Heads up!!! Here’s your massive holiday sports tech deals list! This includes the Garmin Epix for just $419, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 for just $699, the GoPro Hero 12 Black for $249, (or the brand new Hero 13 or $299!) and plenty more! Go check out the full list of 100+ deals here!
I’m DC RAINMAKER…
Here’s how to save!
Wanna save some cash and support the site? These companies help support the site! With Backcountry.com or Competitive Cyclist with either the coupon code DCRAINMAKER for first time users saving 15% on applicable products.
You can also pick-up tons of gear at REI via these links, which is a long-time supporter as well:
Alternatively, for everything else on the planet, simply buy your goods from Amazon via the link below and I get a tiny bit back as an Amazon Associate. No cost to you, easy as pie!
You can use the above link for any Amazon country and it (should) automatically redirect to your local Amazon site.
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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.
2
Read My Sports Gadget Recommendations.
Here’s my most recent GPS watch guide here, and cycling GPS computers here. Plus there are smart trainers here, all in these guides cover almost every category of sports gadgets out there. Looking for the equipment I use day-to-day? I also just put together my complete ‘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!
3
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.
4
My Photography Gear: The Cameras/Drones/Action Cams I Use Daily
The most common question I receive outside of the “what’s the best GPS watch for me” variant, are photography-esq based. So in efforts to combat the amount of emails I need to sort through on a daily basis, I’ve complied this “My Photography Gear” post for your curious minds (including drones & action cams!)! It’s a nice break from the day-to-day sports-tech talk, and I hope you get something out of it!
5
The Swim/Bike/Run Gear I Use List
Many readers stumble into my website in search of information on the latest and greatest sports tech products. But at the end of the day, you might just be wondering “What does Ray use when not testing new products?”. So here is the most up to date list of products I like and fit the bill for me and my training needs best! DC Rainmaker 2023 swim, bike, run, and general gear list. But wait, are you a female and feel like these things might not apply to you? If that’s the case (but certainly not saying my choices aren’t good for women), and you just want to see a different gear junkies “picks”, check out The Girl’s Gear Guide too.
thanks for the heads up…
you have really put them through their paces….
Waoh that’s some serious mileage, my LBS says tire only last about 1000 miles…hmm me thinks some sales ploy going on here!
I had Hutchinsons on my old wheels and they were bomb proof but the new wheels came with Continentals so we’ll see how they fair.
I have Maxis on the MTB and they’re rock solid!
I use whatever the bike store puts on. I’m probably getting suckered :-) But I flat only rarely, so I’ll take it!
Nice job, but can you beat 4800 miles on a front tire.
My training tires are Bontrager Race lite Hardcase tires. Triple kevlar puncture protection. They are slow and heavy but durable.
I’m still upset at the lack of topless girls for your race.
I’d be willing to discuss cycling across country with you. Time and place. I’ll pull the first half ;)
They sound as good as my Continental Gator Skins. I have had them on since 2006 and I had my FIRST flat on Sunday night after the ride, lol.
Now the bad part is I am slow at changing tires.
Cool. Thanks for the recommendation.
so you REFUSE to flat anymore? no wonder you got so good at changing them. it was god’s little plan to help you….
i also ride gator skins. they’re hella tough, and when you start flatting, it’s generally a sign that the tire has seen its day. i also learned that you go through 2 rears for every front and no point in rotating them. makes sense with the braking. so yeah, more resitance to train with, but man oh man do my race tires feel like a dream, and now i’m hella strong.
Oh, I’m sure you’re glad to have found these! Amazing! I’ll keep them in mind!
I think most if not all manufacturers have what you might consider a “bomb-proof” tire. I began using the Continental GatorSkins years ago from my LBS recommendation and can confirm they’re the real deal for flat-prevention. Not to say other tires aren’t as good or better, but the Conti’s are what the shop had in stock so that’s what I bought. Not looking at my log, but I’d guess I have over 3,000 miles on these and last summer they handled a 2-3 mile stretch of gravel road at the Garrett County Gran Fondo.
No matter what brand you ride, it’s great to have the confidence that your tire won’t flat. I flatted quickly on my first tubular with some race tires. That was a sunk cost and I’m not willing to risk a flat on race day so I immediately went and bought GatorSkin tubulars for that set of wheels. Yes, heavier, but again the confidence level and the worry-free mindset on race day is immeasurable in my book.
I second the Gatorskin tubulars. i used them for a 1600km fast touring trip from Montpellier til Bilbao: No flats. Used them for comuting 2000km this winter in the Copenhagen area: No flats. They have done +4500km now without a flat but the rubber thread on the rear is gone and still no flats.
That’s a really great price. Puncture resistant tires from specialized (all-condition) are $70 down here.
Front tire will usually last forever wear wise. The rear will wear out mostly due to traction driving the wheel. The front takes most of the braking force. Flatting is independent of age unless you wear down to the protective layer.
Thanks for the fantastic web site. I am a tri and bike newbie, having come from running (was a national 60+ age grouper), so this site is particularly useful to me. My bike was originally bought as just a cross trainer from running (so ultra cheap). It had Michelin Dynamic (discontinued for Dynamic Sport) which were speced at 430g/tire. It turns out the Maxxis Re-fuse with Maxxis Ultralight tubes would cut 362g of the weight of my tires and with the durability you described! (assuming weight specs are per tire…correct?) Wouldn’t this be a high value improvement!? Also, I checked out the Maxxis web site and they have a racing tire (Courchevel) which is advertised as using the same anti-puncture technology as the Re-fuse which we might expect to have good durability as a racing tire. If I went with this tire it would give me a net 472g or 1.02lb saving over my current setup! Happy Day! I can’t wait to try out some new tires.
Try Zipp Tangente. They’re thick and heavy compared to other race tyres (so haven’t flatted on me over about 3,000km) but at least they pretend to have some aero benefits so you don’t feel like a complete grandma.
What is it about these that makes them not ideal for racing? Im a noob so maybe it would be irrelevant to a guy doing his second tri in June.
They’ve got a very high rolling resistance, so, you’ll be putting more effort into them to maintain the same speed.
Tom A. talks a lot about the subject here: http://bikeblather.blogspot.com
Hi, I live in Denmark where the roads contains lots of flint, which is very rough on your tires.
I use Conti GP4000 which should be a fairly good racing tyre with low rolling resistance etc. However I do combine it with an inlay/liner, a piece of plastic approx 1 mm thick to go loosely around the inside circumference of the tyre, this highly increases the puncture resistance , and does not effect the rolling resistance negatively, do add a little weight though (70grams or so..)
I did about 5000 km on the rear tyre, with only one flat at about 4500 km…(at 5000 the tyre was totally worn out.) Without the liner I would have had at least 5 flats.
I switched my commuter hybrid from 32mm puncture magnets to the 23mm version of the Maxxis Refuse. They have never punctured. I now also have these (25mm) on my flat bar-converted road bike. Never had a puncture.
gravel roads!!!
Only flatted once with Conti GrandPrix 3000’s I think. Do they still make a liner called Mr. Tuffy? Used them on my touring bike wheels and never had a puncture. Not sure that they would work well in a race bike tire, but maybe they make one now?
Just came across this article and the link to the maxxis product page goes to a 404, they have a new url: link to maxxis.com