Menangle race timing system

[David Summers]

As we have the fastest track in Australia , it's surely time for an update to the software used for recording race times at Menangle.

Great to hear quarters broadcast during the race but why do we wait one to two minutes after a race is run to get the mile rate? If I hear Fred Hastings say "time for the race is 1:54 and change" again , I will just scream. http://www.harnessracingforum.com/images/icons/icon8.png

Should be simple to automatically add four quarters together even if there are slight fractions to be reconciled and show on the semaphore as the horses cross the line. We do not want to know the mile rate two minutes later.

They do that at Melton and other race clubs around the country , even minor country tracks do this. So surely something so simple as should be a priority at Menangle.

Also , astonishingly with Smoken Up's record time , Fred Hastings got the official mile rate off the judge well after they crossed the line but it was later altered. Not the first time that this has happened. Mile rates have been changed an hour after the race is run. What is that all about?

Time to get a real timing system at Menangle that is accurate and actually works and the mile rate should instantly flash up on the screen as they pass the post. I can't see it being all that difficult or expensive to implement.

[triplev123]

I hear you. I fear that it's the same Ghost that used to haunt the Timing Equipment at Harold Park. It has made a tree change and moved to rural south-western Sydney.

[Zipper]

Couldn't agree more.

The night Gamechanger broke the 2yo record at Menangle they announced straight after the race the mile rate to be 1.54.8 then over an hour later they adjusted it to 1.54.7.....

How does that work???

It's also frustrating when you listening on the radio or watching on TV as you never get an accurate mile rate at the end of the call. For all the money the have from the sale of Harold Park, surely this can be fixed.

[Gtrain]

The reason for the times being adjusted is as follows. Obviously any time given is a measurement and measurements are only estimates. The instance of a time of 1.54.7 at Menangle may be 1.54.71 or 1.54.72 etc. The semaphore board automatically rounds up. As we should know we round up from 5 and more. Therefore a time of 1.54.71 infact will register as 1.54.8. I hope this explains it. Not sticking up for system either just attempting to explain it.

[aussiebreno]

Its not a problem really. I am jealous of you ozninja as I wish my problems in life were as stressful as yours. If it pops up 1.53.2 you know its going to be either 1.53.2 or 1.53.3 or maybe 1.53.1. This is the same as just about every other track albeit a little slower and Fred is very conservative in not wanting to give false info by the 1/10th of a second.

[remington]

im not gonna complain if a horse i owned ran 1.48.6 or 1.48.5 :P all good times :)

[mango]

I've got no problem with the time's as i havn't got a horse that can break 2 mins with an anvil tied to it's legs and dropped over a cliff Lmao. On a serious note i think they shoud try and have everything A1 at menangle so this is something i think will be sorted out in the long run. My pet hate is they should put the mile rate up with the results on sky surely it can't be that hard.

[Flashing Red]

I wish they went to 10ths of a second instead of 5ths of second in America... a little off topic I know. Just really bugged me with 5ths - results would show horses finishing with the same time when the margin could have been a neck or half a length.