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Here are some of our unsolicited customer's comments. The only editing of them was to include
their organization, city and state, if excluded by the customer.
4/30/2008
Ran our derby tonight and I was really pleased with the performance of
the software. Everybody loved the way it ran the derby, and using it in
Dynamic mode, 75% of the racers got a first place finish! Happy kids, happy
parents, and a happy race runner.
Yours in Scouting
Mike Bailey
Pack 55
Everett, WA
3/21/2008
Randy
I wanted to let you know that we recently ran our Pack pinewood derby
races. Thanks in large part to your program - and someone other than me running
it - the races went off without a hitch. In fact several parents came up
to me after the race profusely complementing us on the best run races they've
ever seen. So thanks for all your hard work on keeping your software up to
date and fixing any bugs. Just know it's appreciated and making a fun day
even more enjoyable.
We will be hosting the district races in early May and
I have not doubt that they will also go well.
Best regards,
Phil Magnusson
Pack 99
Fairfield, CT
3/11/2008
You guys are the greatest. I am not sure how many at-a-boys you get but
I just wanted you to know that version 7 of your software is great. I think
the layout is much better than v6. I also had an issue with my computer
syncing up with the timer. Five minutes on the phone with tech support and
you found out my port conflict. Thank you so much for making our derby so
fun and fast. 51 heats including the finals in 1:23 min.
I would recommend your software to anyone who would listen to me.
Thanks again for standing behind your great product,
Pastor Brad Withrow
Gladwin Assembly of God
Gladwin, MI
3/8/2008
Our Pack used your software tonight for our Derby and it worked extremely
well. I was a bit nervous since I just downloaded it at 1:00pm today and
licensed it just before 3:00pm for our Derby that started at 6:00pm. I had
results to our Pack leader within 5 minutes of finishing Round 1. We were
able to set up a final round for our top 6 cars within minutes. Someone
commented that this was the first Derby that they had attended where no
software issues interrupted the Derby.
Thanks again!
Kevin Minard
Pack 186
Dillon, CO
2/11/2008
Comments: We held our Pinewood Derby on 2/9/2008. It proved to be the most
exciting derby in Pack 841 history. This could not have been possible
without this software. We used the top 3 times from each racer to determine
the winners from each rank. The top three cummulative times were
easily advanced to a Grand Finals round.
The Fast Track timer captures times to 1/1000 of a second. The Grand
Finals actually had a tie for 1st place. Both racers had a cummulative
time of 7.850 seconds. This was nothing short of amazing. The pack decided
to run a single Sudden Death race. The winning time was 2.606 seconds. The
second place time was 2.615 seconds. Both scouts showed great sportsmanship
and we couldn't have asked for a better end to our 2008 Pinewood Derby.
Once again there is no possible way we could have done this without the
GrandPrix Race Manager software.
Thanks to you and your team!
Yours in scouting,
Jay Takashima
Pack 841
Beaverton, OR
2/5/2008
To the folks at Lisano [Enterprises],
THANK YOU! The everything was perfect. By the way, I'm very impressed with
the latest version of GrandPrix. I've used v4 the last couple years and this
is much easier to use and had an improved user interface.
Thanks for all the hard work. This is the third year I've been doing this
and it was by far the best. Our derby came off without a hitch, thanks in
large part to the software being stable and easy to use. That made for a lot
of happy Cub Scouts and their parents.
Thanks again!
Phil Pierson
Webelos 2 leader & webmaster
Pack 638
Acworth, GA
2/3/2008
Randy,
I just wanted to drop you a note and let you know how much I appreciated
your help (phone support) this last Friday night. If you had not answered
the phone and spent the time with me to figure out our problem we would never
had our derby. I had parents looking over my shoulder with nervous anxiety
just watching to see if I was going to make this work. I am no longer part
of cub scouts, but offered to come back and help with the derby. You help,
helped me save face with these parents and young scouts. I know you probably
wanted to go home instead of picking up the phone, but that fact you picked
up the phone and worked with me for over an hour till we solved the problem
shows me that you have a commitment to your customers. I was very quick to
give you and your company all the credit the next day when parents were thanking
me for fixing the problem.
The derby went off without a hitch and your software worked flawlessly.
Everyone was impressed with the efficiency of the track, timer and race software.
Again, THANK YOU!!!!!!
P.S. While it was fresh in our minds we were sure to document the problems
we had as well as your solution. We even to so far as to put the program on
a parents lap top who will be involved with future pinewood derby's. We tested
it to be sure all was fine. We should be in good shape for next years race!
Al Hansen
Troop 101 Scoutmaster
Shelby, NC
1/19/2008
Dear Randy,
I wanted to thank you for your prompt advice and help yesterday. Our derby
today went like clockwork, thanks to the excellent performance of your software.
Thanks again!
YIS, Jay
James R. Modrall
Pack 194
Overijse, Belgium
4/4/2007
Randy,
I just wanted to thank you for some brilliant software. Our Race Commissioner
and the Pack committee are so grateful that we FINALLY decided to invest in
it. What a difference! The race went on without a hitch and the time to run
the event improved dramatically. We had 69 scouts (a 88.5% Pack turnout!)
that participated - racing in their rank divisions and the final Pack run
off - plus we allow siblings and the adults to race in an informal competition
after the main event. In previous years, this meant a lot of head-scratching
to determine heats, lane placements and statistical evaluations. With the
'Grand Prix' software, that all fell into place and saved mountains of time
plus kept the scouts and the adults engaged in the excitement of the event
- complimented by the wonderful graphics the software supplied! Again, please
thank your staff for a great tool that I highly recommend for all Pinewood
Derby events!
