More Training to be a Better RO

[teros135]

Also, don't forget to face the timer outward in your hand, so the microphone is facing the shooter.  (Amazing how often someone holds it inward, maybe because it's more comfortable for them to hit the start button.  But then the sounds of the shots are muffled into your hand and they won't all register.  It's one of those little things that can mean a lot.)

[motosapiens]

3 hours ago, teros135 said:

Also, don't forget to face the timer outward in your hand, so the microphone is facing the shooter.  (Amazing how often someone holds it inward, maybe because it's more comfortable for them to hit the start button.  But then the sounds of the shots are muffled into your hand and they won't all register.  It's one of those little things that can mean a lot.)

good advice. also good advice to glance at the timer now and then to make sure it's picking up shots, especially the last shots. it's surprising how often it happens that RO's don't pay attention to this and an incorrect or suspicious time gets recorded. Some unscrupulous shooters will even argue to keep the time even tho they and everyone else knows it's wrong and it's plainly obvious in their published match video that the time was wrong.

[teros135]

1 hour ago, motosapiens said:

good advice. also good advice to glance at the timer now and then to make sure it's picking up shots, especially the last shots. it's surprising how often it happens that RO's don't pay attention to this and an incorrect or suspicious time gets recorded. Some unscrupulous shooters will even argue to keep the time even tho they and everyone else knows it's wrong and it's plainly obvious in their published match video that the time was wrong.

Yep.  I glance at the timer after the first couple of shots to make sure it's working and registering shots.  I make sure I have the timer up and near the shooter so the last shot registers (especially 9 mm, which is fairly "quiet", especally if the gun is held out past a wall or port).  

[davsco]

not only do you want to get the last shot to register, you also want that to be the last shot to register.  i pay attention to the shooter unloading and not the timer, so immediately after the shooter finishes, i hold the timer way behind me so that it doesn't pick up the shooter unloading, and for the scoring RO to see and record his time.  last weekend i guess the guy on the nook didn't see the time and i laid the timer on a nearby table and it must have picked up that noise as it showed way more time than it seemed to take, so we backed it up one "shot" for the real time.  it was like a 10 second break between "shots" so that made sense.

[motosapiens]

1 hour ago, davsco said:

not only do you want to get the last shot to register, you also want that to be the last shot to register.  i pay attention to the shooter unloading and not the timer, so immediately after the shooter finishes, i hold the timer way behind me so that it doesn't pick up the shooter unloading, and for the scoring RO to see and record his time.  last weekend i guess the guy on the nook didn't see the time and i laid the timer on a nearby table and it must have picked up that noise as it showed way more time than it seemed to take, so we backed it up one "shot" for the real time.  it was like a 10 second break between "shots" so that made sense.

 

I memorize the time before I reach back to show it to the timer RO, then I call it out after ULSC. If something trips it in between those two points, I will know it and be able to correct it. At the first area match I worked we had a situation where some shooters almost got screwed with extra seconds when the RO was NOT being careful about that. We ended up getting it straightened out and had at least 1-2 guys re-shoot, but I only because I threw a fit. The timer RO was ready to let the time stand even tho we knew it was very likely wrong.

Edited March 16, 2017 by motosapiens

[IHAVEGAS]

Had a timer go to sleep mode at exactly the wrong time at a level 2 match last year. Lesson learned, play with the durn thing after a delay. 

 

[jnkill]

On 3/16/2017 at 3:46 PM, davsco said:

not only do you want to get the last shot to register, you also want that to be the last shot to register.  i pay attention to the shooter unloading and not the timer, so immediately after the shooter finishes, i hold the timer way behind me so that it doesn't pick up the shooter unloading, and for the scoring RO to see and record his time.  last weekend i guess the guy on the nook didn't see the time and i laid the timer on a nearby table and it must have picked up that noise as it showed way more time than it seemed to take, so we backed it up one "shot" for the real time.  it was like a 10 second break between "shots" so that made sense.

Exactly, I’ve had the last shot brass hit the timer and add a full second, if I wasn’t watching it would have hurt their score 

[zzt]

One of the problems I keep running into is a timer set sensitive so it picks up shots from an uncomp'd 22 rifle (in SC) and then records extra shots from a center fire if you face the pickup outward.  We have found that for center fire you face the timer to the rear and that 'cures' the problem.  What remains is the problem with echo from a 22 rifle off near berms.  I've taken to counting shots and comparing (after clear) that to the shot total on the timer.  If I count six shots and the timer shows nine, we back it up to six and record the time.  However, there really is no way to know if the sixth 'shot' the timer picked up was real or an echo, and the seventh was the actual time.

 

This really only manifests itself when the timer follows the squad.  When the timer stays on the stage, because it is pared with a big board, it can be set properly for that stage.