Garmin Edge Test Ride

Not the first use of my new Garmin Edge but first upload to the Garmin Connect site to review details and maps. It's going to be great as logging proof for Audax rides and useful if i miss the route as well. I need to see how long the battery lasts on one charge but for Audax rides my SON hub and Pedalpower+ should mean I will be OK for power without having to jostle for electrical sockets at checkpoints.

This was a just little pootle on some local errands. Lots of stops at traffic lights on a very windy day. The GPS position was not very accurate for first third of a mile of so then must have locked on to more satellites. Great display on the unit although I haven't decided how many data fields I actually need to be able to see on the go yet. Less is sometimes more I think!

If you click on the 'view details' link it is possible to see more info'. Here I have found an error with details on speed. The summary info' gives my maximum speed as 24.3 mph while the graph show a maximum of 30.8 mph. Knowing the route quite well and considering the weather conditions i'm quite sure the lesser speed is the more accurate on this day. I imagine it happened while the new satellites were being acquired. I haven't yet fitted the wheel/cadence sensor so when I do speed/distance should be even more accurate.

Gaining The Edge

I like gadgets. I love cycling. Combining the two where possible gives me an inordinate amount of pleasure. This is probably a very male thing but I would hate to be sexist and suggest women do not have this compulsion too (although they would need to colour match everything where I am happy with black or plain).

I have: a Cateye wireless trip computer, a SON dynohub with associated high power lights and a Pedalpower+ power converter/battery, a ContourHD bullet cam with RAM mount and I have a GPS. The GPS is a Satmap Active 10. It's a great bit of kit I originally bought for hillwalking but have found very useful at times cycle-touring. It's fun to see where I have been and has been very useful on occasions when I could not place myself on the paper map or, in other words, was a little bit lost (belts and braces me!).

Satmap Active 10

The Satmap uses an electronic version of OS maps so is very familiar and very useful on the hills as it shows all the normal OS features you would expect. Wonderful when the fog comes down and you lose sight of any landmarks (I can use a compass but am no expert). On the bike it does have it's limitations though - mainly its largish physical size and the scale of the OS map. I chose a full UK map at 1:50,000 which I find more than enough to supplement a paper map and compass on a hillwalk.

The problem with this scale when cycling is that it does not give enough detail in built up areas when choosing which street to take. You still use it like a paper map and need to reference points on the map with your environment. Not enough detail means difficulty determining exactly where you are. It does not 'do' the navigation for you like a car based sat-nav but rather shows you where you have been along with your current position and gives a straight line direction to a marked destination. This lack of turn by turn directions has never been a major problem though - there is usually someone to ask after all!

I know dedicated cycle GPS units from the likes of Garmin use vector based maps so can give much more detail at street level and can give turn by turn info' as well but of course they are not very good on a hill with a 2000 ft sheer drop somewhere in the fog. Essentially they show roadways and not landscape. They do combine mapping with cycle computer functions and wireless heart rate monitoring though. They provide a huge amount of information for the cyclist should they choose. Would I like one? Of course. Can I justify it? No. Or so I thought...

I have a roadie cycle buddy called Col. He's a bit of a fanatic, sorry, enthusiastic road cyclist and has been advising me on things to look for in a CF road bike. He works hard and plays hard. He enjoys his cycling, chooses the best gear and makes good use of it too. He's got a top end Pinarello Dogma road bike which he did the Manchester - Blackpool cycle ride on. It took him about 6.5 hrs. That is 6.5 hrs to get to Blackpool and return to Manchester as well! 126 ish miles, average speed somewhere up around 18 mph. On this ride he also used a top end Garmin Edge 705 GPS unit.

Col

The 705 has recently been usurped from it's premium position in the Garmin stable by the Edge 800. This, as Col told me, does all the 705 does but has a touch screen and is a little bit more aerodynamic (I kid you not). I joked "When you upgrade to the 800 i'll take the 705 off your hands for £50.00". He replied "Nice try. RRP £300.00". I thought no more about it. A few weeks later though guess what? That's right. He'd only gone and upgraded!

