Dear Garmin ...

An Open Letter to the Fine Folks making GPS Products at Garmin

First of all, let me say I love my Garmin Edge 705. We've been running, walking, riding, skiing, hiking and even driving together since last Christmas.

However, it didn't take long for one major design flaw to show its face. The stem mount.

It's just not very good.

In fact, one day "just riding along" my beloved Garmin managed to jump off its mount while we were completing a workout on the asphalt. The impact was enough to kill my baby. Luckily, I was able to get a replacement just in time for a 100km mountain bike race over some of Ontario's most demanding terrain.

Excited to finally have my Garmin back, especially for an event where geographical information is so helpful, I set out eagerly watching the kilometres tick closer and closer to that big 100. Around kilometre 50, I looked down and my heart nearly stopped. It was gone.

Once again, with next to no help from me (that is to say, I hadn't crashed or knocked it with any of my limbs) it had jumped ship. Crestfallen, I knew given the high monetary value of the gadget that I would have no choice but to give my best shot to finding it, even at the cost of the race.

Miraculously, thanks to a friendly fellow-rider (and Garmin user, coincidentally) my Garmin and I were reunited and I was able to complete the race with only a little bit of time lost.

So Garmin, in my opinion, something needs to be done.

I hope future models come with a stronger, more effective mount. But for all of us already using and enjoying our Edge 705s, could I suggest, or ask over the existence of some sort of leash system?

Until this problem is solved, I guess I'll be zip-tying mine to my stem, over the exisiting mount. I got the idea from a rumour I heard about your own pro road team. Hmmm ...

Thank you for an otherwise great product -- I hope this letter helps to make it even better.

Sincerely,

Kristen Lake

PS - if you agree, add your thoughts to the comments below.

Garmin's stem mount: Does this look reliable to you?

Race Report: Paris to Ancaster

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/30561151

The race I love to hate. Just getting to the start line is more hassle than I'm prepared to deal with and this year was no different, with the added bonus that the community centre was not open at the expected time, thus causing me to dance around like a moron while I debated giving up my wicked parking spot in favour of driving to the nearest Tim Horton's, or continuing to contribute to future kidney stones.

Once the doors were unlocked, there was registration to deal with. My name had never actually shown up on the "start list" prior so I half expected a problem. Luckily, my packet was there ready to go, but I had to fight for my $15 bus ride which I pre-paid and they didn't acknowledge. After a lot of "the customer is always wrong" sort of BS, I finally got my ticket.

The next part of the pre-race gong-show is my favourite: hand over your precious baby to a man in a cowboy hat to pile up haphazardly with all the other bikes in the back of a cube van. My girl's first scratch was obtained this way last year. But the other choice isn't very good either: park in Paris at the start line and then go back there to get your car at the end of the day. Boo.

So, after spreading my bad attitude around a little more at Paris to Ancaster registration, I got on the shuttle to take me to the start line. This part is tough too, because anything you bring with you on the bus, you'll have to ride with (or so I thought) so layers to stay warm have to be chosen very carefully. Later, I found out that there's actually a "bag truck" to take your stuff back to Ancaster. Doh.

Once on board the bus, I realized I forgot one very important thing: gels. Wow, see this is why you do a "warm up race". So I had to suck it up and ask other cyclists in Paris if they had any to spare. I was lucky enough to round up three this way. They weren't my brand, but beggers can't be choosers, can they. This would later come back to haunt me -- I use Clif Shots, because they're organic and don't have any of the usual chemicals found in energy gels. Turns out while I forgot about the good reasons for making this switch, my body did not and I was feeling very ill for the rest of the day. I got home and passed out for 3.5 hours, woke up, struggled to get some food in me, and then passed out again for a very fitful sleep full of nightmares about rail trails.

Alright so after a warm up, finally, my mood began to perk up a little to the idea of going really fast on my bicycle and despite the freezing cold temperatures and even a little rain, I was getting stoked. I ripped around the local roads more out of the necessity to keep warm as opposed to official "warm-up" and then made my way to the starting gates, where the body heat of the crowd was much welcomed.

