All posts by: andrew@rfidtiming.com

RENTA Oberelbe-Marathon 2012

The magnificent RENATA Oberelbe-Marathon was run on the 29th April 2012 in picture perfect conditions. The course takes advantage of the wonderful country-side and beautiful bike trail along the Elbe River into the city of Konigstein. Offering marathon, half marathon, 10km and a fun event distance; a wide range of runners were able to enjoy the course.

Baer Service in Germany supplied the timing services for the day using the Ultra system from RFID Race Timing. By using the ULTRA system Baer Service were able to use disposable RFID tags with this event rather than reusable tags as in the previous years. This resulted in a more efficient way of timing the event. Tag allocation and collection post race was no longer required as the RFID stickers were attached to the runner’s bib.

Outreach is proving a real hit with timers.

Outreach is the new communication software from RFID Race Timing. Since its launch in January this year, timers around the world have quickly come to realise its value to their timing businesses.

This clever software allows the timer to communicate with a number of ULTRA timing units via modem through the cellular network. Once the unit has been set up it can be connected to from anywhere in the world.

This amazing tool now allows remote units to stream live data to a central computer as a race unfolds. No longer does the timer have to wait until after the event to retrieve the timing units and rewind the data. It now arrives instantly. This in turn allows for additional services to be offered, such as live tracking on the web, whereby spectators can follow the an athlete’s progress throughout the race on a mobile phone or computer.

The other amazing feature of this software is its ability to control units remotely. In the same manner that data is collected, commands from the main computer can be sent to the ULTRA units altering their settings at any point duriing the event. This is a fantastic option for timers to be able to fine tune their equipment during an event from one location.

For more information on how Outreach can improve your timing service contact your local agent.

Greater Manchester Marathon 2012

The weather gods turned on “something special even for Manchester”  for the 2012 Greater Manchester Marathon after an absence of 10years.

In wet and windy conditions just under 5000 runners took to the start line to brave the elements, with the winner Dave Norton toughing it out in 2hrs 24mins and 46sec.

The Greater Manchester Marathon was timed by STUWEB Race Timing with state of the art UHF disposable timing chips.

Combining the practicality of disposable chips with the power of RFID Race Timing’s UlLTRA systems, the timing did not miss a beat.  In spite of the horrid conditions all the equipment worked like a charm with split point times provided along the way at 6, 10, 13.1 (half marathon), 20 miles and the finish.

Check out the photos and read more at: http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/news/s/1492405_replay-runners-battle-wind-and-rain-in-manchester-marathon—video-and-pictures

ULTRA debut in China

RFID Race Timing has arrived in China with Genco Jin of Sydex timing two events for the Da Li Sports Council over the weekend 6-8th April, 2012. The versatility of RFID Race Timing System’s ULTRA was demonstrated timing a 5 km fun run for 3500 finishers on the Friday and following up with a 40km cycle race for 870 riders on Sunday.

Genco was very pleased with the way the ULTRA system performed.

“By using ULTRA and Outreach we were able to provide fast live timing results to  the Sports Council, who were very happy with the level of service.”

RFID Race timing’s remote access software (Outreach) has dramatically increased the options available to race timers. In this instance, an ULTRA unit controlled via Outreach was used at the cycle turnaround, and was able to send live results to the control centre over the cellular phone network. In addition to streaming results, settings can also be adjusted remotely as the race unfolds. Several units can be linked in this way allowing results to be updated live as the race unfolds.

We look forward to seeing many more races timed in China using ULTRA, with our agent Genco Jin very optimistic of the opportunities that are unfolding. Prospective timers in China can find Genco’s contact details here, and more about our Outreach software by contacting you local RFID Timing agent.

Qatar National Sports Day Fun Run

When the Government of Qatar announced that the second Tuesday of February was National Sports Day, the region truly began to embrace its sporting culture.

The national sports facility of Qatar, The Aspire Zone Foundation organised a 4km fun run at the Khalifa Stadium to mark the occasion. RFID Timing’s HDD system was used to time the event as part of a partnership between the Aspire Zone Foundation and StuWeb Race Timing.

