The FAD called Strava
 

I haven't used Strava and just now know what it is. Sounds like fun but also a FAD kinda thing.
I use a little Cateye Strada W/cadence I bought for $20
For distance XC Hang Gliding a Variometer and GPS a must.
And there are some cool devices like Flytec Sensbox.

- Jim Steel 40+ year cyclist and Hang Glider Pilot

Other than they are not making money, what evidence do you have? What would you do differently

I have been paying for several years.

Interesting point.

I have a feeling Strava was planning this for awhile. I don't blame them, and $5 a month is really not very much. Maybe they needed to do this to save their business? Plus, if you can't pay right now, wait. You don't NEED the features of Strava. The free version still serves a purpose.

I understand the need to push more people to subscription, or to otherwise monetize the info they collect. If you don’t help them achieve that, then they don’t much care what you think.

But I think it’s a very poor tactic to take something away from the free level; even if you don’t care about the particular feature. It just causes resentment. Far better to simply add every new feature to the paid level. OTOH, if I’m not going to switch to a pay level, and likely never will, then why should they care if I’m put off by their decision?

Good points. I do think Strava is vulnerable in that they move slowly and I'm not convinced the features placement of their app is as intuitive as it could be.

Could it be that Strava gave too many features at first? The free account should have been what it is now, and Premium contained the leaderboards and other, more advanced features?

I don't have a problem with what they did. Time will tell if it remains the dominant ride tracking/social media site.

Strava, Elite version
 

Strava's new pricing will discourage new users as well chase off existing non-paying users.
Users quitting Strava is the worst consequence of the new pricing.
I can easily afford a Strava subscription now adays, but for most of
my life I was frugal even though I was solidly middle class.
Paying for apps and websites was something I did not do, still rarely do.
The best part of Strava for me was being to see other people riding in my area and looking at their routes,
their performance relative to mine, pictures and profiles. Segments were fun also.
Lots of regular folks use the app, mixed in with super athletes.
Strava is not worth downloading with the current/new non-paid feature set.
Strava is going to lose the middle class. That's a shame.

But why quit? Quitters are cutting off their nose to spite their face. They're already paying $0. They've lost the ability to pay nothing to compare their best time on a segment to their friends' best times (unless they're all in the top 10). But they're paying nothing and still getting something. There's a lot of Strava left at no cost. If someone started a service tomorrow that did all that Strava does for free, and had all the social networking strength that Strava already has, that would be a big deal. Well, it's already there, and all non-paying users have to do to keep it is to do nothing.

I have never had Strava or any other similar product. I don't really see the need for it. Will it make me go faster? Will it make me climb hills better? You should have added a question to the poll, "Do you have Strava".

Faster? Possibly. Better climber? Possibly. It all depends on how you use the data, such as HR, cadence, estimated (or actual) Watts on a given segment of your ride. Being able to easily compare an exact part of a ride that you do several times per season (or week, month, however often) makes it very easy to tell if you are making progress or holding the line. So, yeah... possibly make you faster and a better climber. The one thing I can promise everyone here that Strava absolutely will NOT do, though, is pedal your bike for you. You have to put in the effort.

Except time and data. Only the time really "costs" you anything in a meaningful way, but the data does have value.

It depends what you want and get out of Strava. The free version is still useful to a lot of people, and those people should keep their noses. But if the only things you find useful are "gone" and you're unwilling to pay $5 a month for them, then you're not doing any cutting that hasn't already been done.

I feel like I'm coming off as down on Strava. They have every right to do this, they came up with a very cool concept, unique at the time, and not easy to program. Kudos to them, I hope they stick around for the long term.

I don't think this move will help them long term, on the other hand if it drives more business to other services, well, competition is good for everyone. 🙂

What if it doesn't do any of that, but you enjoy using it? I think that's what they're really all about.

​​​​​​Just be aware that people wind up finding what they're looking for. Meaning: do you want to be faster overall, or faster on certain segments? (Either one is ok.) I have a couple of private segments in my Garmin, they're short sprints, I really need to be improving my 60-180 minute power. But that's my fault not the segment's.

I'm in the same boat. I have a couple of private segments in GC that I use to compete against myself. I find it interesting to see where I've set PRs and where I've dogged it.

GC does everything I need. I don't have the time, or the patience for that matter, to compile trip reports in both locations. I started entering data in to GC before Strava was around and I'm too lazy to change my ways now. For users who like the social aspect of Strava, and are invested in racing their buddies and maintaining friends lists, then the $5 a month seems like a small price to pay. Just my random thoughts.

It is the cheapest, effective motivator/training tool I have and absolutely will continue to pay for it. Strava helps motivate me and my riding buddies to get smoother (faster), become stronger climbers, challenge each other and (against ourselves) constantly, etc. Being able to see where I lose or gain time. Use it a lot for planning rides in new areas when exploring/travelling, track my riding stats and connect socially to other riders all in one place.

