Looking for suggestions on a very good commuications device for pace car to rider communication during RAAM. What do they use in the TDF? We have a four man team. Do they have devices that allow you to switch channels to different riders so that each rider can have his own earbud and hookup? That way we avoid having to switch during transitions.
Sorry, I don’t know about radio equipment, but I had a friend that did RAAM back in the 90’s.
There was only one guy allowed to talk to the Deiter and not by radio. That’s because they weren’t necessarily telling him the truth all the time and they didn’t want slips on the radio. For example, they’d tell him it was 4am and he could take a nap until the sun came up. In reality it was about 5:15!
Just something to consider…
I would suggest contacting some of the teams that have raced before to see what they’ve used and how well they’ve worked. (Based on my observations working at the Camdenton, Missouri, time station the last three years, the solo riders tend not to use radios between the rider and support vehicle. Instead of radios, the support vehicle would simply announce any instructions using the speakers attached to the roof of the vehicle. )
You can usually find contact information for the teams through the RAAM website.
If you want to do some research on radios on your own, go to www.bhphotovideo.com and search for “intercoms systems”. You’ll find that yes, indeed, there are multi-channel systems allowing the crew chief to communicate to specific riders. Here’s just one example of a two-way system. If you don’t need two-way communications between crew chief and rider, you’ll save a ton of money. Check out these options.
Good luck!
Jim
Time Station #31
www.ts31raam.com
Camdenton, MO