Don't take our word for it, just listen to what our customers had to say about our products.
I have been a long time AIM customer (5 years), started from their Gold to using their MXL Pista for the past couple years when they first came out. Having sold my Spec Miata at the end of last season, I needed to get another system for my new car.
Since the AIM MXL Pista first came out, there have been several new offerings from different companies. I almost settled on the MXL again when I came across the products from RLC. I knew the RLC Micro Pod Lite fits my club racing budget but have reservations as it is small compared to the MXL Pista. But since the RLC Micro Pod Lite has GPS built-in (which is an expensive add-on option on the MXL Pista), I decided to give the Micro Pod Lite a try and had it installed.
My new car and the unit had its first outing this past weekend at Willowsprings Raceway, CA and boy was I pleasantly surprised. First off, size does not matter. The Micro Pod Lite display is so much brighter and the fonts are so much more visible than the larger MXL Pista. The color screen just blows the MXL away. It's like B&W vs Color TV, there is absolutely no comparison, and no going back.
Then off I went onto the track to do my gear calibration for the gear indicator. I used to disable that feature in the MXL because it was a convoluted processes to set it up. However, with the Micro Pod Lite, it is simple. I chose manual calibration, hold each gear for 10 secs as prompted, and was done before I finished half a lap. It was that straight forward.
So by the time I came back to the Start/Finish line, I hit another set of configuration buttons and now I have configured the Start/Finish line for this track which the unit will always remember. Bye-bye track side beacon. The unit now knows to give me my lap time whenever I cross this line. It took me several laps before I broke the habit of swinging close to the wall, formed when I was using the MXL, just to be sure I pick up the signal from the track side beacon of the MXL unit. Now I can stay wide, and leisurely look at the unit because I have configured the lap time to stayed "pop-up" for a long duration.
I was also concerned how well the touch screen display works with my racing gloves in a moving car. That was a non-issue. The touch screen worked flawlessly and responded quickly and precisely. Technology certainly has come a long way.
Back at the pits, all I needed was to plug in my memory stick to download data from the Micro Pod Lite. Gone were the frustration when my old MXL could not communicate with my laptop because of bad cable connections. Gone were the days when I cannot see the laptop screen because of glare from bright sunlight. Now I just bring the memory stick back to the trailer.
So far I had only tried my Micro Pod Lite at Willowsprings Raceway and I had no problem with the GPS tracking. Comparing the official AMB transponder lap times the club uploaded onto MyLaps.com to the Micro Pod Lite, practically all were within 1/10th of the official AMB time. More than 1/3 of all my lap times were within 1/100th of the official AMB time. It is that accurate.
The company RLC is also very receptive to suggestions I have for the unit and their analysis software. They told me their loggers are more like a PC, fully programmable with a modern programming language, so it is relatively easy for them to make revisions as compared to other company offerings. They said some of my suggestions have already been discussed and will be seeing them soon in their up coming firmware and software releases.
In the state of this economy, my Micro Pod Lite certainly gives me the most bang for the buck. Thanks RLC for making such a good product and keep up the good work.
–Clement SM#33
I took the track commander to the track for the first time last weekend, and it helped me to cut my lap times by over 0.4 seconds. I had been stuck turning multiple 38.89 second laps for the past three sessions (over 100 laps), and was finally able to hit a 38.44 with the help of your predictive timing. The predictive timing showed me just how much commitment and bravery can improve lap times in the fastest corners of the track. It also showed me how little can be gained on entry and in the middle of the slower corners.
The weather cooperated, and I finally had a chance to try out my new RLC Track Commander datalogger/color lap timer display. Before buying the RLC unit, I used a 5Hz GPS logger, but wanted to replace it with something that would provide predictive lap timing. After looking at the other vendors (Traqmate, AIM, MaxQ, VBox), I chose the RLC unit because it had some fantastic software and a fair price.
The main feature is predictive lap timing. The unit breaks up the lap into 20 segments. 20 times a lap, the display shows you the delta between your current lap and your fastest lap at that track. Final lap times are shown each time you cross the start/finish line. The continuous feedback quickly lets you know what works and what doesn't. Rather than pounding out lap after lap without knowing if you are improving, you get immediate feedback and can really work on going faster.
You can kind of see the display in this video from today's session. Predictive times are on the bottom half of the display. Select 720p on the YouTube viewer, and it's easier to see. For some reason, the display shows up fine on my PC, but YouTube's compression really washes it out. I chose a lap during the warm up period so you can see bigger time deltas.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPdfpcEZ6Rc
The Track Commander has a color display that is very easy to read in direct sunlight. Initially I thought that the color was just a gimmick, but on track the colors actually make it easier to read. When the predictive time is shown in red, you know that you are going faster than your quickest lap. If the time deltas are shown in green, you know that you are going slower. Much easier to pick up out of the corner of your eye.