Garmin Edge 705

He offered me the 705 and I really couldn't turn him down as did feel somehow responsible for his new purchase. We agreed a price for the 705 along with a full UK map and a wireless cadence sensor. A bit more than £50.00 but a lot less than £300.00. Am I happy with it? You betcha. It can give me turn by turn directions and it's more aerodynamic than the Satmap. Just what I need for Audaxing!

Two Weeks Tomorrow!

As I write it is only two weeks until I will be packing my panniers (and no doubt unpacking various bits again) and checking the bike over in readiness for the next morning and a shortish train journey to Derby and from there the start of the Pennine Cycleway.

The preparation has been going well and I have been able to easily complete at least one 35-50 mile ride per week with full panniers + my normal commuting miles. I know the minimum daily distance I plan (50 miles) is eminently achievable and the kit is more than up to it. The only thing I won't know is how I will feel after 3 or 4 days consecutive riding? Only experience will answer that one I suppose.

The kit list is (almost) finalised. 2 Ortlieb Front Roller and 2 Back Roller Panniers will carry most of it and a an Ortlieb bar bag will carry some small/valuable/frequent use items. Here's the breakdown.

Left Front Pannier
A washing/utility line, Ortieb 3L water/shower bag (empty), Trangia stove, matches, wash cloth, fuel bottle, cutlery, bowl, cup, Swiss Army Knife and rain/wind jacket.

Right Front Pannier
Food for the next day. This will likely be weetabix for brekkie, bananas/flap jacks for snacking and noodles/risotto/pasta for tea. Tea bags and dried milk also included for morning and evening cuppas (lunch will be bought along the way). A cable lock, maps, paperback and electrical stuff completes this bag.

This balances the weight nicely and keeps the fuel and potentially wet coat away from the food, electrical kit and sleeping sac. 

Left Rear Pannier
A Vango Micro II tent (an old friend no longer in production) which although a little bigger/heavier than I would have bought just for cycling it is still more than adequate for the job. This pannier will also will house my head torch, sleeping bag and...ahem...a compressible pillow! I make no apology for this item as gone are the days when I will just roll up my sweaty clothes and make do - I am a middle age cyclist after all.

Right Rear Pannier
Various clothes (split into daytime cycling and evening camping/pubbing attire), a pair of lightweight trekking sandals, wash bag, wet wipes, small towel, toilet roll, small first aid kit, chamois cream, various plastic bags (multiple uses) and bike repair stuff including: a small foot pump and gauge, puncture repair kit, spare inner tube, cycling multi tool, electrical tape, cable ties, rubber gloves and chain lube.

Bar Bag
Notepad and pen, Nikon Coolpix 8400 camera with 4 Gb card, "Gorilla" pod, GPS, iPod/Sennheiser PMX680 sport headphones, Oakleys (if not wearing them), small sun cream, mobile, wallet and keys. On the top of the bag (in a waterproof sleeve) will be the current map. I may also have the Contour HD bullet cam in the bag but am not sure if I will take it yet. I am reluctant to wear a helmet all the time and would need to put this on to film 'on the go', the battery would need daily charging and the card would be full after 2-3 hrs recording with no option to download the data. Is it worth it? I can video with the Coolpix after all. I may just take the bullet cam, use it sparingly for sections I cannot do with the camera and when it is full it is full. Decisions, decisions!

Electrical

I have decided to take mains chargers whereas I was hoping to be reliant on a solar charger. Tests on the solar charger were not good as even on a sunny day it took 8 hrs to charge the battery and this would only then just about fully charge the mobile/iPod or instead could only make very small inroads into the GPS battery. So I have decided to take 3 chargers for the phone, iPod and camera and will use these at cafes, pubs and the like en route. I had no problem doing similar with a laptop when I travelled before and none of these items require daily charging or a huge amount of 'mains' time.

