There are countless posts on the web about what it’s like to run track or cross country, but none about the important people behind the scenes: Race Timers. So we’ve come up with our own list of what it’s like to be a FinishLynx race timer. Enjoy!
1. You show up to meets hours before they’re scheduled to start.
Because you know how long it takes to properly set up and organize your equipment. Anyone can align a camera on the finish line – but you want it aligned perfectly. You know organization is key to ensuring a day of smooth races. Cords need to get bundled and camera connections need to be tested so you’re ready for the crowds to accidentally run into them.
Training attendees setup their cameras.
2. You use social media mainly to discuss your races, camera setups, and the terrible weather you sat through all day.
It’s always interesting to see what race timers from all over the world are experiencing. Some battle blizzards while others are stuck in heat waves or torrential downpours. This is also where some product-envy may come into play. Timers love showing off their latest and greatest equipment—whether it’s a new wind gauge or an upgraded Vision camera. Let’s face it, when new equipment arrives, it does feel a bit like Christmas morning.
3. You have witnessed every form of pre-race ritual…and may have even developed one of your own.
Who says rubbing your Lynx camera before the meets won’t bring a smooth day of timing? Just because it’s not in the quick-start guide, doesn’t mean it won’t work.
This past week we reached out to the FinishLynx community to ask which upgrades and add-ons they simply cannot live without. We received some great feedback and created a list of the top six. Most were picked by FinishLynx timers and we threw in a couple of our favorites as well.
1. Automatic Capture Mode (ACM) Plug-In
Key Highlights
Automatically captures and records all finish line activity
Instantly broadcasts an unofficial finish time to any compatible display at the venue
Why We Love It
It became clear that ACM is the most popular plug-in when almost every person that responded to our survey answered with Automatic Capture. ACM simplifies the timing process and removes the stress of having to hold down a capture button. You can also adjust the ACM parameters to change the capture region, threshold, sensitivity, and more. ACM lets you save disk space and add peace of mind at your races.
What Our Users Are Saying
“ACM because it works well and allows the job of our camera operator to be easier and less risky of losing a finish.” – Carey H.
“I love, love, love, LOVE the Auto Capture of FinishLynx. Makes my timing a breeze.” – Peter U.
Transmits the start signal signal with an accuracy greater than ±0.4 thousandths of a second
Replaces the 500′ start cable
Why We Love It
Without the need for a long cable, Starters are able to move freely about the venue. Additionally, the transmitter is approximately the size of a deck of cards making it easily portable from race to race.
What Our Users Are Saying
“RadioLynx is awesome because it would be a huge pain to run the cord all over the place at a meet and makes it very easy on the starter.” – Carey H.
“Favorite at many tracks is the [RadioLynx] wireless start, as it speeds up transition between start points and saves rolling up 500 ft of cable at the end of the day.” – John C.
Full-color images and EasyAlign 2-D Video Alignment Mode
Captures 1,000 fps or 2,000 fps with high-resolution upgrade
Optional upgrades include LuxBoost low-light capture, internal battery, and more
Vision Feature: EasyAlign Video Alignment
EasyAlign Video Alignment Mode makes it easier than ever to align your camera on the finish line. Click the 2-D alignment button inside FinishLynx and you will see a live, 2-D video of your finish line with two guide lines. There’s no more need for the Thru-the-Lens Viewer or tedious 1-D alignment. Simply adjust the camera’s pan/tilt/swivel and ensure the green line is aligned with the finish line. Then switch back to 1-D mode and you’re ready to capture.
Vision Upgrade: LuxBoost
An option available for the EtherLynx Vision camera, LuxBoost increases the amount of natural light accessed by the camera’s image sensor, creating brighter images during evening races that would normally have inadequate lighting.
Why We Love It
The Vision Camera is quickly becoming the most popular generation of EtherLynx camera we have introduced thanks to its ease-of-use and number of customizable features. We have always offered trade-ins on older FinishLynx cameras towards the purchase of new camera technology. We have taken a large number of trade-ins to date and expect more to follow. Interested? Contact us today.
