Running Head: Technology Project

Technology Project
Natalie Welsh
KIN 710: Technology in Kinesiology
Dr. Sailor
June 10, 2015

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Technology Project
Needs of the Target Population
The need of the target population is an all-weather track and field surface and digital
Finshlynx timing system.
The Problem
The problem currently is that Corning Union High School does not have an all-weather
track surface for the community, track athletes, physical education students, and other student
athletes to utilize. In addition, track athletes do not have a reliable and accurate timing system
during home track and field meets. The cause of the problem is a lack of funding to construct a
facility and update the dirt track dating back to 1967. It is first important to construct an allweather track, prior to obtaining a FinishLynx Timing System, as track athletes have slower
times on a dirt track, so the track surface is a higher priority than the timing system
Groups that will Benefit and How
There are several groups that will benefit from Coring Union High School having an allweather track and field surface as well as the digital FinishLynx timing system. The community
of Corning, the physical education classes at Coring Union High School, the sports programs at
Corning Union High School, as well as the average eighty to one hundred track and field athletes
that come out for the track team (in a school of nine hundred students), would greatly benefit
from an all-weather track surface. The high school track athletes, as well as middle school and
elementary school track athletes who would hold meets at the high school would greatly benefit
from the FinishLynx system timing to provide accurate times at the completion of races.
Currently, the City of Corning does not have walking or running paths to foster a safe
place to do these forms of physical activity. Additionally, in 2012, Corning had a violent crime

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rating of 369.3, compared to the national average of 214.0. Due to crime ratings, residents might
not chose to enjoy walking or running on city sidewalks, especially in the darker evening or early
morning hours. By having a safe place to enjoy and participate in physical activity, more
residents in the town of Corning might chose to be physically active.
I hope that by having the all-weather track surface, as well as a high-tech FinishLynx
timing system, that the constituents of the City of Corning, as well as the students at Coring
Union High School will have a product to be proud of. My hope is that this track would inspire
more youth to become track and field athletes, and more members of the community to become
runners. Most of all, I hope that the track athletes of Corning Union High School would take
pride in their new facility and timing system. I would look forward to their experience being a
more injury-free experience and to them having the ability to create personal records on our
track.
What do I want to Accomplish?
I want to raise the funds necessary to provide Corning Union High School, as well as the
community of Corning, with an all-weather track surface and FinishLynx system timing
technology for track athletes. I want to raise community awareness about the benefits of having
an all-weather facility in the community of Corning, as well was as to the benefits of using a
FinishLynx timing system for the track and field team.
Evaluation of the Project
I will know that I have accomplished my goal of completing an all-weather track and
field surface as well as providing a FinishLynx timing system when we hold our first home track
meet on our new surface and are able to successfully run the FinishLynx program to time athletes
during their events.

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In order to evaluate the impact on the track surface, we would be able to compare
previous data to new data to see if the new surface is truly helping our athletes to achieve better
times. We would also be able to give our students accurate times at the completion of their races,
rather than giving them a hand time, which would later be increased through the hand timing
margin of error that the athletic.net system that we currently use would implement. We would
also be able to complete community and campus wide surveys to measure the use of and feelings
towards the new facility.
The Solution
The idea is to have road base and an all-weather track surface put down on our current
dirt track and to complete the project by purchasing a FinishLynx timing system so that athletes
can get accurate times at the completion of their running events.
The Budget
There are several companies that will complete an all-weather track job. Most companies
average around $300,000.00 to simply lay the road base and cover with an all-weather surface.
Currently the track at Corning Union High School is an equal quadrant track, meaning that is has
two 100 meter straightaways, and two 100 meter curves. This type of track is not currently the
style that is most commonly constructed in the United States today as it makes the curves much
tighter for running. To create a more preferred eight lane non-equal quadrant track at our high
school would consist of moving the current drainage, sewer, electrical systems, stadium lighting,
visiting section wooden bleachers, and cutting into the current football field. To complete this
kind of renovation, the track would cost at least two to three million dollars to reconstruct. In lei
of this kind of financial burden, the more achievable choice through fundraising, community
donations, as possible city tax, would be to keep the current format of our equal quadrant seven

