Not so much to monitor progress or set PB records but just to record my rides and see if any gradual improvement does take place...in a very natural (don't push myself) way.

Why is that a LOL?

Just maybe the OP never anticipated joining in on a World Wide exercise based platform.

I like Strava, I like to see the progress(or not) over time. Getting PBs, even the odd trophy is very satisfying. Unfortunately those of us more ahem, mature cyclists find it's a game of diminishing returns. Still, I'll keep pushing long as I can.

Say what you will about Strava-- discount any of the social media aspects if you'd like-- but the activity and equipment tracking make the whole thing worthwhile.

Also, Strava + Elevate = the numbers!! So, so many numbers!

Strava is a tool. You get to choose how you use it.

I joined for a step contest at work. Most of my 'steps' we're cycling miles. Strava was the lone connector for cycling. Since, its been kind of fun seeing the occasional PR pop up.

Strava is the best motivational tool and keeps track of my trips with maps and statistics and Strava is free.

Just recently I decided to improve my position on the local segment less than a mile long. Usually my average is about 16 mph but for a short distance I sped up to 24 mph and moved from about 150 position to 40. It felt really good. Specially that some of the best entries are from people driving with their bike computers on (the only way I can explain it).

First ride breaking in the Brooks B17 with Strava...

https://www.strava.com/activities/34...urce=ios_share

I started with free Strava in 2013 but have gone to premium where I can compare my times on segments with up to about 45 other 75+ seniors in my county. Within your age group you can improve.

.. and occasionally checking my performance overall, finding I'm 762nd, keeps me anchored in reality.

I use RideWithGPS for daily tracking, and only go to Strava if i think i did particularly well on a segment .... comparing techniques on a couple hills i ride from time to time. After I failed to best my own top three times on any segments for about two years, it certainly lost it luster ....

But yes. Strava is just a tool, and one need not let it drive pressure to compete.

Okay so?...just to be clear here?....I have no clue what "a segment" even is (unless I'm working on a puzzle) and?....aspects like "Within your age group you can improve." are things I'll be doing my best to ignore.

Like bruce19 said above: "Strava is a tool. You get to choose how you use it." and in keeping with that I will never allow Strava to cause me to potentially push myself beyond my limitations by awakening the competitive monster within me because at my age and state of health?....that monster can hurt me bad enough to put an end to my cycling activities. (and possibly many other things in my life)

Blazingpeddles asked: "Why is that a LOL?"

and the reason I got a chuckle out of myself signing up with Strava is because my reasons for doing so are so far out of "The Mainstream" because I'll only be "Using That Tool" as a means of Journaling my activities.

I am amazed at how good Strava is though because I made 3 stops...2 stops for photo ops and take in the scenery and one stop to concentrate on an important phone call and it seems Strava automatically discounted them all from my avg speed where the old mapmyride app I had 5 years ago wouldn't...I'd of had to "Pause" the app however?...in my mind yesterday?...I had yet another chuckle thinking...

1. I bet windy days has one heck of an effect on folks who obsess about maintaining certain mph avgs and?...

2. How fortunate I am that I'm never going to allow #1 above to upset me because the other wildcard in this avg speed mix is what sort of terrain is the rider traveling over?...cause I'm sure it's a lot easier to maintain speeds in certain areas than it is others where my loop yesterday was about 1/2 open spaces and smooth non-stop rolling and about 1/2 sidewalk stop & go stoplight work which I think are things that Strava doesn't account for.

anyway?...I think it's Strava is real nice to have even if it's for the social aspects alone that it offers as I was amazed at how many of my FB friends ride and I never knew (or remembered) that they did.

Happy Trails Folks!

If that isn't a look of grim determination, I don't know what is. LOL.
I hope the Brooks is treating you well!

Well one more thing about having a tracking tool is that it tracks my heart rate (I wear the chest strap when I cycle). On windy days I just try to maintain the level of effort that I'd decided on for that ride, and don't pay that much attention to the actual speed.

