Out of morbid curiosity, did the blackout in NY state have any effect on nationals? (I see that the 400IM results are up, so they have power now.) Just curious.
According to what Dr. Phil Whitten posted to Swiminfo.com, the answer is, fortunately, 'no':
"THE lights flickered here this afternoon as much of the northeastern US and eastern Canada lost power in a massive blackout. Fortunately, the electricity stayed on and the second day of the USMS Long Course Nationals on the verdant campus of Rutgers University did not miss a beat. "
Mark,
It's funny that you asked that because I had thought the same thing. I pictured what it must of been like to be mid pool and then have the lights go dim. Guess that the hand held stop watches really do become necessary in a situation like that. Another reason to be appreciative to the meet volunteers who man the finish heat after heat.
Also, most timing systems (certainly all modern Colorado Timing System consoles) have battery backup built-in. The CTS 4000 and 5000 can actually run for several hours on 8 D-cell batteries. So as long as the batteries have charge in them, even if the lights go out, you should still get official time finishes from the timing system.
-Rick
There's actually a USMS rule requiring that timing systems for Nationals have battery backup. Whether the computer running Meet Manager would have continued to function without electricity is another question. I guess it pays to use a laptop to run the meet, and make sure its battery is charged!
