Tracking statistics to determine measurable differences is critical in many things. \u00a0It is the reason we receive grades starting from a young age.\u00a0 While not always the most exciting thing to do. When it comes to FPV it adds an amazing layer of fun to your practices.<\/p>\n
Even more significant is the ability to quantify how changes in gear, settings, and camera angle are affecting your lap times.<\/p>\n
TBS RaceTracker DroneSquad integration is a great collaboration by two big names in the hobby making this possible in an affordable way.[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n
[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]While society tells you to \u201cGo with your heart\u201d when finding someone to spend your life with. \u00a0FPV tells you to go with motors that make you the fastest.\u00a0 And how do you determine what motors those are? \u00a0Straight power, bench testing and whatever other stats you can read on a product page will not do it.\u00a0 There are subtle, intangible things that you must factor in. How do you fly? \u00a0What percentage of the track are you at full throttle, vs. half throttle?\u00a0 Do you take ultra speed hairpin turns or wider flowier Captain Vanover type flow to your track flying?<\/p>\n
How they affect you personally is something you can only determine through measuring how they affect your flight.\u00a0 I could have sworn that when I was first learning to fly at full throttle, that moving from Emax 2306 2750kv monstrous motors down to 2204 2722kv Hyperlite Team Edition motors was vastly slower.\u00a0 But my lap times indicated otherwise, much to my surprise.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n
[\/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/6″][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”2\/3″][vc_single_image image=”2594″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center” onclick=”link_image”][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/6″][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_column_text]One of the best and most affordable items on the market to accomplish this is the\u00a0\u00a0Team BlackSheep Race Tracker<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span>It’s small, portable, can fit in any flight bag and can connect wirelessly to your phone. I enjoy having this in my kit, and it means that I can measure any impromptu track I happen to set up anywhere. \u00a0It means we can help newcomers, buy setting one of these up, setting it to their VTX channel and measure how the differences we tell them to help them fly.<\/p>\n The tracker contains a 18650 cell that can be charged via a USB micro port, and you can also hook up an external 1S battery to power the tracker as well.<\/p>\n For some more details on the TBS RaceTracker, check out the GetFPV video about it\u00a0here<\/a>.[\/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/6″][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”2\/3″][vc_single_image image=”2580″ img_size=”large” onclick=”link_image”][vc_column_text]Not the recommended mounting.<\/em>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/6″][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]DroneSquad is an app available on the Android or iOS app stores that allows you to look for local groups to meet up with.\u00a0 For reasons why you should be flying with your FPV community check out this article.\u00a0 In addition the meetup coorrdination it also contains TBS Racetracker Drone Squad integration.\u00a0 There are many lap timing features that are great.<\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/4″][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/2″][vc_single_image image=”2605″ img_size=”large” onclick=”link_image”][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/4″][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/4″][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/2″][vc_single_image image=”2607″ img_size=”large” onclick=”link_image”][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/4″][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n I would recommend setting up three types of tracks and measuring using the Drone Squad App and TBS Race Tracker.<\/span><\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]This should be a track you can set up the same way every time, this is your benchmark test. \u00a0It should be 15-30 seconds long. This is the one you want to practice the most.\u00a0\u00a0 Every once and a while you want to change this up slightly so that you do not get skewed results from you just learning the track better.\u00a0 Five to seven gates are ideal for this type of track.<\/p>\n Not a master at creating challenging tracks?\u00a0 See what your local chapters are doing.\u00a0 One of my local Chapters, Battleground FPV has a master track designer that consistently comes up with tracks for time trial bench marking, races, or just focused practice.\u00a0 Take notes, and if they are generous to share the track designs ahead of time on Facebook or DroneSquad, make sure and save them so you can repeat them later.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/6″][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”2\/3″][vc_single_image image=”2582″ img_size=”large” onclick=”link_image”][vc_column_text]Track design courtesy of Miguel, Battleground FPV<\/i>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/6″][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text]Track\u00a0 2[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Isolated obstacle practice. \u00a0This is more to benchmark yourself rather than your equipment. \u00a0Gate Slalom, MultiGP 2018 Qualifier style Cork Screw double gate obstacle.\u00a0 String a few of these together to practice maneuvers that are popular in most tracks.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text]Track 3[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Random Track Generator \u2013 Completely random track to allow you to see how long it takes you to learn a track and get your times down quickly.\u00a0 This is a critical skill to get down for racing.\u00a0 Being able to memorize a track in 3-4 practice rounds.\u00a0 See if you can get your times down, and have them nice and consistent by your 5th try.