Races with Run-ups

Post date: Oct 22, 2013 1:26:39 PM

Sometimes races don't start at the Start/Finish line.

In Cyclo-cross and MTB, there is often start lanes are start pens section off course, usually in a section before the Start/Finish line.

Sometimes the run-up passes the start/finish line on the first lap, sometimes it goes around.

It is easy to handle these situations in CrossMgr, but there are a few key principles that you need to keep in mind.

CrossMgr works best when the first lap is longer than subsequent laps.

So, if there is a 200m run-up before the finish line, don't capture the riders after the 200m - just let them go by. The riders will probably be in a big bunch anyway, so calling the numbers will likely be impossible anyway.

CrossMgr has specific features to handle a longer first lap. It treats the 1st lap as a special case when it predicts the number of laps in the race. It also has a field in the Categories screen to enter the length of the 1st lap if it is different from a regular lap.

With manual timing, this is easy - just don't enter numbers.

Chip Timing presents some additional minor problems. If the riders pass the Finish line after the run-up, we do not want to record these times.

There are two methods to handle this:

The first is to use the "Skip First Tag Read for All Riders (required when there is a start run-up that passes through the finish on the first lap)" option on the Actions screen. The only caution is that sometimes rider's tags read multiple times, and this option will only ignore the first read. If this happens, you will need to clean these up extra reads by deleting them (right-click on the bars in the Chart).

The second method is a more general technique. When the race starts, record the start time, but do not start CrossMgr. Let the riders go through the finish line, and wait 10 seconds for them to get out of range.

Start CrossMgr, and let it sync with the chip reader.

Then do "Tools/Change Start Time...", and change the start time of the race to what it should be.

In this way you can guarantee that no rider's tag will be recorded on the first pass.

This second technique is useful in other situations. For example, say you were timing a point-to-point race.

Don't bother setting up CrossMgr at the start - don't even bother bringing the computer.

Just make a note of the start time.

Hours later, at the finish, start CrossMgr, and set the start time to what it should be. Record numbers manually, or with a chip reader.

You can change the start time of the race at any time (even after the race) if you make a mistake.