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Race Configuration

This section manages race-specific settings, SMS configurations, field mappings, custom variables, and fonts and background colors for entry and results displays.

Command summary​

CommandArgument
RACE NAME[STRING]
DATE FORMAT[ONLY ACCEPTED FORMATS]
RACE DATE[DATE MATCHING DATE FORMAT]
AGE AS OF DATE[DATE MATCHING DATE FORMAT]
UNREGISTERED NUMBER[NUMBER]
LAP DIFFERENCE[NUMBER] — Default is 10
DEFAULT FONT[FONT]
BIB OR CHIP[BIB|CHIP]

Race Name​

Syntax:

RACE NAME           [NAME]

Parameter:
[NAME] — Alphanumeric characters (A–Z, a–z, 0–9).

Description:
Displays the current race in the frame (top-left corner) and is also used in reports, online results, and printouts.

caution

Avoid using * and % in the race name.

Date Format​

Syntax:

DATE FORMAT         [FORMAT]

Parameter:
[FORMAT] must be one of the following:

FormatNotes
MM/DD/YYDefault
MM/DD/YYYY
DD/MM/YY
DD/MM/YYYY
YY/MM/DD
YYYY/MM/DD
YYYY-MM-DDISO standard

If this command is omitted, the default MM/DD/YY format is used.

Description:
Instructs RunScore to convert date fields into the specified format.

warning

If the date format differs from the default, the DATE FORMAT command must be invoked before the RACE DATE and AGE AS OF DATE commands.

Race Date​

Syntax:

RACE DATE           [DATE]

Parameter:
[DATE] — Must match the format set by DATE FORMAT.

Description:
Used in reports, online results, and printouts. Also used as the default reference date for automatic age calculation (AGE FIELD and USAT AGE FIELD) unless AGE AS OF DATE is set.

warning
  • The date must be in the same format as DATE FORMAT.
  • DATE FORMAT must be invoked before RACE DATE.
  • The month and day must have two digits (e.g., 01/01/2026) to comply with ISO-8601.
tip

For a long-form date in reports, use a custom variable instead:

%Print Date%        January 31, 2010

Age As Of Date​

(RunScore >= 9.1)

Syntax:

AGE AS OF DATE      [DATE]

Parameter:
[DATE] — Must match the format set by DATE FORMAT.

Description:
Optional reference date for automatic age calculation. When present, RunScore uses this date instead of RACE DATE for both:

  • AGE FIELD — exact completed years (birthday through the reference date)
  • USAT AGE FIELD — calendar-year age (reference year − birth year)

When omitted, ages fall back to RACE DATE (unchanged behavior).

Typical use: a season age-as-of date (for example, December 31) that differs from the race day.

When the command is present, the value is also available as the dictionary token %Age as of date%.

Example:

DATE FORMAT         YYYY-MM-DD
RACE DATE           2026-02-14
AGE AS OF DATE      2025-12-31

In this example, ages are computed as of 2025-12-31 even though the race is on 2026-02-14.

warning
  • The date must be in the same format as DATE FORMAT.
  • DATE FORMAT must be invoked before AGE AS OF DATE.
  • A RACE DATE is still required. Age processing does not run if the race date is missing, even when AGE AS OF DATE is set.
  • The month and day must have two digits (e.g., 01/01/2026) when using formats that expect them.
info

RSClient: Remote stations honor AGE AS OF DATE. RSClient reads Entries.INI through the same entry-processing code as RSServer, so client and server compute the same ages.

Unregistered Number​

Syntax:

UNREGISTERED NUMBER [NUMBER]

Parameter:
[NUMBER] — Range 0–999999. Default URN is 0.

Description:
Sets the race-specific Unregistered Runner Number (URN) — the placeholder bib for entrants (and "bandits") who aren't in the database. Preferences holds one global default URN that applies to every race; this command overrides it for the current race only — the override lasts only while the race is open and is never written back to the global Preferences value. Precedence: entries.ini (race) beats Preferences (global).

The URN also drives the "Not Found Added" feature: when RunScore receives a chip ID that isn't in the chip field, it adds a new entry with a bib number one higher than the highest bib number currently in the database — scanned across every record, including the URN's own record 0. That new entry is saved immediately, so it's included in the scan for the next unrecognized chip read — a run of them gets sequentially numbered:

  • URN set high (e.g. 2000), real bibs 1–500: chip AAAAA isn't found — the highest bib is the URN's 2000, so AAAAA is added as bib 2001. Chip BBBBB isn't found next — now the highest bib is 2001 (the entry just added), so BBBBB becomes 2002.
  • URN left at its default (0), real bibs 1–300: the URN's own record no longer sets the max — the highest real bib does. AAAAA isn't found — highest bib is 300, so it becomes 301. BBBBB isn't found next — highest bib is now 301, so it becomes 302.

Either way, only the first unrecognized read in a run is actually based on the URN (when the URN is the current max); every one after that chains off the previous Not Found Added entry. A large URN just guarantees that first one starts well above your real bibs instead of colliding with them.

Size the URN for your race, not just "above your highest bib"

Pick a round number well above your expected field size so it never collides with a real bib:

  • Typical local races (300–1,500 runners): 5000–6000
  • Large races at Boston-Marathon scale (fields capped around 30,000): 40000

Real example, from race-templates/5K/Entries.INI: unregistered number 20000.

Record 0 and bandit handling​

The URN entry always lives in record 0 of the database:

  • It isn't reachable through normal Enter/Edit Names navigation (PgUp/PgDn, search, etc.) — only via Tools → Enter/Edit Names → Edit Unregistered Runner.
  • Erase ALL names (same submenu) preserves the URN record while removing every other entry.
  • If the .DTA file is deleted outside RunScore (e.g. from Windows Explorer), RunScore recreates a blank URN record using the URN value from Preferences the next time the race opens.
  • Opening a race with an empty database auto-inserts one record using the Preferences URN as its bib number; all other fields are blank until filled in.
  • The URN can be assigned to multiple result rows at once, as a holding placeholder for unidentified/bandit finishers, until you resolve who each one actually was.

Lap Difference​

Syntax:

LAP DIFFERENCE      [NUMBER]

Parameter:
[NUMBER] — A positive integer representing seconds. Default is 10.

Description:
Determines the minimum difference in seconds between two times before a new lap is recorded. A new lap is logged only when the difference between two consecutive times exceeds this value.

Default Font​

Syntax:

DEFAULT FONT        [FONT]

Parameter:
[FONT] — A Windows font name. Default is Courier New.

Description:
Determines the font used in Browser, Live Results, Printer Controller, and similar views.

info

Use fonts supported by the Windows version installed on your laptop.
See the Microsoft font list for reference.

Bib Or Chip​

Syntax:

BIB OR CHIP         [TYPE]

Parameter:
[TYPE] — BIB or CHIP.

Description:
Indicates whether RunScore should treat the bib tag as a bib or a chip. Applicable to MyLaps BibTags, RSBI, RSBCI, Race Results, and Active Timing.