jhawk

Hi all,

Thinking of buying a GPS over the coming few months, as I'll be starting touring in Spring/early Summer of 2014 - whenever the snow goes away, really. However, my phone also has GPS capabilities, but it's a drain on the battery - and then there's the argument that a map will do. Which is true. But, I'd rather keep the map as a back-up, rather than my primary method of location - I guess I'm more of a tech-friendly person and enjoy having the technology there to support me.

I've heard and read lots about Garmin's GPS's when it comes to cycling - admittedly, I haven't looked around too much, as it's more of an after-Christmas purchase. But, still, no harm in asking and getting one in my sights to buy once the fat man in the red suit has gone. Furthermore, I'm wondering what the score is with regards to GPS's being compatible with cycling applications/mapping software, such as MapMyRide (which I use), Strava (which I have, but have never used), and there are hundreds of others out there. Can you just simply plug your GPS into your PC and 'download' your route from MapMyRide, etc, onto the GPS itself?

Turn it on, load it up, select your route, and bam. It's logged into your GPS and you're good to go... Not too sure on the GPS front.

Any help? Suggestions on what to buy?

Secondly... And maybe this should be in a separate thread, but what do you guys use to lock up your bikes when you're on tour? Where do you lock it up? I've heard of and met people who just chain their's to the nearest tree they can find...

I'm not too sure on the locking system, as I rarely lock up my bike here in town. But, on the road I'd want to be a lot more cautious. A friend of mine has recommended the AXA lock with Kryptonite cables, and when I saw how it worked on his bike, it looked like a pretty secure setup.

Any help on the locking front?

Cheers,

Jhawk.

3speed

I'm not a lock expert, but from what I've read, the hardcore chains are supposed to be the best at stopping theft, and would be convenient for locking to various things like trees that a U-lock won't work on. Unfortunately nice chains are also heavy. U-locks are supposed to be the second most secure, but not as versatile as a chain or cable. Cables are supposed to be the least secure, with basically all of them being easily defeated by a common, cheap cable cutter from the local hardware store.

njkayaker

Smart-phones are very capable but they require mounts and some sort of weather-proofing. As you said, the battery life isn't really good enough either. I'd reserve the phone for calling and as a backup for the GPS.

The phones have much better screens than the GPS units and make it much easier to review maps. Note that the smart-phones generally require cell-reception to use maps. You might want to be sure that any navigation/mapping program you use on your smart-phone has "off line" maps (maps downloaded before hand). Note that some of the "off line" programs make downloading maps a pain.

Paper maps are kind of hard to use while riding and you need a lot of maps for a long trip.

Pretty much. I use ridewithgps.com, which lets you plan the route and download a gpx/tcx track file that you can copy to the SD card in the Garmin unit (the SD card shows up as a drive on your computer).

The basic choice for a cycling GPS is the Garmin 800 (rechargeable/small) or the Garmin Etrex 20 (can use AA batteries/larger). The larger Oregon/Dakota's might work. You'd need to buy a mount for non-cycling (non Edge) units.

The new Garmin 810 seems a bit flaky at the moment for navigation (hopefully, there will be updates to the firmware to fix that).

There's a new Garmin, the "Edge Touring", which will be available in a few months. It's basically an 810 suited more for navigation (it trades some of the training features of the 810 for navigation features). It's priced well ($200/$250) but we don't know how well it will work.

Note that quite a few tourists don't carry locks. If you really need to lock your bike, it's possible that you are leaving it in the wrong place (lock your bike in a place that doesn't need a lock!).

Locks are a trade-off between light-weight and security. If you are going "ultra light", you probably don't want to carry a heavy lock. If you are travelling with somebody else, you can share the locking system.

Chris516

[I have the Garmin Edge 200. It is the cheapest of the Garmin Edge series. It also is not touch-screen. It doesn't have route capabilities and will not tell you specifically where you went.

The Garmin Edge 500(I want to replace my 200 with the 500) is also not touch-screen. But it does have the mapping capability.

