What information does DriverMonitor show me while I'm on the track?

The main Session screen of DriverMonitor provides you just the information you need to make decisions about your race.

At the top it provides you your place in class and the session status. Session status can be either time elapsed, time remaining, laps completed or laps remaining depending on what the timing & scoring team is sending in the feed. The status bar or the entire background will change color depending on session status. Green bar for a green track, yellow, red or gray full background for yellow, red or checkered flags, respectively.

Below the status bar are three split times or lap times. The purple or top field information about the leader in your class; the middle red field is about the driver ahead of you in class; the bottom green value is the driver behind you in class.

In qualifying sessions these values will be splits between your best time and theirs or if you've chosen to display lap times it will be their best lap times. For race sessions these values will be the splits between your and their last start finish crossing or their last lap times.

DriverMonitor assumes you have your lap time on your dash so does not clutter its display further.

At the bottom button bar of the Session View the left button controls sorting between qualifying and race; the button displays the current sort order and taping it will toggle it from qualifying to race or vice versa. The lock button left of the sort button will lock the sort order from changing; sometimes event organizers will not set the sort order correctly so if you know you're in a race select the race sort order and then lock it from changing (timing and scoring can send a new sort type anytime during the event). Additionally, on the top right of the view there is an R or Q label, signifying if the session is being sorted by qualifying times or race standings, which can also be pressed to lock the sort to the desired type of session.

The right button displays whether splits or lap times should be displayed. Tap the button to toggle from splits to lap times and vice versa. If you always would prefer to see lap times instead of splits you can set that as a default in the settings.

Once the car is moving or the race has started these buttons are no longer touchable.

The session status shows different values depending on the session, what do they mean?

Different event organizers can choose to display differing session progress statuses available to you in their timing & scoring software. DriverMonitor tries to display the most valuable information based on what is being sent. For qualifying sessions this will be timing remaining; if time remaining is not sent then elapsed time will be displayed. For race sessions DriverMonitor displays laps or time remaining if sent, otherwise the laps completed by the leader is displayed. For endurance races where the organizer does not send time remaining, after 1 hour of time elapesd DriverMonitor will display time elapsed instead of leader laps completed.

The background color of the status row will change color depending on flag status.

Normally, before the race or session starts it will be white, when the track goes green the status bar background will turn green. If the track status is yellow or red the entire screen background will display yellow or red. Once the checkered status has been shown the background goes gray. You may still be completing your last lap even though the official session status is checkered.

When DriverMonitor infers you are on your last lap it will display the status with a magenta background. DriverMonitor infers last lap during qualifying sessions when time remaining is less than your best lap time. During race sessions last lap is inferred when the leader has one lap remaining or the time remaining is less than the leaders best lap time. For timed events, some organizers add one lap after time reaches zero to complete the race which DriverMonitor cannot infer so it may display this status one lap early.

How does DriverMonitor decide to auto advance to the session screen?

Being on grid in any series can be stressful at times. DriverMonitor strives to make it as easy as possible to use on grid. Prior to going to grid enter your first name, last name and an alternate first name if applicable (Richard vs Ricky) and/or your transponder number. On grid select the event in the list (it should be at the top under Recent Races if you selected it earlier) and then DriverMonitor will auto advance to the Session View when you appear in the driver list. For endurance races where there are multiple drivers, enter the team name and car number.

If you're not immediately listed as a driver in the session, DriverMonitor will keep retrying until the session data is updated by the event organizers. The refresh icon displayed in Red informs you that it is automatically retrying. DriverMonitor searches for you first by transponder or by last name and one of first name or alternate first name. Additionally, for endurance races it will match on your team name found in the feed and the car number.

What devices does DriverMonitor run on? Why is it best to use DriverMonitor on an iPad instead of an iPhone?

DriverMonitor runs on iOS devices (iPhone or iPad) running iOS v9.3.5 or later. It is highly recommended to run DriverMonitor on an iPad instead of an iPhone as there is no way for DriverMonitor to put the phone into Do Not Disturb mode; you may get calls or texts during the session which would interrupt the app and the driver. As such, if using an iPhone ensure that you manually turn on Do Not Disturb when using DriverMonitor or in later versions of iOS turn on 'Do Not Disturb While Driving.' The iPad must have cellular access in order to run DriverMonitor on the track, unless Wifi access is available circuit wide.

