11 October 2007

Innovative Kiwi technology to time cyclists in the Lake Taupo Cycle Challenge

The organisers of this year's Lake Taupo Cycle Challenge, to be held 24 November, have turned to Times-7 Sport's WheelTime solution to provide automated timing for the up to 11,000 riders expected to compete at the event. With more than 5600 solo riders going the full 160km and 1600 two to five-person relay teams covering the same distance in sections, the Lake Taupo Cycle Challenge is the country's biggest cycle event and provides unique challenges in recording accurate race times.

Times-7 Sport's WheelTime is a next generation electronic timing system that takes the hassle out of timing complex events involving large numbers of riders. Already race proven at the recent NZ Individual Secondary Schools and National Road Championships in Auckland and Levin, WheelTime uses Times-7 Sport's patented WheelTag technology. Race Director for the Individual Championships, Michael Raos was pleased with the first-time use of electronic timing saying; "The electronic timing from Times-7 Sport was very successful, making the race more manageable and allowed organisers to produce accurate results, which was critically important when the leading group of senior riders were finishing so close. The standards for top amateur events have risen so much that you need to provide a professional level timing solution. That's what Times-7 gave us".

The WheelTag uses "passive" (non battery-powered) RFID tags, which are much less expensive than powered tags, but have traditionally presented technical challenges when used to track a mass of fast moving objects. Times-7 has solved this problem by developing innovative antennae designs that allow the tags to be tracked easily even when used to track a large number of fast-moving objects - such as cyclists in a road race.

Each WheelTag is comprised of a holder strapped to the front forks of the competitor's bike, and the tag itself which contains an RFID chip and clips into the holder, allowing for rapid changing of the tag when switching bikes.

The other parts of the WheelTime system include the control box and the 8.5 metre wide start/finish line which integrates the ground antenna to read the data from the WheelTags. The system provides fast and accurate timing for cyclists at a fraction of the cost of competing products. The system handles high speed and large peloton finishes, complex point races and can be used for any biking event from road races to downhill, delivering real-time results if required.

The WheelTime system is integrated with Times-7's Sportscore event management software to provide full reporting of results.

Times-7 CEO Antony Dixon says that the company's next generation technology offers event organisers, cycling clubs and schools, a system that can deliver accurate race times at an affordable price.. "WheelTime users get a system that could handle major events around the world, like the Tour de France, but at a fraction of the price of technology currently utilised at such events. Our technology solves the critical problems for cycling event organisers, namely getting accurate times for each and every rider while dealing with large clusters of riders travelling at high speeds. WheelTime makes it easy and seamless to get this information, in real time, with reliability that makes it practical and affordable to capture split times as well as start/finish times", says Dixon.

"There's more to timing an event like the Lake Taupo Cycling Challenge than just technology," says Dixon. "Our team has a strong background in sports, and understands intimately what is required in timing events like this". This is echoed by Dave Anderson, Chairman of the organising committee for the Lake Taupo Cycle Challenge who says "One of the key factors in choosing Times-7 Sport for this year's event is their track record in successfully timing sports events around the country, combined with the new technology they offer".

Contact:

Antony Dixon - CEO

antony.dixon@times-7.com

+64 274 440 304

About Times-7 Sport
Times-7 Sport provides sports timing solutions using the most advanced sports information technologies available in the world. Times-7 Sport is the Australian distributor of IPICO Sports and Times-7 sports timing products, including Sportscore, a state of- the-art event management software solution. Our systems make event timing easy, providing accurate and reliable results every time.