I have not used this unit and don’t know how well it works, but from my experience, the best investment you can make in your sprint program (after gettting a good coach and all of Charlie’s training material) is an accurate automatic timer.
Can’t imagine lifting without knowing how much weight is on the bar? Then why do you sprint without (accurately) knowing your times?
I use a Speed Step system and I know that the Speed Trap 2 system is available, but these are both something like 5x the cost.
Does anyone have any experience with these units? If they work, they look to be a steal!
BTW, I do not have any financial or other interest in the company…just saw a great concept and thought I would share.
looks pretty cool. id like ot hear others thoughts. i personally however dont think i can run with something attached to my waist. And if i did i would be afraid the device is goin to fall of and my mechanics and times would be way off.
how much does it weight anyway and how big is it? Cant tell much from that photo.
Dunno, like I said, I don’t own one and haven’t tried it but it looks promising. Hoping someone on the board has tried it. From the pics it seems to be about the size of a cell phone.
One of my boys has it. I plan on ordering mine in the next couple of months. HE says it is great. be prepared to be dissapointed cause this thing is dead on with the timing, So all those 3.8 30M, will be 4.2.
You’re right man. After I started timing my sessions with the camera I found that there is a big " UNCONSTANT " differance between auto timing and hand times. The difference was between 0.3 and sometimes 0.6!!! WHo can count on that type of hand timing. And the people timing me were coaches using the stopwatch for years and all of them were getting an unconstant difference within their own times. !! Auto timing lives. But you’ll REALLY hate it at start. But after all its the truth.
Wow, what a I nice toy, wish I had money for all this stuff … adding this to the “to buy” list which now spans : GPP DVD, EMS unit, new competition spikes, and now this timer ! Have to start counting how many weekends without going out it will take to get all this
Theres a finishing unit and a unit that the runner wheres. You place the finishing unit at the finish line and when the runner wearing his own unit runs by it automatically records the time. I’m not sure how you start it though…
LOL xlr8, just happend something very curious to mee…
Well, i was searching Prefontaine Videoclips and i discovered that a new source of TF pictures is Mr Lee ( and not anymore gettyimages ) so, i changed my searching for “Lee pictures” and then i discovered that, he is one the the partners of a site named TrackShark ( site about TF course ), so, i entered this site and i saw a link about a new equipment named SPRINT STAR…
I was amazed about it !! I thought, well, let me share this info with my “friends” from CF site…but when i entered here, i saw your post about this equipment…well, i must confess…you beat me for .02s in a 100m race…
Ok mates, i read that only one guy tested this equipment, i guess Charlie probabily heard about or tested one of this too, so, i would like to know his opinion, because, even 165 US$ sounds interesting for those who love measure your progress. Charlie, can you with your team develop something like this at a regular price with your renowned label ? I could pay using the PayPal system…
I have built a wireless and wired timer, its relativley easy to do if you know what you are doing, but I must admit, this unit looks very very useful. Photocell gated timers are very accurate. I am not sure if this is a photocell timer, infrared or radio transmitted. You need to find out the principle behind the stopping of the clock . Very important.
If you really really want a timer built, then approach your local university biomechanics dept, electronics engineering, industrial design depts, I am sure that a student would be glad to build one for you for a fraction of the commercial price. A wired system would be even cheaper. A stop watch can be converted with two photoelectric gates added. Most stopwatches are as accurate enough when converted. The chips used in them are as good as or better than more expensive timers found in top of the range timers used in the 70s and 80s in timing races.
The advantage of the “automatic sprint timer” is the fact that it does n’t need a tripod, disadvantage is that it lies on the ground and I am not sure which part of the body if any triggers the transmitter to send a signal to the reciever timer on your waist. If the leg does this then its not TOTALLY accurate. If just the presence of the reciever coming closer to the transmitter triggers the unit then this also is not accurate because it is not triggering when you are crossing the line but possibly a few cm or m before you cross the line. If the transmitter is sending a continuos signal and so triggers the unit when within a certain distance then this is not good. An infrared beam timer works on infrared beam, when your chest breaks the beam, the timer is stopped, it works on the principle of first past the post (FPTP) what you see is what you get, believe me you can’t cheat it. I just built a wired system with a resolution of 0.000. I don’t know if it will make a difference to the guy I built it for in terms of such accuracy, but we will see, you probably improve in 1/100ths or 1/1000ths over weekly at his level (10.17 secs).
Anyway its best to ask questions so that you can find out what you are buying and if it is accurate.
Well, i talked to an Electronic Engineer from my University about a “chalenge”…i proposed to him built a system like SPRINT STAR and he said, that is so easy to me that i denied this chalenge…so, i chalenged he again, i proposed to him built a system that can measure 8 times in 8 diferent lanes, one by one, one after another…and record those times. He said: Now i have a chalenge…We don´t talked about the cost yet, but he asked me how much is this SPRINT STAR, so, i said: 65 US$ and he said: Damn, this is expensive don´t ya ?!
