GPS OPINIONS

[Jimmy8]

I have a question and no one really has given me a good straight answer. We have raced for 27 years now, and never once used a GPS in our race vehicles. I know the opportunity has only come about the last 10 years, but we never have. We have done really well in the 8 truck with out one, but I am getting curious about them now that they are a craze. I was thinking of getting one for the new Trophy Truck. I was wondering if anyone can tell me the real advantages to having one in the truck. Keep in mind this is going to be a single seat so I wont be able to punch buttons every 2 seconds like a co rider would be able to in a 2 seater. I want real answers, not just yes they are good so put them in the truck. I am really curious, and I was wondering if they really help in races such as Laughlin, you have to be pretty damn stupid to get lost in that race. Give me some answers guys.

 

[jeff]

Hmm...

If you are all alone in the truck without someone there to keep an eye on things - it'll only really help should you have trouble, get lost, or??? It's nice to give your chase team an EXACT location when you need them to get to you QUICK... or to let SCORE (or other sanctioning body) know of emergencies... If you take a wrong turn at night in the dust and want to know which way the course is, it'll be a major time saver.

Personally - I hate sitting in the rightside seat staring at rally style computers or GPS screens - and can barely do it at speed - mind you I've got young eyes and good vision - a lone driver trying to keep tabs on the GPS system would probably end up causing him/her self more harm than good...

If they could come up with a system that could be wired into the helmet that pointed out gotchas and other course markers, that'd kick ass... I thought it'd be cool to prerun and put all the notable coordinates into a computer and then put voice to them that coincided with actual vehicle location... so as you came upon a gotcha or course marker it'd say WATCH THE HELL OUT FOR THE 90-DEGREE RIGHT TURN WITH THE CLIFF ON THE LEFT... then you might have a system more suited to solo drivers. Just my $.02

 

[TimHayosh]

GPS probably wouldn't be overly useful on a lap race. As mentioned in the 2nd post, they are great for knowing if you are off the path. Some have "course deviation" alarms to let you know if off the course by a specified amount. And as long as your chase crew has one (and know how to use it), you can tell them where you are if you're broke.

On a long race, they are invaluable. They team I ran with in the 2000 said they would have never finished if it weren't for GPS (2 seat car).

If anyone out there has a Lowrance GlobalMap 1600 for sale please contact me. Thanks.

Of course, if you have a helicopter....

 

[Jimmy8]

Yeah, I would love to have one of those as well, but I have a lot better places to spend 5 million.

 

[John Bitting]

I think a GPS is a good thing to have.. The lowrance 1600 looks like the best bang for the buck. Pci sells them for a good price.. <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.pciraceradios.com>www.pciraceradios.com</A>

 

[frankh]

If you are a BFG member you can get a file from them and it will plot the course on the screen. then if you are lost you can see where the track is relative to where you are. also if you look on the net you can fine the 1600 for $525. If we all get to gather and buy 5 or so. we may get a better price. I will negotiate the deal.


Frank

 

[Jimmy8]

We are sponsored by Goodyear, but a guy from ford goes on all of the BITD preruns and puts points in his GPS the whole length of the course, then the day before the race he has a seminar on the GPS for that particular race and it is open to everyone, not just ford drivers. He has been trying to convice us to go to GPS as well. Its really tempting, and if it was a 2 seater, I would definately do it, but by my choice it will be single seat, and I dont know how beneficial it will be to me unless I get lost. I may get one a put it in the 8 truck that I will be driving for the next year or two until my TT is done and then put it in that. We know some people at BFG so I know we could still get their program, but I didnt know they do that. Keep bringing the thoughts and ideas though, I have learned a lot.

 

[John Bitting]

Frank, Gabe and I both are interested in buying the 1600 let me know what you want to do and when you are going to try and work the deal, we are ready.

 

[jeff]

Speaking of BFG and course marking... Stop on by the BFG booth at the Off-Road Expo and look around for Jeff Cummings... Jeff is the guy that maps out many of the SCORE races... including this years Baja 1000 - and he's already been down and back for that. He's got a killer Suburban that looks tame and mild - but damn if he doesn't mark Baja like a madman on a mission from God. That rig has all sorts of electronic tracking gizmos in it. If you have a GPS related question and run BFG tires, and he's not busy, I'm sure he can give you the necessary information.

 

[frankh]

Well we are up to three I'll give it a couple day and see how many. At the 500 I got lost at night and I had a handheld one I had to wait a little till it locked on. BFG does it for the big ones

 

[Jimmy8]

Another thing I have been looking at is a Terra Trip Rally Computer. I think it would be great for a single seater instead of a GPS. I know some racers use these instead of a GPS. You can display how far you have gone total, how far you have gone in between pits, or how far you have left. It also can tell you your speed or it can tell you your average speed. I think it would be great because you would not have to look at mile markers and could go off of this thing and if you ever broke you could tell them the exact mile you are at. They are also a little cheaper than a GPS, and have a big display I could glance down at once in a while instead of a gps screen. Here is a website that carries them, along with a bunch of MOMO stuff ect. Check it out, and tell me what you think. Look under Rally Equiptment for the computer. <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.subesports.com>www.subesports.com</A> I also believe they are out of Huntington beach.