I will continue to pay for it. To me, I find it funny with a community that will sink in large amounts of cash for all the various aspects of our hobby is freaking out over $5/month for a service that was providing capabilities that should have been covered by ads or subscription fees long ago. I think the free option is still pretty fair and useable for casual users. Strava's mistake was not getting their act together and doing this long ago.

The top 10 leaderboard is completely useless in a lot of places. Most of the segments I ride have way more than the top 10 (so flagging is a waste of time) made up of people averaging 45mph uphill...

As others have said, why not give the option of watching ads while still getting it for free? Why not make it $1 a month, instead?

Also, as others have mentioned, they need free users to make the leaderboards interesting. It reminds me of free to play video games, where people who play like to complain about "free" players, meanwhile the games generally need a lot of players online to make them viable, so the free players are absolutely essential.

Entertainment for the very bored, a botched "what is Strava" article. Published today, still taking about Summit.

Users can record their exercise, and choose from a wide variety of exercise options like running, e-bike riding and canoeing, including things like distance, pace and details about how you felt about the experience.

https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-strava?amp

I mean I guess that's technically not inaccurate, but what a bizarre way to describe it.

And why no e-canoeing?

The Strava guys addressed that in their statement, I think. They said that they've tried ads in the feed and product promotions, and got pushback from users each time. You have to give tehm credit for maintaining such an ad-free social media platform in this day and age; compared to my Bookface or instagram feeds the lack of people trying to sell me stuff is quite refreshing on Strava.

I hope they make a subscription model work, but I'm personally not signing up any time soon.

It doesn't take long to flag them. You get 20 flags per day, use them if appropriate.
Strava should have a three strikes and you are out policy for cheaters. I find I often flag the same few characters that are obviously cheating.

Interestingly, most people aren't talking about the Strava story as an example of the dysfunctional start-up and venture capital economy that currently prevails.

Early days? Make your service free to build a customer base. Profitability doesn't matter, as VC money will keep you going and make you feel like kings of the world. Eventually, however, you do have to start making money (or stop hemorrhaging it), and that's where the problems start. Chief among them, copycat competitors that are still in the early stages and can beat you on price because they aren't worried about profitability yet and have different VC money behind them. And so the cycle repeats, on and on and on...

If you are lucky, you become a big name and get some blown up valuation before things fall apart (see WeWork). If not, you just fade into obscurity (see Friendster).


Well, if they clearly communicated the alternative (watch ads or pay, your choice), that might have been different. And while they might not have had ads, there was still some nonsense like messages promoting premium or some new feature, that were basically like ads anyway (just a block of space to ignore).

Also, not all ads are created equal, at least in my eyes. I honestly don't mind ads from Campagnolo, Sidi, Fizik, Daccordi, or any bike related product. Sometimes it's actually nice to see an ad showing you a new product.

It's not at all worth the time and effort considering how many there are here. The obvious ones with ridiculous speeds are easy, but then there are the e-bike people that are harder to suss out without taking a closer look at their ride. Some of them actually put "e-bike" or something similar int the title (one guy actually included the number of the bus route he was taking, although I still have no idea why you would record a bus ride on Strava), but it's simply not worth the time or the effort.

I,ve been using GC, since buying my first Garmin Unit. GC sends my ride info to Strava anyway, so ok, but not paying. KB.

today everything is showing

There is no Segment on this Route

I took the plunge!

My last two years have been $60 each. I guess if I continue (and I probably will), it’ll be another $60.

Why don't we just stick to how the cheap-asses are pissed that they took away detailed Segment information, mmmm kay?

I’ve been a paying member of Strava for quite a few years. I like the simplicity, the kudos, etc. cycling for me is about the only social endeavor I have. The family does not enjoy going out or seeing others so my group rides (now that we have started again), and solo rides these last few months were fun to have Strava and stay engaged.

ive used other apps. All well and good but my preference is Strava. One of the best features for me albeit not worth the annual fee is that when I travel I search for routes where I’m going and load them onto the Garmin for turn by turn. When I was in rural VA never traveling, mapping didn’t matter one iota but now it’s been really handy.

when in LA area last year training every other week I’d bring my bike with me and found a different route every day right out of my hotel. Awesome!

Off-Topic Discussion
 

Ladies and gentlemen, I understand the desire of many of you to speak out at this time when pressing issues are confronting all of us. But we must keep in mind that this is a cycling forum, and although on many occasions we might feel the urge to stray toward discussing social issues or even what we had for dinner last night, you must resist the urge and rein it in. Just because Strava decided to make a statement on current social events does not mean that topic qualifies for discussion here. Please keep the discussions strictly on cycling content, that’s what we all come here for and that’s the way management intends it to be. Thank you for your cooperation.

I’m going to make an effort to remove the off-topic posts and allow the thread to remain open. However if the discussion drifts off-topic again we will have no choice but to close it for good.

Or become acquired by some other profitable company where your niche becomes a feature and not a stand alone product.