A couple months ago I went into Strava and set a goal of riding 4000 miles during 2020. I then had a fairly catastrophic April as far as my cycling goes, getting out on less than half the rides I'd planned on doing. When I look at my profile data it not only shows how far I've ridden compared to this 4000 mile yearly goal, but also tells me how far behind the curve I am on that goal. As of right now it says I'm 597 miles behind the pace to complete that 4000 mile goal for the year. It was in the 600s a week ago, but I've been chipping away at it the last week as I started off May actually doing all the rides I'd planned to do. I'm about to go out and ride right now, and it will be satisfying to see that 597 mile deficit against my yearly goal drop again. It'll probably take me several months to whittle that deficit down to 0, and then I'm interested in seeing if Strava reports me being ahead of the curve.

You said you didn't know what a segment is. If you look at the Strava record for any of your rides, if you rode anyplace where a segment has been defined, it'll show you stats for those segments. Where I live there are Strava segments defined all over the place. Any ride I do on the roads where I live will result in anywhere from 10 to 20 or more segments pop up in my ride record. Any long stretch of road with some kind of natural start and end point (eg: between two major intersections a mile or three apart) is likely to have Strava segments already defined for it.

One really cool thing is that you can define your own segments (that's how they come to be: people define them). One practice of mine is that I define a Strava segment for any entire ride route that I'm going to ride frequently. I've defined 9 mile segments, 13 mile segments, 25 mile segments, 32, 54, etc. mile segments for routes I've done a lot. By having a segment defined for an entire ride (not just some small part of it) I have data now for entire ride routes that I've done a lot, and I can go see how my rides have gone on that route all the way back to when I first started riding that route. On these whole-ride segments that obviously start and end by my house, usually there won't be anyone but me on the leaderboard, though there are routes where several people show up because they rode it with me. In this case the "leaderboard" isn't really a competition, unless I'm competing with myself. It's nice to be able to see the fastest I've ever done that route, get a feel for my average times, etc.

Well Seth?...I'm an "every day is a blessing/live in the moment" sort of guy and I'd like to think that God has given me the wisdom to know that at my age and state-of-health?..."Goal Setting" is more an act of "Premeditated Disappointment" than it is a plausible reality.

And don't get me wrong...I know there's riders out there 10-20 years my senior that can go at it like they're trying to become the next Lance Armstrong but as a post-stroke diabetic with high BP?...I don't nedd HR monitors to let me know when I'm pushing things a little to hard and I'm tickled to death I can get out there and slum my way through 17mi at nearly a 10mph avg...whatever keeps me alive and riding...pride is a luxury I can no longer afford because it's more apt to kill me than cure me.

^^^^^^ I have not jumped into Strava and quite frequently I do not record my rides on my Garmin Vivoactive watch. I purchased an older steel bike recently purely for the joy of cycling and did not attach a cycloputer to track speed or miles. What I am finding out for myself is I view the scenery more now instead of checking my Cateye or watch for info. I still have goals but working harder on the bike is also a subjective experience and when gassed I know it without the benefit of software. For me this is better than a bunch of data/stats. This fits my personality better. Road cycling for me is more fun without all the data.

I use Strava on just about every ride. I make note of which bike I ride on that day. It helps me keep track of mileages on my bikes. It also keeps track of how I am doing and helps me set and achieve goals. I am over 65 so not so much into setting any kind of record, just keeping track of myself. The bonus is with meeting other cyclists from all over and giving each other kudos which adds motivation.

Hard to believe how much Strava gives away for free. It's way better than the spreadsheet I used to use.

If I were them I'd limit it to 1-year worth of data or something. There's just not enough reason to go premium.

I am up to 2500 out of 12000

Been on Strava for years, love it.
I track myself, I find others routes and ride them, sometime I move up the ranks for a given segment sometimes down.
I had a KOM once, trail was new, half day old.
Held that KOM for 24 hours I tell ya,, I was so proud LoL..~~

10.96mi tonight...

https://www.strava.com/activities/3436963378

Just one upload, they said. It's nothing, they said. Everyone's doing it, they said.

You're well on your way to becoming a Strava addict! LOL.

I went cycling around Lanzarote in the Canary Islands and I was getting stats like that, 5098 out of 14000 etc. Slightly demoralising but then again Lanzarote is a mecca for cyclists and triathletes so I wasn't surprised.

I feel your pain. On one 6+ mile segment, I averaged 25.2. mph and took 83rd out of 1457. I realize that there's probably a race or two along there, and my solo ride is being compared to years of pelotons sprinting down the final stretch, but still...