Stuff I like: Gadgets

We are often asked what particular gadget we use for various applications.  So here’s a few of our favorites, along with reasoning and justifications.  This isn’t meant to be a product endorsement (although in some cases it is); rather these are things that I have found suitable and dependable for various purposes.  These are offered in the hopes that the information will be helpful, and also a bit thought provoking.

Today’s Topic:  The Dashboard

General:  I like computers.  I use them for navigation and for keeping track of time, distance, and rate.  I’m also a fan of good navigation equipment.  I like solid strong lights.  I am a firm believer in cuesheets, and like a good, weatherproof holder for them.  I sometimes need a bit more room for all this stuff, so on some bikes, I’ve arranged for extended mounting devices.

I tend to like “stand-alone” devices.  In general, I’ve found that when too many functions are combined in a gadget, it leads to several outcomes, all undesirable.

• The thing costs more (sometimes substantially more than several other devices performing the same functions.
• If one function fails, the entire device needs to be replaced to gain it back.
• Reliability and performance seem to decrease in the high dollar, highly integrated, multi-function gadgets.

In short, I like navigation equipment that navigates (only!), heart rate monitors that only monitor heart rate, and cyclocomputers that only perform time, distance, rate functions.

CycloComputers:  Before going farther, I should state this.  I’m strongly in favor of wired computers.  I have found the wireless ones to be reliability headaches.  They cost more, require more batteries, have great huge ugly sensors that are difficult to mount, and seem to have a service life of a little more than a year.  (I have some wired computers that are ten years old, and are still working quite well.)

If there is a cadence function, and the bike is to be used in a trainer, I prefer a long-wire harness that allows speed/distance functions to be sensed from the rear wheel.

I’ve found that the Sigma computers work wonderfully.  The wired ones are accurate, and reliable.  Battery life tends to depend on how many functions the computer has, but seems to run for a year to two years.  For cadence, I prefer the Sigma BC 1609.  It’s a workhorse, and with the optional longwire harness satisfies all of my requirements.

Cateye makes a very tolerable cadence reporting computer in a wired version.  I’m speaking of the Strada Cadence model.  In the wired version the harness is designed to reach the rear of the bike for speed/distance functions.  I have only two complaints about this computer.  First, its display is small, and somewhat hard on older eyes.  Second, the calibration procedure is arcane and decidedly not user-friendly.

Hear Rate Monitors:  Again, I’m a fan of the Sigma units.  They work, and are reasonably priced.

Navigation (GPS) units:  I like Garmen for navigation.  I am decidedly not a fan of the cyclocomputer/heart-monitor/navigation gadgets they make.  Seems they are very spendy, and they tend to develop positively weird reliability problems, typically within days of the expiration of the warranty.  I prefer a solid “mapping” GPS unit with which to navigate.

A note on “GPS enabled” time-distance-rate devices.  They are not as accurate as basic wheel sensing cyclocomputers.  For technical reasons, they cannot be.  Any highly portable GPS device can be pretty good at telling you where you are, but no so much in telling you how fast you are going, or how far you’ve gone.

Dashboard extenders:

I sometimes carry nav-aids, multiple computers, a cue sheet holder, and lights all on the same bike.  (I don’t do this on every bike, but for touring/randonneurring type applications, yes I do!)  On a road bike, there simply isn’t enough room to put all this stuff on the handlebar.  One solution I’ve found to be quite solid, and quite reliable, is the Minoura “Space Bar.”  The thing clamps around the handlebar, and provides a sort of Tee-shaped auxiliary bar, with space for anywhere from one to three additional gadgets.  I have one of these on my primary ride, on my tourist, and on my Spin Class bike. (Think computer, HR monitor, stopwatch, and lesson sheet!)  These things are not expensive, and they get the job done.  Yes, they have a high “geek factor,” but as always, form follows function.

What’s your story?  Is there anything that you carry on the “dash” which has proved especially useful?  For that matter, what dashboard gadgets have given you the most trouble?