For the first time, race officials and spectators alike will be able to keep track of competing yachts online in real time, improving the safety of race participants and enhancing coverage for race enthusiasts.

To view the Google Earth live feed of 3 Peaks yachts click on the link.

Additionally, competitors and officials will be able to communicate during the event, which covers significant ground around the State, both on land and off shore, from Beauty Point to Flinders Island down to Coles Bay, before finishing up in Hobart.

Three Peaks Race Committee spokesperson Paul Scambler said the event, now in its 20th year, had pulled a record 27 teams this year and would be vastly enhanced by the innovative technology.

"Thanks to Telstra and Datacall, participants will be tracked automatically and their GPS locations reported on the Three Peaks website, enabling people to log on at any given time, locate the yachts and monitor their progress," Mr Scambler said.

"Importantly, this technology will also mean that race officials will be able to communicate with each other from remote locations around the course, ensuring a clear line of communication throughout the race, vastly improving the safety of all competitors."

"This world-leading technology enables a wide range of new and innovative applications, such as yacht tracking." Datacall Business Development Manager Andrew Wilcox said Datacall was thrilled to be able to provide the data communications link between the Three Peaks yachts.  

"Datacall has an integrated webcam and GPS system which allows the yachts to be tracked in real time and provide images direct from the yachts back to the Three Peaks website," Mr Wilcox said.

"The information from the yachts, transmitted over Telstra's NextG mobile network, will be updated every 15-30 minutes providing greater accuracy of information about the race than ever before.   Previously, teams had to radio back their current positions every three to six hours and in that time race rankings can change dramatically."

Datacall utilises existing mobile networks to create the communications link between the remote system and the base station. 

This allows both the user and the remote system to be mobile allowing greater flexibility for the user and their application.

Datacall Telemetry Pty Ltd has been nationally recognised for excellence in developing technology, having been awarded the 2007 Tasmanian Engineering Excellence Award by Engineers Australia and the 2007 TasIT Inc Award for Innovation.