KRIS!", I heard behind me. So far the only people I'd seen that I knew were Daffyd and Paul from RPM Spinning so I was very happy to see Mandy had decided to come out. We both remarked on what a shame it was that KK wasn't there to race this year and played a little catch up on goings-on over the winter.

And then we were off.

The start is the best part (well, besides the finish) -- it always feels like you're making huge gains as you rip up the outside past all the cross-dressers in their peleton who can't handle potholes or sticks, or grass like my mountain bike can. But then we get on the rail trail, and it's the first taste of the straight-line boredom that is the P2A.

On the first rail trail, it was easy to move up -- just latch onto the back of whatever train is moving the quickest. We were out on the road in no time and then my favourite part: the first loose gravel climb up into the farmers' fields. This is where all the cross-dressers have to get off, and where anyone on a mountain bike gets their's. So I left Mandy and some other girls in my dust and didn't see them again until the halfway mark.

Paris to Ancaster used to be called a mountain bike race, but this year especially, it seems to be all about the cross-bike. Thus, after a few road sections, I found it kind of lonely out there. I just couldn't hold their skinny-tired wheels for that long while I was pushing all that extra rubber (physics yo!) and so I often found myself off the pace line, sucking wind on my own. But when it was mountain bike time, I was super happy with the way I was riding. My favourite cross-bike moment: We're in a big long train through the single track when voices up front called back "whoa-up, slow down!" I veered into the rougher trail to the right to see what the problem was. A mud-puddle. "Slow down??" I exclaimed, "hell no, speed up!" and then I ripped through that mud puddle and splashed a few of them as they were shouldering their bikes. Tee hee.

Anyway, the race went on, and on and on, in that never-ending straight line style Paris to Ancaster is famous for. And that's when it taught me a lesson. I was following a cross bike very closely, trying to laze my way through some rail trail when it kicked up a sizeable stone. It was a perfect shot, right into my front tooth. I yelled about it for awhile "ow ow ow ow ow" trying to see if I tasted blood or if my tongue could detect a chip. Safe. Goes to show: never shit-talk the P2A because it'll come back and hit you right in the teeth. That's what I'm reading into the incident anyway.

So, now we're about half way. The half-way point is fun because there are kids handing out bananas and they set up a ramp too. I almost rode by when I heard a mom say "hit the ramp!" which I then noticed to my left. I had to really veer into it which meant my aim was a bit funny and I ended up hitting it at speed and crooked, which translated into a sweet little tweak on my air. To me this was full on panic time, but the kids were fooled, and they cheered and I somehow landed. phew.

The only thing left to look forward to now was the famous "Power slide" which is a rutted out ditch of a road, filled to the hubs with thick, sticky muck and I suspect manure as well. If it isn't muddy on its own, the race organizers take the trouble to hose it down for us. THANKS!

Funny, I'm stilly happy to see it though because it means we're almost DONE!! I rode it last year, but this year it was too much of a bog to pass so I had to put my feet in it, which I really detest. blech. At last, I was through and racing down the pavement with the excess mud flying off my tires into my face and my treads slowly regaining traction as they shed the muck.

One more thing to go: the dreaded Martin Side Road climb. Only 3.5 km left to go, all uphill, and steeper as she goes. But wait ... could it be??? No!! But it is!! MANDY!! Somehow, I'd closed the gap on Mandy and we were right back where we finished last year!! I gave it the gas, but she in turn was chasing another girl and I am confident didn't even realize I was behind her. I tried and tried, but it wasn't to be and the finish ended up being a repeat of last year: Mandy finishing just a small margin in front of me.

Final thought: you know when you get a bad hair cut? and you go home and stand in front of the mirror and you say to yourself: "remember this feeling. When you think you want to do this again, remember where you're standing RIGHT NOW, and resist!" So ... P2A ... I bid thee farewell.

Unless someone has a cross bike I can use.

