Finding the Right Tool for the Job
- Steve Froeschle
- Feb 3
- 2 min read
Updated: Feb 3
Behind the Finish Line at Estes Park Skijor
When Nonstop was presented with the opportunity to time Estes Park Skijor, we couldn’t have been more excited.
Skijoring, a winter sport with Scandinavian roots in which a skier is pulled with a rope by a horse, has exploded across social media in recent years. At first glance, the spectacle is outrageous. Horses barreling down a track at speeds approaching 40 mph, skiers in tow, navigating moguls, jumps, and obstacles, with shoulder-to-shoulder crowds lining the course. It’s tailor-made for viral clips.
But for the athletes competing, skijor is anything but a novelty.
While novice categories welcome newcomers to the sport, the sport and open divisions attract serious talent, from the skiers and riders to the horses themselves. With substantial prize money on the line at many skijor events, competitors push for every possible advantage. The difference between first and second place often comes down to mere fractions of a second.
That raises a critical question: how do you accurately time a race when competitors are flying through the finish line at 40 mph and every thousandth of a second matters?
In a typical road race, athletes wear a bib with a timing chip attached. This system works exceptionally well for running events, with read rates frequently exceeding 99.5% and accuracy within two tenths of a second. But skijor demands more. Athletes often complete multiple runs as part of different teams throughout the day, and swapping bibs between runs simply isn’t practical. More importantly, the margin of error needs to be far smaller.
For Estes Park Skijor, the solution was a photocell timing system.
Photocells use a transmitter to project an infrared beam across the finish line to a receiver on the opposite side. When that beam is broken by a skier crossing the line, a time is recorded instantly. Photocell systems are among the most accurate timing methods available, with precision down to 0.0001 seconds.
At Estes Park, we deployed FDS Photocells integrated with our Race Result Ubidium timing system, allowing us to access and manage times wirelessly and remotely throughout the event.
The result was a seamless race-day operation, with fast, accurate results delivered to athletes, organizers, and spectators alike.
At Nonstop, we take pride in adapting the right technology to each event and continuing to innovate to meet the unique challenges our clients face—because not all timing jobs are created equal.
Full Estes Park Skijor results can be found here.
Take a look at a few photos from the weekend below and be sure to watch the finish line video to get a sense of just how fast these competitors are coming through the line!
Photos courtesy of In Focus Photo Co