Have a great day and God Bless!
Sincerely,
Bob Babcock
Pack 271 Cubmaster - St. Michael the Archangel
Livonia, MI
3/21/2007
Comments/Feedback: Thanks for developing such a great software system!
We ran 31 heats in just under an hour last night. Everyone now has all
of the Race Reports in their Email boxes. Sure took the guesswork out of
the administrative duties. Looking forward to adding a couple new bells
and whistles next year! I don't know why anyone would try to run a race
without letting the software take the work out of the equation!. Everyone
had FUN!
John Gaither
Pack 92
Indianapolis, IN
3/21/2007
This program worked great, I downloaded the program to the pack's laptop
and plugged the timer into the computer, and without any difficulty the
program and the Fast Track timer worked perfectly. The race was a lot of
fun, and all the parents enjoyed seeing the race results immediately on
the wall, (we were using a projector for everyone to see). I was wondering
how many computers can I install this program, I would like to have it on
the laptop for the race and my home computer to print and store the files.
Thanks,
David Tlachac
Luxemburg Cub Scout Pack 4042
Luxemburg, WI
2/27/2007
Comments/Feedback: I just wanted to let you know how our race went last
night. It was fantastic!! Your software was so easy to use. The hardest
part was registration simply because I couldn't enter their names fast
enough! I especially enjoyed the hands free timer. I was able to start
the first heat and literally walk away from the computer. It ran itself!!
It freed me to move around the room and interact with the scouts more.
The other dads enjoyed the reports I was able to print out to compare
times and heat results. Thank you for a wonderful product. I highly recommend
this software to anyone wanting to do less work at the race and enjoy
it more.
Doug Sydow
Cubmaster Pack 215
Sandborn, IN
2/19/2007
Comments/Feedback: Flawless!! That is how I would describe our pinewood
derby since buying your software. Connected to a Fast Track timer/laser
starting gate and a Best Track we ran a flawless derby. No complaints from
parents or scouts and total jubilation from the derby staff and coordinator
(me). I sure wish we had upgraded years ago!
Thanks!
Al Hansen
Pack 101 - First Baptist Church
Shelby, NC
1/22/2007
Comments/Feedback: I just want to report that we had the best Pinewood
Derby ever due to your excellent GrandPrix Race Manager software! We
have a LOT of cub scouts, so running an efficient derby each year gets progressively
harder. This year, we ran twice as many heats per car as last year, with
more total participants, and we finished an hour early! Over 130 heats
in 3 hrs! Excellent job!
Tracy Terrell
Pack 525
Houston, TX
1/16/2007
Comments/Feedback: We had our 2007 PWD on Jan 13. It really was a complete
success. I really want to thank you for a product that is light years ahead
of the competition.
Jose Ortiz
Pack 610
Valrico, FL
1/15/2007
Randy - We just had our Pinewood Derby on Saturday with our new track, timer,
and software. Everything worked wonderfully!
Thanks,
-Kevin
Assistant Cub Master
Cub Pack 329
Dayton, MN
9/25/2006
Randy,
Thanks for making this great software tool for the Pinewood Derby folks.
Our race went great over the weekend. The software was perfect. We had three
kids show up late (well their parents haha) and it was very easy to add them
in at the last minute and regenerate a new race schedule. Was nice to manually
pick some Finalists too as I ran a couple of my cars from last year as fill
in (they are STILL fast) they made it to the finals but we removed them -
nice feature!
Frank Broughton
Faith Bible Baptist Church
Eden, New York
4/15/2006
We held our Pinewood Derby on April 1st using your software, a Fast
Track timer and a new track that I built. We completed 38 heats in less
than an hour. I then used the software to do the awards presentation.
Wow, what a difference from the previous year. Everything worked great.
The scout parents were impressed!
However, I really need to relay another event....
A week later the district held their race. 77 boys were entered. The
race organizers hired someone to run their race. The individual who was supposed
to run the race brought their track and had a competitors software and timing
system. For whatever reason, they could not get the timer and software to
work.
About 35 minutes after the race was supposed to start, I received a call
at home from a friend who's son was in the race. All he said was, "we need
you here now!" Fortunately, I had not put anything away from the previous
week. I loaded the track in my van and headed over. Fortunately, I'm within
a 10 minute drive.
I quickly setup a Group and Subgroup for the District race. While I was
helping organize the track setup, I had one of the Den mom's enter the 77
boys into Grandprix Software Mgr. We started running the race within 40 minutes
of me arriving. We finished the race (lane rotation) in 69 minutes - gotta
be a record! We received a standing ovation!
The point? Grandprix Race Manager is very easy to use. The people that
watched me run the races were pretty impressed with how well it worked. Had
the individuals running the district race been able to download a CSV file
and burn a CD with the race participants, I could easily have been running
the district race in less than 30 minutes after arriving. However, their software
did not have this feature.
Sorry for the long note, but I thought these events were pretty cool!
