#litpro

[richardzinn]

5,000+ tracks created so far!!

While we celebrate this visual showing track configs created by LITPro users across the globe, we also realize that this is just a growing problem for us and a burden for our users...  Moto tracks change quickly and riders need to adapt. It’s part of what makes the sport fun.  But for LITPro customers it is also a hassle to figure out what track is the most current and when necessary to create a new one.

The good news is that we think we can change.  And btw, the visuals aren’t just an attempt to make things look cool.  We’ve been researching solutions to the problem for quite some time.  Our first approach was to curate them ourselves (notice the curated and HD Trackmap icons in the screenshot below):

manual curation effort

We realized months ago that that wasn’t going to work either since there are just too many tracks getting created every day.  So for the last few months we’ve just been letting our customers suffer through it... Sorry!

Our next approach... this one actually... is to do a combination of automation as well as some internal tools to help us look for clusters of tracks.  Generally we think that if there are more than 3 options at any one spot, then it is asking too much of the LITPro user to figure that out and typically something not-so-good happens, which is the user creates yet another new track... further exacerbating the problem.  So our tools now help us look for clusters of tracks where problems exist and after applying automation, one of our admins can quickly jump in and sort things out further manually.

Australia track map clusters

Two-stage Track Config Cleanup Strategy...

Starting immediately you’ll notice that we’ve built some automation to clean things up.  This means that we use some pretty simple logic to look at the track config and if it isn’t what we would consider a “good one” or rather a good one for the general public, we just delete it.  This makes sense because a lot of times a track config is created to solve a short-term need, like learning how to use the system, or maybe even looking at a crash.  So you create a custom config and it isn’t valuable to the public, or even you really after the analysis has been made... you’ll notice that most likely that track is now hidden in the system.  NOTE! your data isn’t hidden, your sessions at that track will exist forever, but your ability to log new laps at that track are now gone.

In the next release or two you’ll notice some improvements to track configs in the sync app that will enable us to do a lot of cool things that we’ll announce later.  But most importantly new changes coming to the app will make it easier to name a track if you are creating a new one, version a track if you are just making changes to a track, and last but not least make it easier to know if there’s already a suitable track to select from that someone else has already created.  More on these new app features coming soon.

What you need to know (BRIEF VERSION)...

We have dramatically cleaned up the track configs across the globe deleting the ones we didn’t think were good “public” tracks

NONE of your existing session data is lost, even if we did delete the underlying track config

If we deleted a track config you are still using and you want us to restore it just ask... restore deleted track config request Just let us know the name of the track you want restored.

If you are still seeing too many track config options at your local track also let us know and we’ll scrub it a little cleaner.  Track config scrub request  Just let us know the general area and we can do the rest.

REMINDER: Quick tips on creating a good track config

Give it a good name... i.e. Milestone Main V2

Create it with 3 to 5 segments

If a moto track, use the same start and finish line

And as always re-use the track configs as much as possible (if the track layout hasn’t changed, then creating a new track shouldn’t be necessary)

[richardzinn]

INTRODUCING... ZOOM!  

As we’ve had a break from the Motocross season and have been thinking of how to step up our game coming in to the Supercross season we got busy working on some of the most requested features from the teams we work with.

Here’s what you can expect to see with this release:

Added ZOOM (custom zoom ranges)

Added ZOOM (automatic by track segment)

Ghost lap feature fully supported in this new zoom view

Completely re-worked segment summary, segment details and segment map view reporting (the old segment reporting is gone!)

10X faster HD Track Map rendering

Added Drift Correction

Session Weather now works for non-US sessions

Better metric unit support, including showing Celsius vs Fahrenheight appropriately

We think this is the biggest release we’ve ever made as a company, so we hope you’ll be as excited about it as we are.  Our goals for this release are as follows:

To better identify the areas on the track where you can make the biggest performance improvement.

To better compare performance in specific sections or turns/jumps between laps. Now you can see exactly what line or rhythm choice was faster.

To better match up your line with the underlying map of the track.

Everything we do is to help our riders get faster and we hope that these new features translate exactly in to that.

MORE ABOUT ZOOM

We’ve been asked tons of times why we didn’t support pinch/pull/pan, all the typical mapping application gestures.  Well here’s the answer...  NONE of the LITPro app interface is map based except setting up a track configuration.  This spawns from a few different things...

1). Our GPS resolution is higher than Apple/Google maps allow currently in their SDKs. Prior to iOS7 when they went to a 64-bit architecture/instruction set, Apple’s internal floating point numbers weren’t event big enough to store the lat/long resolution of a coordinate at the precision level that LITPro was tracking them at.  So our lines had this ugly jaggedness as the coordinates rattled around in the sub-epsilon ranges of what could be stored in Apple’s MapKit coordinate system.  Floats in a 64-bit architecture now solve that, but not the zoom level we want to achieve with HD Track Maps.  In other words a LOT of complexity gets solved for us to present the data in the way that we do - and yeah we’re pretty awesome!

