OK boys & girls, We are having the 1st Annual NCL Reaction Time Nationals! Those that have frequented a drag strip probably knows what a reaction time is. Those who haven't, here is a brief description. In a drag race of two competitors, the elapsed time in each lane starts when the front tire trips a timing beam (not when the green light comes on). It is therefore possible for a slower car to beat a faster car if he has a better reaction to the green light (leave before the green and get eliminated with a red light).

 

We are going to simulate this competition with a desktop device (christmas tree) that measures your reaction time. You will be paired with another competitor by a draw, and the winner of the round advances to the next round. After round two (more about this later), a ladder will be made that determines the pairings.

 

We will be using a 'Sportsman Tree'. What this means that there will be three yellow lights that come on sequentially every 1/2 second. The green light will be 1/2 second later. The rollout (time for the wheel to break the beam after the green) will be set at .380 seconds (typical of a sportsman car). You must therefore anticipate the green.

 

But wait, there is money involved. Entry will cost $1.00. First round losers can buy back in for $1.00 (reason for drawing second round pairings). The winner will get 60% of the pot, runner up will get 40%.

 

Racing will start 6:00 pm. I will have the Porta-Tree set up in Friendship Hall at 4:00 pm if you want to come up to practice (recommended). I will be managing the competition and will not be competing (maybe race the winner for fun).

 

If there is interest (and time), a second competition can be run using the 'Pro Tree'. Here all three yellow lights come on together with the green light lighting .400 second later. Rollout would be set at .240 seconds, typical of a pro car.  

 

Here is an image of the desktop tree:

http://www.portatree.com/media/ecom/prodxl/ElimCompLG.jpg