Bob Orre
2006 Pinewood Derby Chairperson
St. Alphonsus - Pack 318
New Munster, WI
4/13/2006
Wow, what a great piece of software! We had a great race and everyone
really enjoyed seeing the times up on the big screen. I worked with a
friend to write our own software last year using VBA for Access. We put
in an hour here and an hour there and came up with something that worked
- sort of - but boy was it incomplete compared to your package. I wish
I had done the web search last year to find your software and saved myself
the pain. I also wish I could find some suggestion to give you, but it
did everything we could want. You obviously have spent a lot of time
thinking through all the details. Exporting the reports to post on the
web was an added bonus. Thanks a bunch!!
Lance Kasari
New Hope Church
Bend, OR
4/8/2006
WOW!! I just got done running my first ever Pine Box Grand
Prix and it was an excellent success. Your software made my race so simple
and straightforward. I appreciate the well-thought out user interface
and the printable stats pages are a hit with our people. They can't
wait to see exactly how their cars did in each lane and versus certain
opponents. Your software made me look like a well-organized race manager
and I appreciate that. Keep up the good work. Thanks again. I will be
recommending you to everyone I know. God Bless.
Matthew McLaughlin
Hillcrest Baptist Church
Logansport, IN
3/26/2006
Hi Randy,
Our race this past weekend ran flawlessly in large part to your GrandPrix
Race Manager software. We had many parent comments on how professional the
race was handled.
I want to thank you for incorporating the suggestions I had from last year's
race into the latest software revision. The lane usage selection option and
awards list import feature were a wonderful addition that made my job much
less complicated.
Thanks again for a GREAT product!
Bill Schaefer
Pack 3208
Grand Rapids, MI
3/20/2006
Randy,
Just wanted to drop you a quick note this morning to tell you that your
software arrived in time (thank you), the "import" feature made our races
easy to run (thank you) and all of our Pack and Pack visitors were thoroughly
impressed with the efficiency and cool sound effects that your software offered
(thank you).
We look forward to further automating this process for next year by adding
a electronic timer connected to your software. Although I manually entered
the points this year, it was still easy to do and made our Pinewood Derby
quite memorable.
Thanks again!
Brian McCoy
Webelos II Den Leader
Pack 3106, Parnell, MI
3/13/2006
I just wanted to send you a note and tell you that
your race software is great! We had our Pinewood Derby last weekend and
everything worked perfectly.
We had 44 scouts participate and used the lane rotation method on our 4-lane
track. We ran 44 heats in less than an hour! We purchased your software along
with the K3 Timer Grand Prix Package from Micro Wizard. After the race was
over I spoke to some of the parents and showed them the printed race reports
from your software. Everyone was impressed by how quickly we got through the
race and the level of detail we were able to provide.
This was our first year managing a Pinewood Derby and we were a little
concerned about how it would go. Your software was easy to easy to use and
I would definitely recommend it for anyone looking for race management software.
Sincerely,
Kevin Smith
Pinewood Derby Committee Chairman
Cub Scout Pack 582
Brandon, SD
1/31/2006
I just wanted to let you know I installed and used your software in
the Pack 1402 (Missouri City, Texas) pinewood derby this past weekend.
This was our pack's first pinewood derby, and we were all extremely worried
about organizing the races and keeping all the scouts involved and entertained.
I have to say it went extremely well, and your product was the reason.
It performed flawlessly, and was absolutely critical in enabling us to
have a fun, fair, positive event. Everyone liked being able to see the
status board, and the kids absolutely loved the sound effects. Once we
got in a rhythm, we were able to run races about every 30-45 seconds
- really important to keeping a bunch of cub scouts engaged.
So, for our whole pack, I want to thank you for a great piece of software!!
Sincerely,
Reid Tatge
Committee Chairman
Pack 1402
Missouri City, Texas
1/30/2006
I wanted to share with you for the second year in a row we have used
your software and the event when famously. No glitches what so ever.
We raced 77 cars in total with 5 divisions. We did come up with 3 sets
of ties but followed your recommendations and the event went off great.
Without your software, there is no way we could manage this event. Being
in software myself, I know how important unsolicited comments are.
Thanks,
Ted Hughes
Pack 103, Den 11 Leader
Norwalk, Iowa
1/30/2006
Thank you for a great program. We conducted our
Derby over the weekend (01/28/2006) and had the best time ever. All the
cubbies were extremely excited about the new format and having the opportunity
to race all day. We had 27 racers on a 3 lane track and each raced 2
times in each lane. We had 54 heats completed in under an hour. Everyone
stayed to the very end to see the results and cheered all the participants.
Previously we used an elimination system that resulted in alot of hurt
feelings. No one wants to be the first to be eliminated.
We built our finish line sensors using the Pack 471 plans that are provided
from this site. Together with your program, we had an outstanding race. Everyone
is looking forward to next year.
Thanks again for providing an outstanding product and providing many smiles
to our Cub Scouts.
Gary Gordon
Cubmaster, Pack 99
So. Glens Falls, NY
1/24/2006
You guys rock. We just finished our PWD and what
a success. We had just ordered your software this year and what a difference.
In the past we'd used a manual double elimination method. With the software,
we were able to run our derby in about 45 minutes. In the past, it would
have taken us two to two and a half hours. We purchase a Piantedosi Freedom
Track and a NewBold TURBO timer. What an awesome combination. We only
had one software conflict because we ordered our timer with a USB connection
and the drivers didn't automatically themselves set-up correctly -- nothing
to do with y'all though you may want to consider adding a USB option
or at least some info in the set-up instructions. I'm not much of an
IT guy but luckily, I had one on hand.
