Relay Team Tracking: RaceJoy Announces Industry Innovation

RaceJoy has released a new version that introduces its latest innovation for tracking relay teams at running and cycling events. Key improvements include the ability for manual check-ins, new login screens, team performance monitoring, and more fine tune controls for the user.  These are in addition to recent advances like Store and Forward of a participant’s performance when travelling through a section without cell service.

We’ve had growing demand for a robust relay solution in RaceJoy from events that have a relay component and especially from long endurance relay and trail events.

Relay teams have unique needs in comparison to solo participants and race organizers face limitations when it comes to feasible and affordable tracking options. This is especially true for long endurance relay and trail running events. Because of the way RaceJoy takes advantage of GPS and cell technology, it is able to deliver an advanced solution that helps teams to coordinate their efforts with live tracking and communication tools. In addition, race organizers are able to monitor the teams’ performance and communicate directly with team members or all participants as needed.

Relay Team LIVE Tracking

By carrying their phone and using RaceJoy, relay team members are able to track one another’s position live on race day (including the team van). This is especially helpful in coordinating efforts during the event. As part of the new release, RaceJoy has introduced new login screens like these:

With this release, teams can set up their legs, and even choose multiple legs, prior to race day. Since we know things tend to change on race day, leg assignments can be changed at any time through race day.

On race day, team members click the Start My Leg button to start their personal clock for their leg.  RaceJoy auto detects when they complete their leg.

Active leg participants now receive audio split alerts that are specific to their leg so they can better manage their performance, and these occur at every mile. Team progress alerts are notifications and are delivered to anyone tracking the team (these occur typically every 1 or 5 miles depending on the course distance and at exchange locations):

The new release includes a live view of individual leg performance along with the team’s overall performance as shown below.

Manual Check-Ins:

One of the most unique aspects of relay events for race organizers is the need to monitor which teams have completed the exchange points. With the new release, RaceJoy allows teams to manually check in at legs for those that don’t use RaceJoy or did not activate the leg tracking. This is a feature requested by Peak to Brew’s race organizer and adds greater flexibility for both teams and race organizers (thanks, Jason!). Manual check-ins gives the responsibility to the team for checking in at the exchange points so that both the team and race organizers have a more complete view of the team’s performance.

Team Communication

Team members are able to use RaceJoy’s Send-a-Cheer feature to send either pre-recorded sound files that RaceJoy has loaded or custom messages that are played in audio format for the participant. For example, if the team’s van were to run out of gas, the team could let the active leg know he/she needs to continue on with the next leg like with this message:

Race Organizers: Unique for Relay Team Management

RaceJoy offers a Race Day Monitoring system to easily monitor relay teams from a web-based dashboard where a specific relay course or team can be viewed in a global map. Race organizers can click on relay team exchange points to get an at-a-glance view of the progress for the various teams.

Below is a global map monitoring view:

 

The addition of the manual check-ins means that race organizers can have a more complete view of relay team’s performance. In addition, Store and Forward is a recent RaceJoy advancement and is activated when a participant travels through an area without cell service. The participant will continue to hear their personal split alerts and the system will store up their performance and then deliver the data once he/she reaches a functioning cell area. These two advancements provide the race organizer with a more complete view of participant’s progress:

Other key features for race organizers include off course alerts, route replay and various live communications tools.

We are definitely seeing a growing trend for relays as an alternative experience that provides a fellowship component participants are seeking. We are very excited to share the significant advancements in RaceJoy that are designed around the unique needs of relay teams joining forces to complete a physical and mental challenge together. If you’d like more information about using RaceJoy at your next event, contact us at info@racejoy.com.

Download the latest version: