December Timer of the Month
Are you ready for the last Timer of the Month for 2019? Drumroll, please... It is Stephanie Slate! Stephanie is the Marketing, Events, and Systems Manager for Go! Sports Timing in the foothills of North Carolina and Southwestern Virginia.
1. Why did you become a timer?
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Prior to starting Go! Sports Timing and Events, we were involved with our local parks and rec department as volunteers and provided manual timing for some of their annual races and a few other small, local 5Ks. The races we were timing began growing larger each year to the point where manual timing was becoming cumbersome and error-prone, and results were taking longer and longer to compile. We saw a great opportunity to deliver professional, accurate chip timing, and because we were in a small town with relatively few races at the time, we were able to provide a superior level of one-on-one personal service and attention. As our business has grown, our focus has always been to maintain that same level of service for all of our events.
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2. What motto do you live by?
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Our mission has always been to deliver a great race experience for the participant and organizers. Regardless of the size of the race, we treat each one as if it is the most important one on our calendar.
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3. What event have you timed or hosted that has meant a lot to you?
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There are so many events we work with that inspire us to keep doing this crazy timing thing that it's hard to mention just one. Each year in May, we co-produce the Running the Vines 5K/10K at Shelton Vineyards with Mount Airy Parks and Recreation and Surry County Parks and Recreation. Proceeds from the race provide funding and scholarships for children and adults to enable them to participate in a variety of fitness and athletic activities, as well as support the Surry County Special Olympics and Surry County Senior Games. This event is especially meaningful to us because we started Running the Vines before we were Go! Sports Timing, and we have had the pleasure of watching it grow and develop over the years. 2020 marks its 10th anniversary, so we have a big celebration planned!
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4. What’s the craziest thing that has happened to you on a race day or leading up to an event?
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We have had a lot of crazy weather-related stories - an unexpected April snowstorm, flooded courses, torrential sideways rain, and wind - I guess all timers have similar tales. There was one morning it was freezing cold with drizzling sleet. Our reader froze up mid-race, along with a laptop, our iPhones, and an iPad the race director was using. We've had races that were as cold, but nothing has frozen up all our equipment at once like that since (knock on wood).
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5. Do you have any advice for other timers?
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Our advice to timers is twofold: 1) Continually "sharpen the saw" and stay current with the technology and features available in Jaguar and Its Your Race, as well as the latest offerings in the timing and event production space so you can stay competitive, and 2) Look for ways your events - both those you time for others and ones you produce - can become more attractive to potential participants, then work at developing those opportunities. As the races grow, your business will grow. We are not one of the biggest timers in the area by far, but we constantly work with our race directors to become an invaluable resource for them and find ways to make their event, and our company, stand out against the competition.
If you would like to learn more about Go! Sports Timing or get in contact with them, you can find their website here. You can also follow them on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
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Upcoming Races
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December
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December 7, 2019- Rosy Cheeks 5K
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March
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March 14, 2020- Feed Stokes 5K and Half Marathon
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March 21, 2020- Color Your Heart Glow Run/Walk
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March 21, 2020- Galax Elementary Tide Run 5K/10K
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March 28, 2020- Dragon Slayers 5K/10K for Surry Meals on Wheels
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April
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April 25, 2020- SCSEF MAD Dash 5K
May
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May 16, 2020- Running the Vines 5K/10K at Shelton Vineyards
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May 30, 2020- River Rush
October
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October 10, 2020- 5K On The Greenway
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November
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November 11, 2020- Mayberry Half Marathon, 5K, and 10K
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About Innovative Timing Systems, LLC: Innovative Timing Systems, LLC is a privately-owned company, providing leading-edge sports timing solutions and race timing services through a network of over 500 locations around the world. ITS provides advanced chip technologies, race kiosks, large athlete displays, live web updates, automated race photos, social media integration and mobile apps. Founded in 2008, ITS is headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri and has sales, support, and engineering facilities in numerous locations around the world.
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About ITS YOUR RACE: ITS YOUR RACE is the leader in online event management. An all-inclusive endurance event platform, ITS YOUR RACE offers easy registration and results with custom features including sponsorships, advertising opportunities, GPS tracking, athlete photos, finisher certificates, fundraising, and more. Over 10,000 events have chosen ITS YOUR RACE.​