What Our Users Are Saying
“Best decision I ever made was to upgrade to a Vision camera. The Vision produces the nicest images I’ve ever captured and combined with the ease of the remote zoom lens, I’m able to set my camera up in a fraction of the time.” – Aaron F.
Captures full-frame head-on video from the finish line
Video integrates seamlessly into FinishLynx technology
Makes it easy to identify bib numbers during crowded finishes
Why We Love it
IdentiLynx video is great for easily identifying athletes as they cross the finish line either by bib numbers or team affiliation. IdentiLynx can also be used with the ACM plug-in allowing for automated capturing as athletes cross the finish line.
What Our Users Are Saying
“Wouldn’t do a track or XC meet without it. It’s saved more races than one can count, especially when runners block out the others and/or there was a question regarding team or team members. Worth every bit of the pennies spent for it.” – Trey J.
Users can auto-align, tilt, pan and swivel with the Remote Positioner
Using the Remote Lens, users can adjust the iris, focus and zoom
Why We Love It
Using a Remote Positioner, the camera can be adjusted and aligned all with the click of a couple of buttons on the laptop within the FinishLynx software and is compatible with all EtherLynx cameras. This becomes especially useful when adjusting cameras that are up and out of reach. Combine the Remote Lens and Remote Positioner with the new EasyAlign video mode and the camera setup process becomes a breeze.
Integrates seamlessly with FinishLynx hardware and software
Chip reads automatically overlaid on FinishLynx capture images
Chips are durable and waterproof
High-speed read rates of 120 tags/second
Why We Love It
MYLAPS RFID timing is the perfect solution for cross country and other long-distance races that have many competitors. The RFID timing can be combined with an EtherLynx FAT camera and IdentiLynx with the XC Triad which provides the ultimate timing solution to ensure fast and accurate results at a chaotic finish line.
How many of your favorites made the list? Thank you to all who sent in answers to us!
We recently spoke with Tim Fulton of Fulton Accurate Timing as a kickoff to our on-going Timer Spotlight series. Our goal for this series is to highlight some of our top service providers and find out who they are, what they do, and how they use FinishLynx technology.
Can you briefly tell us about Fulton Accurate Timing?
I saw a need for track and field and XC timing in the Hudson Valley area of NY as most timers were traveling from far away to time the meets. We focus on HS and college track and field and now have about 75 events after being in business for just 2 years.
What’s one thing about your company that makes it unique?
I think my experience in so many areas of the sport really helps. I’ve run track for years, have run marathons and some ultras, coached HS for 15 years, coached college for 2 years, been a meet director of youth events and huge HS events, and worked with pros on NYRR The Millrose Games. I’ve been an official, track writer, and track photographer. I think understanding how all of these roles fit together helps me understand how to meet the needs of my clients.
New WR captured with an EtherLynx Vision camera. Courtesy of Phoenix Sports technology.
Athens, Greece – The 2015 UEC Junior Track Cycling Championships hosted some of Europe’s best young talent in velodrome cycling. The competition was held in Athens from July 14th to 19th. It was timed with high-speed FinishLynx cameras, and the timing team from Phoenix Sports Technology was fortunate enough to capture a new World Record at this year’s event.
The women from team Italy took the gold medal in the Women’s Junior Team Pursuit Qualifying Round with a time of 4:33.463 and average speed of 52.658 km/h over 4,000 meters. Their time was good enough to beat the teams from Poland and France by over 5 seconds and edge out the previous World Record by more two and half seconds—an impressive feat at any level of competition.
This photo-finish capture is especially notable because it’s the first new WR captured by the EtherLynx Vision camera. The Vision was released in late 2014 is quickly becoming a race director favorite because of its versatility and ease-of-use at the finish line.