If you want touch-screen technology, the Garmin Edge 800 has it. You can download a MapMyRide map to the 800.

You can buy directly from Garmin themselves, or from a bike shop that sells Garmin bike computers.

I recently replaced an On-Guard lock that started to fail after several years of heavy use, and replaced it with another On-Guard lock that has a letter combination instead.

Papa Tom

The problem I find with a GPS for biking is the same problem that computers and smartphones create in our lives. If you follow the directions provided by the GPS, chances are you're going to miss some beautiful scenery or some memorable little towns that you might have otherwise gone off the beaten path to explore. I don't know how old you are, but I think the younger generation misses a lot by depending so much on what the damned little machines say. I've sacrificed at least half a dozen great rides because the Weather Channel forecast on my phone said it was going to rain buckets all day. Had I just looked up at the sky, I'd have seen that there wasn't a cloud in sight.

Don't buy a GPS. Print yourself out some rough directions, keep a paper map in your pannier, then go out and explore. It's really hard to get lost in this world.

njkayaker

The 500 doesn't have maps. It has basic course/track-following capabilities (and prompts for turns).

njkayaker

It's a tool. Like any tool, people can use it in "bad" ways or "good" ways. It doesn't force you to miss "beautiful scenery".

If you are following a planned course, a GPS can make doing that easier (and easier to look at "beautiful scenery").
If you are not following a planned course, a GPS can make things (towns, etc) more apparent (and might enable "random" exploration).

jhawk

That makes a lot of sense! And... you're absolutely right, I don't NEED a GPS, it's not like I'm a cycle courier whose job depends on being able to accurately read directions and get to a place faster than everyone else. And I do have my smartphone which has all these capabilities, but in all honesty, on the day-trips I've been out on so far, I haven't needed to use a GPS, as generally I pick my route before I go and then just remember it.

As for bike locks, I do have one somewhere, it's one of those combination locks with those hardened, plastic-covered cables. That'll do. Just gotta dig it out and remember the combination...

fietsbob

I purchased an Abus Folding link Lock It carries in a frame pouch ,
either using its straps or on a water bottle boss mount.

thenfor something like overnight camping bring a Long cable lock to go around trees and heavy picnic benches

I used a steel segment armored kevlar-cable lock on my '97 tour
but I dont think Specialized Makes them any more ,
It coiled up pretty small and I created a mount modification, to hang it under the top tube..

the 'hole' left in the main triangle, by the water-bottles.

I'm a paper map user .. Europe& UK has better Maps..

Papa Tom

So now, why don't you take the money you were going to spend on a GPS and write me a check for that amount so I can stay in a nicer hotel the next time I go out looking at "beautiful scenery?"

LeeG

Yep

jhawk

*Writes you a cheque for the amount I was going to spend on the GPS, so that you may stay in a nicer hotel for the next time you go looking at the "beautiful scenery."

Papa Tom

>>>>*Writes you a cheque for the amount...<<<<

I don't understand this reply, but no need to waste time and space on this forum explaining it. My address is....

irwin7638

I think GPS is a wonderful new technology. I classify it with index shifting: the technology is viable and interesting, I just haven't found a use for it.

Marc

Aerohip

[QUOTE=njkayaker;16140288






Note that quite a few tourists don't carry locks. If you really need to lock your bike, it's possible that you are leaving it in the wrong place (lock your bike in a place that doesn't need a lock!).

Locks are a trade-off between light-weight and security. If you are going "ultra light", you probably don't want to carry a heavy lock. If you are travelling with somebody else, you can share the locking system.[/QUOTE]

What about at night when you're camped out somewhere, do most guys lock their bikes? I'd be nervous going to sleep in my tent with my Bike not locked up even if I'm in the middle of nowhere.

Carbonfiberboy 

I use an Edge 800 and love it for touring. The Edge 810 has had its firmware fix and is now fine. I like to ride my bike and not stand around with a paper map trying to figure out where I am and/or where I'm going. Even on a sunny day. I'd just like to get to the campground or hotel before dark.

