Too Long, Didn't Read:
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(Android, iPhone or GPS required)

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If you ride with a smartphone (iPhone, Android) or GPS (e.g., Garmin), please keep on reading! And if you don't feel free to read anyways, as it might be of interest anyways.

I have used various apps for navigation and recording rides. They are all a little different; some do certain things better than others, some have more or less functionality than others - as you would expect.

At the suggestion of Cecil, I recently started using Strava (free, no data (e.g., 3G) required, can run in background), and I am loving it! In addition to recording your rides and providing you with all kinds of ride statistics (time, speed, distance, elevation gains, energy burn, and much else), you can also (at your option!) choose to upload your ride to Strava servers, where you can share rides with other riders whon you have permitted to see your rides. In return, you can see and download their rides, and comment on them (think a Facebook for cyclists of sorts, but with solid privacy walls).

If you are into cycling for exercise, it also ranks you with other cyclists who have done the same route: Say, as part of your ride you went up Bachmann Place - this is a “Strava segment” so you can compare yourself to 1) other times you rode up Bachmann, and 2) to other riders who have done it. This goes for any other Strava segment - there must be millions of them in the database.

There are about half a dozen members here who I know are active Strava members. They are on my “friends” list (and I am on theirs). So I can see when and where they rode (If they chose to make it public) and comment on them. So if you decide to try out Strava, you will have some friends already, right out of the starting gates, from this board! And if you post to the “Mileage” thread, Strava can help keeping your stats straight (as long as you remember to turn it on).

Here’s a link to the Strava webpage. And here’s a link to myStrava page, to give you an idea of what an actual page looks like (very limited info available to guests -much more if you register and log in [just like FB]).

Strava may not be for everybody, but if one of your reasons for using a bike is exercise and to stay in touch with other cyclists in the local community (and who desn't?), you may want to check it out.

If you decide to do so, post to this post so we can add each other as “friends” if you like. If you are a Strava user already, post here, too - so we know who you are. And feel free to add your experiences with Strava, too.

For the record, I have no relations or associations with Strava - I am just a happy user.

I'm also on. I also enjoy the privacy options it offers. If one does not trust Strava itself, one can add a false address near one's home and censor rides that go within 2000 m of that location.

At any rate, it's nice to see where others have gone with elevation profiles, though I myself am not all that keen on the competitive aspect (some of the roadie times just absolutely destroy you...). The app itself is excellent though, and good about not rapidly draining battery with GPS on.

dstone:I'm also on. I also enjoy the privacy options it offers. If one does not trust Strava itself, one can add a false address near one's home and censor rides that go within 2000 m of that location.

Yeah, that's something I did after I realized I didn't have to put my own address in. It was kinda a "duh" moment... lol

At any rate, it's nice to see where others have gone with elevation profiles, though I myself am not all that keen on the competitive aspect (some of the roadie times just absolutely destroy you...). The app itself is excellent though, and good about not rapidly draining battery with GPS on.

Some of the times roadies are putting up are ridiculous. I did my best ever ascent of Washington, I mean I really killed myself, and some dude is beating me by a 1 minute and 15 seconds...ugh. I actually don't get discouraged by that because it's nice to see what is possible and I will try and remember that dude's name so I never have to ride with him :face-devil-grin:

There is also someone training for a solo RAAM 2013 and the miles he's doing are incredible!

I do not look at how I compare to other Strava riders (too distressing) - I only like to compare myself to how I have done the segments in the past - and sometimes to my Strava "friends".

I am, however, overall 3rd on what the creator has labeled "Rubbernecker Row", more commonly known the Mission Beach boardwalk - pretty sure that's not a good thing!
:face-devil-grin:

A remote acquaintance told me today he had "seen" me on Strava: How do I look up /search for people on Strava? The only way I know of is to look for friends of friends.

It would be nice with some kind of email address book integration - akin to those offered FB, Skype, Google+, etc.

Sigurd:I do not look at how I compare to other Strava riders (too distressing) - I only like to compare myself to how I have done the segments in the past - and sometimes to my Strava "friends".

I am just about to make you feel REALLY good about yourself. As I'm joining in the fun...maybe my ego is in the stratosphere or something and I need to come down to planet earth.

I really like using it so far although my pace is rather slow as well and extremely slow when compared to some of the other users out there! But I am looking forward to tracking some of my miles and it will be fun to have a year of stats. I do like being able to see how much some of us ride in one day (Sigurd and Cecil!). I am more looking forward to using it on longer rides. I also enjoy being able to give others "kudos"!