2). Even though it seems logical that pinching to zoom in is the correct way to interact with our data - and we’ve struggled with this for a while now internally - ultimately we’ve just decided a mapping environment isn’t what we want.  With a map you have the freedom to go explore anywhere you want and this degree of freedom limits the precise level of analytics we want to deliver.  For example we want to let a swipe gesture bring across a Ghosting lap, not move the viewport.  Many other examples exist...

We also don’t just show zoomed in areas of a map, instead we prioritize context and comparison.  So setting a starting and ending point for some analysis is really important to us, and you’ll see that this is handled quite elegantly when you get a chance to check this out.

ZOOM... ergo DRIFT CORRECTION

Yes there are always consequences!  Now that we let you get intimately close to your lap routes in this new version, minor variances in Satellite constellation positioning and atmospheric density changes DO cause drift even in our data sets.  These variances in drift are typically consistent, so usually you don’t see any impact between laps tracked in a single session, so while this has never impacted the value of our reporting and analytics, it is annoying to look at...  And totally unnecessary.  So introducing DRIFT CORRECTION.  See what this does in this video:

[richardzinn]

Beta Testers Needed!

Interested in being a beta tester and getting early access to one of our latest new features?  Get more information about the beta program and fill out the application form.  Check it out!

[richardzinn]

In the latest release...  We’re experimenting with a new feature allowing you to write notes about your ride, what the track was like, engine maintenance records, bike setup, what technique was being practices, whatever you want.  We’ve had this request from a few notable teams and we are happy to make this available to everyone and see if it gets used.  

As always, let us know if you have any suggestions on how it could be better.

To use this, just sync your session, then inside the latest LITPro MX app, load one of your sessions, and click on the new “notes” icon in the upper right corner.  We’ve pre-populated a few data points in there, like weather, and a few section headings we think you would want to use to save some typing each time...  But as we see how it gets used (or not) we’ll adapt.

[richardzinn]

We have completely rebuilt Segment Analysis! 

This new feature was imagined in a brainstorming session several months ago with Aldon Baker. Aldon focuses his athletes on lap consistency, and while we were able to quickly turn around a Consistency Score that applied to laps in a session, it was never that simple to apply this methodology to segments. In fact, we’re pretty happy with keeping the Consistency Score purely a lap-based analysis. But for Segment Analysis, we wanted to focus on identifying the specific opportunities for improvement throughout each lap.  

We’ve gotten pretty efficient on race day with the factory race teams we work with on using these tools and getting maximum output from LITPro to help rider performance, but we know that for some of you this isn’t so intuitive.  So here’s a quick step-by-step on how use this new feature...

STEP #1 - BEGIN AT THE SEGMENT SUMMARY

The Segment Summary provide a very quick review of your segment performance. Before you begin your analysis, make sure you hide any laps that were abnormal. In this case, I’m showing you Ricky Carmichael’s LITPro data from one of his Legends Race practices at Ironman MX last month. I hid Lap 4 by swiping left on the lap because I didn’t want that slow practice lap to skew any of the data.

Based on a glance at this screen, you can see a total improvement opportunity of 1.8 seconds, with the most significant opportunity occurring in segment 1. In this view, the top bar is the fastest performance in that segment for the session. The middle bar is the average performance in that segment for the session. And the bottom bar is the slowest performance in that segment for the session. I primarily focus on comparing the fastest to the average performance in each segment.

STEP #2 - FOCUS ON SEGMENTS WITH THE MOST OPPORTUNITY

Now select the “Segments” view of Session Analytics. This view displays individual segment performance for every segment of every lap. This starts to complete the picture.

As you can see, RC continued to improve his segment 1 performance from lap 1 to 2 to 3 to 5. And in the bottom right corner we can see the fastest segment time was shorter (by 7.8 ft.), faster (by 0.5 mph) and included more airtime (by 0.9 sec) that the average performance in that segment. But at this point, we really want to exactly WHY the segment performance improved so much throughout the practice.

STEP #3 - DRILL DOWN TO ANSWER WHY

We have made it really easy to drill down to see why your segment performance on one lap was so much better than other. When you touch on one of the segments in the detailed Segments view, it will automatically Zoom to that section of the track and enable you to replay the individual segment from each lap. This is going to take a lot of the guesswork out of line selection! It’s honestly pretty amazing, especially with tracks where we have been able to create an HD-Track Map.

[richardzinn]

As we are almost completely sold out of our first run of LITPro (and already anxious to get the next bigger run in that will hopefully last us through the holiday season) we’ve decided to change our focus to finding ways to get the maximum life out of what little inventory we have left...  Seems crazy to us to be a product company, and to have such a pervasive sense of caution of who we sell to and even whether selling units at all is the right focus!

Anyway, back to the new strategy...  

Announcing... LITPro DEMO DAYS!! 

