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I’m DC RAINMAKER…
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Ray Elsewhere
Did you know I write a weekly column over on Slowtwitch?
Check out my Product/Electronics posts in Ray’s Sports Electronics Mailbag - they are packed full of gadget goodness.
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5 Easy Steps To The Site
1
In Depth Product Reviews
You probably stumbled upon here looking for a review of a sports gadget. If you’re trying to decide which unit to buy – check out my in-depth reviews section. Some reviews are over 60 pages long when printed out, with hundreds of photos! I aim to leave no stone unturned.
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Read My GPS Recommendations.
Here’s my most recent gadget recommendations guide (2012) – covering almost every category of sports gadgets out there. Looking for the equipment I use day to day? I also just put together my complete 2012 ‘Gear I Use’ equipment list, from swim to bike to run and everything in between (plus a few extra things). And to compliment that, here’s The Girl’s (my wife’s) list. Enjoy, and thanks for stopping by!
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Understand technology and sport in the How-To Guides.
I enjoy explaining new things to folks – especially showing people how to get the most from their gadgets. Here’s an ongoing list of “How to” guides.
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Read my Top 25 most useful posts.
It turns our I’ve written a fair bit of stuff over the past few years – and after it disappears from my front page, a lot of it never really sees the light of day again without Google’ing skillz. Or a photographic memory…which I don’t have. I’ve taken a look back and found stuff that…continues to find a trickle of readers via web searches or forum links.
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Have some fun in the travel section.
I travel a fair bit, both for work and for fun. Here’s a bunch of random trip reports and daily trip-logs that I’ve put together and posted. I’ve sorted it all by world geography, in an attempt to make it easy to figure out where I’ve been.
Product Reviews
Other Reviews
Review of 1BandID Sports & GPS watch ID bands
You’re likely very familiar with emergency contact ID tags – typically small bands that you wear on your shoe or person that identify who you are, and your emergency contacts. These are invaluable in case you get into trouble and … Read More Here
Bod Pod & Consumer Scale Comparison Tests: Part III (The In Depth Statistical Analysis)
(Note from Ray: Two weeks ago when I published the results of the Bod Pod and body fat scale testing, a reader who happens to be a PhD Candidate in Pharmaceutical Sciences – Nathaniel Page – made an offer to … Read More Here
Bod Pod & Consumer Scale Comparison Tests: Part II (The Results)
Yesterday we left off with nine folks getting weighed in on five different consumer body fat scales – all in the quest to compare it against the generally accepted more accurate method of using a Bod Pod. Some of you … Read More Here
Bod Pod & Consumer Scale Comparison Tests: Part I
I’ve always wanted to do some sort of comparison test between many of the consumer scales that are out there today that measure both weight as well as body fat against one of the more expensive options such as the … Read More Here
Behind the scenes on my aquatic product review posts
Monday night I had my usual Monday easy swim, and since it’s summer, I was able to do it outdoors in the town pool (during the winter, I’m stuck indoors). I had planed afterwards to spend a bit of time … Read More Here
Gadget or Gimmick: CamelBak Flow Meter
Back a while ago I ordered the CamelBak Flow Meter (with my own money). This nifty little $30 gadget is designed to sit inline on your existing CamelBak drinking straw/tube and measure how much you consume. It’ll also tell you … Read More Here
The ANT+ Bike Speed/Cadence Sensor: Everything you ever wanted to know
After the popular ‘everything you ever wanted to know’ post I did back this winter on the footpod, I decided it was time to continue the series with the Speed/Cadence sensor. Thankfully, the speed/cadence sensor is actually a bit less … Read More Here
Garmin Forerunner 610 May Giveaway
In celebration of summer BBQ season nearly being upon us, it’s time for a giveaway (or BBQ sauce)! Given how hard to get the new Garmin Forerunner 610 GPS-enabled touch screen watch is, I figure it’s only appropriate that I … Read More Here
A look at CompuTrainer ANT+ integration via ctANT+
