Tracks that start by themselves — the cruising track

When you leave the dock without a leg, the app records a cruising track on its own: three minutes above two knots starts it, thirty minutes stopped saves it. Record tracks by itself is on unless you turn it off.

Record tracks by itself is on unless you turn it off (Settings → Display), so you do not have to remember to start the tracker: if the boat is underway, her track is recorded. theONE watches your speed while theONE is open: three minutes above 2 knots with no leg running starts a cruising track and says "Cruising track started — you're underway". Thirty minutes below half a knot on that same track saves it and says "Cruising track saved — you've been still for 30 minutes". A track you started by hand is yours — it is never stopped for you; if it sits still for two hours, a banner on the chart and on Mission Control asks "Still tracking? The boat hasn't moved for 2 hours." with Keep tracking and Stop and save, and waits for your answer. A leg's own track always comes first: while a leg is recording, nothing else starts, and the GPS Tracking chip on Mission Control reads "Tracking · Recording with the leg". While the leg is paused it reads "Leg paused · not recording", and its page explains that the location arrow stays on until you resume or end the leg, so the track can carry on where it stopped.

Steps

1. The switch

   Menu (☰) → Settings → Display → Record tracks by itself. It is on unless you turn it off. A track keeps reading your position in the background, and iOS shows its location indicator the whole time it does. Off means nothing starts on its own; instead, when you are moving with nothing recording, the chart offers "You're moving — start a cruising track?" with Start and Not now, once per session.

2. The Track line row

   Chart → Layers → Track line. The switch shows or hides the line on the chart and never starts or stops recording. The words under it say what the recorder is doing: "Recording · 2.4 nm", "Recording with the leg", or "Not recording — starts by itself when you're moving, while theONE is open". When nothing is recording there is a Start button right there.

3. Starting one yourself

   Tap Start on the Track line row, or use the GPS Tracking chip in Mission Control's Live Telemetry. A track you start by hand is never auto-stopped — end it yourself from the chip when you tie up, or from the "Still tracking?" banner if you forget. While a leg is recording its own track the chip reads "Tracking · Recording with the leg" and its page says the leg's track is recording — cruising tracks pause while a leg runs, so there is nothing to start there.

4. What counts as moving

   The speed from the GPS fix itself, checked every 30 seconds, and only from a fix under a minute old and accurate to 50 metres. Swinging at anchor at 1 knot does not start a track; a no-wake channel at 3 knots does, after three minutes. Below half a knot for thirty minutes counts as stopped.

5. theONE has to be open to start one

   The watcher runs while theONE is open on the screen — it does not start a track from the background or from a closed app. Once a track is recording, the recording itself keeps going in the background like any other track. The thirty-minute save also runs with theONE in the background: pocket the phone at the dock and, once a track the watcher started has sat below half a knot for thirty minutes, it is saved and stops reading your position. Only that track — never a leg's track, one you started by hand, or the anchor watch — and any movement above half a knot starts the thirty minutes again. A new track still does not start from the background: when you get underway again, open theONE and the watcher starts the next one. If theONE has been closed, the save waits until you open it again.

6. Still tracking? — the two-hour check

   When a cruising track has not moved for two hours (or has run for twelve), a banner appears on the chart above the Go now and Tracking pills, and on Mission Control beside the Underway banner: "Still tracking? The boat hasn't moved for 2 hours." Keep tracking dismisses it and the track carries on; Stop and save ends the track and keeps it in Saved Tracks. Nothing is stopped for you — the banner asks, it never decides. A leg's track is never asked; only cruising tracks are.

7. Where the track goes

   Saved with your vessel's tracks — open Saved Tracks from the chart drawer or the GPS Tracking chip and replay one at a time. Cruising tracks are not tied to a trip; a leg's track is archived with its trip.

Related

• Chart layers — GPS, channel markers, weather radar, buoys, track lineToggle the five chart overlays — GPS position, channel markers (AtoN buoys and beacons from NOAA), NEXRAD weather radar, NOAA weather buoys and the track line — and start a cruising track from the Track line row.
• Track line — the path you are recording on the chartWhat the line behind your boat is, the difference between recording it and showing it, and how it can start without you touching anything.
• Go now — cast off from the chart in one tapLeaving right now with nothing planned? One tap on the chart starts a trip, a leg and its track; you name the destination when you tie up.
• Where am I? — find your boat on the chartRecenter the chart on your vessel and confirm your GPS position is live.

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