PS, disclaimer: save this blog and show me when I sign up again next year, cross bike or not. P2A, the race I love to hate.

My girl (and shoes!), all Power-Slid out.

Final result: 5th of 23 women in the 19-29 age group, 16th woman overall.

Overall Women:

Helen Wyman (British cyclo-cross champion), KONA

Melissa Bunn, STEVENS RACING

Laura Bietola, 3FOX RACING

Overall Men:

Mike Garrigan, JETPOWER

Andrew Watson, NORCO

Peter Mogg, THE HUB RACE TEAM

Genius: Bikely.com

The other weekend, I was determined to get in some base miles, but with my days full of other non-cycling things, scheduling was going to be too cumbersome to incorporate any kind of group ride. I don't mind sucking wind by myself, but my own repetoire of known routes is a little scant.

Which is why Bikely.com is my new hero!

With my new GPS (thanks again DAD!!!) I'm well-equipped to handle solo missions, inspired by Bikley. All I have to do is visit the site, enter some geographic key words and a list of routes posted by my two-wheeled colleagues appears. There are routes available all over THE WORLD, so the sky's the limit!

If you have a GPS unit of your own, it's even better.

How about a tour?

First stop: the homepage! It's nothing fancy, but it's easy to navigate. For this little tour, I entered "Forks of the Credit" as a sample. It's definitely one of my favourite places to ride, but I've always been a little intimidated by the seemingly endless network of roads. Now I can ride with confidence I'll be able to find my way back!

So, once you've entered your home town/destination/cottage/whatever! a list appears showing where riders have rode before you. You can see from this one how some users even add helpful tags for even narrower searching in the "advanced" section on the header!

For our sample, I chose the route posted by "eaves". This is what pops up: a google map of the entire route (totally zoomable as well).

And finally, if you have a GPS unit, click on the share tab to access the drop down menu. Choose "download .gpx" to your computer. That file can be read by your Garmin GPS (probably others too, but I'll stick to what I know!) as a "saved ride" and will give you turn-by-turn directions while you're out completing your workout.

To do that, just plug your garmin into the computer and access the unit's memory drive. Mine pops up automatically as an external "F" drive. In that drive's folder, there's a sub folder called "GPX". Drag and drop your route file, disconnect, and you're ready to go!

So whether you have a Garmin or not, now that the great weather has cancelled an extended trainer season, try out Bikely to find a new and exciting route. My username is klake, and I'll be posting up routes soon!

So ... How was the Bike Show?

Where did this weather come from? Traditionally, the Bike Show weekend is the last blizzard of the year, but it couldn't have been further from the truth in 2010. There was no way I was going to spend the weekend looking at bikes when I could be out riding them.

So I prepped the road bike right up to the point of swapping out my trainer skewer, but I didn't want to jinx it so I rode with it in. Secretly, I'm wondering if my trainer days are over ...


Saturday, I decided to ride right from my house via the new house! That's right, a new place in my future. Gerhard and I are moving to the west end as of May 1 -- maybe more on that later. I continued west past our new amazing grocery store and onto Dundas West. Then it was a complicated maze of city streets (mostly with bike lanes ... some without) until finally, at last, the city ended.

Every year it seems to take a little longer to get to that last house or shopping plaza. Sigh. I rode along Lower Baseline for a bit, making sure to ride over my favourite old wooden bailey bridge, and past the curvy river that will be filled with fishermen soon enough. Can't wait for the summer -- that spot gets so green and the sun comes through the trees all golden-like. It's hard to imagine the city just a concession away.

I came home via the College Way/Mississauga Road and the Lakeshore, stopping for a restorative Dr. Pepper, and wishing we lived in the west end NOW, because I would have been home that much sooner. My neck and shoulders definitely weren't ready for 4+ hours in the saddle, but my legs held up great, so I'm happy for that. After the Olympics I was afraid I'd be starting from zero again.

With a great ride under my belt, what more was there to do besides make a healthy dinner, and watch a movie?

