Home to 1B and Home to Home base speed?

[IDigress]

I see lots of different variations on recording baserunning times (Home to 1st and Home to Home). If all times are done in the same manner at an event (camp, tryout, etc.) then I can understand how the times are comparitive to that event only. Recently my DD was at a camp where they were timing baserunning. I was independently timing each runner on my own with my stop watch and was about 0.4 seconds slower on each runner. I was timing on runner's 1st movement. I finally figured out that the coaches were starting on the foot touching the ground on 1st step and was then right on the mark. Several of the times in the 2.6 second range to 1st. Many team's player profile sheets show baserunning times. Seems like there should/would be a standard method for these times. Variations I've seen are:

• 1st movement
• Foot touching the ground on 1st step
• Audible/Visual command (go, whistle, hand movement, etc.)
• Any of above but with RH batters in RH batters box and LH in LH batters box
• Bat contact to base

I prefer the bat contact to base times. But, it's impossible to compare apples to apples on posted baserunning times when you don't know the method in which they were timed.

[Sam]

The standard clocking process:

Runner has trailing foot on the back point of the plate. The runner goes when they are ready. Clock starts when the back foot leaves the ground. Its how the colleges do it....so they can easily compare speeds of players they recruit.

[Missinit]

The standard clocking process:

Runner has trailing foot on the back point of the plate. The runner goes when they are ready. Clock starts when the back foot leaves the ground. Its how the colleges do it....so they can easily compare speeds of players they recruit.

Thats what I was looking for, thank you.

[SnocatzDad]

The standard clocking process:

Runner has trailing foot on the back point of the plate. The runner goes when they are ready. Clock starts when the back foot leaves the ground. Its how the colleges do it....so they can easily compare speeds of players they recruit.

I'm not disputing the above is standard, from an at practice, human error, standpoint I like my method better because the timer can see the ball approaching the bat and anticipate the start the same way they can anticipate the finish. If your trying to run a stop watch and starting when the back foot leaves then I'm really timing the timer's reaction time as well as the kids speed and will probably tend to have faster times.

If it's at a combine and they have some mechanism at the plate and bag for timing that's obivously superior.

[DonnieS]

The standard clocking process:

Runner has trailing foot on the back point of the plate. The runner goes when they are ready. Clock starts when the back foot leaves the ground. Its how the colleges do it....so they can easily compare speeds of players they recruit.

I'm not disputing the above is standard, from an at practice, human error, standpoint I like my method better because the timer can see the ball approaching the bat and anticipate the start the same way they can anticipate the finish. If your trying to run a stop watch and starting when the back foot leaves then I'm really timing the timer's reaction time as well as the kids speed and will probably tend to have faster times.

If it's at a combine and they have some mechanism at the plate and bag for timing that's obivously superior.

Dont be surprised when you see it done differently from camp to camp. When we time at practice, which doesnt matter to anyone but me, we are machine pitching and I start the watch on the clunk of the bat.

No matter how they do it, you will see mistakes. I saw a kid that is at best a 3.3 get a 2.8, and you just wish that was accurate when you see the kid thrown out over and over.

[SnocatzDad]

So I'm not the only one who's coached a kid who had speed that could turn a double into a single?

[WildRoseCoach]

So I'm not the only one who's coached a kid who had speed that could turn a double into a single?

Nope... how about a 4.5 kid that gets thrown out by a centerfielder!!!!!!

[GIMNEPIWO]

Hit a dinger and Home to 1st time doesn't matter ... or bounce it off the fence and coast into 2nd ...

[CheckWriter]

I've posted about this before, but I have no idea what this number means. The number they have for my DD from her travel team is just plain silly. College coaches often had out their stop watches when DD was batting. I'm sure for them, the relative measurements meant something.

Usain Bolt runs his first 20 in 2.87, Carl Lewis in 2.96 in 1988:

http://speedendurance.com/2008/08/22/usain-bolt-100m-10-meter-splits-and-speed-endurance/

Before you start about the moving start, & 20 yards vs 20 meters, etc, I find it very hard to believe that all these girls listed on all these travel team web sites could outrun Mr. Bolt out of starting blocks his first 20 yards.

It is likely legitimate if you are doing the same thing to rank all your kids, but beyond that? -- Whatever.

[rbi]

Since there is no exact science when timing home to first, it is a very inaccurate. Its not like your coming out of the block on a gun start with computerized times (that is a universal method), there are so many ways people time, and any time you put a watch in someones hand its not a accurate science, due to different reaction times by people which can mean varying times. You could have three people with the same watchs using the same start method and get three different times. Now if you were able to use per say a laser lite (like they use in pro shuttle times), that is an exact science going off of movement thru the light,and I imagine some schools are using this method already. As long as hand times are still being used and different methods of starts are being used its tough for anyone to gauge times you see or hear.