And who goes and gets the dibber box at the end of the day? Him?
And who goes and gets the dibber box at the end of the day? Him?
Not very helpful LFF.Originally Posted by L.F.F.
And who goes and gets the dibber box at the end of the day? Him?
If you had any experience of involvement with race organisation, you would know that there is a world of difference between; sitting static as a summit CP marshal for a couple of hours; and nipping up to a summit, popping an SI station into your rucksack then jogging back down again.
In the days of the Scottish 4000's Duathlon, with a team of 4 marshals, we were able to site the SI stations on all 9x 4,000ers, set up a 2x manned CP in the Lairig Ghru and sweep the running section of the course whilst recovering the SI stations.
Without SI it would have required at least 10 marshals, not to mention that those on Macdui & Cairngorm would have had something like 5 or 6 hours between first and last competitors through.
Last edited by wheezing donkey; 18-06-2012 at 05:26 PM.
For the record, I really like the dibber system and think they're a great idea. As a runner they're quick and easy, and provide you with instant splits at the end of the race, not to mention the added safety aspect mentioned before. What's not to like?
i will second that Rob. look at the three peaks. instant splits and time and position as soon as you have gone over the line. cant beat it. safety, nothing to beat it.
I'd imagine how mapping and GIS are advancing by the day, one day we'll be able to track everyone in a race by location. It won't be too long before technology enables cheaper systems to relay location back up to satellite to be downloaded on laptop in nice warm place. For longer races this could also be a good thing for supporters to watch. I know it's done in some Long Distance American races, but think it's still an expensive system at the mo.
Kilo to go use a sticker (of some kind) on the cycling helmets and I think mats for their sportives, just passover and ping, you're registered on a distant laptop. No dibbing required/
Technology is moving so fast that soon we will have much easier options to monitor runners and their progress. Now if this enables races to continue, I will be all for it.
As one of the '2x manned CP' marshalls in the S4D I think it's fair to say that SI worked well on that event, obviating the need for marshalls to stand out on the tops for hours, but there have been many good points made on this thread on the "other side" of the argument. Many people, me included, see technology as an intrusion into something that has always been a simple low-tech sport.
We like the sport to be low-tech and we like it to be low-cost, so there is bound to be resistance to something that lands you with a bill because you lost a bit of high-tech equipment that many would say has no place on the fells in the first place.
I can see the advantages of SI but part of me thinks a big attraction of fellrunning is the stripping away of all the technology and getting back to basics. The advent of technology can't be stopped, especially when it brings safety benefits, but we should at least stop and say "whoa, do we want this?"...
Hopefully some of those whose lives she saved will have read this thread and offered to contributed to the cost of replacement.
I can't believe cost is even an issue..
I'd rather have a good run in the rain, lose £30 on the dibber.. then spend £50 in petrol and not race due to a race called off for bad weather..
Sounds like they've had a whip round so probably the best outcome.. couldn't see how the RO or SI should be expected to cover the costs, some RO's lose money in races without paying for such replacements..
Last edited by IainR; 19-06-2012 at 03:35 PM.
I suspect that dibbers cost £30 to replace because if they were a couple of quid nobody would take care of them and we would lose loads.
Not sure if I have been unlucky or I am sweating more with age but I have had the glue come a part on the "indestructible paper" on both the LAMM and three peaks this year. Luckily just spotted that it was not on my wrist within 10 metres and recovered it both times. I would echo the comments that the split times are really useful to look back on and review the reality of the race and not your own perception. The LAMM this year I know from checkpoint data we lost 20 minutes on all our rivals on one short 1.5km leg. Obviously won't mean I can go back and win next year but should help me learn about route choice and nav.
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