Technology meltdown

I thought I would nip out for a quick spin today, as a warm up for Tinselspin tomorrow. I wanted to also try to do some PB's on Strava, I have to admit I too have become obsessed in improving my times, especially up the hills. It may be a while before I challenge for any KOM's, but there is no harm in trying. I first headed up the Upton road climb, a nice warm up hill that is a steady 5% for half a mile, then round and back towards West Kirby via Moreton, Meols and Hoylake. I attacked the hill out of West Kirby and was making good progress, when I started to hear tyre rub. I thought I may have punctured, but the tyres looked good. I stopped, just short of the end of the segment (!!!!) and discovered that I hadn't located the front wheel correctly after cleaning the bike yesterday, anther rookie error!! When I started off again I noticed that the Garmin was registering a climb incline % of 815 and a speed of 12mph, when I was actually going down hill at probably 30mph!!! The Garmin continued to play up all the way into Irby, where I stopped and re started it and it behaved its self then all the way home.
I was quite frustrated, and angry that my efforts would not be recorded correctly, and it made me think how reliant I have become on the stats, rather than just enjoying the ride. Maybe I will go for a ride without the Garmin one day, but not just yet!!!!

Today's ride details are here: http://app.strava.com/rides/2906973 or in the Panel on the Right of the page.

Moon X-Power 500 first ride.

Since I bought the Moon light a couple of weeks ago, the weather has conspired to keep me indoors in the evenings. As today progressed I decided that whatever the weather, I would get out tonight for a spin. Paul contacted me to see if I was out tonight, which motivated me even more. It was a bit windy, with some strong gusts, but the roads were dry and it wasn't too cold.

I can't believe how good the Moon X-Power 500 is. It is like having a motorcycle light attached to the bike. Paul's reaction when I switched it on was great, he nearly fell off his bike, and as we were riding along, he said he couldn't tell if it was me or a car behind him. I highly recommend spending that extra bit of money on a quality light.

Moon X-Power 500 at full power

I am not sure that introducing the Team to Strava was such a good idea. I may have created a group of monsters!!! The main topic of conversation between team mates currently is about segments and KOM times!!! Even the lads who aren't normally competitive have become addicted. The main reason for out ride tonight was to check out the Hill we will be climbing on Saturday!! I'm sure as we move towards the weekend,  there will be more activity on the hills reported on Strava!!!

To access details of tonight's ride follow this link: http://app.strava.com/rides/2693578 or click on the Strava map on the right of the page.

The Future is Strava!

I have stumbled across a new logging site, http://www.strava.com/ It is a free site, with an option to upgrade to premium if you need more stats!! (Claire is not too keen on that option!!)

On first impressions it looks very impressive, with all the data that is found on the Garmin Conect logger, and more. It also shows climb %, and a basic power and energy formula. The layout is easy to follow, and the pages well laid out.
The best element I think is the ability for riders to share info with each other, and the ability to see how well you have ridden on categorised climbs. A good incentive to push me up the hills, especially as Grange Road, my nemesis in West Kirby is on there!!!
I have set up a Team Vita Club page already, which members of the team can join, and then all our club rides, future races and individual training rides will all be in one place for everyone to see and analyse, especially the coach!!! All Garmin users can upload direct from your device, and iPhone and Android mobile users can download a free app that logs your ride and uploads to the site.

To check out what it looks like, click on the link at the top of the Blog. (It doesn't show on mobiles, so you need to read the Blog from a PC.)

While I am testing this site I will not add a link to Garmin for ride details, you can access the info from the widget on the Blog. Please let me know what you think. Cheers