Coaley:
The Guido Brothers don't time races, but another company I am with does. We haven't used the Jaguar but we have inquired about it. Their response is below. We were looking for some kind of "chip system" for our small race timing business only because of the prestige associated.
Here's Jaguar's reply to our request for info.
We manufacture 3 different sizes of our Jaguar Race Timing System. Our smallest system is Jaguar Bronze, which sells for $9,995, not including the maintenance contract. It comes with everything you need to time races with up to 5,000 people. Jaguar Silver is $17,995 and it handles larger races. Our Jaguar Gold system is $24,995 and it is a large highly redundant system used for major Marathons with up to 99,999 people. All Jaguar systems can be easily upgraded, so if you start with a Jaguar Bronze system, you can always upgrade to Silver or Gold in the future.
Our Jaguar systems come with everything you need to manage the race. For example, the Jaguar Bronze system includes not only the timing hardware, it includes 500 timing chips, the laptop computer for running the system, and a lightweight 10-foot wide tower structure that can hold your race banners and our antennas. If you look at our web site, you’ll see a picture of the tower structure. It really brings a greater level of professionalism to any race! If you prefer to mount your antennas to the side of a course, we can do that as well. When you buy a Jaguar system, we also make sure that you’re going to be successful using it. We have our own web-based conference training center where we can teach you how to use your system, and we can also provide on-site training. Some customers will ask if we can be there for their first race…and we offer that as well! In short, we’re going to make sure you are well-trained and ready to put on a great race.
Jaguar is more than just great timing hardware and chips…it also includes our comprehensive race timing and management software. The Jaguar software is very powerful and not only runs the timing system; it also provides race reports, registration, and a complete database. It has real-time updates and reports that can be generated at any time during the race. In addition, we have software that can provide real-time results on large screen displays so that race participants, and their friends and family, can see their results as they cross the finish line! Furthermore, our system can automatically update your web site in real-time as the race progresses, it can send Wi-Fi messages to cell phones and laptop computers at the race, and it can even update a Microsoft Excel Spreadsheet file in real-time during the race! In short, our software turns an ordinary race into a world-class event. If you’ve ever seen an Ironman race where they post real-time results on large screens, that’s exactly what Jaguar can do for you. Even better, you can display sponsor’s names and logos on these screens!
Perhaps one of the greatest features of our system is its flexibility. Unlike other systems on the market, we manufacture 8 different types of timing chips that are designed to meet your unique needs. Many of our timing chips are disposable, inexpensive, flexible, and they can be read at distances of 1 to 25 feet. Why is that such an advantage? With our timing chips, you can place them on a race bib, shoe, backpack, swimsuit, bike, motorcycle, ankle strap, or virtually any other surface. If you’re buying a timing system, you’ll want one that allows you to time running events, kayak races, adventure races, cycling events, trail runs, triathlons, mountain biking, cross country skiing, or any other type of race. In other words, you don’t want to be locked into a system that won’t meet your future needs. You’ll need a system that can provide you a good return on your investment. That means you need a system with maximum flexibility. With our Jaguar system, you can mount the antennas above or beside the course. There are no messy mats, wires, or plastic ramps to get in the way…and you don’t have to worry about weather, uneven ground, or athletes stumbling over the timing antennas. As you may know, we also operate a race company. We built Jaguar because we could not find a system that met all of our needs and was flexible enough to justify the investment.
There are a lot of timing systems out there, and purchasing one can be a challenging issue. One thing you can count on from our company is that we really do know a lot about racing and timing systems. For example, consider the following advantages we offer:
We are experts on racing – I am an Ironman athlete myself, and our team includes serious athletes, some of whom compete at world championship events
We also operate a racing company, so we not only build this system, we use it at our own races and it has to work well
We don’t just buy off-the-shelf hardware and timing chips and sell them to you. We invented much of our own technology, so it’s specifically designed and optimized for race timing
Our systems use a disposable chip that starts at 60 cents and drops to 40 cents as you buy more
Jaguar is more than just a race timing system, it also has announcer screens, a race clock, remote control of the system, and the ability to interface to Microsoft Word or Excel
Etc…
One of the greatest hidden costs of owning a timing system is the continued purchasing of timing chips. Over a year or two, this can really add up and make it difficult to enjoy a low cost of ownership. That’s not the case with our system. For example, our S-Chip starts at 60 cents and drops to 40 cents as you buy more quantity. Compare that to other companies that charge anywhere from $1.25 to $35 and you’ll see why our system is so attractive. Don’t worry about that low price impacting your read rates though…in the past few weeks, there were many races across the country timed with our system that achieved great read success! How do we know that? We’re the only company that makes it easy for you to email a diagnostics file to us that allows us to analyze your race results and provide you feedback on how you are doing with the system. We do that at no charge because we view ourselves as your partner and we’re here to help you have a great race!
As you can see, our Jaguar system really delivers. But don’t take our word for it. Here are some recent comments from one of our customers:
We had a race today and it went great. The system picked up several timing chips that were under their shirts. That made our life easy. The people had a company last year that used a chip on the shoe. They said many chips were missed because they were wet. They had to go back and match the chip number and it was a pain. They were really impressed with the Jaguar system and they want us to come back next year. Your system really made it easy and made us look good!
If you would like to know more about Jaguar, I would be happy to call you and share some additional insights. There are a number of things I can tell you that will really help you understand the strengths and weaknesses of various types of timing systems. I can also show you a live demo over the internet of the Jaguar system, and you can even operate it yourself.
Thanks Pete,
Kurt
Kurt Hansen
President
Innovative Timing Systems, LLC
(314) 439-9537 x111
(314) 439-9540 Fax
www.innovativetimingsystems.com