Congrats to the timers and thanks to Phoenix Sports Technology‘s chief timekeeper Humberto Uribe for passing along the FinishLynx screen capture. Want to learn more about this year’s Junior Track Cycling Championships? You can see the full event results here. Hopefully this is the first of many new records captured by the Vision camera.
Track cycling results screenshot courtesy of Phoenix Sports Technology and trackcyclingtiming.com
May 21, 2015 – It’s been a busy few months here at the Lynx headquarters in Haverhill, MA. We released the new EtherLynx Vision camera in late 2014 and have updated all our timing packages (and support docs) to include this new technology. We’re also offering US customers a special Vision camera trade-in program as part of the 2015 Summer Promotion. The response so far has been overwhelming, and we’re excited to equip more timers with EasyAlign and the other great features found on the Vision camera.
The FinishLynx user-base has also seen tremendous growth over the past year, both in the US and abroad. It’s exciting to see new customers, timing companies, and partners popping-up across the globe. This growth not only makes the Lynx community stronger and more diverse, but also allows us to add features and develop new products we think you’ll love. In order to sustain this pace, we need to hire some more great people to join our team. Want to help us support, develop, or promote FinishLynx technology? Perfect. Then check out our latest job postings below.
Don’t quite fit the qualifications but think you can help us some other way? Head over to our Careers page to send us your resume and cover letter with more details about what you can offer. We’d love to hear from you.
April 1, 2015 — FinishLynx timing systems are a big investment, no matter what size organization you are. It doesn’t matter if you’re a small high school track program or a large cycling federation. Some customers spend years building up their systems, adding new cameras, software plugins, and upgrades every season. So it makes sense that you’ll want to do everything you can to protect your investment. That’s why we’re introducing TaserLynx, a high-voltage security add-on for FinishLynx.
TaserLynx is a remote-activated electric taser add-on that integrates with your FinishLynx hardware for seamless anti-theft (and anti-spectator) features. When armed, TaserLynx will deliver a 50,000 volt shock to immobilize any unwanted visitors who approach the timing hardware. The active shock range threshold can be configured directly inside the FinishLynx software using the free TaserLynx plugin.
TaserLynx sensors can be added to cameras, tripods, scoreboards, and other other timing equipment within a 100 meter radius. The TaserLynx units can draw power directly from your camera, AC power, Power-over-Ethernet, a computer serial port, or a compatible wind/geothermal source. No need to worry about the science behind it. Each TaserLynx unit also includes a powerful lithium battery for over a year of passive arming. That means your FinishLynx technology will be protected, even when it’s stored away for the winter.
TaserLynx Tesla-Coil Upgrade
After the success of last year’s NerfLynx upgrade, we decided to enhance our finish line security even further. For just $99 you can upgrade your TaserLynx to Tesla-Coil mode. Tesla-Coil mode transforms your TaserLynx from a passive security device to an active one — allowing you to use a capture button to shock unwanted intruders up to 50 yards away from your primary camera. Keep spectators, athletes, parents, and administrators in check by adding TaserLynx Tesla-Coil mode today. It’s a safe and effective way to protect your photo-finish system in the field.
April Fools! Please re-share on social media if you’d enjoyed it :)
ResulTV 6.0 Live Results Display & Broadcast Software
ResulTV 6.0 adds new templates, custom colors, & animated .GIF support
ResulTV is a Windows-based results display program that allows timers to stream and broadcast live event data to compatible displays and video feeds. ResulTV integrates with FinishLynx timing systems to display dynamic results data to video scoreboards connected to the network. ResulTV 6.0 is the first major update since the release of ResulTV 5.11 in March 2013. Version 6.0 has several new features including:
Support for animated .GIFs (like custom flags and logos)
Support for custom colors (RGB values) for the font, border, shadow, and backgrounds
The latest version of ResulTV can be downloaded on the ResulTV product product page. Existing ResulTV customers can upgrade for free using their serial number. We’ve also included a large package of animated flag gifs for use with this latest version of the software. The animated flags installer (ResulTV-Flags.exe) is 337 MB includes international and US state flags in various sizes. But 6.0 also supports custom gifs provided by the user.
