7/16/14 2:34 PM

Order in, I think it will be the ticket for me. And it has the added benefit of giving me no excuse not to try the 160K at D2R2 (done the 100k and 115k so I wouldn't need it for those, and I think the 180k is still a bit out of my range - not much longer than the 160k, but a lot more climbing).

In past editions I've seen 2 mph on hills, so not sure I'd want to look at cadence anyway....

Thanks for the help.

7/16/14 3:35 PM

"not sure I'd want to look at cadence anyway"


Below 6 RPM is just displays NA. ;)

7/16/14 3:52 PM

If I had a power meter, I think that's what it would show also.

7/16/14 4:14 PM

Mine just sez, 'are you kidding?

7/17/14 6:57 AM

quote:

---

While a power meter is certainly an important tool for a professional cyclist, the bulk of them are of course sold to amateurs who misinterpret their amateur status and poor results as signs that they need to spend a huge amount of money on a power meter when in fact their amateur status and poor results are actually the very reasons they don't need a power meter. If you're an amateur, buying a power meter to train is like hiring an accountant to tell you how broke you are or like buying an iPhone just to check your Cannondale stock. Yet amateurs not only buy power meters, but they think $1,000 for a power meter is actually cheap. Clearly then, I will make a fortune when I introduce my own power meter at next year's Interbike, since it will be the cheapest and most accurate one ever. Yes, for $5 you'll get an LCD display which constantly flashes the message, "You suck."

---

7/18/14 6:42 AM

Downloaded course files for the Lobster Century this weekend, so I'll give the Touring a shakedown cruise. Not crazy about putting it on the Sachs, and using the GPS on a well marked century is kind of like wearing a sign "Hi, my name is Fred!" but, well, the perfect is the enemy of the good.

8/9/14 8:56 PM

My cycle-computer today resolutely refused to count distance!

With D2R2 only 2 weeks away, I need to get something that works in a big hurry.

8/10/14 10:52 AM

April, the Touring Plus worked quite well on the century I rode. It shows the course and gives you a little ding to wake you up before turns. Very helpful and easy to follow. I just had 2 little glitches, one I think was a small error on the downloaded map; the other I thought it told me to make a wrong turn, but that may have been operator error and/or a map/course issue, but in any case it showed me off course immediately so didn't create a problem.

On this unit the map view shows speed and compass heading, but to see distance and elapsed time you need to go to a different screen (not sure if the view can be reconfigured). Not a biggie but I think some other units may show more on one screen.

I will use it at D2R2 with a map of whichever sufferfest I choose. Glad to hear you will be there.

8/10/14 11:47 AM

Just saw a note on the D2R2 site that all routes are being reconfigured due to some road closures - so don't use prior year cue sheets or maps. So I guess there will be no accurate gps files to download. So I guess the unit will be helpful to show you where you are, but it won't tell you where to go (so to speak).

Last edited by dan emery on 8/10/14 12:55 PM; edited 1 time in total

8/10/14 12:33 PM

How many folks spend a lot of time researching the route and updating ques and GPS data just to have this happen just before the ride I wonder? MEH. ;)

8/10/14 12:38 PM

Oh, I haven't seen that one!

I persuaded my computer to count distance today again but I'm not sure I have enough confidence in it being the only navigation tool for D2R2. So will have to make a quick decision about what to replace it with, get familiar with it next weekend and hope I don't get too lost the weekend after.

My being there is as usual, contingent on decent weather. But keeping my fingers crossed. Hopefully will bump into you again, under a better circumstance than last year.

8/10/14 12:52 PM

Dan - maybe they will upload maps of the new routes to the website and you can load them in your GPS.

8/10/14 1:09 PM

I expect the courses will have essentially the same parameters, and that accurate, detailed cue sheets will be available soon.

I doubt there will be useful GPS files. There is no "official" GPS, what are available are files from people who have ridden the courses and uploaded the files to ridewithGPS or whatever. The old ones will not be accurate and I doubt there will be new ones in next two weeks. But that's fine, they are not necessary in any case. The PITA is for the organizers who have to rework these incredibly complicated courses. But IMHO the organizers are stellar and I look forward to the event.