On Wednesday an application developer jumped onto the scene with what is probably the coolest new completed CompuTrainer development in years: The ability to use ANT+ sensors directly with CompuTrainer. This replaces much of the cabling that is typically required … Read More Here
An inside look at downloading FR310XT workouts to the web without a computer
You may remember quite a while back I showed off the Wahoo Fitness iPhone dongle. This handy dandy little white pod the size of a quarter plugs into the bottom of your iPhone/iPod and allows connections to ANT+ devices such … Read More Here
The Swim Watch Battle: FINIS Swimsense vs. Swimovate Pool-Mate Pro
Ever since I reviewed the FINIS Swimsense and the Swimovate Pool-Mate Pro a few months ago, there’s been significant interest in understanding how the two devices compare. The two watches aim to solidify themselves in the still young market of … Read More Here
A look at the Trek/Bontrager frame integrated DuoTrap ANT+ Speed/Cadence Sensor
A few weeks ago The Girl brought home her new bike, the Trek Speed Concept, which is one of the very few bikes out there that includes the option to add a frame-integrated ANT+ speed/cadence sensor. The sensor kit fits … Read More Here
Biospeed Aerus Bike Case Review: How I travel with my bike
If you travel as much as I do for work (150,000+ miles last year), you’ve got no choice but to get creative with your training. There’s simply no way you can be competitive at all three sports without actually training … Read More Here
Checking out the EZ-Trainer iPad ANT+ App
With the introduction of the Wahoo Fitness ANT+ Dongle last year, there’s been a flood of iPhone apps that have supported adding ANT+ data (Heart Rate, Power, Speed, Cadence, Weight Scales, etc…). Everything from small apps you’ve never heard of, … Read More Here
Zeo – In Depth Product Review
When I first heard about the Zeo I assumed it was simply yet another device that ‘measures’ sleep. But once I got the unit and started to dig into it, I realized it was way more than any typical consumer … Read More Here
Behind the scenes on product reviews
It occurred to me recently that it might be a bit entertaining to get a ‘behind the scenes’ view on how product reviews come together. While product review posts actually total a very small number of the total posts I … Read More Here
A solution to heart rate dropouts/spikes with Garmin HR Soft Straps
You may remember back a few months ago when I published my Top Tips to reduce HR strap issues. That’s since become a pretty popular posts, especially amongst Garmin Premium Soft Strap HR users. And for the vast majority of … Read More Here
My 2010 Athletic GPS Device Recommendations
Please see my updated 2011 GPS recommendations here. The vast majority of folks who end up here do so in search of one of the many different athletic GPS devices out there on the market. In most cases, once you’ve … Read More Here
Withings WiFi Scale In Depth Review
I’m just gonna say it upfront – this is perhaps the most well put together and thought out device and set of services I’ve reviewed yet. I know, it sounds funny given it’s ‘just a scale’, but – it’s a … Read More Here
Tanita BC-1000 Scale Review – In Depth
If you’ve been to any athletic expo in the past few months, you’ve probably seen the Tanita BC-1000 weight scale at one of the booths. It measures more things than your TI-83 graphing calculator from high school calculus, while at … Read More Here
My sports technology ‘predictions’ for 2010
It’s no secret that I enjoy gadgets, and in particular sports related gizmos. This interest probably comes from my day job in designing technology stuffs. I simply enjoy understanding how things work, and what might come next. Now, because of … Read More Here
Review of i-gotU GPS Travel Logger
When the folks that make the i-gotU GPS Travel Logger sent me an e-mail earlier this summer asking me to review their latest gadget…I happily said yes. As many of you know, I love taking photos, enjoy travelling, and also … Read More Here
Review of Tech4O Trail Leader2 Sports Watch
Back in late December I was contacted to review a new sports watch that’s out – the Tech4O TrailLeader 2 Sports Watch. A couple days later it arrived on my doorstep – just in time for my various end of … Read More Here
In Depth CompuTrainer Review
Over 18 months ago (September 07), I bought a CompuTrainer as my primary indoor trainer. All last winter I meant to write up a review of it. But alas, it never happened. Until now. The CompuTrainer is like most other … Read More Here
Baking the shoes – review of Sof Sole Energy foot beds
A few weeks back I was given the opportunity to review and check out a pair of Sof Sole Adapt Energy foot beds, as well as some socks. These are designed to fit into your shoes to more appropriately support … Read More Here