Sunday, our spin instructor has decided to take himself to Cuba (whatever!) so the 7am spinning session was to be "self-led". I decided to self-lead myself on another epic solo mission.

I was a little later getting started (blueberry pancakes take time, y'know), so my ride time ended up bumping into sunset, but it was all good. That, and an unepxected training partner decided to join me -- Head Wind. What a re-introduction to riding outdoors. This time, I decided to drive to basically the same place I left off the day before and continue from there, skipping city roads, lack of bike lanes and traffic lights for a more consistent workout.

I saw a few funny things -- like snowmobilers out in the 7 degree sunny afternoon. I don't think I've ever waved to a snowmobile from my bicycle before.

The GPS did most of the driving, but I did manage to get lost anyway. I thought I was on a bikely.com route, and then all of a sudden while we were on our way to Belfountain, it started chirping "U-turn" at me although I know I was going the right way. Just as well, because I think I was about as far as I ought to have gone at that point.

By the end, I was so happy to see the van where I parked it. I hopped in, cranked the heat and drove home ... and pretty much went straight to bed.

All told, the weekend total was about 190km. Stoked.

Happy February 22nd: Hike-the-Chief Day

I don't remember the last time a day-off felt so good. I've been working so long at the Sliding Centre, whenever it gets quiet, all I hear are radio call signs and when I try to sleep, I have night terrors about being locked behind the gates after hours.

Seriously, a couple times now, I "wake up", and think I'm stuck between the track and the cement barrier in the middle of the night. It takes me a good two or three minutes to convince myself I've actually made it home.

But I digress. Anyway, been training for more than a week now for an uphill hike and today was the day. I finally got a chance to hike The Chief!

I can't believe it was February 22 though, walking around up there with nothing but tshirts, the sun shining down in a clear blue sky and the forest still green. Even saw an ambitious mosquito out and about.



Other cool sightings:

• A dog who could climb vertical rock faces as long as there was a stick to make it worth it.
• Another dog small enough to be a one-bite cougar snack
• Olympic delegation from China (Or maybe Tai Pei) admiring Shannon Falls
• Climber who'd just completed the face. Carrying all his gear on his back. He told us he placed a 6x8 flag on the face, so we had to go find it. Easier said than ton ... on the Chief, 6x8 is TINY.

flag-enhance!!

Priscilla, Gerhard and I started out with Axl and Mika but Priscilla and the doggies had to cut out early, so it was just G and I left to dangle our feet over the side of the 700m practically vertical drop.


Gerhard and I parked on the southbound side of the highway and took the new pedestrian bridge installed as part of the Olympic Sea-to-Sky improvements last spring. The three [five] of us made it up at a leisurely pace, with amazing conversation that was over too soon, once we got to the first ladder. So sad to see you go, Priscilla!


It was no "walk in the park", just as the warnings at the bottom advertised. It was great though to get to the top and not have the view ruined with "warning: cliff" signs or railings to hold you back. If you were stupid enough to walk up to the edge, that was your business. Of course, I happen to be just that dumb.


What a rush. Your knees get a little wibbly wobbly and the feeling is only intensified if you look up, let alone looking down into the valley below. Howe Sound in the distance makes you reach for your water bottle.

It was a busy thoroughfare up there today -- lots of people which brings me to another cool thing. We saw everyone from the elderly, single young people out for a workout, families with dogs and little ones, and friends taking candid shots of each other leaning over waterfalls, or sunning themselves at the peak.

I'm pretty much hooked on hiking and shockingly, I'd have to say that this is one of only a handful of "Walks" that would be classified as an actual "hike" I've completed in my whole life. I think this is the one that's got me hooked though. Lot's of scrambling over rocks and roots, sunny vistas, loose rocks, some ladders and chains to help over the steeper spots and of course great hiking company.

Now we've just got to figure out what to do for dinner and then maybe we'll check out the Squamish movie theatre.

Thanks for following!

Recorded from the top

Olympic Update: My Hike-a-Day

For interest's sake, I decided to wear my Garmin to work a couple days ago. It ran out of memory with three hours left to go, but you can get the idea.

