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Start SystemsWhat is the proper placement of a Swim Start System? In the early days this was a simple question with a simple answer. A gun was placed in the hand of the starter and the start system went wherever the starter went. But now that no one uses guns any more the starter and the start system can travel in many different directions. A start "system" has four components, a microphone, a sound making device (speaker), a light flash and a box housing the electronic components and power supply. We will look at each piece separately. MicrophoneThe microphone should still travel with the starter to whatever location he or she wishes. Wireless microphones are becoming more popular these days and allow the starter to have a lot of freedom. They are especially beneficial when working 50s from the opposite end of a long course pool. There are a couple of potential problems with wireless microphones; having a wired microphone available easily rectifies both of them. One is that there are many devices that use these frequencies, which in some instances could cause interference and potentially poor performance. The second is that they need batteries and we all know that batteries seem to fail when you need them the most. Remember that it is always wise to have a wired microphone handy just in case. SpeakersSpeakers should be placed as close to their intended target as possible; this would be under the starting blocks. Sound travels at about 1,000 feet per second, or about the width of a single lane in .01 seconds (the accuracy that we decide races these days). Using one speaker on the side of the pool is not a good idea because you are making the sound travel a different distance for each swimmer. Also the volume of the sound would decrease drastically as it crossed the pool, again not being fair to those on the other side of the pool. If you can only have one speaker then set it up under the starting block in the middle of the pool. Adding just one more speaker will help considerably. With two speakers for a six-lane pool you should place the speakers under lanes 2 and 5. This way the farthest that the sound would have to travel to any swimmer would be one lane width. All swimmers are within 10 feet of the sound's origin so the volume should be excellent for everyone. Having more speakers is always good; just try to space them evenly. Remember the sound is not for the starter but for the athletes. There is no need to put a speaker next to the starter and there are good reasons not to put one there. If the microphone is close to a speaker then the sound from the speaker will enter the microphone, get amplified and sent out the speaker, which will be picked up by the microphone, get amplified and sent out the speaker, which will ……. This is called uncontrolled feedback and can create quite a screech. FlashThe flash at the start of a race is a holdover from the days of gun starts. The timers were told to watch for the flash from the gunpowder igniting when the starter's pistol went off. It was known that there was a delay in the sound getting to the watch timers, so we tried to get rid of that delay by having the timers trigger off of the almost instantaneous flash of the gun. When the first start systems were made we incorporated an artificial light flash for the watch timers. The sound device was originally set up on the side of the pool (just a single horn) and thus was a considerable distance from some of the swimmers and timers. For all practical purposes, the time delay of the sound is of negligible consequence when the speakers are within 10-15 feet of each athlete and backup timer. Many people still like the flash at the start and there are hearing impaired swimmers, and officials, that will rely on it. Most manufacturers place a flash on their start system box but also have the ability to have a small remote flash. This remote flash is very convenient and allows you to set it up in an out of the way location. You should mount it up a little so that anyone, or anything, that gets in front of it will not obstruct its visibility. Mounting it away from the water is generally a good idea. Start System BoxThe start system box, for the electronics and power supply, can generally be placed anywhere. Let's start with where not to put it. You do not want to hang it on the backstroke flagpole. This is probably the single worst place that you could put it. For anything electronic, it does not make sense to put it where it will get splashed unnecessarily. Also, for anything electronic and powered you do not want it near the water for obvious safety reasons. Second, hanging a box with relatively sharp corners up in the air where someone could easily walk into it is just asking for a lawsuit. It does not need to be near the starter but you might want it to be nearby so as to be able to adjust the volume control if needed. After you adjust the volume control once it should not have to be altered again for the meet. Most start systems have batteries, but I think that it is certainly wiser to run them off of house power and save the batteries for emergencies. Of course for safety reasons we do not want 110V power near the pool. I usually like to put the start system under the table by the timer, and/or computer. It is close by and easy to get to if you have to but at the same time it is out of the way and in a safe place. Bob Clauson is a nationally renowned authority in swimming and meet management. |
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