Thanks again,
Matt Hunter
Pack 121
Aiken, SC
[Note: We have added some extra information to the software's help file
about using USB to Serial adapters or the NewBold USB Turbo timer (basically,
it has a built in USB to Serial adapter)]
1/23/2006
Thanks again Randy. Our race was a smashing success yesterday. We ended
up doing points in round 1 and time in the finals. Absolutely smooth
as silk on the race management side.
Rich Mendelowitz
Pack 149
Arlington, VA
1/21/2006
Randy,
Thanks for the help - we had a great race (87 boys) - in about 1.5 hours of race
time. The software and the race type made it a great event. Thanks a lot!
Dan Wessel
Pack 333
Avon, Ohio
1/16/2006
Thanks Randy,
I just thought you should know, your software makes our race phenomenal.
Before our purchase our race was long and slightly organized, after purchasing
the GrandPrix software I would never consider running a race without it.
Easy and extremely organized this is the best purchase we have made for our
Pinewood Derby. Each year people take pictures of the screen when their scout
or sibling is up to race, very cool.
Thanks,
Steve Brewton
Cub Scout Pack 54
Downers Grove, IL
6/11/2005
FYI,
Thanks so much for the rush order and the great software. We used it
today at out Pack 415 Pinewood Derby and everyone was quite impressed.
It was much better than those old free Excel spreadsheets circulating on
the net!
Everyone felt the race was run fair with a great mix of heats and rotations.
My compliments on your great program.
Roy Hamlin
Cubmaster
Pack 415
Miami, FL
------------------------------
Hi Randy,
I would not mind at all if you used my comments. I think your software
saves time and all my parents were extremely pleased with the results.
They were very skeptical at first because they did not want to invest the
money and had used several excel spreadsheets that "had worked" for years.
But the integration between registration, race scheduling, recording and scoring
of heats, made the whole process so much easier. We spent more time racing
than organizing which gave the kids tons of fun.
Thanks.
Roy
4/17/2005
We purchased our track from BestTrack 2 years ago, ran 2 races without
software support. We recently purchased GP Race Manager and WOW...what
a difference!
No more trying to fumble through charts and spreadsheets, no more guesswork.
The race practically ran itself and left the leaders with nothing to do but have
fun. We had to run one heat twice and was able to do so without effort.
This was my 7th or 8th Pinewood Derby and up until now, I was not looking forward
to the scoring or race tracking. Thanks for a great product, support and keep
up the good work.
Barry Donewar
Pack 1101
Gretna, LA
4/1/2005
We used this software for what was my second Pinewood Derby, and it
made a real difference. This software is very well thought out and the
little things make all of the difference. I am a professional programmer,
and I was seriously considering writing software for our Pack after my
first PWD. I didn't have time, so I tried this software instead. I'm
glad I did.
Thank you.
Roy Newcomb
Cubmaster
Pack 361
Sioux Council
Sioux Falls, SD
3/14/2005
Randy,
Just a quick note of thanks for your help. We held our derby this past
Saturday. It was a roaring success! This is our first year with this
pack as we moved to this community last August. They had been doing all
race administration, scheduling, judging, etc by hand. We recommended
the purchase of your software and constructed the start and finish line
timing gear. The system worked flawlessly (after I got the noise out)
and the kids were thrilled with the way the race was conducted. They
love seeing times for their races and scale speeds. Track records were
a thing of real pride (as they should be!). The event moved at a very
fast pace which kept the kids attention. It was a wonderful event and
we thank you very much for offering such a nice package for a very reasonable
price.
Best Regards and may God bless you,
Doug Seim
Pack 923
Ross, Ohio
[Note: The "noise" that Doug is referring to was coming from his 5V power
supply for his sensor system, which he was able to correct.]
2/28/2005
We purchased your software last year, along with the Fast Track 6-lane
timer. We used it fully integrated for the first time this year. We registered
26 cars the day before the race. I set up the schedules and rounds and
had printouts for the race volunteers for queuing the cars. Well, race
day, we had 3 more cars show up. Because of how easy your software is
to use, I was able to get the cars registered, re-generate the schedules,
and re-distribute new printouts to my volunteers. We were able to race
29 cars through 29 heats, then 12 cars through 12 semi-final heats, and
then 6 cars through 6 Grand Finals heats. All in less than 1.5 hours!
It all worked flawlessly! The boys especially loved the times and simulated
speed...our new track record is 175.7 miles per hour!
Thank you for creating this product and helping us bring a new level
of organization and excitement to our event!
Peter Armstrong
Pinewood Derby Chairman
Pack 219 - St. Katharine's
Wayne, PA
1/16/2005
Randy,
I used GP 4 yesterday in our Pack's Pinewood Derby and it was fantastic
(the operator wasn't so smooth, but I'll deal with that later). Our previous
software was a Lotus 1-2-3 macro package that a Pack dad wrote. While it had
several nice features, running and maintaining it would have been impossible.
I searched the 'Net and decided to give GP a try. I worked with you to resolve
some display problem with heat counts and that went great.