How should the iPad or iPhone be mounted in a race car?

The phone or tablet should be mounted securely to the car with the ability for it to withstand the acceleration forces that can occur in your vehicle in the worse case scenario of a crash. This can be many times above the normal cornering forces. It is recommended the device be positively attached to the car and tethered such that it cannot impact the driver or leave the interior of the car. Users have had good experiences adapting the QuadLock series of motorcyle mounts and ball adapter mounts to race cars and The Joy Factory seat bolt iPad mounts in enclosed cars.

How much does DriverMonitor cost to use?

DriverMonitor is a subscription based app. When connected to the live timing services feed when viewing the 'In Session' screen subscription time will be accrued. Subscriptions are available for a fixed duration & ussage amount and packaged conveniently for SPRINT & ENDURANCE racing in monthly auto-renewing and race weekend plans.

• 7 Day non auto-renewing SPRINT with 10 hours of live timing connection time for $11.99
• Monthly auto-renewing SPRINT with 30 hours of live timing connection for $19.99 per month
• 7 Day non auto-renewing ENDURANCE with 30 hours of live timing connection for $24.99
• Monthly auto-renewing ENDURANCE with 60 hours of live timing connection for $34.99 per month
• Annual auto-renewing SPRINT with 40 hours of live timing connection for $39.99 per year.

Example: if you race once per month then purchase a 7-day plan within 7 days of when your event ends. Alternatively, if you race often or in multiple classes a monthly subscription may be more cost effective for you.

Monthly subscriptions will auto-renew up to 24 hours before renewal and the current subscription cannot be cancelled but renewal can be turned off in iTunes Account Settings any time up to 24 hours before renewal.

I bought a subscription but why do I get alerts there is no active subscription?

DriverMonitor will work on all your devices that your AppleID are logged in to. However, if you remove and reinstall DriverMonitor or install it on another device the subscription is not automatically updated. To solve this, go into the DriverMonitor subscriptions page, scroll to the bottom and press the Restore Transaction button. Within a few seconds your device should have your latest subscription on that device again. You can confirm this by viewing the updated subscription status at the top of the subscription page.

What races will be available in DriverMonitor?

Events that publish their live timing to Race-Monitor and RaceHero are available in DriverMonitor. If your race is not in DriverMonitor, contact the timing & scoring provider of the series you participate in and tell them you want to use DriverMonitor. A1 Kamel Systems, LiveTiming.net & TSL Timing

Why does my phone battery die so fast when using driver monitor?

The largest consumers of a mobile device's power is the display, the radio & the GPS. DriverMonitor uses 2 of these constantly. When in the Session page DriverMonitor prohibits the device from going to sleep so it can stay displayed without interaction for the duration of the session. As such DriverMonitor will consume more power than other apps. Note that iPads have substantially larger batteries than phones and DriverMonitor's impact on the battery is less noticeable on an iPad. A simple +12V to USB adapter hard wired into the car's DC power system has worked successfully for users, especially for endurance racers.

I'm using a dedicated iOS device in my car but don't want to pay for an expensive wireless subscription. Are there other options available?

Yes, there are many 'pay-as-you go' wireless plans that are economical for a device that is not in daily use. The racing industries go to wireless expert Eric Kaul has inexpensive monthly plans availabl eon the Verizon network. We also like Ting.com, which charges $6/month for the account and then low data rates for months you use the service. For a typical road racing weekend DriverMonitor use that can be as low as $3 (100MB) additional and no additional charge for months you don't race nor use the data plan.

Why are DriverMonitor subscriptions so expensive?

DriverMonitor subscribes to a developer API & Feed from RaceMonitor and RaceHero which is billed on a time connected to their server basis. This cost must be recouped. The price is set with the intention the $11.99 per weekend is round off error to the set of tires you're spending for the weekend and provides its fractional basis of value as well, with a reasonable balance of DriverMonitor's ability to cover its costs. Road Racing is a small market (the app is not useful to oval, drag or rally racers, HPDE drivers, etc) and the feed costs must be recouped or DriverMonitor will have to shut down. Monthly subscriptions are intended for users who race frequently or have mutliple race cars which allows them to use the app at a cost level below the per weekend charge.