Peter Montgomery Interviews Jon Bilger for the VOR Wind Forecast

Peter Montgomery caught up with Jon Bilger to talk about the wind forecast for the start of the Auckland to Itajai leg of the Volvo Ocean Race, and to talk about PredictWind.com

Audio:

Peter Montgomery: Well PredictWind.com is a world leader in wind forecasting and a wonderful New Zealand success story. The mastermind behind PredictWind.com is Jon Bilger, a former New Zealand Olympic sailor and engineer, but now he's really dominating the world market with PredictWind.com and his brilliant apps for mobile phones, he's also the weather adviser to Telefonica. Good morning Jon Bilger, what sort of wind are we going to have at the start at 2 o'clock today?

Jon Bilger: It should be another good breeze, a north easter at 20 knots, and as they get out into the Hauraki Gulf there, up by cape Colville, it should be up around 20-25 knots and building from there as the get closer to the low.

PM: Alright, and the wind direction, will they be on the wind from the start at 2 o'clock, out to the end of Coromandel Peninsular, Cape Colville.

JB: Yes, well as the go up the channel there they'll be upwind, and as they turn the corner at north head, they'll do some reaching, and then back on the wind again all the way up to Cape Colville. So it'll be pretty tough conditions for them.

PM: And then Jon Bilger, what does your brilliant mastermind of PredictWind.com, what is it telling across the Bay of Plenty, they're going to get loosened up then aren't they?

JB: Yeah, well it really depends on which way they go, I can't give away too many details, but as they get closer to this low it's going to get pretty windy. Some of the models are up around 35 knots so it's going to be very fresh, pretty testing conditions for them.

PM: Yeah absolutely, might be gust 35knots, maybe gusting up to 50. It'll going to be welcome to the southern ocean leg, Jon Bil'! They're right into it aren't they, wham bam thank you mam!

JB: Exactly, no easy ease into it, it's straight into it. Going to be a touch start for them, for sure.

PM: Your PredictWind.com, excuse your modesty Jon Bilger, but it's the world leader now, you've done well. It's not only on computer but you have it on the Apps now, have you been humbled by how successful the world coming to you to tell them what the winds going to do?

JB: Yeah well its just amazing, we're obviously a New Zealand company and 90% of our market is overseas so we're very happy with the success of it, and lots of people using, so it's been going very well, we're growing year to year, so very happy with the progress to date.

PM: That's Jon Bilger from PredictWind.com. 20Knots from the north east at the start, out off the Coromandel it will be 25 and the WOW it really winds up when they go out across the Bay of Plenty. As we're all getting into bed and being comfortable, it will not be for the Volvo Ocean Race fleet. It starts at 2 o'clock today, and we'll have reports right here on NewsTalk ZB.