We run a Stearns fragment and I built race schedules in Excel (from Peronto
Stearns) for 48, 54, 60, etc cars. Then I create a text file for each schedule
for import to GP. On race day, I registered 52 cars and this went very
well. Racing started off without a hitch. I think the boys really enjoyed
seeing their names up on the big screen and this helped keep them focused
on the racing. At one point in the race, the same heat came up twice! I panicked
until I remembered that I fixed the error I found in the 54 car schedule everywhere
but the GP import file!!! I deleted the bad heat and we raced on. At the
end, I added the right heat back in and we ran it. Everything went wonderfully!!!!
I will say that I left a crease in the plastic seat of the chair, but that
was due to operator error and GP 4 covered my error without a hitch!
Now that the Stearns fragment is complete, we take the top 6 cars and move
them to a Finals. When I displayed the standings, we had a tie for 6th!!!!
We had a run-off for 6th and one car was clearly the winner. Despite a serious
case of brain freeze, I manually selected the top six cars and moved them
to a Grand Finals. I used the CPN generator to create the 12 heat finals and
we ran that smooth as silk. At the end, we displayed the final standings using
the "Display
one at a time" style and the crowd loved it. Quite dramatic.
I have been using GP to post-analyze the race and the tools are wonderful. I'll
post some suggestions in another thread as this one is too long already!! Just
wanted to tell you that Pack 34 used your product and it was wonderful!!!! I
had several folks ask about the software and all expressed that they thought
the package really improved the racing! Great Job!!!
Tom Paulley
Pack 34
Houston, TX
3/26/2004
I wanted to give you feedback on our Grand Prix held
this week.... For many years the Awana Grand Prix has been a highlight
of our Spring calendar. In the "old days" we used a double elimination
method and judged via sight.
After research on the internet, I found the perfect-n process and implemented
that two years ago. We manually tracked the results in an excel spreadsheet
and still judged via sight. While deemed far fairer by the parents (and the
kids loved the ability to race more over the course of the evening), we still
had those "close calls" at the finish that ended up being a judgment call.
So this year, we made a huge jump thanks to technology. We purchased
the Fast Track coupled with your software and looked forward to good things.
I must admit that we under-estimated how valuable technology would be.
We were able to run 47 cars and come up with 6 top finishers to pass up
to the grand finals - total time of 1:20. We had at least two rounds with
ties for second place (try that visually!). The software interacted with the
track flawlessly. The parents were impressed as they saw the results flash
on the screen via our video projector.
Our grand prix will never be the same! Thank you for your part in a very
successful evening!
John Sauceda
Wheaton Evangelical Free Church
Carol Stream, IL
3/13/2004
Randy,
We held our Pinewood Derby last Sunday (3/7/04). Our first year with timers
(DT8000) and software. Raced 40 cars on all 6 lanes in 90 minutes ! Used the
software's Perfect N charts and schedules. We registered all the boys a week
prior, so we all the rosters, scoresheets and scheduled pre-printed for race
day.
What a blast !!! Everybody loved the new scheduled and format (vs the
hated 2x elimination method we used in past with volunteers deciding the
O.O.F.) Not a single disagreement about who raced who or who won. Only .3
seconds separated the top 10 finishers !!!
Thanks for putting up with all my questions over the last few weeks getting
everything set-up. I really appreciate the fast service from you and Craig
at Newbold. Only had to re-run 3 heats due to timer errors (flash pictures
overloading the sensors). Being able to display the results via computer as
well as special awards was a perfect ending to the race.
Thanks...
Don Wolf
Pack 152
Lexington, Ohio
1/31/2004
Hello Randy and Stuart-
Just a note to tell you how pleased our pack was with the Microwizard
Son of a Cheap timer and Grand Prix Race Manager software combination
which we used for our Pinewood Derby races today. I really appreciated
Stuart taking the time to answer my many questions over e-mail about
the assembly of this very inexpensive timer and unsupported (but very
powerful) timer.
For years, our pack had used an an antiquated optical placement
detector that looked like it was left-over from some bad 50's science
fiction movie and paper a double elimination system. My first
experience with this system was last year, and many of the children
left in tears after being immediately eliminated. I felt after
researching a bit, that we could do far better.
What a difference a year makes! The combination of the precision
timer, race management software with time-based racing (no
elimination), and real-time display of results on a projector was an
unforgettable experience. I was concerned about the new system and
software, but it performed flawlessly! We only had to rerun 1 race of
33 due to a launch (human) error, and there was never a question of
fairness at any point in the process. Not only did no one complain
about the conduct of the races, I was complimented by over 25 parents
of our small pack of 35 on what a positive experience it was, and what
a huge improvement it was over the prior system. I was also
interviewed by the local paper about our new system. The best part
though was that all the kids left with smiles on their faces, and not
just the winners!
Where our parents were previously reticent to approve spending a small
amount of money to upgrade our system, now they are starting a
collection to repay what little I spent (less than $170 total) on this
combination and are wondering what other improvements we can do! Can
you say starting line Christmas Tree and solenoid activated launching
system? I knew you could.
Not only all this, but my son took second place at the derby and is
competing in the district finals! What a great day, and we owe it all
to you guys.
Thanks a lot.
-Ed Scott
Pack 525
Saratoga, California
1/17/2004
Randy,
I wanted to send you a Thank You for your software and the successful event
we just had. It was awesome and everyone loved the software. The last few
years I had programmed an Access data base, manually entered times and just
had a report that displayed on the overhead. It was nice having the racers
and the on-deck, it helped to move things along. We also had some of the Elders
of the church who said it was the best Pinewood Derby they had had and felt
it was very fair. Everything worked perfectly.