We’re starting LITPro DEMO DAYS with the first in a series of events at EdgeOfSummerMX, hosted by Soaring Eagle Casino on August 28, 29, 30th.   Thanks to the team at RCH Racing for inviting us to participate in this awesome event!

DEMO DAYS is more than just a chance to try out the product.  It’s a full-on immersive LITPro experience.  Here are 3 great reasons to participate in LITPro DEMO DAYS:

#1 An Awesome Experience!  Everyone who rides with LITPro will get a track-side analysis from one of our athlete team support staff.  We’ve had a lot of experience working with the best in this sport and no-matter what level you’re at, we’ll provide actionable insights that will help you get faster.  You will love the track-side experience, but you’ll also love that you get to take that experience home because we’ll copy all your LITPro performance data in to you own LITPro account that you can access on any device anywhere in the world.

#2 Ghost-with-a-Pro. LITPro is better when you have a riding buddy.  Maybe it’s the extra motivation from seeing your lap side-by-side with a friend or teammate, or maybe it’s the added analytical power of viewing what line choices they made that you hadn’t thought of.  But on DEMO DAYS, we’re taking this to a whole new level!  We’ll provide you in-app data from a pro who’s ridden the same track in the same time frame.  For #EdgeOfSummerMX, this pro is the race legend Ricky Carmichael.  For future DEMO DAYS, we’ll announce the athlete in advance and try and keep it amazing.  

We are really excited about this feature, and are even more happy that we’ve already been able to talk to so many current and former pros who are willing to give back to the motocross community in this way.

#3 Leaderboards & Giveaways!  We love leaderboards and can’t miss the opportunity to obsess just a little more about competing around these metrics.  But we do it all in good fun. In fact we’ve decided so far not to announce the metric or criteria for any giveaways until after everyone has ridden for the day.  We feel this has the best chance of keeping it fair, safe, and focused on fun.

We’ve also been putting a lot of thought into what the giveaways should be, and so far we think we’ve got some good ideas... but we’re going to leave this up to our fans.  So stay tuned over the next few weeks - or post your ideas in the comment fields below.

So where’s the next DEMO DAY??

We’re asking ourselves the same question.  If you have ideas, put them in the comments field below and get your friends to up-vote them.  Setting up for DEMO DAYS means doing HD track maps with our drone, and setting up our gear - so we’ll need permission from track owners.  

Help out by posting your vote below!

[richardzinn]

Track Config Art

We really should have called this post the 1000 ways NOT to create a track config!  Since launch we’ve been completely overwhelmed with launch stuff including processing orders, shipping orders, customer support questions, but most of all from dealing with the many track configs that everyone has been creating.  Some track configs are pretty creative, a few pretty good, but most of them are unfortunately just wrong.  So we’ve since spent 99% of our waking moments either helping customers fix track configs or adding features to our Sync app to make that process much easier.

Here are a few stats since we launched 3 weeks ago:

482 new tracks configs created

506 syncs from new customers

618 sessions from new customers

So a big THANK YOU to all of our new customers diligent effort and patience.  We think we are turning the corner on this and are excited to be getting back to building the features we get really excited about (hopefully).

Here are a few of the new features we are excited about (already published to the Apple app store, just waiting for Apple’s approval cycle - maybe another few days):

Look for this new icon in the LITPro Sync app when picking from the list of existing track configs. This indicates we’ve created HD maps for the track you’ve ridden.  Hopefully you begin to see this more and more over the next few months as we make our way to more and more tracks.

Look for this new icon in the LITPro Sync app when picking from the list of existing track configs as it indicates the track has been curated by the LITPro team and probably a “good” choice.  We go through and make sure segments have been created, that the segments are in order, and that everything else is in order.

Look for this new icon in the LITPro Sync app when picking from the list of existing track configs to know that even if it hasn’t been curated yet by the LITPro team, that it does meet some of the basic “good practices” we’ve established. 

When you don’t see any of the above icons, you’ll probably be presented with a caution or warning indicating that we think there’s a problem, as well as some tips for how to correct it.

Most importantly though for this next release, what we are excited about is that we’ve made creating a new track config a lot more intuitive, and fault tolerant.  We’ve built in tons of automated checking and validation - our only worry is probably that we might have over-done it :)

So check it out!  We expect it to be available by this time next week (July 24, 2015).  As always, reach out to us if you have any questions.

Here are our latest tutorials too:

Getting Started Guide

Track Config Tutorial (launch this and scroll down to progress through the tutorial)

[richardzinn]

Behind the scenes...  What goes in to LITPro reporting for MX

A lot goes in to the reports we generate and the development and tuning of algorithms for every aspect of the sports we take on.  As a bi-product of the data we collect, we can create these 3D representations of the tracks our athletes ride.

These alone are super cool so we wanted to give you peak at what we are doing behind the scenes.  If you are familiar with the world-famous MX tracks in so-Cal then you’ll know what you are looking at...