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I've been working on a timing system that will be used to track runners during ultra-marathons. An ultra-marathon is considerably longer than a traditional marathon typically being 50 miles, 100 kilometers or 100 miles. All of the ultras I am familiar with are trail runs with very little if any of the route on paved road. You can find a better description at www.utlrunr.com if you are interested.



As a volunteer I have been working with races in Utah and Colorado for the last couple of years doing communications and race timing. Though there is no money in volunteering I really enjoy helping with these races. I absolutely love being outdoors and watching these extreme athletes is very motivating.



The way most ultras work is that runners start at the starting point, pass through multiple check points called aid stations along the route and eventually finish the race. Timing for these races has traditionally been done with some volunteer looking at his or her watch and writing down the runners time next to their number on a time sheet at each of the check points. The runners times are then radioed back to race control so that race control can keep track of the runners throughout the course. This system works but is prone to human error. It can be very difficult to keep track of the runners when multiple runners make it through a check point at the same time. The runners do wear bibs with numbers but this is not a traditional road race. Often after many hours of running through mountainous trails or desert brush those bibs can get folded or hidden so it can be hard for the timers to identify the runners.



Last September while acting as both the time keeper and communications guy at a check point in the remote mountains of Northern Utah, I was frustrated and thought to myself that there has to be a better way to keep track. My idea sounded simple to me at the time. Radio frequency identification (rfid) had to be the solution. I have run multiple traditional marathons and half marathons. In every marathon I have run since 2008 rfid has been used to track the starting and finishing times of the runners. Basically, the runners either embedded in their bid or in some small chip generally attached to a shoe carries an rfid tag which is read as the runner crosses the start and finish lines. I asked myself why in the world ultras weren't using one of these systems. Well, after a month of looking and talking to race directors I found there is not currently an rfid race timing system that will work for back-country ultras. I won't go into tons of details but because of the formats of the races and extreme locations they just don't work.



I set off to design and build a system that will work. Though this project falls closely in line with what I do for a living, it is completely separate from what I actually get paid for. Potentially I could make money from it but everything I have done so far has been on my own time and at my own expense. I designed a system, ordered some half finished custom hardware from Hong Kong and got to work. For the last several months I have been writing the necessary code and soldering away trying to get a working system.



My system consists of small rfid receivers at the starting line, finish line, and at each of the check points in between. The runners will each carry a small rfid chip with them which will be read by the receivers. Each of the receivers is a small unit about the size of a small lunch box which can easily be backpacked in to the remote checkpoints. Battery operated with the option of a small solar panel to help keep everything powered, electricity is not an issue.



My first race to test the Beta system is next weekend June 7th in Utah and I am pretty excited about it.

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dabbler
01:52 May 31 2014

That is why inventive. I actually thunk rfID chips before I came to the part about them being used. best of luck on your venture.

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Well, to be honest this is not technically my first journal as I am required to maintain a professional journal but that is a little different. This would be my first personal journal or even personal collection of stuff I write. Anyway, expect to find more soon but for today this is what I have.

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randicloudbead
21:33 May 29 2014

Better than nothin, and whoooo first VR journal! Congrats!

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Isis101
04:24 May 30 2014

Cool...

Write away, please!

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