Anyone documenting their rides with Strava (or Instagram)?

[beeeerock]

Are there any other people on here using Strava to record their rides? Always good to find more people you 'sort of know' to follow!  As well, I'm sure I'm not the only one who often shoots an image or two on a ride and uploads to Instagram?  Again, it would be good to see what others are doing! 

Perhaps this would be a good thread in which to exchange user names and follow each other?

[Colin]

dunno about Strava, what's its strengths?

I use:
Ride with GPS
Map my Ride
Mapometer

All with my Garmin Edge 800

Probably ought to standardise on one, but they each seem to have advantages.

Col.

[beeeerock]

dunno about Strava, what's its strengths?

I use:
Ride with GPS
Map my Ride
Mapometer

All with my Garmin Edge 800

Probably ought to standardise on one, but they each seem to have advantages.

Col.

Good question.  I tried 'Ride with GPS' early on and gave up on it as it didn't seem to offer the features I wanted.  I haven't tried the others you mention.  I went with Endomondo for most of this year until a software upgrade broke things and they didn't get it fixed for more than a month... in which time I did some more poking around and came across Strava.

Without being able to offer any intelligent comparisons with the others you've listed, I can tell you why I've (so far) settled on Strava...

• It's free, and the free version offers enough functionality to satisfy my pedantic cravings.
• It appears to be the app of choice with most riders around here, and certainly all the serious ones.
• It maintains good records of your rides, both times and distances, map tracks etc.
• It allows you to 'follow' other riders and see where they've been.
• You can download other peoples tracks as GPX files.
• You can create 'segments' as you wish, to keep track of favourite routes or trails and thus be able to monitor your times against yourself AND against others... it seems to analyze your segment and apply it to all the other riders who've been on it.
• Let's you upload images (apparently, I've never tried).
• Compares your stats with other riders on the same segment, with graphical presentations.
• Let's you browse, via the map interface, for other segments in an area... zoom in and more appear, with the ability to see details (profile, grades, vertical, who's been on it, etc). I use it to find new trails and judge how sketchy they might be.  You can likely download the GPX files too, but I haven't tried - could be part of the 'premium' package.

All in all, it feels like the most solid app of the ones I've tried.  It appears that your Edge 800 is supported... I just go with the Android app because I don't have a dedicated GPS device to use.  It works fine in my zipped shorts pocket, or in the Camelbak exterior pouch.  I even had good success with the phone in a breast pocket inside my jacket the other evening.

Looking at the strava.com web site, it's hard to really see all the features without an account.  You probably have to sign up for a free account and upload some of your files to see if you like it (and see the full feature set).  I assume you manually upload from the Garmin - the Android app just does it for me when I close the ride.

For that matter, if you carry a smartphone you could install and run side by side with your Garmin and use both... LOL!

I suspect most of the options out there provide much of the same functionality... it likely comes down to the odd feature here and there that makes them a little different... in my case, it's the user base locally that lets me compare to more people, follow more people, locate more segments I didn't know existed... etc.  Endomondo felt like a personal fitness tracker, where Strava does that also but feels more like a community.

[AHanulec]

I've kind of standardized on MapMyRide myself.  I have toyed with the idea of switching to Strava for many of the reasons you described.  I also understand it to be the most widely used cycling app.

Let me ask, does Strava also provide the ability to log other types of workouts?  I try and visit the gy. Three times a week and have been known to sneak in some runs every now and again. I'm curious what capabilities Strata has for non-cycling activities.

Funny you mention Instagram, I was going to snap a shot of deer that I encountered trail side two weeks ago.  She was not at put-off by me, or the bicycle, passing at a high rate of speed and simply watched me riding by while she quietly munched on some leaves.  She was lounging no more than 10 feet off the trail, generally they run but this one felt just fine watching me pass.

[beeeerock]

I've kind of standardized on MapMyRide myself.  I have toyed with the idea of switching to Strava for many of the reasons you described.  I also understand it to be the most widely used cycling app.

Let me ask, does Strava also provide the ability to log other types of workouts?  I try and visit the gy. Three times a week and have been known to sneak in some runs every now and again. I'm curious what capabilities Strata has for non-cycling activities.

Funny you mention Instagram, I was going to snap a shot of deer that I encountered trail side two weeks ago.  She was not at put-off by me, or the bicycle, passing at a high rate of speed and simply watched me riding by while she quietly munched on some leaves.  She was lounging no more than 10 feet off the trail, generally they run but this one felt just fine watching me pass.

Yes, you can log other activities, according to this link:

https://strava.zendesk.com/entries/20950133-Other-Activity-Types-on-Strava

To be truthful, I have only used the 'bike' option and I think by accident, the 'run' option once.  It looks like you can toggle these after the fact, as well as manually generate workouts that might not be GPS-relevant or might happen indoors.

Like you say, it seems to be the most popular one out there, which means you're more likely to find a friend on it than another system.  Probably gets the most dedicated development too.

Back to Instagram... I started using it because I like photography and wanted a new challenge.  Believe me, shooting with a cell camera and trying to get decent results when you come from the DSLR world IS a challenge! ;-)  Someone I knew set me onto a project called #100happydays that meant I had to shoot and upload an image every day for 100 days.  That got me started and I soon added 'Snapseed', a free image editing app for the phone.  I've continued to shoot as regularly as I can, without resorting to selfies or food images!  Instagram lets you upload to Facebook, Flickr and a few other social media sites concurrent with your actual Instagram post, so I've begun doing that too... my Flickr album of just Instagram images is here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/124063915@N07/sets/72157644467805622/

[beeeerock]

I use Strahan under 2 names depending on who I rode with. I'm on either Lloyd Zimmerman or k_redesign / djrederz

You mean Strava?  I couldn't get a hit on any of those three user names!

[Spokes]

There was a post on Face book warning people that in my area bike thieves were using Strava to do burglaries? Don't know how true it is but it sounds feasible. Crooks seem to think of everything!

Chris

[beeeerock]

There was a post on Face book warning people that in my area bike thieves were using Strava to do burglaries? Don't know how true it is but it sounds feasible. Crooks seem to think of everything!

Chris

Interesting.  That would explain why the Strava system has a 'privacy' zone that can be set to keep your tracks from showing where you started or finished, preventing anyone from seeing where you live.  I hadn't thought is was that important, but given your comment, that may be why it's been offered.  You wouldn't have to upload your track right away either, so people wouldn't see you were out and about and take the opportunity to break in. 

Endomondo actually tracked you live, so that would not be a good way to go if this sort of crime is a concern!

[jazclrint]

I'm jazclrint on both Strava and Map My Ride