Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - Alley Cat race checkpoint question

Hello:

I'm putting on an adventure race in the spring that will have check points similar to those in alley cat races. My question is what are some effective ways of having un-personed check points?

So far I've seen:

ticket-punch cabled to fixed object (like a light post)
misc. trinkets at ea check point
RFID cards (uh, a little beyond my budget)
competitor takes photo of checkpoint


These all have pros/cons. Looking for both pros/cons/inappropriate comments/as well as some totally new ideas.

Also, if you know of other/better places to ask this question let me know too.

Thanks!

i threw a race with some nonstaffed checkpoints. a way to do it is to have a spot on the racers' manifest where they write the answer to a question that can only be answered by being at that spot. one in my race was, "why can't you cross the river at the congress street bridge (http://http://www.past-inc.org/historic-bridges/movable-congress2.jpg)?"

hot chick hands out a checkpoint card at each checkpoint.

hot chick hands out a checkpoint card at each checkpoint.

that would then make it... a staffed... checkpoint?

hot chick hands out a checkpoint card at each checkpoint.

hot chicks are people, too. Reread OP.

that would then make it... a staffed... checkpoint?

yeah a staffed checkpoint with time stamped cards and hot chicks:D

I was at a race where you had to copy down this long phrase at the post office, and also copy down the hours.

yeah a staffed checkpoint with time stamped cards and hot chicks:D

you sir, are crazy.

you sir, are crazy.

everyone tells me this

Answering a question or writing down info isn't the best way to have a non-staffed checkpoint because racers can share answers before handing in their manifests. They can also split the checkpoints and share answers over the phone during the race.

Basically think of anything that can only be obtained at that specific location. ive had to read (then copy onto my manifest) the warning labels off the back of candy machines, grab a specific form from a library or post office, buy a product from a store (in the mini-alleycat i threw riders had to get sams-choice cola from either of the town's wal-marts). there are lots of things. if you are smart about it, you wont even have to set anything up yourself.

you could have them do impressions of something at the checkpoint with a crayon. just like in kindergarten!

you could have them do impressions of something at the checkpoint with a crayon. just like in kindergarten!

Oh, thats a good one!

Rumble through the Bronx 3 had an unmanned checkpoint on City Island where you had to dumpster a paper cup from this sea food restaurant and write down how much a lobster roll cost on the cup.

The St Patty's day race in Madison this spring have riders crayons and paper and had visiting several churches to take rubbings off of plaques out front. We also collected matchbooks at one stop which was a bar, and we also collected trinkets which had numbers coordinated to our rider numbers. There was also a stop at a thrift store where we had to purchase a green article. A couple of my buddies and I were doing really well, and then decided to go a couple miles out of our way to drink a beer and smoke a couple bowls. It was fun.

you could have them do impressions of something at the checkpoint with a crayon. just like in kindergarten!



best idea yet!

In the past, I'd post up a random stick drawing and have the riders do a rough sketch of it whenever a checkpointer backed out on me at the last second.

Pro - easy
Con - easy to forge

A friend did something cool for Thanksgiving last year. 10 checkpoints, all grocery stores. Your checkpoint marks were canned goods w/ receipts from all of the grocery stores. All of the food went to a local charity. It was pretty awesome.

Pro - food for homeless doods
Con - kinda hard to charge admission to a charity race

This is what we do for road rallies when we need to have an unstaffed checkpoint:

On the route instructions there will usually be a picture of a sign at or near the checkpoint. Two things usually are done: if there is a portion of the sign that's blacked out, the participant would have to write down the letters/numbers which have been blacked out. If there's nothing blacked out, you have to go find the sign and look on the back where there will be a small sticker (usually 2"x4") with a letter or number on it (which was placed afew days in advance) which will be written down and reported at the next manned checkpoint.

Of course as a rule you don't share your information with other competitors but that could be a problem depending on the kind of race you're doing.

the way it was done in the allston-brighton scramble last year was there was a spoke card taped to a wall at the unmanned checkpoint and you had to cut off a piece of it. I feel like this is a pretty easy, fail-safe way to do it.

i like the crayon rubbing idea. give everyone a different color so it's harder to forge.

ummm, blowup doll? Girlbots? I don't understand.

Crayons.

what? it went from unmanned to hot chicks to blowup dolls? wtf? this thread itself ain't sexist, but the undercurrents are flowing strong.

man with bayonet hand gun: that idea is easily the most badassest hitherto. I love it. +2 for crayon usage.

I began the thread with gender neutral "un-personed" language. But blow up dolls are funny and hot chick are, uh, hot. So are hot dudes. and hot trans-gendered persons. And hot ficus trees.

Damn there are a few really kick ass ideas:

I really like the crayon imprinting & the cutting up of something (it could be reassembled!) those are both low tech and secure.

That crayon idea is pretty cool. Seconded. Maybe you could take grave rubbings as well - for the Halloween ride.

awesome!

I began the thread with gender neutral "un-personed" language. But blow up dolls are funny and hot chick are, uh, hot. So are hot dudes. and hot trans-gendered persons. And hot ficus trees.



well, that counters and negates everything i said in a state of drunken indignation.

I'm gonna use the crayon rubbing for my freezing ass cold race this weekend thanks.

soze i got dibs on the crayon idea haha

Have sex with a prostitute.
Bring back knarly durty panties.

Have sex with a prostitute.
Bring back knarly durty panties.

you would say this

keepin it pervy up in here

Have sex with a prostitute.
Bring back knarly durty panties.

or a STD.

Have sex with a prostitute.
Bring back knarly durty panties.


haha, this wouldnt work in Japan, as you can just buy some at the vending machines, eh?

A friend did something cool for Thanksgiving last year. 10 checkpoints, all grocery stores. Your checkpoint marks were canned goods w/ receipts from all of the grocery stores. All of the food went to a local charity. It was pretty awesome.

Pro - food for homeless doods
Con - kinda hard to charge admission to a charity race

I love this so much I'm going to do one this year.

haha, this wouldnt work in Japan, as you can just buy some at the vending machines, eh?

I searched for one of those vending machines when I was in Japan and all I found was beer and porn. Even though I didn't find what I was looking for I was rewarded for my efforts.