Installing the unit is as easy as suction cupping it to the windshield, plugging it into the cigarette lighter, and putting the magnetic GPS puck in clear view of the sky. Once on track, you press the touch screen when you cross the start/finish line. You only set the line once, and never touch the screen again. Logging starts automatically when you get over a speed you define (I used 25mph), and shuts down when you stop for more than a few seconds.
To import the data into your computer, you plug in a USB stick into the unit and press one button on the touch screen to move the data. Plug in the USB stick into your PC, and you can open it up directly into the software. (You can download the software, and experiment with sample data.) The software lets you compare data between different sessions and laps, and animates dots on the track map that let you compare laps.
- Jim
I credit my new RLC Track Commander for helping score back to back first place wins at NASA’s Grand Prix of Texoma 1 at MSR Houston’s 2.38 mile 17 turn road course. Having never been on the course in a race car before this day, I used my Track Commander to learn the quickest lines on the 17 corners in the fewest number of laps possible using the GPS track mapping and GPS predictive lap timing.
After 10 practice laps I was confident about my race line and quickly began bringing my lap times down to the range of the local racers who have hundreds of practice laps on this course. A few laps later I ran at the local racers best time for three consecutive laps and then blasted three seconds off his best time on the following lap. The Track Commander confirmed the lap times with one touch of the screen and I knew I was ready to park the car and save the tires and brakes for qualifying and the race. The Track Commander is easy to learn and use with their trial program so you can practice and learn its functions in your street car before putting it in your race car. The people at RLC are racers who use their products so give their product a 30 day trial and score a few wins yourself.
–Dick GTS-2
I race a Van Diemen Formula Enterprises car in SCCA events and after years of not getting consistent lap times because either I or someone else’s beacon was either forgotten/low on battery/etc., I decided to try the Track Commander as it seemed to fit exactly what I was looking for. (1) it is GPS based so beacons would be a thing of the past, (2) it does predictive timing to help with qualifying times (3) does split timing to work on the corners I know I’m slow on during practice days and (4) I race a 240z in vintage events, so I can move the unit from car to car. An added benefit is that it gives MPH, something that my FE’s PI Dash does not. After using it in qualifying and race conditions, I can say it works as advertised.
In terms of accuracy, the Track Commander showed my best lap time during qualifying was a 1.36.408 and the corresponding official AMB time was 1.36.406, so any worries about GPS lap time accuracy are gone (this is with the 5hz GPS as well). The display was easy to read, and the unit was easy to install. The only issue I had is that the cigarette lighter connected vibrated loose once, but R.LC. is sending me out a direct connect that should fix that.
Overall, the unit fits my needs exactly for a easy to use “on-track” driving aid. I’ve played around some with the software and it fun to compare lines etc., but as a person who wrenches on his own car , I don’t have a lot of time in-between sessions and the “instant” feedback the track commander gives you on timing while you are driving fits exactly what I was looking for.
–Darius FE#87
I found myself going to the track alone most of the time to run Time Trials at different tracks. Problem was with no one to rely on to time laps it was hard to improve or judge how you were doing lap to lap. I started shopping for timing equipment and tried another product that just timed each lap. This was good for short term but really did not teach you anything from session to session.
In researching lap timers that had the analysis feature I came across your add in Grassroots Motorsports magazine and decided to check the web site. Being that I track my daily driver I did not want a unit that had to be hard mounted taking the place of my speedometer, odometer, etc. The Track Commander fit the bill perfectly for me from what I could see. I tried some of the sample analysis and like the looks of it.
I received my unit on the Friday before I was leaving to go to a track event. I installed the unit Saturday morning in my car. After the first few laps I realized what a benefit this system could be. The predictive mode proved to be super as you could vary a line in a segment and learn immediately whether there was an improvement or not. By the last 20 minute practice session of the day I had cut 2 seconds off my best personal time of last year on the same setup.
I downloaded all the information from the day when we were done. Loaded the information on my laptop and started studying the data. After looking at everything and forming a plan in my head I ventured out on Sunday and after the first session cut another 2 seconds off my time from Saturday.
In short after having the system for just 2 days I cut 4 seconds off my best times by downloading the Saturday sessions and studying the data and figuring out the best lines that worked for me.
Thanks for all the support you have given me over the last few days also.
You have a very satisfied customer and I would gladly recommend this system to anyone.
-David Time Trial Competor EMRA
Data logging is all about the facts, plain and simple. Possessing an interface that allows one to accurately calibrate the required values that are necessary to improve ones performance is critical, after all garbage in.. is garbage out...all too prevalent in the mass appeal that surrounds us. I have seen way too many analog gauge clusters hidden out of ones line of sight, or an impediment to the same... useless and antiquated, in the digital world we live in. Apparent facts are really guesstimates, ask yourself, where's the data?
The Micro Pod Lite is a phenomenal system that allows a mere mortal, the opportunity to access a system that was previously available only to those with unlimited means. All of the required information... all within ones line of sight...with alarms and redundancy to protect the driver and vehicle. There is no better system out there.