Technology Project
lane track, and to simply pour the road base followed by the track surface. This model would be
more around the $300,000.00 price point.
The twelve, (or more), year upkeep of this track would require a new surface, which
would cost $252,000, which would last for at least another eight years. This would bring the cost
of the track over twenty years to around $612,000.00.
The FinshLynx system would cost $16, 995.00 for the Gold plan, which includes one
finish line camera. This would be the package I would select if we were to keep the current
format of our track, as two cameras, included in the next price point up, may not be as necessary
with only seven lanes.
Below are the price breakdowns for the all-weather track surface, and FinishLynx
systems:
Full Pour Polyurethane track surface at 13mm and preparatory work to be completed by Beynon
Company. The Sales Manager for California is located in Fresno, California.

Cost of the Beynon 13 mm Polyurethane Track Surface and Road-Base Preparatory work:
Initial investment of $360, 000.00
12 Year or More Re-pour $252, 000.00
20 or More Year Total $612, 000.000
FinishLynx Timing System (can be ordered through www.finishlynx.com) $16, 995.00 Includes
the following:

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One Photo Finish Camera Model # 5L5000
Vision at 2,000 frames per second
Motorized Zoom
Easy Align- Full-Frame Video
Full-color Photo Finish Images
500 Start cable and Cabled Start Sensor
All necessary Ethernet and camera cables
Water Resistant Housing
Power over Ethernet Injector
Custom FinishLynx Carrying Case
LynxPad Meet Management Software
Tech Support and One Year Renewable Warranty
FinishLynx Software Including:
Support for RadioLynx Wireless Start
Support for Lynx Software Plug-ins
Support for Multiple FinishLynx Cameras
Support for IdentiLynx 2-D Video Camera
Scoreboard Interface for Automatic Wind Reading Data Import

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Print Laminator and 50 Foam Boards
Automatic Capture and Virtual Photocell Plugin
High Resolution (2,000 fps) Images
Remote Positioner (Remote Camera Adjustment)
Motorized Lens (Remote Lens Adjustment)
RadioLynx Wireless Start System
Power over Ethernet Network Switch
IndetniLynx Full Frame Video Camera
9 Digit Alphanumeric Scoreboard
Impact: How many students helped, what extent of help
Assuming that the all-weather track and field surface will last for at least an estimated
twelve years before needing to be re-poured, an estimated 3,600 high school students will have
access to the all-weather track surface for physical education classes, for use in their sports
teams, or for personal use. In addition, this track will host two middle school track at field meets
a year, which will impact 2,400 students over a twelve year period. This track will also host a
youth track meet each year, which will benefit around 800 pre-kindergarten through eighth grade
students. Finally, the community of Corning, consisting of around 8,000 residents would directly
benefit by having a safe place to walk and exercise, as the city does not currently have any
dedicated running or walking trails within the city limits.
The FinishLynx timing system would directly benefit the track and field athletes at
Coring Union High School, as well as the middle and elementary track athletes that would use

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this technology for their track meets. Currently, our high school track meets are hand timed,
which is an inaccurate way of timing track events. Even if the hand time were to be exact, time is
added to scores when we input them into the athletic.net system to address the possible margin of
error from hand-timing. So even if an athlete were to break a school record, or earn a time that is
the best in the section, and even if that time was to be accurate, an additional amount of time
would be added to the race time to account for the possibility of error, which can lead to
frustration and disappointment to the athlete. Combine that frustration with running on one of the
few dirt tracks remaining at a Division II high school in California, and it can be very tough for
our athletes.
What is Currently Being Done?
Currently there is a Corning Union High School Track campaign on the Gofundme
fundraising website at http://www.gofundme.com/Corningtrack. Track athlete have created a
video and fundraising is currently underway. There will also be a tax bond on the 2016 City of
Corning Ballet. This same bond has been voted down before, as Corning is a low-income
community, high in agricultural production. Much of the taxation would be applied to farmers
owning large acreage.

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References
http://www.city-data.com/crime/crime-Corning-California.html

http://www.beynonsports.com/en/about-beynon/the-company

http://www.gofundme.com/Corningtrack

http://www.finishlynx.com/download/marketing-documents/high-school-track/packagescompare.pdf