1. The one phone

You only need one phone, at the start/finish corral, set to the Finish timing point. A second phone on the same point is a handy backup.

2. How yards are counted

• Recorded before the next start: that yard counts. A runner has to complete the yards one after another.
• First yard with no record: they are out. Anything recorded for them after that is ignored.
• Ranking: by yards completed. Runners on the same yards share a position, with the faster total time listed first.
• Winner: the last runner standing, who has to complete one more yard than everyone else.
• Distance: yards are 60 minutes and 6.706 km each, so 3 yards shows as 20.1 km.

3. Setting it up

1. Get your free account and create the event, choosing the event type Running Event (Start Time & Finish - 1 timing point). It creates the race and one timing point, Finish.
2. Put the word "backyard" in the race name, for example Hull Backyard Ultra. That is what switches on the yards ranking. A race without the word is timed and ranked as a normal race.
3. Set the first yard start. Set the date and time the first yard starts on the race, for example 10:00:00 on the day. Do not leave it at midnight.
4. Add your runners. Add them one at a time, or import a CSV with the number, name, gender, date of birth and club.
5. Set up the phone. Open the timing app, enter the event password and in Settings pick the Finish timing point.
6. Run the event. Record each runner's number as they come back into the corral. Results build up live.
7. Share the results. Give people your public results link, which looks like sportstimingsolutions.co.uk/freeresults/your-race-name.

4. Watch it work (animation)

Four runners start at 10:00. Watch each number recorded at the corral count a yard, runners who are not back in time go out, and the last runner standing win.

5. Tips for the corral

• Record as they cross into the corral. The time of the record is what is counted, so record each runner as they arrive.
• Busy last minutes. Many runners arrive together just before the hour. Record them in the order they cross. Use No number if you miss a bib and add the number later.
• Check the first yard start. It must match the real start time. If it is wrong, every record lands in the wrong yard.
• Wrong number or missed record? Correct it on the Raw Times page of your free account and the results update.
• A backup phone on the same Finish point is cheap insurance. Double records are ignored: if the same number is recorded twice within 2 minutes, it counts once, even if the second record lands just after the hour.
• Same clock. Check the phone's clock is right before the first yard starts.

6. Results and reports

7. Summary

• 1 phone: at the corral, on the Finish timing point.
• "backyard" in the race name, and the first yard start set on the race.
• One record per yard: before the next hour counts it, and no record means out.
• Live results: ranked by yards on the public page, with a printable report at the end.

Record each runner in as they return, and let the yards count themselves.