No need for track side (or split) beacons, or having to collect them after a race...if they are still there. No data loss due the massive memory available, logging is selectable...so one can choose when it is enabled. Every parameter of importance to an engineer or a driver can be easily tailored to display the required values, all without the need of laptop!! There is no system out there that can do this as well as RLC. Kudos, you had sold on this product since day 1.
-Sanjay
I was having fun doing Time Trials, with my goals being having fun and getting faster each event. It did not take long before I stabilized and was getting consistent times, but I was still slower than other cars in my class. Talking to other drivers and instructors, I was able to get some tips on certain corners that helped improve my times, but I was still slower than the other cars. I started experimenting with different lines and methods to see if I could find a faster line for my car, but all that did was start giving me inconsistent times. I realized pretty quick that I could not tell if I improved in one corner and screwed up all the other corners or if I actually messed up one corner but really nailed all the others.
I figured I could do a couple of things: get an instructor to ride with me all the time until I got faster, or I could get a data acquisition device and review the data after the run to see what worked and what did not work. I opted for a data acquisition device, as I figured it would tell me the “raw truth”: it would not lie, and I could see where I was making mistakes and therefore identify where I could improve my times (plus I could get stuck with an instructor who did not really know how to teach me).
I researched several different data acquisition devices. Most seemed way too expensive for what seemed to be simple tasks. Trying to save some money, I experimented with a GPS receiver and a laptop and a GPS-and-g-sensor-enabled cell phone, but they were not able to provide me with the data I was looking for. They were just not designed to provide me with the data I wanted.
I decided to spend the money on a real device, one that was designed to do what I was asking it to do. I was leaning towards a competitor product before I saw the Track Commander. Both seemed to provide me with what I was looking for: gforces, lap times, GPS tracking, and offline performance reviews. However, the Track Commander provided a display (and in color) where as the competitor unit charged an additional 40% over the Track Commander unit for a display (and it was not in color).
Truth be told, I actually did not think the display was that important. I ended up choosing the Track Commander because it seemed to be easier to switch between cars. While it is excellent in that regard, after only a few uses I have come to realize that the additional features that I did not think were that important are now my favorite things about the Track Commander: Predictive lap times and COLOR!
Having predictive lap times being displayed in color is unbelievably great. I can tell with a quick glance if I am faster or slower in a particular spot on the track from my fastest time (and by how much). If I try a different line and it slows me down, I can still experiment with other corners to help fine tune my line all the way around the track. In short, each corner is like its own stand-alone track: I get instant feedback as to my performance on each one. You cannot get this kind of information from an instructor or from raw lap times.
With the Track Commander unit installed in my car, I was able to drop 5 seconds off my fastest time around my regular track by reviewing data offline. I then used it at a track I had never been to before. My initial times were ok (middle of the pack), but by using the predictive lap times I was able to lower my times by 2 full seconds. I attacked each corner in series, picking up time in each one by varying my line. It only took about 10 laps before I was consistently knocking down times that were over a second faster than my closest competitor, and this is a person who has raced at this track before and usually beats me by almost a second at our regular track. He seemed very interested in my Track Commander. It would not surprise me to see him with one in his car at the next event.
While I think the best performance upgrade someone can do is seat time, once you are consistent in your times and are ready to figure out how you can get faster, the Track Commander should be your first “upgrade”. I fully believe that with the data the Track Commander gives you will be able to see what works and what does not work; therefore you will not waste money upgrading parts on your car with little to no improvements in time. Most people do not realize that their car is more capable in stock form than they are. The Track Commander can show you that, so you get the best out of yourself. It’s almost like cheating!
- Jason Time Trial Competitor
The system is great. It is easy to set-up and the customer support is great. I looked at several systems when selecting, and I had questions on all the systems. RLC Racing answered my questions right away. After selecting RLC Racing, I received, installed, and raced within a week. It's been over 2 months now and I still haven't even received answers to my questions from the one of the other systems. Great system and support for the money.
Pros:
-Great customer support.
-Easy to navigate through the screens.
-Easy to set up the base file.
-High quality harness and use of quality easy to find connectors. Thank you for using good connectors.
-Bright display, easy to read at a glace.
-Easy to read graphic color choices.
-Great customer support.
Areas for Improvement:
-Screen is too sensitive. I wear reverse stitched gloves and it was difficult to get the track maps and start/finish lines set. There may be a setting for this already.
-Instructions for the anaysis software. (Now available, download now!)
-Anaysis software crashes too easy. Not sure if this is the software or my laptop to be honest.
-Need to have drag and drop sector marking to easily compare sector times. *
-Need to be able to compare more than 2 cars and have them all go to one spot on the track if you click on it. *
-This would allow for easy sector time comparisons. *
* These items are being added in a future release.
- Dan #35 |