I export a TCX track from the software. I like RidewithGPS. I usually am doing this in advance, so I put it on my hard drive in my trip folder and transfer it later. Some folks bring along a iPad or use a cyber cafe and make new routes on the fly. I haven't tried that, but it should work fine. I'll also create a paper cue sheet from the software and take that along, just in case. Doesn't weigh much. The GPS has been extremely reliable though. BTW, a friend advised me to never plug it into the computer. I put the Micro SD card in one of those cheapo card readers, instead. I bring along a few MicroSD cards.

I also bring along a 4 AA cell battery pack with rechargeable batteries, just in case the Edge gets low because I've been camping for a couple nights.

I carry an 8' 5/16" cable lock. Pretty easy to cut, so not much protection if you're leaving the bike somewhere dangerous and unattended. But nice to have in the campground or at a grocery store.

cvskates

+1 If I can't see my bike, I lock it. It may not stop a prepared thief, but it'll prevent someone from just riding off with it. The little cable lock I use is less than a pound - just enough to keep the unprepared honest.

Doug64

I find a GPS extremely useful for navigating through large cities, especially in Europe. Contrary to constraining me to a route, it allows me to look at altrernative routes and take some neat sidetrips. Even with a GPS, we ended up with 11 pounds of maps (mailed home periodically) for a 7 country, 3-month tour. Garmin's City Navigator, Europe was a great tool for us. We often kid about still being lost in Barcelona if it was not for having a GPS unit. It was excellent for helping us find campgrounds and lodging. Taking it with us was more of an after thought, but I was really glad we had it. If charging is not an issue, a smart phone is quicker in some cases. At least my wife can come up with the answer on her phone quicker than I can on my GPS, but that might say something about the GPS operator. I just carry mine, a Garmin 60CSX, in my bar bag or jersey pocket. I have used a GPS in other activities for years, but have only recently started using it for cycling after our Europe tour in 2011.

I do think that Google Earth, Adventure Cycling Route maps, Ipads, Mapmyride, smart phones, GPS, etc take some of the adventure out of bike touring. I was lamenting this to my wife the other day, talking about the pre-cell phone/internet days when we'd take off with just a state road map. Sometimes it is a blessing not knowing what the elevation profile for next day looks like! Heck, we have not had to sleep in a rock quarry, cattle pasture, laundromat, or behind a cemetary in years Having said that, I still plan on carrying my cell phone and GPS on our future tours. I attribute this to old age.

I use a medim weight cable and a good lock. As the poster above mentioned, it is meant to deter the opportunistic thief.

Sometimes you just have to get a little creative.




PS. I have also really liked my STI shifters since I put them on our bikes more than a decade, and many miles ago

njkayaker

The Garmin forums seem to indicate that there are still problems with the latest version if the 810 firmware.

Sounds like voodoo.

njkayaker

Why wouldn't the people stealing bikes from campsites carry cable cutters or whatever?

Aerohip

I would probably hear someone skulking around trying to cut my lock...I would think?

Carbonfiberboy 

Some people always have problems with electronics. As I said above, I never plug the thing into my computer. I also run drive checks on my SD cards from time to time. There's also free software that will check an SD card for errors. And exactly what all the settings should be has always been an issue. What I'm doing works. If anyone wants to know, I can provide all my device settings. They make a difference.

My riding buddies with 810s are running them with no problems, with the latest firmware.

njkayaker

No, not if they are skulking properly.

I did not say don't use a lock. Many people don't carry them.

Aerohip

And why is that? Sorry, this Summer I will be going on my First Tour....I want to keep my bike from getting stolen while I sleep

njkayaker

???

So what? It's "unusual". I've never heard of it being a problem.

That sounds like a good idea.

??? There isn't enough detail to have any idea of what you are talking about. Settings for what? The computer or the Garmin?

And a huge number of people also plug them into their computers with no problems.

From looking at the Garmin forums, it appears some people have problems with navigation that I've never heard reported about recent versions of the 800 firmware.