In cooperation with NASA, the Weather Channel and the Discovery Channel, ocean sailor and weather tactician Bill Biewenga has developed a computer game that enables any armchair sailor to try a hand at using weather patterns to maneuver in an ocean race. The Cable in the Classroom program, called Windward, presents the navigator with a series of questions combined with graphics, from crossing the Gulf Stream and the Doldrums to navigating the growlers and low pressures of the Southern Ocean.
The would-be navigator’s goal is to challenge the current round-the-world record of 71 days. (This humble navigator beat the record by one day, despite repeated bad choices while dodging squalls, which shows the forgiving nature of the game.) The race is narrated by Biewenga, his folksy, Midwestern voice giving encouragement, as it has for numerous ocean racers over the years. Visit www.ciconline.org/windward to try the game.
