Getting old sucks, might as well have a nice bike
Buried in DC Rainmakers very thorough review of the Suunto 7, there’s an interesting tidbit around the quality of Whoop’s heart rate sensor, and it’s not great. To be fair the Suunto’s is even worse, but… Actually, there is no but. Getting heart rate that wrong, for either device is inexcusable… SMH…
Hand to heart, the news that Strava added activity cropping to their mobile apps surprised on two fronts. First, I’ve never had to edit a activity, but I knew it was possible, and just assumed that it would be part of the mobile features set. Second, OMG, Strava actually added a feature that people would use. Maybe I’m being a bit harsh (unlikely), but after years of nothing, removing useful features, and…
Of course you can climb on aero wheels, they just aren’t well suited to the task. It will be faster to use a lighter set (W/kg is king on the climbs); unless you’re fast. Then there’s a sweet spot (probably around 45-50mm). The real question should be “can you safely descend on aero wheels?”. Because when you’re screaming down the side of a mountain at 40-50mph, turn a corner, and get hit…
I don’t normally like to point towards company sponsored marketing content, but this post is very interesting. While obviously marketing in intent, it has nuance (i.e. they aren’t claiming that the Saris MP1 fixes everything) that is thought provoking. The fitter found that the plate’s motion “allows” the rider to reproduce mechanical issues with their form on the trainer, that would otherwise be hidden. Which in turn, makes it possible for them…
Not quite two years ago, IQ² got enough people to back the [incredibly innovative, but alas, not sound from an engineering perspective] power meter dongle (?) designed to sit agnosticlly between the pedal and the crank. As a SPD rider, yes, even on the road, this seemed the perfect place to measure power; without the drawbacks of putting the power meter in a consumable pedal. Oh, and the price was perfect. Unfortunately,…
I must admit that I don’t frequent Slowtwich that often, and stuff like this is probably why. While I have zero first hand experience with the R9100P, it’s very clear (as in zero ambiguity) that this power meter doesn’t work. While some of this is inherent in the asymmetric design of the 9100 crank, most 9100 based power meters (e.g. Stages, 4iiii, Pioneer), while imperfect, at least function in a predictable way.…
Folding, electric bicycles are the perfect thing for train, or shorter distance, commuters. And, unless your not-on-a-train commute is more than 20 miles this bike from Gocycle could be just about perfect, if you can afford it. It claims 50 miles of range, a four hour charge time via its rapid charger (should you want a spare charger, it’s $160), but goes for $4800. Which, to be fair is the price of…
One of the reasons I love going to trade shows is the opportunity to stumble upon great kit that I didn’t know existed. At the top of the CABDA 2020 list is a company called Prestacycle. Where I found an amazing collection of clever tools, some for on-the-bike, and others for the shop. All of them seemed well thought out and, most importantly the owner/inventor was happy for me to place them…
It’s always disappointing when something neat goes away, and I would definitely classify the Human Hex muscle oxygen sensor in that group. In some ways, it could be a better indicator that heart rate for most of what we use heart rate for; whether running or cycling. Ultimately, I can also see why they weren’t able to make it though. Because heart rate is a $50 (on the high side) sensor, and…
There were a few things that warranted specific coverage, and I’ll get to those later. Here’s a quick playlist with some short thoughts on quite a few products that I saw at the 2020 CABDA.…