Pack Time
Syntax
Event event_name
Pack Time
Sort
Description
For bicycle races, assigns the same finishing time to all riders within a pack. A pack is defined as a group of riders where each rider finishes within one second of the rider immediately ahead.
Remarks
This command implements the standard road cycling convention where riders finishing in a group (peloton or pack) receive the same official time as the first rider in that group. The algorithm walks the sorted results and groups consecutive riders whose times differ by one second or less, assigning the leading rider's time to the entire group. A gap of more than one second between consecutive riders starts a new pack.
This command must follow an Event command and is typically used with Sort to ensure correct ordering before pack detection.
Use Pack Time for road-cycling finishes scored with a 1-second gap to the rider ahead. Use Minimum Difference when finishers should share a time only if they're within a set gap of their group's first finisher.
Minimum Difference or Pack Time?
| Property | Minimum Difference | Pack Time |
|---|---|---|
| What changes | Times saved in the destination event | Times in the listing output; with Event to Database, also the field you name. Event times don't change. |
| Gap | You set it (for example 1.20 seconds) | Fixed at 1 second |
| Measured from | First finisher in the group | Rider immediately ahead |
| Gap exactly equal to the limit | Starts a new group | Stays in the pack |
| Used with | Merge Events (destination isn't a lap event) | Any listing with Event, including Event to Database |
With a 1.00-second gap, the two commands differ for the third and fourth finishers:
| Raw time | Minimum Difference 1.00 | Pack Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1:02:10.00 | 1:02:10.00 | 1:02:10.00 |
| 1:02:10.60 | 1:02:10.00 | 1:02:10.00 |
| 1:02:11.30 | 1:02:11.30 | 1:02:10.00 |
| 1:02:11.90 | 1:02:11.30 | 1:02:10.00 |
| 1:02:13.50 | 1:02:13.50 | 1:02:13.50 |
The third finisher is 1.30 seconds behind the group's first finisher, so Minimum Difference starts a new group. Pack Time compares with the rider ahead (0.70 seconds), so the pack continues.
Examples
To assign pack times for a road cycling race:
Event TIME
Pack Time
Sort
Place
To save pack times to a database field (add a PACKTIME field to the entries database first; 11 characters fits HH:MM:SS.01):
Event to Database
Event Finish
Pack Time
Database Field PACKTIME
Time Format HH:MM:SS.01
This stores only the pack time. To store the raw time as well, add a Database Field line directly after Event.