I don't know if you want suggestions, as it stands you have an awesome
program that made our event special. You probably get a million "suggestions" and
obviously can't do everything everyone wants (unless they are willing to pay
extra of course).
Do you do other programming as a profession? You are very good. I have
customers sometimes who are looking for good programmers to develop niche
apps. I would be happy to refer people to you if it is something you would
want.
Oh well, just got back from camping (Ohio, 0 degrees last night), I need
a shower (hot).
Thanks again and God Bless,
Jim Swartwood
Maranatha Bible Church
Norton, OH
1/12/2004
Hello Randy,
We ran our Derby on Saturday and all went well. Your program worked perfectly
and everyone was pleased with the "Big Screen" and sound effects.
Thank you for your excellent tech support and helping me resolve my initial
problems.
Tim Grimes
Cubmaster Pack 7
Golden Spread Council
Golden Eagle District
Amarillo, Texas
1/9/2004
Randy,
Just a quick note of thanks... In this fast-pace world it's real easy
to get complacent towards delivering good customer service. I know you were
probably "wiped out" after a tough day of the office, yet you still put forth
at willingness to assist me. I'm quite aware that you are the software developer
not the hardware tech. With that said, I appreciate you taking the time to
assist me in troubleshooting my construction issues.
I will recommend you and your software to all the Pack Leaders that attend
our Pinewood Derby.
Ed Pine
Pack 701
Amarillo, TX
11/16/2003
Used this software for an Awana Grand Prix on 11/15/2003 with a total
of 61 cars. Using this software resulted in the best race we've ever
conducted.
Past years were double elimination and took 2-3 hours to compete. Many
kids and parents felt the cars lucky enough to race in the "fast" lanes ended
up winning.
This year, every car ran in each lane (Perfect-N) and we used the cumulative
elapsed time scoring method. The race only took 55 minutes to compete for
all 62 heats even with manually typing in the elapsed times for each heat
(used older Awana Racemaster timer that doesn't have a computer interface).
Everyone felt it was much more efficient and fairer. The kids were happy that
they all raced four times.
Highly recommend the software. We will use for all future races.
Suggested improvements would be:
1. Improved graphing of lane statistics. We took the top 10 racer results
and created a bar chart of elapsed time in each lane to look at lane speed
trends. Did this in excel after exporting the data. Would be nice to have
this built in. Also would be nice to zoom in to the chart showing average
lane times.
2. Improved data entry in the registration area. Currently very "Microsoft
Access like". Would be nice if sorting of data fields persisted after saving
changes. (e.g. sort by car number to find a particular car and then change
the car to "pass inspection"....after saving, need to re-sort.)
David McKenney
Liberty Heights Church
West Chester, Ohio
4/26/2003
Just wanted to drop a line and tell you that we used your program today
at our Master Club pinewood derby. We had 5 separate groups, 47 cars.
Race registration was smooth and easy. We had a few "operator"
errors initially during the race but then figured out what we were doing
wrong. The sound effects and graphics were a big hit. We displayed the
computer screen on a 32" TV so all could see the scheduling. We
purchased our electronic eye from Awanas a few years back, so we had
to manually input times.
Look forward to using your program for years to come.
Thanks,
Tim McQueen
Assistant Pastor, Youth Ministries
Emmanuel Baptist Church
Swansboro, NC
4/14/2003
We had our annual AWANA Grand Prix on Sat. the 12th. We had been using
bracket style elimination in the past, this year we used your software
program and everyone was impressed!! The kids loved racing their car
a whole bunch of times, and those who paid attention to the details
had no complaints, can't get any fairer than that. Some of the finish
times were only .0005 seconds apart.
I have one question about the lane setup, can the designated lane colors in
the program be changed around without repainting the lanes?
Thanks,
Dave Gillingham
Shannon Baptist Church
Freeport, IL
4/7/2003
Mr. and Mrs. Lisano,
Just thought that I would drop you guys a line and let you know how it went
with our Pinewood derby. Sorry that it took so long to get back, but we have
been very busy here.
I was one of only a couple of people that really thought that we should order
some kind of software for the pinewood derby. I had looked on the web and
found that the software could really speed up the workings and really help
you keep track of what was going on. We received our copy and right away I
was able to enter information and see how we would be able to run the race.
I encountered a lot of resistance when I told them that the software would
not do a double elimination, but that I thought the way the software worked
was much better, because everyone got to race more and it seemed like a better
way to determine who the actual winner is.
The day before the race I got to actually hook the track to the software and
it all worked like a charm. Just clicked on the button for our type of time
and it was off and communicating. GREAT!!
I borrowed a projector from my work and was able to project the race up on
the wall, so that everyone knew who was racing, what place they were in and
what was going on with the race. Everything went great. We went from taking
about four hours with a double elimination to letting every boy race four
times, and having the top six places race in the Grand Finale in only two
hours. The only problem that we had is when I didn't enter one boy and we
had to start the race over. This was totally my fault.
So this long winded email is to let you know that software worked great and
now most everyone (still have some doubters, but they are the type of people
that think computers are the work of the devil) thinks that the software was
one of the best ideas for the race ever. So I appreciate your hard work and
think that you guys did a great job. Just let me know if you need any type
of reference as I would be glad to help.