The event was unique being completely free and attracting a diverse range of participants.  A truly multicultural event; the entries were received  in many different languages and the runners ranged from Qatar’s cleaners to chief executives.

The high level of community support made  first National Sports Day event a great success, fueling the desire for more events.  The next  race planned by the Aspire Zone Foundation is a tower run in the famous Torch Hotel ascending  51 floors on the 31st March 2012.

Tobacco Road Marathon NC, USA

The running of the Tobacco Road Marathon in North Carolina on Sunday 18th March was a great success for organisers and athletes alike.

FS Series timed the event using ULTRA and were absolutely “over the moon” with the performance of their RFID Race Timing  system. Jason Biggs with FS Series reported that they used Short Dipole tags with the Ultra.

“Worked like a Charm! We double tagged and it’s probably the best timing race we have done.”

Andrew Peterson from RFID Race Timing was not surprised. “I think the UPM short dipoles (M4) are superior to the Aliens so perhaps this explains better results. Some initial reports also say that the latest Viper M4 from UPM is even better.”  Word has it that the Viper M4 is hard to get, however initial results from some timers in Europe are fantastic.

RFID is committed to researching new tags as they become available to the market. As soon as we get our hands on these tags we will compare their performance against the current tags available.

2012 Annual Cape Argus Pick and Pay Cycle Race

The 35^th annual Cape Argus Pick and Pay was held on the Sunday 11^th March with over 35,000 cyclists taking to the road. The conditions were perfect with the feared south easterly wind that has taken its toll in the past absent this year.

Competition was hot in the elite category with a number of crashes resulting from the intense racing. Incidents marred both the male and female results with the eventual winners Janse van Rensburg and Moolman Pasio.

This iconic event with its origins dating back to 1978 and just a few hundred riders has become the largest individually timed cycle event in the world.

For a number of years now this event has been timed by Racetec SA with RFID Race Timing’s HDD timing system. The reliability of this timing system combined with low profile mats makes it a perfect option for a cycling event of this magnitude.

To see more of this iconic race visit www.cycletour.co.za

River Kwai (Thailand) Adventure Race

One of our newest members of the RFID Race Timing network: Active Management Asia has run the 2012 River Kwai Adventure Race with great success.

Two person teams competed on a demanding course that included biking, jungle running, kayaking and river swimming with some surprise obstacles along the course.

The race started at the Bridge on the River Kwai, which was made famous by the POW’s under Japanese control in WW2, and featured in a movie of the same name. The terrain included a variety of scenery from the jungles to rice paddy fields with likely challenges from snakes, spiders, mosquitoes and even stray dogs.

The ULTRA timing system was easily up for the challenge. Using both 4 and 8 port systems the team at Active Management Asia were at ease capturing the split and final times. RFID Managing Director Andrew Peterson made the trip to Thailand to help out with staff training and fine tuning for the race. For more photos of this event click here.

OCBC Cycle Singapore 2012

Fast becoming one of the most popular sports events in Singapore, OCBC Cycle Singapore 2012 was run on the first weekend in March attracting more than 11,000 participants over the 3 days. The cycling fiesta is a combination of  pro events and a range of distance challenges that engage Singapore’s cycling community.

Race timing was contracted to Blue Chip Timing who timed the mass participation events using the ULTRA8 (RFID’s UHF timing system). Based on the success of this system at OCBC Malaysia late last year, Blue Chip employed a combination of the low profile ULTRA mats that are rapidly gaining popularity for cycling events, and the side read antennas to capture start and finish times.

Read more about this event at ocbc.cyclesingapore.com.sg

T&H Timing Score Women's Indoor Marathon World Record at Maple Leaf Marathon using RFID's Ultra.

Several dozen marathon runners came together over the weekend to have some fun at Goshen College, and one of them probably set a world record in the process. T & H Timing were trackside using RFID’s ULTRA race timing system to capture the times on the day.

Read more about the ULTRA timing system and how it can transform your timing business.

Or for more on the record check out http://www.etruth.com/article/20120226/NEWS01/702269897