Sail GP Racing

[AstroJNN]

Why the hell does Sail GP TV coverage report wind and boat speeds in km/h? They should use knots.

[StuM]

Because their target is not just open water sailors and not just US based. Most of the world uses km/h (or m/s) for wind speeds and many European sailors, especially inland dinghy etc sailors use km/h for boat speed as well.

Using the same units for both makes it easier for people to relate the two values , especially for a world wide audience where many would not know what a knot is.

[Jamme]

Optics play a part too… For some less educated folks it may be more impressive to read 90kmh than 50kn…

[Galumay]

We must get different coverage in Australia, generally see knots for speed. I understand kmh or m/s for wind speed, but most countries i have sailed in the world use knots for boat speed.

I suspect Sail GP has an extremely niche market for viewers!

[AstroJNN]

Thanks for the replies. I think the best excuse is it makes the speeds sound higher but I still think knots is more appropriate and most people in the US probably can't figure out what a km/h is anyway.