Using Catalyst and Soarvo: Behind the Scenes of a Successful World Record!

• Trimble Catalyst
• Soarvo software
• KOREC consultancy
• …and Tony Fahey – a truly inspirational 82 year old

Tony Fahey on the aqua elliptica

Here at KOREC, we’re used to helping our customers deliver projects through innovative use of Trimble technology. But every now and then, a truly unusual request comes along that reminds us why we love what we do and why, behind the scenes, it’s not all about construction, surveying and engineering.

Earlier in the year, we were delighted to be invited by the UK’s largest dedicated surveying business, Survey Solutions, to play a key role in an inspirational world record attempt by a truly motivating 82-year-old, retired businessman, Tony Fahey.

His name may sound familiar because he was once one of the fastest powerboat racers in the world holding multiple records. It’s therefore brilliantly fitting that his latest record attempt is quite possibly the slowest of his life: a 24-hour “walk on water” challenge to raise money for the children’s charity Make-A-Wish UK. Instead of a thundering powerboat, Tony and his team are propelling a human-powered aqua elliptica – imagine a cross-trainer on water – around Sale Water Park near Manchester.

But how do you measure Tony and his team’s progress on water, and provide distance and time information for verification by the Guinness Book of Records?

Step forward KOREC’s Rob Partridge, and John Cartledge and Soarvo’s Paul Brodin.

The KOREC and Soarvo team, Rob Partridge, Paul Brodin and John Cartledge

What was needed

• Live GPS tracking of the aqua elliptical
• Accurate recording of a position every second, distance, speed, and timing
• An interactive public display so supporters could follow Tony’s progress in real time
• The verifiable data needed for official record ratification (Guinness World Records approval is currently underway)

The challenges

• The battery life of the proposed GPS positioning system was based on a full day’s work rather than the 24 hours required
• The system would have to be positioned on the craft away from all moving parts
• The Soarvo software would need to be customised to record the pinged positions every second rather than the usual every 15 minutes
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How it was done – collaboration!

• Trimble Catalyst is an incredibly easy to use GNSS system made up of a DA2 Trimble Receiver and a subscription based on accuracy, in this case centimetre positions were required. The system would be linked to a Trimble TDC600 data logger running the Soarvo software app which would ping positions
• Following extensive testing on dry land and then on the aqua elliptica by Rob and John, the perfect position was found to mount the system on a seat pole that had been left on the craft
• Meanwhile, John had calculated exactly what was needed battery wise to keep the system running for 24 hours. Three options were assessed and the ‘least intelligent’ selected so that it would not manage its own power and potentially turn itself off during the world record attempt
• Soarvo’s Paul Brodin customised the Soarvo software to record a bread trail every second rather than every 15 minutes
• This information would be transmitted to Soarvo running on a laptop at the edge of the water to provide live updates on positions and times
• A form was built to record the 86,400 points (every second for 24 hours)
• A back up system and battery were prepped

On the day

Following a couple of dry runs, the world record attempt began with Tony kicking off the first leg, completing an exhausting single continuous effort of 2 hours and 20 minutes, covering 5 miles – the longest single stint by any team member.

The rest of the challenge was completed as a relay by his family team who rotated in shifts through the night.

Soarvo software was used to update the public

From the land Rob and John tracked the system’s performance and both took turns in the rescue boat where they were pleased to report that the site of the system’s solid blue light and glow from the TDC600 screen provided reassurance that everything was working correctly.

Due to the low temperatures affecting the battery life, Rob and John disconnected the TDC600 from this source letting it run on its own internal battery towards the end of the WR attempt.

Rob, Tony and John

Achieving the world record

Success! Four world records were successfully achieved by Tony and the team and a huge sigh of relief came from the KOREC crew who’d had a fun but definitely stressful time to ensure that every contingency had been planned for in Tony’s very special attempt.

• Walking on water for 2 hours (longest continuous duration)
• Walking on water for 5 miles (longest distance in one continuous go)
• Walking on water for 24 hours (full endurance duration)
• Over 100 km walking on water (total team distance: 104.97 km / ~65.2 miles)

Progress was broadcast live via Soarvo

Over £30k was raised for the charity and Tony is already planning his next challenge. Find out more on Instagram @toneyfaheyofficial.

Please do make a donation to Make-A-Wish UK via Tony’s JustGiving page.

Technical take-aways

Soarvo is highly customisable for powerful and specific tasks with just a small amount of configuration that most can do.

Trimble Catalyst is extremely reliable and performs way beyond its price point functioning for 24 hours with no glitches or crashes.

Tony’s motivation

Tony’s challenge follows a near-death, life-changing accident in February 2021, when he was struck by a car travelling at 50mph while out on his daily walk. He sustained severe injuries that required emergency surgery and 18 months of intensive rehabilitation.

The Charity:  Make-A-Wish

The challenge marks the first in a planned series of water speed and endurance record attempts, all designed to raise as much money as possible to help grant life-changing wishes for children living with critical illness. The charity is especially important to Tony:

“A few years ago, I met a young boy who was unwell. We talked about boats, record breaking speeds and my time on the water. He was fascinated by it all. I told him I wanted to help make one of his wishes come true.

I went back to see him again, hoping to take him with me on the water. I was an hour too late.

That moment has stayed with me ever since.

Make-A-Wish® UK helps create life-changing wishes for children living with critical illness, giving them and their families moments of joy, hope and precious memories when they’re needed most. Supporting this charity is very personal to me, and it’s at the heart of everything I’m doing now.”

Good luck in your future challenges Tony!