Hip Numbering

Purpose

Explain how 2Timer handles track hip numbers, how they differ from bibs and lanes, and what happens when you export track events to FinishLynx.

What hip numbers are

Hip numbers are race-day visual numbers used by clerks, start-line officials, and photo-finish timers. They are common in track events, especially distance races, waterfall starts, alley starts, and large sections where the camera needs an easy number to read.

In 2Timer, these are three different values:

Value	Meaning
Bib #	The athlete, relay, or timing identity used across the meet
Lane / Pos	The physical lane, alley, or start position assigned in the heat
Hip #	The visible race-day number officials and FinishLynx may read for a row

Small meets may use the lane or start position as the visible number. Larger meets may want numbers to continue across sections, such as Heat 1 using 1-16 and Heat 2 using 17-32.

When 2Timer uses hip numbers

Hip numbering applies only to track and field meets, and only to eligible track events:

running races
hurdles
steeplechase
race walk
relays

It does not apply to:

road races
cross country
field events
multi-event parent containers

Multi-event sub-events can use hip numbers only when the sub-event itself is an eligible track event.

Meet setting

Open the T&F meet settings page and look for Hip numbers.

The setting controls the default visible-number behavior for eligible track events:

Mode	Behavior
Lane / start slot	Use the assigned lane or start position. Stored hip numbers are cleared during seeding.
Sequential by heat	Start each heat or section at 1 when seeding is applied.
Sequential by round	Continue numbering across all heats or sections in the round when seeding is applied.

Use Lane / start slot when lane or position is already the number your officials will call out.

Use Sequential by heat when each heat receives its own packet starting at 1.

Use Sequential by round when clerks or timers want one continuous numbering run across the round.

Seeding behavior

When seeding is applied, 2Timer assigns heats and lanes or positions first. Then, for eligible track events, it applies the meet’s hip-numbering mode.

Changing the meet-level Hip numbers setting does not immediately rewrite already-seeded entries. Treat it like changing the seeding profile: it controls future seeding and reseeding work, and the actual stored hip-number changes happen when assignments are saved.

If the meet is in Lane / start slot mode, 2Timer clears stored hip numbers for the affected entries and uses the entry’s lane or start position wherever a visible number is needed.

If the meet is in Sequential by heat or Sequential by round mode, 2Timer stores generated hip numbers on the entries.

Manual entry edits can adjust a stored Hip # when stored hip numbering is active.

Reports and paperwork

Start lists, finish-line sheets, performance lists, and meet-operations reports can show hip numbers for eligible track events when stored hip numbering is active.

When the meet uses stored hip numbers, reports may show both:

Hip #: the race-day visible number
Lane or Pos: the physical assignment

When the meet uses lane/start-slot mode, reports use the lane or start position and do not need a separate Hip # column.

FinishLynx export

FinishLynx EVT files have a lane field for each competitor row. 2Timer chooses what to write there based on the meet’s hip-numbering mode.

For eligible T&F track events:

in Lane / start slot mode, 2Timer writes the entry’s lane or start position
in Sequential by heat or Sequential by round mode, 2Timer writes the stored hip number when one exists
if a stored hip number is missing, 2Timer falls back to the entry’s lane or start position

This means the number shown as Lane in FinishLynx may be the athlete’s hip number when the meet is using stored hip numbering. 2Timer’s reads pages label this as Hip # when the source data is known to be an eligible T&F result read.

Things to verify before race day

The meet’s Hip numbers setting matches how clerks will hand out numbers.
Track events are seeded before you print start lists or export EVT.
Start lists show the expected Hip # and Lane / Pos values.
FinishLynx receives the number your photo-finish crew expects to read.
If you change the hip-numbering mode after seeding, reseed the affected rounds or manually review them before exporting again.

Metadata

Last Updated: 2026-05-06
Version: 0.1
Status: Active

2Timer Help