Distance traveled: 14.81 km
Total elevation gain: 743m*

*Remember, I had to come down 743m as well which is just as hard.

To put that in perspective, the CN Tower is 553.3m tall.

Go to Garmin Connect and click the little play button on the satellite image to see me walk in circles.

A Dirty Day.

It was a rainy day in Squamish today, but that didn't stop us.

Found myself on a guided tour of some of the Squamish single-track treasures, flowing downhills and even a few gnarly climbs. Not only that, I got to do it all on one of the most fun bikes I've ever had the pleasure of riding: Santa Cruz's Nomad. I've heard it's good, but until I had one under me, I had no idea how flexible that bike is. It is the rig for this region, that's for sure. Six cushy inches in the front, and a matching six in the back, crazy responsive and you just feel like you're IN it the whole time which gave me way more confidence than I should have had for the terrain, in February, on a bike I'd never rode before. Not to mention it looks killer, and climbs like my Trek. It wasn't even all that heavy. Pretty stoked on it for sure. Thank you Priscilla!

Crispin and I (and Axl too) headed out for about 2 and a half hours and covered some trails around Alice Lake, including Credit Line (sooooo fun ... think flowy downhills, with the odd "kerplunk", berms and switch backs ... hmmm ... sounds like my credit line), Jack's Trail (memories of the Test of Metal!) the two-decker climb (ouch) and closing with the same downhill I closed my Good Friday Ride with last year. Just as fun the second time around, even in the rain.

If the Garmin can be believed, ride stats are as follows (no sensors were set up though, so this is all by satellite ... oh and it includes stops too):

Total elevation: 470m
Ride time: 2:18
Distance: 14.25km
Avg speed: 6.2km/h
Max speed: 36.5km/h
Terrain: 100% off road, right from Crispin and Priscilla's backyard
Temperature: around 5 degrees C
Conversation: excellent
Wardrobe: improvised
Riding: unbeatable.

It was an amazing treat to be reminded after a few months on the trainer and spin classes -- working hard, going nowhere -- what kind of joy comes from ripping up some singletrack. February Blahs: BEAT.

Me, crossin the bridges

Axl the trail dog

Cresting the Two-Decker (91m elevation change from top to bottom.)

I'm gonna need a carrot ...

"Carrot", chez Riverdale Perk


Another lucky sunny weekend in Toronto! Funny because I would have never thought on a Sunday in February that after opting to stay in from skiing, it would then be possible to go out for a bike ride! But that was the case.

James pin'd me around 10 to tell me about the idea. At that time, I was still hurting something awful from my 20 minute power test. Which went pretty well ... stay tuned for a new graph!

Anyway, after a great catch-up brunch with Casey and Tawnee of Kama Bay fame, I got home and commenced the big job of packing up for Vancouver. In all the excitement, I completely forgot about the asinine idea to go for a bike ride.

Then my blackberry started buzzing, and I surprised myself by agreeing to suit up and head out. Afterall, it'll be three weeks or so before I'm back on a regular training program, so might as well get it while the gettin's good.

It was a tough slog at first -- much complaining ensued, mostly from my quads. I told James, "we're going to need a treat -- something to ride for." And so after a meandering route along the Don River, the Waterfront and the Beaches, we closed with a "carrot" at the Riverdale Perk.

An awesome day in the sun. Glad I went, thanks James!


Some shots from the day:

Outside Ride!

Not sure where Winter went, but today, it wasn't here! Hopped on the bike around 2pm with a teammate. Our plan was to visit the horses up at Sunnybrook. However, despite the dry, amazing conditions on the city streets, the rec paths were not faring as well and since my training partner today was on a road bike (while I opted for my mtb since the road bike is all trainerized) she vetoed any further attempts at exploration.

Thus, we decided to head down to the CNE and see what could be seen. The boat show, I think! Or at least that's what I'm guessing from the blue Yamaha bags and a dude walking out with a sweet wake board. Ah, dreams of warm summer days!

