Cycling computer - worth it?

Quoted message said:

My cycling's pretty much 100% commuting, about 50Ks a day. I use a HRM
to keep me honest. It's amazing how quickly I end up coasting at 120bpm
if I don't use one.

So given I ride pretty fixed routes and while I want to get faster I'm
not a competitive cyclist, is a cycling computer worth anything to me?
What are the benefits?

I like mine for cadence and it's sometimes useful for telling me how
long things last. eg. chain, tyres etc.

However, my comp tells me other cool useless stuff like gradient, air
temp and power output 🙂

If I had to give up one of them, I'd keep the HRM.

--
Nick

Quoted message said:

My cycling's pretty much 100% commuting, about 50Ks a day. I use a HRM
to keep me honest. It's amazing how quickly I end up coasting at 120bpm
if I don't use one.

So given I ride pretty fixed routes and while I want to get faster I'm
not a competitive cyclist, is a cycling computer worth anything to me?
What are the benefits?

Depends entirely on your psychology :-)

I like knowing how fast I ride a certain stretch or climb and them trying
to beat it a week or so later, but my main use of a cycle comp is the
watch function, lets me know how later I'm going to be and therefore how
much faster I should be going

YMMV

--
| Joel Mayes | /~\ ASCII Ribbon campaign
| Accordionist | \_/ stop HTML mail and news
| Musician | / \
| Music Teacher |

NickZX6R said:

Quoted message said:

My cycling's pretty much 100% commuting, about 50Ks a day. I use a HRM
to keep me honest. It's amazing how quickly I end up coasting at 120bpm
if I don't use one.

So given I ride pretty fixed routes and while I want to get faster I'm
not a competitive cyclist, is a cycling computer worth anything to me?
What are the benefits?

I like mine for cadence and it's sometimes useful for telling me how
long things last. eg. chain, tyres etc.

However, my comp tells me other cool useless stuff like gradient, air
temp and power output 🙂

does it warn you if you are about to run into a light pole while reading
all that stuff?
--
Peter McCallum
Mackay Qld AUSTRALIA

Quoted message said:

My cycling's pretty much 100% commuting, about 50Ks a day.

Just commuting? 50k x 5 days a week is damn impressive.

I use a HRM

Quoted message said:

to keep me honest. It's amazing how quickly I end up coasting at 120bpm
if I don't use one.

So given I ride pretty fixed routes and while I want to get faster I'm
not a competitive cyclist, is a cycling computer worth anything to me?
What are the benefits?

100% agree with what all the other posters say, especially how odometer
readings give you objective info, rather than just "feel" and visual
cues, about whether you need to replace your tyres and running gear.

Plus:
- Time, distance (especially combined with a HRM - guessing, since I
don't have one) and to a lesser extent average speed is useful for
telling you how much of a workout you are doing/have done;
- Cadence is useful to know about, tells you how your "form" is,
especially when you're getting tired - switch off the "speed" display
and just aim to keep at your good non-tired rpm;
- Speed (especially max (but not Rod) speed) is always fun to know, and
will-give you a gee-up if you have an attack of lazy-itis; also, when
you're cornering it's useful to know exactly how fast you are going
rather than relying on feel.

Another commuter's 5c worth.

p - aka fn - d

"fred_nieman" <[email hidden]

Quoted message said:

when you're cornering it's useful to know exactly how fast you are going
rather than relying on feel.

You'd probably corner faster while 'not' looking
at the computer! ;-P

My opinion: Buy a computer. $50 - it's only one
slab, only a few packs of ciggies, half a race tyre! 😉

They are cool for all the reason the other posters
have mentioned and probably some others you will
find yourself. Stats are cool.. embrace the stats!

hippy

On Mon, 10 Jan 2005 at 12:50 GMT, hippy (aka Bruce)
was almost, but not quite, entirely unlike tea:

Quoted message said:

"fred_nieman" <[email hidden]

Quoted message said:

when you're cornering it's useful to know exactly how fast you are going
rather than relying on feel.

You'd probably corner faster while 'not' looking
at the computer! ;-P

My opinion: Buy a computer. $50 - it's only one
slab, only a few packs of ciggies, half a race tyre! 😉

And about 20 times the cost of a poor uni student's (who doesn't
smoke, and only scrounges beer off other people) lunch 🙂

--
TimC -- http://astronomy.swin.edu.au/staff/tconnors/
And for the important things in life:
"If you teach a child to read, he or her can pass a literacy test"
-- George "Dubya" Boosh - president of the Yoonited States.

"TimC" <[email hidden]

Quoted message said:

On Mon, 10 Jan 2005 at 12:50 GMT, hippy (aka Bruce)

Quoted message said:

My opinion: Buy a computer. $50 - it's only one
slab, only a few packs of ciggies, half a race tyre! 😉

And about 20 times the cost of a poor uni student's (who doesn't
smoke, and only scrounges beer off other people) lunch 🙂

I went to uni and I had a bike computer..
and.. I had a job to pay for these things! :-P

hippy
"Get a haircut and get a real job"
"Nooooo!"