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]From the DronSquad TBS RaceTracker menu, simply press the SCAN button, and it will automatically look for any trackers that are in pair mode.\u00a0 You will see Connected TBS RaceTrackers from the menu, along with a signal strength.\u00a0 Once paired, you are ready to select a new flight.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/6″][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”2\/3″][vc_single_image image=”2583″ img_size=”large” onclick=”link_image”][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/6″][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]The TBS Race tracker works by using a receiver that can detect your VTX channel that is being broadcast by your quadcopter. \u00a0You do a calibration that tells the app approximately how far away from the tracker your quad is when it is going to count a new lap.\u00a0 This is essentially your starting gate.\u00a0 If you want to change channels, just enter the DroneSQuad TBS RaceTracker integration menu, and you can select the device connected and change the tracked Channel and Band.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]The shotgun start is a single start for heat with an audible countdown more like a traditional race. \u00a0You can set the countdown to 5, 10, or 15 seconds before it will give you an audible start tone.\u00a0 I recommend this if you are with a buddy.<\/p>\n Flyover start is when the lap doesn\u2019t start until your quad flys within range of the RaceTracker. \u00a0I found I preferred this mode more when flying by myself.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text]After you are done for the day, check out your stats page.\u00a0 It shows where you were roughly via GPS, your best lap, Total Laps, and total flights.\u00a0 Then below you can see the summary of these same stats per flight.\u00a0 You can see how fast you were able to improve over each pack\/heat.\u00a0 Were you able to get your time down and consistency up by round 5?\u00a0 The DroneSquad app tells you right away.<\/p>\n One common thread all top pilots have, is they put in more hours of practice than just about anyone around.\u00a0 This is the way you can make that practice count for more.\u00a0 Focused measurable practice is always going to be worth more than just flying around and not pushing yourself.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/6″][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”2\/3″][vc_single_image image=”2588″ img_size=”large” onclick=”link_image”][\/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1\/6″][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]I found that my buddy that uses Android has a better range that I could get with iOS. \u00a0When I reached out to the Drone Squad developers, they mentioned that they had some difficulty getting Apple\u2019s Bluetooth architecture to work well with the App.<\/p>\n This meant that to get my iPhone to work; I had to place it within 3-5 feet of the TBS tracker. \u00a0\u00a0I set the tracker in a tree with antenna up, and then I left my phone in the tree directly behind it. \u00a0This was not ideal, as I would have liked to keep my phone on my flight table in front of me.\u00a0 By doing this, however, it would mean you would need to position the tracker and then the flight path too close to yourself. \u00a0Eventually, I did find this workaround and was able to rack up laps no problem from a safe distance.[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner][\/vc_row_inner][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][vc_column_text]After all, tracking your laps is essential, tracking your drive time to the doctor because you flew your quad into your head is not good.<\/p>\n [\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column_inner]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Tracking statistics to determine measurable differences is critical in many things. \u00a0It is the reason we receive grades starting from a young age.\u00a0 While not always the most exciting thing to do. When it comes to FPV it adds an amazing layer of fun to your practices. Even more significant is the ability to quantify … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2620,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[133],"tags":[3050,3047,3049,3051,3046,3048],"class_list":["post-2575","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fpv-essentials","tag-drone-racing-lap-timing","tag-drone-squad","tag-fpv-lap-tracking","tag-lap-tracker","tag-tbs-racetracker","tag-tbs-racetracker-drone-squad-integration","infinite-scroll-item","generate-columns","tablet-grid-50","mobile-grid-100","grid-parent","grid-33"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.getfpv.com\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2575","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.getfpv.com\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.getfpv.com\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.getfpv.com\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.getfpv.com\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2575"}],"version-history":[{"count":27,"href":"https:\/\/www.getfpv.com\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2575\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2646,"href":"https:\/\/www.getfpv.com\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2575\/revisions\/2646"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.getfpv.com\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2620"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.getfpv.com\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2575"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.getfpv.com\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2575"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.getfpv.com\/learn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2575"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Specs<\/h3>\n
\n
DroneSquad App<\/h3>\n
Setting up a Track<\/h3>\n
Track 1<\/h4>\n
How to link your TBS RaceTracker to the Drone Squad app<\/h3>\n
Setting up a new Flight<\/h3>\n
How to Change Channels<\/h3>\n
Shot gun start vs Fly Over Start<\/h3>\n
Review your stats<\/h3>\n
Android vs iOS<\/h3>\n