Since the CNE was kind of a zoo, we decided to just keep on riding the "Blue Edge" ... ie the waterfront trail. I lost my training partner to cold hands and feet at the Roncesvalles bridge. Since it was such a nice day, I continued solo.

Not long after her departure, I met a man who was playing with his RC car in one of the parking lots. I was going to challenge him to a race, but thought I'd be embarrassed: that thing was quick. I think I missed a good photo opportunity. Oh well.

The next interesting pause came when I met Peter. By the time I'd arrived he'd only been there for about an hour and already he had an army of balanced-rock formations. I stopped to take a photo of his masterpieces, and got to meet their maker at the same time. When I got home, I looked him up online, and he's done some pretty amazing stuff. A Toronto treasure, for sure. He rocks.



Today was the first time I'd been that far west on the bike trail in a long time and I was happy to find it was just a little bit longer! On the way back, I turned off to get a photo and found the Humber River Trail (Number 15, people). I'd come down it once before, but never up. I figured I'd give it a shot. A bit snowy/icy in spots but totally navigable on the Trek and a really lovely ride. As I was exiting "The Old Mill", a man rolled down his car window beside me and said he'd "never seen a cyclist take on this hill!" which kind of made my day. (Although, caveat, it wasn't a particularly nasty climb or anything.)

After a quick street ride down Jane, I was back on the waterfront path. I decided to go see what was happening in Ashbridges Bay. Mostly, people were out doing the same thing as me: enjoying mother nature's little gift! I saw runners, rollerbladers, other cyclists, some tennis players (for real!) and even the skaters were out at the skate park.

With the sun going down, it was time to head home. Although most of the roads were dry, some weren't so nice so I had to figure out a way to clean up my girl so the salt and grit didn't do too much damage. I've seen it done ... but never had the guts to try it myself, seeing as I live with two others. So shhh, don't tell them but ...



After I cleaned the bike, I cleaned the tub and then I had a shower too -- one of those ones where the warm water makes your frozen toes feel like they've had too much hot sauce.

A snack, some stretching, a flop on the couch and that's a day folks.

Time for bed now -- spin class bright and early! ... and I'm cooking this in my sleep:



Here are some other shots I snapped along the way ...

From left to right (click to enlarge): 1. "And I thought my feet were cold!" 2. The Humber footbridge 3. Peter's people 4. A gull over the skyline from the base of route 15 5. The Humber 6. Bridge over frozen water 7. Tennis. In January. 8. Sun going down over Ashbridge's 9. A pile of kids were at the Ashbridges Skate Park.

Oh boy oh boy oh boy!!!!

I guess I was a good girl this year because Santa brought me the best thing EVAR. My very own Garmin Edge 705, the most amazing cycling computer in the world. It is GPS enabled of course, but also has a HRM, cadence and speed sensor and is fully compatible with third party power meters. You can store your favourite workouts, save courses, put lap markers wherever you train for automatic lap times ... and the list goes on and on. What more could you want?!

I took it for a little "test-run" today, literally. I haven't got a bike to mount it to at the moment while away for holidays, so I just held onto it while I went for a run around St. Catharines. I thought heading to Port Dalhousie along the waterfront trail would be a good idea, but some of those sidewalks go super close to the water and by then, I was so in love with my new gadget my HR was up five beats just from the stress of imagining a poorly-timed trip, and the Garmin (which I have nicknamed "G") flying into the cold, deep water.

Well never fear, I held on tight and we made it back to Grampa's house dropping virtual breadcrumbs all the way.

I am so stoked on this thing I can't even tell you. Stay tuned for future route-postings as I slowly learn how to make it do all the wonderful things it knows how to do.

PS - Dad got a matching one, so we're all set for our training leading up to the Ride To Conquer Cancer.

Christmas morning! Mom and I inspect every single piece in the box.

Photo shoot for blogging purposes ...

Maya Papaya wishing she could come running too ... maybe next time.

Where I went!