Thank you,
Chad Taylor
Pack 789
Rockdale, TX
4/1/2003
Hello Randy,
We ran our Andrew J. Baker Memorial Pinewood Derby on the 22nd of February.
The combination of the Grand Prix Software, Fast Track Timer, and BestTrack
Track was unbeatable. We are very proud that we were able to honor Andrew
with the Derby and the race software greatly contributed to our success. The
software was very easy to use and was a smash hit when we posted the heat
results using a projector. The link below is to some pictures of our derby.The
young man in the first picture is Andrew Baker's step brother and he is sitting
on their Mother's lap. As you can see by the pictures, it made his family
very proud also.
Thank you very much for building such a fine product. We
would not hesitate to recommend your software and can't wait until our derby
next year. The only recommendation that we could possibly make is to save
the mph information in the database. The kids absolutely loved seeing their
cars go 200 MPH!! When we posted all of the results though we could only give
time. We could put the information into a spreadsheet and calculate the speed
but there is too great a possibility of an erroneous calculation. Even though
we couldn't post the scale speed, we still very much enjoyed using the software
and found it very easy to use.
Respectfully,
Tim Centers
Pack 200
Cleves, OH
http://www.clevespack200.org/packinfo/pinewood/pw_pics.html
Hello Randy,
Andrew was a Wolf Cub in my Den. He was killed in an automobile accident January
19th of this year. He was buried in his uniform and received his wolf badge
at his funeral. The following link has an excerpt from an article that was
written in a local newspaper and explains everything in much more eloquent
detail.
http://www.clevespack200.org/packinfo/pinewood/pw_history.html
You are welcome to use our comments and thank you for considering our recommendations.
Thanks,
Tim
3/24/2003
Just a note to let you know that we had are derby Friday night and it went
great, we had 45 cars and ran 135 races with no problems. We even had 4
races that we had to go to the third decimal place to get a winner. Thanks
for everything it great to work with a great christian company and people
like you.
Thanks
Clay Showalter
Pack 508
Asheboro, NC
3/24/2003
To: Randy Lisano and everyone at Lisano Enterprises,
You truly have a winner with your GrandPrix Race Manager software. As the
new Pinewood Derby coordinator for Pack 1990 in Douglasville Georgia, I started
looking for a software product that could help eliminate the chaos and confusion
of trying to run a derby using the bracket method. Your software was selected
and put to the test this past weekend. It performed flawlessly and I received
many compliments on how well the derby was run. We ran 54 scout races in about
an hour and a half, with some of that time taken up by a short intermission.
I have recommended your software to other packs.
I do have one question. Your web site lists three timers that are sold with
your software. I'm looking to replace our timer next year and was wondering
if you had a personal favorite out of those three?
Once again, thank you for a great product.
Joe Rizzoli
Pack 1990
Douglasville, Georgia
3/17/2003
Randy,
I wanted to thank you again for the support you provided to us on Friday night.
We ran three races Saturday for our Christian Service Brigade group and every
thing went very well. Many people commented on how smoothly the race went
and there were NO problems at all. What a great piece of software and worth
every penny!!!
Already looking forward to next year and your software will
definitely play a very big role.
God Bless,
Michael Harnage
Fairfax Covenant Church Christian Service Brigade
Fairfax, Virginia
3/13/2003
Randy,
We ran our Grand Prix last night and it was perfect!!!! Since last night I
have had several people tell me how professional it ran last night and how
impressed they were with the software. I just wanted to let you know, what
was said. There were so many that loved last night's event, they are already
asking me when can we schedule another Awana Grand Prix. WOW
Anyway, i did have a question. Let's say that a clubber was registered, passed
inspection and then something came up and couldn't race. How would you delete
this racer? Bear in mind the chart had already been generated and imported.
What we did last night was just skip that clubber every time it was his time
to race. Not that it matters much, but it there the lane statistics off a
little.
Again, thanks for the wonder job you have done. and if ever you need anything,
please let me know.
Steve Cox
Eastside Baptist Awana Clubs
Cairo, GA
2/8/2003
Randy:
You will be glad to know that our Pinewood Derby that we held today was a complete success. This was the first time that we actually used a computer with our Microwizard timer and I see now all we have been missing. Next year we will have to get our hands on a projector for the computer so everyone can view the results. Thanks for all your help!
Mel Hander
Pack 605
Denison, Texas
2/3/2003
Mr. Lisano,
Your Grand-Prix race manager software is great. I just purchased a copy
of version 2.0 for my son's cubscout pack. Pack 313 in Onancock Va. used
your software for the first time last week and it really made a difference.
20 cars competed and it was a close race. There was only a .4 second gap
between 1st and 5th place. I'm so glad that we didn't have to judge this
race by eye. On behalf of pack 313, I want to thank you for creating such
a wonderful product. I will also be mailing you a check for $10 for the
use of version 1 in our race.
Thank you and God bless,
Robert Gibb
Father of a WEBELO
Pack 313
Onancock, Va
2/3/2003
Randy,
We used Grand Prix Race Manager along with the Micro Wizard finish line for the first time this weekend. Wow! It certainly made things go quickly and smoothly. I thought I was going to have to spend a great deal of time figuring it out, but I didn't. I spent a total of about two hours, and that includes pre-registering all of the scouts. Great job, and great product. If it is ok with you, I am going to put a link from our website to yours. Take a look at our site and let me know if you are ok with that.
