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Development of & Introduction to
The Blue Racer Headset
Due to our affiliation with the provider of one of the world's top selling tactical headset lines for law enforcement and military, we were able to confidently approach Police Bike Units around the country in an effort to determine what they needed, wanted and expected from a communications accessory.
When we first contacted Police Bike Units, several years ago, we quickly learned the majority of teams utilized conventional speaker mic systems coupled to their radios. While there were a few 'in-the-ear' pieces being marketed toward Bike Units, it was quite obvious no company was providing any type pf communications accessory designed specifically for Bike Units. Rather, most (who chose to even recognize Bike Patrol) were marketing products primarily designed for other law enforcement activities -- some tactical in nature while others leaned more toward surveillance-type earpieces. To date, other than our Blue Racer headset, the accessories available to Police Bike Units remain more generic in nature -- items that should truly be marketed as "multi-application" devices -- with few, if any, applications they are truly suited for in the diverse fields of law enforcement.
The Blue Racer was modified several times during its development and subsequent field test and evaluations. We did not set out to provide a headset designed around our beliefs of what we assumed Police Bike Units needed. Instead, we sought the input of Police Bike Unit officers, most notably IPMBA members. We must admit, several headsets we provided for evaluation in the past did not meet the needs or demands of the intended target. It wasn't until the Spring of 2003, we felt we finally had the design needed for Police Bike Units.
While the feedback we received was extraordinarily positive, we decided to work closely with our local Police Bike Unit -- Topeka, Kansas -- in an effort to 'fine tune' the microphone and unique speaker system even more before introducing the Blue Racer to the rest of the country. The Topeka Police Department is fortunate to have two IPMBA instructors (one of whom who is also an IPMBA Board Member) with nearly two decades of Bike Unit experience between them. Since the Topeka team rides 12 months a year, this afforded us the additional opportunity to have the headset tested in the extremes of all 4 seasons.
We felt the Blue Racer needed to not only be rugged enough for its intended application, but unlike other communication devices on the market, it should incorporate features specific to the unique needs of Police Bike Units -- such as a microphone system with finely tuned noise-canceling technology to ensure an officer's voice was being effectively transmitted while surrounding noise (ex. traffic and wind) in the environment was greatly reduced or eliminated. Our unique speaker system includes 'loudness limiting circuitry' to assist in preventing excessive and potentially damaging audio reception levels from being received by an officer. The design of the acoustic voice tube allows an officer to position the speaker just outside the ear canal for normal radio traffic while allowing an adequate length of acoustic tube for re-positioning the speaker in the ear canal when secure/private radio communications are necessary.
The Blue Racer is the result of countless hours of interviews, field tests and modifications. We feel confident Bike Officers will recognize and appreciate the headset's design and unique features. We encourage you to click on the "Demo" link and order a headset for you and your team to test and evaluate FREE OF CHARGE for 20 days! Each team who fills out a demo request form will also receive a full color, limited addition, 18" X 24" Blue Racer poster suitable for framing.
Please click on the other links available on this site for additional information and related photographs.
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