RaceSplitter — Race Timer

this app works great for time trials and other events where everyone is registered before the first starting gun. but is not helpful for situations like a wave start road race or cross country race where people are still registering for later heats after the first heat has left. our grassroots short track series is a casual tuesday night series where people come from work and register on site at the last minute. if it were possible to run multiple races at once and enter laps and finish punches for ALL of them from the same screen, i'd love this app. as it is, its an imcomplete solution, with some holes.

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I’ve been organizing races for over a decade, back when timing was done using a handheld Seiko timer with paper roller print out. Then Stevens Creek came out with PocketTimer for the Palm Pilot and that was awesome. Still quirky but better than the old way, especially after they ported over to iPhone. Jump ahead and now the RaceSplitter is here with web based access. On the outset, it is very promising - especially the simplified input of racers and categories using a template with limited fields and the ability to import a CSV file. But using it can be frustrating, especially when it comes to making changes to timing entries on the fly (particularly if a wave start is used). Once you enable Auto-Split you are prohibited from making changes on the fly. Despite this, I continued to use it because I liked how the results were so easy to upload to RaceSplitter’s servers. But I cannot use it anymore as I narrowly avoided a catastrophe this past weekend at an event. Two days before the race I was trying to enter in racers directly into the app. I had no internet access so this was the only method I could use. The program kept crashing and wouldn’t let me add racers. Luckily, I still had Pockettimer Pro on my iPad and was able to duplicate the roster and then add the new racers very easily. Disappointed with RaceSplitter.

The saying goes that you get what you pay for and with this app, you get more than what you pay for. Support is awesome-- quick, personal and great. Multiple messages answering all questions asked with helpful hints. Not a form letter as with some apps I have seen. These guys know their app and take the time to support their users. The integration with on line updates is key and a true solution for running events. I have priced out systems like this, from full systems to custom development and they are all in the thousands of dollars. I cannot say enough good things about this app & the company that stands behind it!!

I use this app for timing adaptive ski races, using the compensation feature. It is easy to use, provides great information and allows us to give adaptive racers real splits for the first time, without all the complicated math! I have also used this on multi-lap races with hundreds of competitors and been able to provide more detailed and reliable information than any split timer I have ever used. The design of the app makes it hard to make mistakes and easy to make changes if you do. Love it!

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The main problem with this app is that it requires you to enter the bib number of the approaching runner at or before when the racer crosses the finish line. If the bib is on the back or obscured - or there are three runner finishing and blocking the view to bib numbers - the times will be off. Worse, there's no way to adjust the times on the app itself after you make this type of timing error - you have to first upload the results to the website, then edit. We'd like to see the timing done the opposite way. Give us a way to enter just the time stamps, and then add the bibs later. This is how timing is done with the age-old pen & paper method (or semi-automated using the Casio time printer).