How do you use your GPS
 

I just got my Garmin 305 with all the junk.
Here we go. No I can obsess with numbers. I just have to find out how to make these numbers useful in my life. Or just enjoy the pretty colors.... This is my test. I rode on commute on Saturday all strapped up with the thing...

Tell me, how do you use your Garmin? Training? mapping? Pointlessly?
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http://curtis.corlew.com/hosting/garmin1.gif

I just received my Edge 305 this week. I got to use it for the first time yesterday. I hope to use mine for training, monitoring heartbeat, teaching myself cadence, marking routes and general kicks and giggles. I have an old air base / industrial park near my house, that has a peremiter road and limited traffic. It's a great training road, with some good climbs as well as some long flat stretches for sprints and intervals. I went out yesterday and did my "baseline" ride. Hopefully over the coming weeks and months, I'll be able to see improvements as my cycling fitness improves.....Other than that, I like gadgets and this is a pretty good one to play with......Here is the little loop...7.5 miles once around, but I added some of the side roads and made it 13, without doing the loop a second time.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v6.../Donaldson.jpg

I have an edge and find it a great bike computer, and use it for training, especially keeping track of cadence when riding. However it is a lousy gps, at least if you get lost. When riding a new route I carry my mapping GPS, a garmin GPS 60CSx, program in a cue sheet as well as local detaled maps and head out into the unknown! IF I had it to do over I'd go for the new 705 when released as it adds mapping capability to the edge line.

I use mine to find my way when exploring areas (on and off road) I am unfamiliar with. The moving map is quite useful. I also use it for transferring maps and routes to and from my computer. And I use it as a bike computer to see my speed, average speed, distance, etc.

Mine is still on a store shelf waiting for Santa to buy it for Christmas.

Training and keeping track of past rides for comparison purposes. The lap feature allows you to record time over distance and the mapping function assists in remembering where it was. Below is Saturday's ride. This is using the Mac and Ascent. Note lap 2 is the finish of the Kings Mountain climb. We were able to compare that time with the previous Low Key Hill time from a few weeks ago.

http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u...gRideStats.jpg

The lower left is the average grade and seems to track better than the instantaneous grade. It highlights the section of the hill covered on the map. However, there are no down hill or flat sections in lap 2.

I use a MIO Digiwalker. I don’t need the heart rate monitor or all that other bicycle stuff. I need maps so I can tour without getting lost on back roads while avoiding high traffic count roads. It's also WiFi enabled so I can send and receive e-mail from places like fast food joints and public libraries.
http://www.mio-tech.com/us/gps-navig...0-overview.htm

This is pretty swell stuff. Thanks!
I have a 305 (with Ascent) , and as near as i can tell it is really good at keeping track of what I did, but less good at giving me a map of where I need o go if I haven't been there before.

I also don't see it being possible, or useful to get someones route, plug it into my 305, then follow it.
Is this true?

I have a Garmin E-Trek Legend that I use for general mapping and finding my way around, but use it mostly when I'm hiking or trout fishing....It just gives me some piece of mind that I can get back to the car if I get off the trail......For riding purposes, I generally spend some time on "Bikely" or "Map My Ride" marking out routes within the mileage that I want to undertake. Most of the time, I then ride the route in my car to get the lay of the land and familiarize myself with potential hazards and turns, etc..... The Legend may come in handy for general navigation when visiting unfamiliar locations, but most of my riding is done near home, so I can usually do without navigational help.