samsung smart phone and have never had to manually upload a tracklog... Now if I could just figure out how to reach goal at Barberton!
The link on recommended settings is here: 
https://www.livetrack24.com/events/2018BPO/news/566/en

For iPhone Users: FlySkyHy
I have used this app for lets just call him a more "senior"member of our flying team. The app is not necessarily as bombproof, but then again, what is! You can also pay a bit to enable you to upload the comp waypoints into the app so you can use it as a backup instrument.
The link on recommended settings is here:
https://www.livetrack24.com/events/2018BPO/news/567/en
  
A note on battery life
Certain phones go into low power mode which will automatically close your tracking app... Please be sure to have a fully charged phone and a suitable power bank. Note, you typically need a power bank with double your phone batteries capacity to give a single charge. So if your phone battery is 2500 mAh, you need a fully charged 5000 mAh battery pack to give the phone a full charge.... 

Problem children....
As stated above, it is not the scoring teams responsibility to get your tracklog off your device... That said, it may be that there are one or two folks around who will be willing to help for the price of a beer or two if you have tried your best and failed...! Note that we do not have device specific cables and also use Windows 10 which means that some of the older Brauniger and Competino instruments will just not play ball - despite my numerous attempts to help various pilots in the past...