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Appendix C: History of Swim Timing
Appendix C:
History of Swim Timing
Congratulations on the purchase of your new System 6 Sports Timer!
You have chosen the latest sports timer from Colorado Time Systems, the company that
pioneered precision and accuracy in swim timing. A legacy of excellence is behind your new
timer.
In the early 1970s, Colorado Time Systems offered the first practical display timing and
scoreboard system to the American marketplace. It featured easy-to-read final time displays plus
the first “split time” display available on a swim timer. Our Printing Timer system, which
incorporated a built-in paper strip printer, appeared a few years later. The Printing Timer
provided an affordable, instantly printed split and final times at the end of each heat. It also
included three buttons per lane backup timing with automatic comparison of touchpad and
backup times. An optional standby battery system provided protection against loss of data in the
event of an electrical power failure.
In the early 1980s, Colorado Time Systems introduced the third generation timing system that
revolutionized the industry with innovative features -- the Swimming III timing system. New
features included race memory to store previous race results, thereby speeding meet operation, a
relay judging system and the use of a membrane keyboard with over-lays to replace obsolete
button keyboards. The Swimming III timer quickly and easily converted to other aquatic sports
simply by loading a different program cassette and changing the keyboard overlay. The
Swimming III timer earned recognition as the performance standard of the industry from 1981
through 1989.
In the late 1980s, Colorado Time Systems introduced the next generation sports timer. The
System 4000 included the industry’s first full-sized printer and meet management computer. A
full range of sports timing programs were available on programmable cards. Installing a new
program became as simple as inserting a new card into the slot on the System 4000 rear panel.
The System 4000 set the pace in the sports timing industry in its time.
The System 5 Sports Timer continued Colorado Time Systems’ tradition of using advanced
technology to provide beneficial new features. A large LCD screen with contrast control enabled
the operator to see at a glance the entire race situation, including the status of each lane. The ease
of operation built into the System 4000 was further advanced in the System 5. Most keyboard
operations required only a single keystroke. The System 5 also incorporated output for meet
management software and expanded race memory with enough space to store the entire meet’s
results--all-important innovations in swim timing. Meet efficiency benefitted since a race could
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