Bangkok, Thailand – On Sunday, January 18th the timers at the Royal Bangkok Sports Club (RBSC) in Thailand captured a rare moment in horse racing history. Three horses finished in a triple dead heat photo-finish for 2nd place. The rare triple dead heat took place during the popular Sunday races and was captured with an EtherLynx Fusion camera at 1,800 frames per second.
According to the official RBSC results, horse #9 took first place in the 1200 meter race with a time of 1:12.84 while horses 5, 7, & 13 tied in a dead heat for second place. All three horses were officially evaluated by the judges at finish time of 1:13.33. Does that mean all three horses split the 2nd place purse, you might wonder? Not exactly. In this case, the three horses actually split the combined winnings for positions 2, 3, and 4. So at least there’s a little more money to go around.
While photo-finishes are common at horse tracks, this triple dead heat is exceptionally rare. In fact, only a few triple dead heats have ever been recorded. This is the first triple dead heat recorded by the RBSC in the club’s 112-year history of horse racing. And one article claims there have been just 6 triple dead heats recorded since 1990. This finish at the Royal Bangkok Turf Club would perhaps be the seventh. Fortunately, FinishLynx timing cameras provide judges with indisputable, time-stamped photo-finish images accurate to at least 1/1000th of a second.
October 1, 2014 — Lynx System Developers is proud to announce the official US release of the new EtherLynx Vision photo-finish camera. The 5L500 is the latest in a long line of EtherLynx cameras and represents the next generation of sports timing technology. The new camera brings with it a number of exciting new features and upgrade options that will help make FinishLynx more accessible and versatile for novice users.
The Vision comes standard with full-color image captures, power-over-Ethernet, and the new EasyAlign full frame video alignment mode. It also includes upgrade options like LuxBoost low-light amplification, high-resolution captures (2,000 fps), an internal battery pack, and more.
As of October 1st, The camera will immediately be integrated into the US high school track & field packages. Along with the release of the new camera, we will also be offering a generous camera trade-in program so users can upgrade an older EtherLynx camera for the new Vision. For more details about the Vision, including feature demos and document downloads, visit the official page at: http://finishlynx.com/packages/vision/
Just 0.001 separates Trentin & Sagan in a dramatic Stage 7 photo-finish at the 2014 Tour de France
Dramatic cycling photo-finish image from stage 7 of the Tour de France. Matteo Trentin beats Peter Sagan by just 1/1000th of a second. Click to enlarge.
Nancy, France – FinishLynx partner Matsport Timing is getting a lot of press today after capturing a thrilling photo-finish during the seventh stage of the Tour de France. Italy’s Matteo Trentin edged out Slovakia’s Peter Sagan by just 1/1000th of a second (0.001) to win the stage. Matsport is a long-time FinishLynx partner and serves as the Lynx European Center, supporting many of our international customers. We’re always excited to see beautiful photo-finish captures in the news. But we love it even more when the hardworking timers from Matsport can get some major press. They’re truly masters of their craft: producing reliable and high-quality photo finish results.
Of course, the Matsport timing team is no stranger to major photo-finishes like this one. They have been timing the Tour de France and many other major cycling events for years. During that time, they’ve captured some wonderful FinishLynx photo-finishes from cycling events around the world:
Pieter Weening wins by 0.002 at the 2005 Tour de France – Matsport
A dramatic cycling photo-finish crash – Matsport
The cat takes first place in a tight photo finish – Matsport
Mascot photo-finish at the Presidential Tour of Turkey – Matsport
Our favorite Tour de France photo finish image – Matsport
Kudos to Matsport. We hope there’s even more exciting photo-finishes to come. Want to learn more about FinishLynx timing systems for cycling? Take a look at our cycling timing packages now.
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