The GPS (a SatMap Active 10) is a different beast entirely. The rechargeable battery I have for this is normally good enough for a several hrs moderate to heavy use when hill walking. I found though even in low power mode when cycling (minimal map viewing, low backlight, screen off after 30 secs, position update every 4 seconds instead of 1) I could not reliably expect it to last more than 2 days and so would need to charge it each evening. As I plan to camp/wildcamp this is not really doable and so have gone with the 3 alkalines per day option instead. Even when these will no longer power the GPS they are never completely drained even so I will then further use them for a small radio.

Cycling clothing
I will be wearing something along the lines of an orange or yellow breathable short sleeve top and, if cold, a long sleeve Merino wool top under it, a pair of padded lycra under shorts and a pair baggies over them, some breathable/waterproof socks, multi activity shoes, pair of fingerless cycling gloves, a microfibre buff on wrist to wipe the sweat which can double as a headband (God forbid) if I am really leaking.

Bike
A Cateye trip computer, 3 bottles/cages and a great little "dinger" with built in compass that came with the bike and is surprisingly useful. I will also have front and rear LEDs I don't plan to use. I will bungee the helmet on the rack and use it for any technical or high traffic sections.

Now I just need to decide on some new music to take. Any suggestions for good cycling tunes?

Amble About

Warkworth Castle from Amble Harbour

My planned ride to Peel Tower had to be cut short as I had other more pressing commitments landed on me that day (and the weather was horrible). I still managed a 10 mile ride but felt disappointed with myself if truth be told. So I was determined to have a long ride at the weekend.

We got to the in-laws on late Friday evening and I woke fresh and raring to go on Saturday. I already had a cycle route map and a GPS route planned on my SatMap, the bike was checked over and the weather was dry. I set off at about 10.30 hrs and suggested to family they could meet me in Amble around 12.30 hrs for fish and chips before I set off for the return leg.

Getting there I reckoned was going to be 22.5 miles of mainly road/cycle lane with a smaller proportion of traffic free Bridleway/old railway path. I arrived in Amble after 95 mins having covered 24 miles and only having stopped at junctions/lights or to open/close gates. The route was generally good although the cycle paths through Ashington are designed for the benefit of cars on the whole and I was a bit put out cycling the coast section (on tarmac) to suddenly find I had to cross a three gated muddy fields sans cows before being able to return to firmer ground.

Arriving at Amble I felt fine and looked forward to meeting the family. Unfortunately the family had other ideas and were still pottering around at home (I made better time than they expected they explained!!) so I had my repast while I waited for them to arrive. When they made an appearance after an hour we headed to the beach to let the Golden Child have a play in the sand then retired to the cafe while I had a cup of tea and they had lunch. At 14.30 hrs I left them and retraced my tyre marks into the now sinking sun. I wanted to complete the coastal, unlit section while there was still some natural light - most of the inland section being navigable by street lights.

The ride back was harder. There was a slight head wind along the coast, the inland section had a distinct overall ascent and I was cold (note to self: must get some waterproof cycling socks). Still, I got back in 110 mins. I had done 48 miles of cycling and apart from cold feet and a bit of a neck ache didn't feel too bad at all. Even the next day didn't present any stiffness and I could easily have done it all over again.

I know my charity ride is still seven months away but I feel really excited by the prospect of a week of cycle touring. I plan to get some longer training rides before it and will even try for a two or three day fully kitted up/camping out trip if time allows.

GPS Average Speeds

Interested in my average speed on my commute, i set my SatMap GPS unit on the bike on my way to and from to work last night/this morning. Managed an average moving speed of 14.5mph and an average speed (including stops) of 13.9mph.

A little anal i know but useful to see how (hopefully) my fitness continues to improve as time goes on.

It was interesting to see on a long moderate hill section how easy it was to squeeze out that little bit more effort in order to make double figures and on the flat to make 20+mph