I may not decide what to ride until that morning anyway...:)

8/10/14 3:40 PM

The routes are only complex from our stand point. For people who ride these road all the time, re-routing likely comes second nature.

A lot of the dirt road are actually on the bike map of the area. So I've been pretty comfortable riding part of the course on my own time. These days with smart phone and the in phone GPS, finding one's way back has gotten a lot easier.

That said, I'd like to be able to stick to the "official route" whenever possible -- when I want to anyway.

(I'm likely to do a "combo route" again as in the recent years. Because at this point, I have no more hope of getting into fitness level to complete the longer distances, yet had done the short courses several times. So I mix and match the long and short courses to sample some different roads not included in the short courses)

8/11/14 9:50 PM

Well, just got the e-mail blast. This is big change. Basically, the 100k is cut off from the rest of the routes due to the Green River Bridge being out.

On the one hand, that makes my original plan, of mixing 100k return with whatever distance outbound, difficult to do (I simply like the 100k return route with the rest stop at the orchid very much).

On the other hand, according to the note, it looks like the 115k will have a very different outbound. So that's probably what I might do. The Green River bridge out basically removed the hard climb up Jackson Rd and replaced it with a long "gental climb"... ;p

The other possible option for me is to just ride the first part of 150k as I had always wanted to, and find my short cut back to the 100k after lunch. 150k's lunch spot at Charlemont is an area I'm most familiar with from all the years of white water at Zoar. I have no worry about finding my way back.

(My strategy for the last few years had always been to ride different roads each year but without having to commit to riding the full distance of the long courses. )

In the e-mail, they say they'll publish the GPS files. That would be an added bonus. Just ordered the Garmin Touring also. Will be arriving Friday.

Now, let's hope for good weather!

8/12/14 4:05 AM

Looks pretty manageable, and it's probably good they're asking me to commit to the route early (at least in theory).

One thing, with the Touring, if you want to short circuit a route, or just end up dfl ("lost"), it will chart the most direct route back to the start.

Hoping for good weather and also that I get my legs back one of these days...:)

8/14/14 4:49 PM

April, I noticed new the cue sheets are posted and the changes look pretty well defined and manageable. Hopefully there will be new GPS files, but I think you could even use the old ones, knowing where you would be off course.

Still trying I to figure out what to do, the 160 if I am ambitious.

Anyone else riding this? Garvin, are you out there? Awesome event, this is the Woodstock of cycling.

8/14/14 5:51 PM

I like that one!

I'll take a look at the 115 to see if I like it. I didn't like the original 115 but since it's now changed, I may do it because it'll be a "different" route by definition. Although knowing the layout of the roads, I already know one of the change without looking at the cue sheet. I'm not sure I like that particular change.

So the 150 got changed into 160! Well, I'll have to see what that entails. That's the one that I wanted to mix with 100. And I didn't think the bridge issue should have anything to do with it. So I'm a bit suspicious as to why it's now 10k longer! They also move the starting time(?) to allow them more time to finish? I'm not sure I feel like starting at 6:30, I'd be lucky to be UP at 6:30, never mind actually starting!

8/14/14 6:25 PM

They changed it from 150 to 160 in name only because it was actually closer to 160 anyway - no course change (other than the recent reroute). I like the early start time - my dogs get me up real early.

8/18/14 12:27 PM

This from the latest D2R2 email blast:

>>Also noteworthy: make sure your bottle cages do a good job of hanging onto the bottles. The faster downhills are ejecting bottles a lot this month.<<

Good thing I've got my Iribe Samurai cages for just that purpose!

8/18/14 12:47 PM

Hoping weather cooperates for your ride...what a summer in New England (I did not say this so not to jinx, but temps have been nice and temperate)

8/19/14 8:25 AM

Weather looks to be perfect on Saturday.