Best regards,
Luke Redus
Pack 355
Spring, Texas
2/2/2003
Hi Randy
Just a note to tell you our race went great friday night! The software
ran perfect, we were running .ver .12 and had no issues at all. Our master
of ceremonies, who has been calling our races for years thought I was
nuts for using a projector to allow the parents and kids see what was going
on. They have had so many problems over the last few years with the old
DOS program, keeping it all a "secret" was one way of keeping things moving.
They certainly changed their minds by the time it was all over and many
parents commented how nice it was to follow what was going on.
It wasn't without a few logistical (people) problems like running heats in
the wrong order but with the pit crew being able to see the display, we were
able to actually see the problem and fix it faster than the old way. This
problem was corrected before most people even knew what was wrong.
My only request (I think I made it before but it was not a priority) is can
you add the ability to fully edit the final results? 2 reasons...
1. We don't allow overall winners to also take a trophy for their den,
no
"double dipping". We would like to edit the overall winners out of the den
winners list before we display the names.
2. This was a strange one and did not forsee........a den leader allowed a
sibling to enter a car under the name of a cub scout who was not
participating! It was only brought to our attention during the race since
that car was doing quite well! The leader thought there would be no harm but
did not realize what a problem it created. We could not remove the name from
the list once the race was underway. The finished 2ed overall!
These 2 issues kept us from using the projector when announcing the results.
Thanks again for making such a great product and look forward to hearing
from you.
Keep the astronauts and their families in your thoughts, this was really
sad.
John Fitzgerald
Pack 25
Princeton, Massachusetts
1/27/2003
Hey Randy,
I just wanted to drop you a note saying you can add our Pack to your list of satisfied customers! While I didn't get to participate in the Derby, my job has me in Spain right now, I've gotten a lot of feedback from people who were there and it's all been very positive.
Eric ran the derby and everything went very smoothly, so smooth they had to slow
down the pace, we have around 40 kids in the back and normally a race in the past
took 2 to 3 hours to manually track the racers. This race would have been completed
in under an hour if they hadn't slowed it down. Eric also had a second computer
setup so they could use the RaceFX software, this added a lot to the atmosphere
and the kids really enjoyed it, especially when the race was over and they let them
play with the rest of the effects.
We had some of the Boy Scouts at the race and they asked if they could use the
system for their race. I guess Eric could be busy running races as the word gets
around.
If you'd like to use our Pack as a positive referral we would be happy to endorse
your program.
Thanks for all your help in resolving the problems we were having with the Bye
lane, Eric said he really appreciated the auto save feature your last patch installed.
Dave Bentley
Pack 576
O'Fallon, MO
1/19/2003
Randy, We ran our race today and everything went without a hitch. We ran about 90 cars in about an hour, maybe a little less. Just want to thank you for a program that is so user friendly.
Thank You and God Bless
Calvin Brown
Cub Scout Pack 23
Trenton, Mo.
1/18/2003
Just had to send this to you.
Our pack (Pack 672, Hilliard Ohio) just finished our Pinewood Derby today. We used your software and let me tell you what a great success it was.
We had all kinds of "extreme testing" done "under fire". We had heats that had to be rerun some even after the times had been saved (due to late judges decision about one car interfering with another). We had heats run where the starters let the cars go just before the "Get times" button was pressed.
All of those situations were handled beautifully, just as you would expect them to be handled.
We actually ran two derbies at the same time. We have a pack that partners with us (Pack 483 of Hilliard, Ohio). We would run two of our heats and then one of theirs since our pack is twice as big as theirs. We also wanted to keep their racers from racing against ours since our kids are "more experienced". This was only the second Pinewood Derby for that pack.
Both packs were able to award their 1st, 2nd and 3rd place finishers independently. The parents of both packs were very impressed. By the way, our decision to keep the racers separate was a good one, since looking at the results shows that the 1st place racer from the other pack would have only finished 11th in our pack.
This last event is one that I just could not believe any program could or would recover from:
One of the parents accidentally pulled our power cable out of the wall. Our back-up power supply kept the computer running and sounded its alarm but with all the races going on, nobody heard the little sound. Well, you guessed it, with only 3 heats to go (and after nearly 130 heats), the computer went DEAD. No warning (that we could hear). Just lights out!!!
Looking more than a little stunned (and worried), my partner and I plugged it back
in and switched it on. To our (and nearly 200 other people's) amazement, every result
from the previous heats were still there. (And to think, I thought clicking that
"Save Times" button was annoying).
Everyone in the hall was very impressed (not to mention relieved). Your software certainly proved itself today.
Our first six place winners were separated by only 0.07 of a second and your lane statistics proved that our brand new 4 lane track was extremely well balanced. There was only 0.03 seconds difference in average times.
The parents were very enthusiastic about being able to come up and ask questions and see the "hard" numbers about their child's races. I was able to show that the scouts ran evenly on each of the lanes and faced roughly 24 other racers (with no repeats)
As you can tell, we will be spreading the news about your wonderful software and with your permission, I'd like to add a link to your website from our pack's website.
Thank you (you can't begin to imagine how deeply I mean that)
John Pirt
Bear Den Leader (and Race software specialist)
Pack 672
Hilliard, Ohio
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