Race Committee 101
Instructor’s Guide
Equipment Requirements
Computer/Software – The presentation has been tested on several Windows 7 platforms – it should work on any Windows platform running PowerPoint 2010. The presentation runs best from a hard drive, although a high-speed flash drive works too. Low-quality flash drives may not have adequate data transfer speed and video quality will suffer. Make sure to “test drive” the presentation on your system before you get to the venue.
Sound – There are several video and audio clips in the presentation. You must use external speakers loud enough for your audience to hear them.
Projector - The presentation is formatted for, and will look best on HD video (1920 x 1080p), but should work on any projector you hook your computer up to.
Preparation
The quality of the presentation depends greatly on the knowledge of the presenter – both of the subject matter and the presentation. This is not an outline-format PowerPoint where you’re reading the slides and the audience goes to sleep. You are presenting the topic; the PowerPoint is there to illustrate it with photos, diagrams, sounds and video. It is imperative you become familiar with the presentation and how it worksbefore you stand up in front of an audience.
Presentation Overview
Mechanics - The presentation makes extensive use of animations, sounds and video. It cannot be legibly printed. When advancing through the animation sequence (by clicking), make sure the cursor is not located in a video frame, or else just the video will play (and not any associated animations). If this happens, use the back-arrow key to go back to the previous slide and start over. This usually only a problem on slide 11 (The Game) with the race simulation video that takes up most of the slide.
Organization - The first six slides are an overview of the sport of sailboat racing. They are visually distinct from the rest of the presentation. These slides require the most narration.
- Slides 7 and 8 speak to the organization of the sport.
- Slides 9 and 10 cover the people (race officials and participants) involved
- Slide 11 is the race simulation
- Slides 12 – 15 cover the race committee and their roles
- Slides 16 and 17 cover course configurations and communications
- Slides 18 – 22 cover the running of a race, from the starting sequence through scoring
- Slide 19 covers protests
- Slides 24 and 25 are “the hook” – how to get involved and what to bring
- Slides 26 and 27 are the conclusion – questions, credits and final thoughts
Refer to the slide notes and time schedule for more detailed information on the slide content.
Presentation Style
The time frames for each slide are generous – you could click through the presentation very quickly – but don’t. Take time to explain, prompt for questions and engage the audience. Don’t be afraid to point out details in the photos and videos, or play the videos more than once to pick up things you missed.