In article
<[email hidden]>,

TimC said:

Quoted message said:

My opinion: Buy a computer. $50 - it's only one
slab, only a few packs of ciggies, half a race tyre! 😉

And about 20 times the cost of a poor uni student's (who doesn't
smoke, and only scrounges beer off other people) lunch 🙂

One of the guys I ride with got one from somewhere like Kmart for less
than $10. Pretty basic, but only four lunches...

--
Shane Stanley

Peter McCallum said:

NickZX6R said:

Quoted message said:

My cycling's pretty much 100% commuting, about 50Ks a day. I use a HRM
to keep me honest. It's amazing how quickly I end up coasting at 120bpm
if I don't use one.

So given I ride pretty fixed routes and while I want to get faster I'm
not a competitive cyclist, is a cycling computer worth anything to me?
What are the benefits?

I like mine for cadence and it's sometimes useful for telling me how
long things last. eg. chain, tyres etc.

However, my comp tells me other cool useless stuff like gradient, air
temp and power output 🙂

does it warn you if you are about to run into a light pole while reading
all that stuff?

Of course!

If I'm feeling lazy I can set my computer to ride the bike for me 😉

--
Nick

On Tue, 11 Jan 2005 at 03:29 GMT, NickZX6R (aka Bruce)
was almost, but not quite, entirely unlike tea:

Quoted message said:

Peter McCallum said:

does it warn you if you are about to run into a light pole while reading
all that stuff?

Of course!

If I'm feeling lazy I can set my computer to ride the bike for me 😉

I bet the batteries don't last long! Or do you have an illicit supply
of plutonium?

--
TimC -- http://astronomy.swin.edu.au/staff/tconnors/
21/06/01: * It's a solar eclipse.
* Mars is really close to the Earth.
* It's the winter solstice.
and * 42'nd death day of late Douglas Adams

hippy said:

"fred_nieman" <[email hidden]

Quoted message said:

when you're cornering it's useful to know exactly how fast you are going
rather than relying on feel.

...
You'd probably corner faster while 'not' looking
at the computer! ;-P

....

Quoted message said:

hippy

Yes, but: how will I know if I'm cornering faster? Look at my computer?
%-)

"fred knieman" <[email hidden]

Quoted message said:

hippy said:

"fred_nieman" <[email hidden]

Quoted message said:

when you're cornering it's useful to know exactly how fast you are going
rather than relying on feel.

... You'd probably corner faster while 'not' looking
at the computer! ;-P

Yes, but: how will I know if I'm cornering faster? Look at my computer?
%-)

Ahh... well, I see what you are trying to do now..
If possible get a data logging computer, otherwise
you are just gonna have to peek :-)
Or, reset the computer's max speed setting every
time you go through the corner and don't brake?
Or ride the corner faster and faster until you
crash, then look at max :-)

hippy

hippy said:

"fred knieman" <[email hidden]

Quoted message said:

hippy said:

"fred_nieman" <[email hidden]

>when you're cornering it's useful to know exactly how fast you are going
>rather than relying on feel.

... You'd probably corner faster while 'not' looking
at the computer! ;-P

Yes, but: how will I know if I'm cornering faster? Look at my computer?
%-)

Ahh... well, I see what you are trying to do now..
If possible get a data logging computer, otherwise
you are just gonna have to peek :-)
Or, reset the computer's max speed setting every
time you go through the corner and don't brake?
Or ride the corner faster and faster until you
crash, then look at max :-)

Took your advice.
Stopped and re-set the MaxSpeed after every corner on the commute home.
Took me 4 1/2 hours to ride home from Oakleigh to Brunswick, av speed
7.43 kmh, last max speed 24.3 kmh around the corner from ***** St to
****** St.
Not a single crash, tho. Am I not trying hard enuf?

Quoted message said:

hippy

I thinks there's some Frank Zappa record called "Shut Up and Play Your
Guitar" (am 80's child, so I really shouldn't know about this) but I
think there's, ahem, a lesson for for all of us... or feckin something...

[censored]
bruce

"fred knieman" <[email hidden]

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

hippy saidededededed
Ahh... well, I see what you are trying to do now..
If possible get a data logging computer, otherwise
you are just gonna have to peek :-)
Or, reset the computer's max speed setting every
time you go through the corner and don't brake?
Or ride the corner faster and faster until you
crash, then look at max :-)

Took your advice.
Stopped and re-set the MaxSpeed after every corner on the commute home.
Took me 4 1/2 hours to ride home from Oakleigh to Brunswick, av speed 7.43
kmh, last max speed 24.3 kmh around the corner from ***** St to ******
St.
Not a single crash, tho. Am I not trying hard enuf?

Correct. You need to lose at least 30% of your outer skin
layer and then do it again just a little bit slower (staying
upright) before you will know the true max for the corner.
You will of course have to repeat this skin loss for different
wind levels, different surface moisture, different tyres, etc..

Quoted message said:

I thinks there's some Frank Zappa record called "Shut Up and Play Your
Guitar" (am 80's child, so I really shouldn't know about this) but I think
there's, ahem, a lesson for for all of us... or feckin something...

The only thing I know about Zappa is that he was apparently
a nutter or made strange music or something(?) and Deep
Purple mention his name in "Smoke on the Water".

hippy
"fire in the sky.."