While on the subject on what we like about it: I am thinking it is giving me the motivation to ride a little more often, farther or harder - if it does only one of those things once in a blue moon, it's all I need from it.

Cecil:"Explore" "Athlete Search"

Don't know how I missed that!

Sigurd:

If you manage to join, please share with others here the steps you took to do so - thx..

You can either just click on Sigurd's link and click join or you can go to your dashboard and click on groups and do a search for this group. You have to type in the name as one word to find it, ie sdbikecommuter.
Thanks for making the group Sigurd!

Sam:
Maybe I'll use this Strava thing to poke around and do some geocaching as well and get some extra mileage in.

I have to admit that I have done my share of geocaching. We should fit that into our next adventure...

Anybody using an Android phone to upload? I recorded a track, but don't see an option for upload...

Ah, by some weird kink in the process I was logged in through facebook but my phone was uploading to some other profile associated with my email address. I'll have to delete the facebook related one and re-follow you guys.

Edit: I was going to delete the old one, but now I can't even access it. Though I can choose to follow the defunct account...weird.

Stefano Barberi: 90 miles / 9,000 ft / 19mph avg - incl. Mt. Palomar!

Just bumping this thread for the benefit of newly active members here who are also Strava users - notably, Daniel, Matt, Chris and Pana, but also all other Strava users here: You are invited to join the SDBikeCommuter club on Strava!

OK, joined the SDBikeCommuter club as "Shady Gaga". I have been using MyTracks for the past month or so but just tried Strava today. Can anybody comment on accuracy for distance and elevation with Strava in comparison with MyTracks? Does Strava allow for export of gpx etc files, etc?

Since I have a Garmin 500 I also use Garmin's web software call "Garmin Connect" (GC). It has some good features and that's where I store all of my rides. I usually don't post everything to Strava... :face-devil-grin:

One thing I noticed on Strava compared to GC is Strava is very precise about your route where GC will cut corners. I suspect that has to do with Strava's "segments".

Shady,

I use both My Tracks and Strava. Today, I had MyTracks running on my Droid while my Garmin Edge was also recording. I upload my Garmin to Strava.

MyTracks gave me 26.02 miles with 1,586 ft of elevation. The Garmin via Strava gave me 25.9 miles with 1,073 ft of elevation.
Garmin Connect, also using my Edge gave me 25.92 miles and 1,093 ft of elevation with elevation correction disabled and 982 ft with it on (uses survey and other data).

I'm not sure what conclusions to draw from this except that I suspect the data from my Garmin is generally more accurate than from my phone. I'll read the review that Sigurd posted when I get a chance.

I like Strava for performance based data, the segments, and the social networking features-- it's been fun interacting with everyone else on there.

MyTracks, with its Google Docs spreadsheet is more useful to me for keeping track of commute/utility riding and my total miles. I can also use the spreadsheet functions to sort rides between bikes, etc..

Sam:I keep forgetting to record my riding at the start or at the end and then subsequently wake up at 3am realizing that I didn't turn off the recording and then I hunt down my phone to turn it off and see that my average speed at that point has dropped down to 0.7 mph.

Strava records and publishes both elapsed time and moving time, and the speed it publishes is based on moving time and not elapsed time.

^ Woowoo!

And Sigurd, I'm too thick to figure out all the details but thanks for mentioning all details recorded.

Not so secret secret to that segment-- you have to run the stop sign at the beginning.

I will get him beat on the next trip to the grocery store. :)

I'm interested in this MyTracks app, seems like something useful for my days on the trail.

I managed over 480w for a minute on today's ride.

I hate Hate HATE it when I start up the app, and somehow the ride gets 'paused' when I put the phone in the case or something. Then I end up at my destination and see only a few seconds elapsed.

I think the trick is (on iPhone) to 'lock' the phone before you put it away for the ride.

That being said, yesterday Strava logged me at 49mph and yeah, I really was going 49mph.

Sigurd:So, at this point the SDBikeCommuter club on Strava has the following members (in no particular order other than how it copied off the web site):

Sigurd
Lisi
Sam
DStone
The Schwinn Lawyer
Cecil
Svelocity
MFutch
ThreeFlys
Juan Gutierrez
Panarossi
Shady gaga
Daniel
BikingBill

Fun stuff!

Good list!

Kynikos has joined the SDBikeCommuter club on Strava - welcome, Nick!