Two miles off the coast of San Francisco’s Ocean Beach not far from where the powerful currents of the bay pour into the Pacific Ocean under the Golden Gate Bridge, a beacon in the water is collecting hyper-local data about the ocean in preparation for a major event.
At Red Bull Heavy Water, an extreme paddle boarding event that will take athletes later this month over white-capped waves, under the bridge where currents will attempt to push them out to sea and around jagged rocks piled onto the western coastline, data about course conditions will be transmitted via satellite to people ashore who will then build interactive 3D course maps for athletes and fans.