Garmin has unveiled a special American Magic Edition of its premium MARQ Captain smartwatch as part of its support for the sailing team that is set to compete in the 36th America’s Cup.
The MARQ Captain: American Magic Edition is designed to celebrate the heritage of the team with a navy blue silicone strap with red keepers, engraved with the American Magic name on the bezel and specialized watch faces with the American Magic logo.
The watch comes with two exclusively designed sailing-focused watch faces. The analog watch face prominently features a “T-minus” countdown to race day in Auckland while the digital watch face features a silhouette of Defiant, the team’s new foiling monohull sailboat.
New sailing features include a preloaded Sail Grinding activity, which allows sailors to increase their athletic performance both onshore and offshore.
“We are honored to be a part of the legacy of American Magic and its challenge for the America’s Cup, the pinnacle of sailing and the oldest trophy in international sports,” said Dan Bartel, Garmin vice president of global consumer sales.
“We are confident our watches will give the team the tools they need as they compete for the trophy, and we’re excited to be a part of their success on the water.”
The watch is bristling with fitness features designed by the trainers of American Magic’s racing team including race simulation, fitness test and intervals.
“Our athletes meet the physical demands of racing by working even harder in the gym,” said Baden Cashmore, American Magic’s Injury Prevention Specialist and Trainer. “Through tracking metrics such heart rate and training load on the water and in the gym, we are able to adjust training volume in order to optimise performance. Garmin wearables and technology allows me to track each athlete’s workload on and off the water, giving me the information to modify their program accordingly.”
It also has preloaded topographic maps and adds support for optional BlueChart G3 coastal charts and GPS navigation, maritime profiles and weather forecasts, including storm alerts, home port conditions and more.
Its internal, rechargeable lithium battery provides up to 12 days in smartwatch mode and 28 hours in GPS mode.
MARQ Captain: American Magic Edition is expected to be available in May priced at £1,599.99.
How can Garmin do this? If I recall there are only two major brands participating in the America’s Cup…
How can a rather marginal “watch” brand like Garmin get into the game of top sailing with their watch. Is the story about the team wearing the watch real, I was following the preparation of the teams over the last couple of month and I was seeing many of the top teams wearing Garmin watches all the time – does Garmin pay for this? How does Omega and Panerai react to this… I have not seen teir watches on the wrist of the teams at the same frequency. Does Garmin get advertized at all with Ineos or Luna Rossa… Would they pay these guys just for wearing their watches and not showing up as a brand? If the teams really use the watch during training and sailing than I think it is really cool and I would fancy wearing one, If they just pose with the watches for advertizement than I’d consider it lame.