 

[jeff]

Once you get all of the information into the Rally computer they are very handy for what you described... but if you unknowingly deviate from the course then you are screwed - you'd have to reset the system to start fresh from a known distance point. Another problem that some vehicles have with the Rally type system is wheel spin - some of the systems run off the driveshaft, if you are spinning the wheels then the reading won't be very accurate, same goes for sensors mounted on the front wheels, there will always be some error - I guess that's the chance you have to take. Better than nothing for sure. It's pretty tough to get lost on most rally courses - Paris-Dakar is another story... I bet Curt LeDuc has all sorts of GPS systems in that ride of his - getting lost out there is not an option.

On a side note - I love listening to the in-car audio of the professional Rally teams - they have precise course notes that put most of what we use to shame.

I bet there will be plenty of navigation type representation at the Off-Road Expo this year - if you don't already have plans to go out to Pomona - make them!

 

[Jimmy8]

I'll be there for sure. We are leaving here in Parker at 6:00 in the morning, and that should put us in Pomona a little after 9:00. One big reason for this post was to get some info so when I go to the expo I know what I'm looking at. With the terratrip, I never thought about wheel spin. Thats a good point. I am also going to talk to Churchhill from Ford, because he does all of the GPS for the BITD races, and he was the one that has been trying to convice us to put the GPS in. I am going to do something, I just dont know if it will be a Terratrip or a GPS. If I was to build a 2 seater it would definately be a GPS, but right now I may be leaning tword the rally computer, because it has some cool features and I think for a single seat and what I want it for it may be best. Who knows, the expo may change my mind completely. I found 2 more websites. Check out the new GPS from Lowrance. www.terratrip.com Thanks for all the info guys, and I am still open for some more opinions if anyone else has any.

 

[John Bitting]

Jimmy my opinion is a 2 seater TT and I will read the manual on the 1600 and watch it for you from the right hand seat.. See you tomorrow..

 

[TimHayosh]

Jimmy, for the TerraTrip ("TerrorTrip") to work as you indicated, it would require you to input certain things...while you were driving. Remember that the people marking the course are using odometers and GPS; not a TerraTrip accurate to 1/100 of a mile.

As for the Group Purchase of the GlobalMap 1600, count me in. Currently, the pricing is as follows:
Cabela's: $499
onlinemarine.com: $525
theGPSstore.com: $550
PlanetGPS.com: $559

Cheers, Tim

 

[frankh]

Tim
I found onlinemarine for $525 but not he other one for $499. with you we are up to four maybe we can get them for $475 or somthing. I would be will to call them and see if they will deal.

 

[TimHayosh]

Frank, here is the ridiculously long URL for the page at Cabela's.com...<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/product/standard-item.jhtml?id=0000686013145a&navAction=jump&navCount=0&indexId=&podId=0000686&catalogCode=IB&parentId=&parentType=&_DARGS=/cabelas/en/common/catalog/item-link.jhtml.1_A&_DAV=0000686013145a>GlobalMap1600 is here.</A>

 

[frankh]

Sent them a e-mail and will let you know what they say

 

[ntsqd]

I think I'm interested in the 1600 if that's where this is headed, especially if it comes in under 5 bills. I have a Garmin III now that I really like, but for the price that is a whole lot more machine. I'll touch base tomorrow at the RDC booth or look for the guy wearing the "Bigger Dick Racing" T. Doubt there's too many of them in So. CA.

"Teach you all I know and you're still stupid"
-- Howdy Lee

 

[TimHayosh]

Frank, I mis-read your post and thought you were saying for ME to send them an email. So, I did. I also found another outlet, and emailed them the same thing. Further, I have contacted Lowrance to see what they might offer.

I had an amazing GPS experience this weekend at the CODE race. I was riding shotgun in Kenneth Montijo's chase rig. As we went out to chase, I started the GPS unit (Garmin GPS 12). This is a rather inexpensive little unit. Also, I have NEVER even used a GPS unit before. In about 1 minute I had the thing tracking sat's, and drawing a map. By the end of the day, I scaled down the map to the 0.3 Mi scale. Without looking at the road, I was able to tell Kenneth exactly when to turn. They say the accuracy is like 3-10 meters. I was within 3 feet* With the GlobalMap 1600 in a car, getting lost will never happen again. Further, when in dusty/dark conditions like the last MDR race, the advantages are enormous. It would be easy to wire-in a couple of momentary switches so that the co-driver could adjust the scale without touching the unit.

Having now gained first hand experience with GPS, I don't want to ever race without it.