ClearStart Race Timer 65 mm – Ronstan

The Ronstan ClearStart Race Timer is a start timer first and a watch second. The 65 mm face and 16 mm digits are big enough to read at a glance, so you can check the countdown without letting go of the tiller or the sheet.

We picked it for two reasons. The first is how it mounts. Wear it on your wrist, strap it round the mast or boom with the stretch band, or take the band off and fix the housing to the boat with two M4 screws. The face rotates, so it reads the right way up whether you mount it vertically or horizontally. Put it on the mast next to your compass and you have countdown and heading in one glance.

The second is that it lasts. The ClearStart runs on two CR2032 batteries that can be replaced, so the timer doesn't end up in the bin when a battery runs flat. It isn't the cheapest timer out there, but it's one you keep. Ronstan recommends having the batteries changed by a watchmaker so the seals stay watertight.

On the water it does what a start timer should. The World Sailing 5-4-1-0 and match racing sequences are pre-programmed, or you can set your own. Start the count a second early or late and the sync button brings you back in line with the gun at the next minute. Loud sound signals tell you where you are in the sequence without looking, and at zero it either repeats the countdown for a general recall or counts up to track elapsed time. The time of day sits under the countdown on the same display.

Water resistant to 5 ATM and shock resistant, with a backlight for early starts and late finishes. Off the water it's an everyday watch with 12 or 24 hour time, date, daily alarm and chronograph.

Why Ronstan

Ronstan is the Australian hardware brand behind the Orbit blocks we already stock, and official sponsor of the Australian Sailing Team. The ClearStart range is built for everything from dinghies to keelboats.