Baton:
Running Out of Time
The brief
We were approached by Dan & James from Running Out Of Time, to look at designing and creating the next baton which would be carried on an epic relay race from Ben Nevis to Big Ben. It is a sporting celebration of climate action & nature, which visits schools & landmarks along the way to educate children and raise awareness of climate change. The event is an annual occurrence, and the Running Out Of Time team were looking to make some additions to the custom baton that had been used previously. Our brief was to create a baton which could display a live countdown and could be reused in future races. The race involved a route of 2661km where the baton is carried across all sorts of terrain using different methods such as running, hiking, cycling as well as being involved in other activities such as skiing, surfing and kayaking.
The bang
Our challenge was to define the display and find a technical solution to deliver a screen which could survive the journey it would be taken on in 2023 and in years to come. It would need to be serviceable in the event of damage and wear and tear but also sustainable. It needed to use the existing tracking system so people could follow the baton on its travels. We implemented rapid prototyping & agile electronics using the Arduino Raspberry Pi to deliver electronics with off-the-shelf componentry. This created a sustainable solution using re-useable & recyclable materials, such as aluminium, cork & brass.
The result
The Running Out Of Time event was a great success and the baton stayed the course. The race finished in front of Big Ben at Parliament Square. The baton passed through many participants' hands and even surfed the Wave in Bristol. It was certainly well-travelled and from a design perspective it really looked the part. It’s weight was similar to the previous batons but due to the physical size of the display it could not be carried on long or rough running or cycling legs. Whilst there is room for improvement, the fundamentals are all reusable. We had some trade-offs, which meant we were unable to upcycle or use secondhand electronics as we originally planned, due to reliability issues. However, we were truly proud to be involved in such a significant event and delighted that our overall design created a powerful visual impact to enforce the important message of climate change.
Baton:
Running Out of Time
The brief
We were approached by Dan & James from Running Out Of Time, to look at designing and creating the next baton which would be carried on an epic relay race from Ben Nevis to Big Ben. It is a sporting celebration of climate action & nature, which visits schools & landmarks along the way to educate children and raise awareness of climate change. The event is an annual occurrence, and the Running Out Of Time team were looking to make some additions to the custom baton that had been used previously. Our brief was to create a baton which could display a live countdown and could be reused in future races. The race involved a route of 2661km where the baton is carried across all sorts of terrain using different methods such as running, hiking, cycling as well as being involved in other activities such as skiing, surfing and kayaking.
The bang
Our challenge was to define the display and find a technical solution to deliver a screen which could survive the journey it would be taken on in 2023 and in years to come. It would need to be serviceable in the event of damage and wear and tear but also sustainable. It needed to use the existing tracking system so people could follow the baton on its travels. We implemented rapid prototyping & agile electronics using the Arduino Raspberry Pi to deliver electronics with off-the-shelf componentry. This created a sustainable solution using re-useable & recyclable materials, such as aluminium, cork & brass.
The result
The Running Out Of Time event was a great success and the baton stayed the course. The race finished in front of Big Ben at Parliament Square. The baton passed through many participants' hands and even surfed the Wave in Bristol. It was certainly well-travelled and from a design perspective it really looked the part. It’s weight was similar to the previous batons but due to the physical size of the display it could not be carried on long or rough running or cycling legs. Whilst there is room for improvement, the fundamentals are all reusable. We had some trade-offs, which meant we were unable to upcycle or use secondhand electronics as we originally planned, due to reliability issues. However, we were truly proud to be involved in such a significant event and delighted that our overall design created a powerful visual impact to enforce the important message of climate change.
Baton:
Running Out of Time
The brief
We were approached by Dan & James from Running Out Of Time, to look at designing and creating the next baton which would be carried on an epic relay race from Ben Nevis to Big Ben. It is a sporting celebration of climate action & nature, which visits schools & landmarks along the way to educate children and raise awareness of climate change. The event is an annual occurrence, and the Running Out Of Time team were looking to make some additions to the custom baton that had been used previously. Our brief was to create a baton which could display a live countdown and could be reused in future races. The race involved a route of 2661km where the baton is carried across all sorts of terrain using different methods such as running, hiking, cycling as well as being involved in other activities such as skiing, surfing and kayaking.
The bang
Our challenge was to define the display and find a technical solution to deliver a screen which could survive the journey it would be taken on in 2023 and in years to come. It would need to be serviceable in the event of damage and wear and tear but also sustainable. It needed to use the existing tracking system so people could follow the baton on its travels. We implemented rapid prototyping & agile electronics using the Arduino Raspberry Pi to deliver electronics with off-the-shelf componentry. This created a sustainable solution using re-useable & recyclable materials, such as aluminium, cork & brass.
The result
The Running Out Of Time event was a great success and the baton stayed the course. The race finished in front of Big Ben at Parliament Square. The baton passed through many participants' hands and even surfed the Wave in Bristol. It was certainly well-travelled and from a design perspective it really looked the part. It’s weight was similar to the previous batons but due to the physical size of the display it could not be carried on long or rough running or cycling legs. Whilst there is room for improvement, the fundamentals are all reusable. We had some trade-offs, which meant we were unable to upcycle or use secondhand electronics as we originally planned, due to reliability issues. However, we were truly proud to be involved in such a significant event and delighted that our overall design created a powerful visual impact to enforce the important message of climate change.