Event & Heat Counter

Our local summer swim team had no scoreboard, electronic display, or fancy timing rig. Tired of answering the non-stop “what even are we on?” questions, I built us a low-tech, big number event and heat counter and made sure it was readable from clear across the pool.

The finished event and heat counter, green and blue panels reading 01 / 01 with a dolphin logo

The material is sign plastic — cheap and comes in perfectly sized sheets with a variety of color options.

My first instinct was to laser-cut everything. Beautiful results — and about 40 minutes per panel. With 40 number panels to make, that math fell apart in a hurry.

A CNC router cutting a green number panel, plastic shavings scattered across the bed

So I set up a basic routing jig with a quick-clamp system instead. Less than seven minutes a panel. Now we’re talking.

EVENT and HEAT header panels and number cards laid out on the workbench

Each set of numbers gets held together with binder rings and hangs off a classic sandwich board, built from a more structural plastic sign-board material.

The back of the board showing the support rail

To haul the whole rig around, I found a black nylon artist portfolio, laser-cut a stencil, and painted the logo right onto the carrier.

A laser-cut
The Foothills Dolphins personalized version, team name painted along the bottom
The counter set up poolside at a meet, reading 00 / 00

Four years on, it’s still working every summer dual meet. I should probably rebuild a few of the numbers — they’ve earned some wear by now — but not one of them has fallen off yet.