Heads up!!! Here’s your massive Cyber Monday sports tech deals list! This includes the Garmin Forerunner 965 for just $499, Garmin Epix for $429, the Apple Watch Ultra 2 for just $619, the GoPro Hero 12 Black for $299, (or Hero 13 bundle for $339!) and plenty more! Go check out the full list of 100+ deals here!
I’m DC RAINMAKER…
I swim, bike and run. Then, I come here and write about my adventures. It’s as simple as that. Most of the time. If you’re new around these parts, here’s the long version of my story.
You'll support the site, and get ad-free DCR! Plus, you'll be more awesome. Click above for all the details. Oh, and you can sign-up for the newsletter here!
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.Want to compare the features of each product, down to the nitty-gritty? No problem, the product comparison data is constantly updated with new products and new features added to old products!
Wanna create comparison chart graphs just like I do for GPS, heart rate, power meters and more? No problem, here's the platform I use - you can too!
Think my written reviews are deep? You should check out my videos. I take things to a whole new level of interactive depth!
Smart Trainers Buyers Guide: Looking at a smart trainer this winter? I cover all the units to buy (and avoid) for indoor training. The good, the bad, and the ugly.
-
Check out my weekly podcast - with DesFit, which is packed with both gadget and non-gadget goodness!
Get all your awesome DC Rainmaker gear here!
FAQ’s
I have built an extensive list of my most frequently asked questions. Below are the most popular.
- Do you have a privacy policy posted?
- Why haven’t you yet released a review for XYZ product you mentioned months ago?
- Will you test our product before release?
- Are you willing to review or test beta products?
- Which trainer should I buy?
- Which GPS watch should I buy?
- I’m headed to Paris – what do you recommend for training or sightseeing?
- I’m headed to Washington DC – what do you recommend for training?
- I’m from out of the country and will be visiting the US, what’s the best triathlon shop in city XYZ?
- What kind of camera do you use?
-
5 Easy Steps To The Site
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.
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!
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.
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!
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.
As low-tech as this post may be, it’s one of the most enjoyable I’ve read on here. How on earth did you turn a post about, well, sticking two rolling pins together into an amusing, illustrated short story? :-)
…And when you’re done with that, I have two pictures to be hung and a floor that needs sanding and polyurethane! ;) lol
Looks good! The Holy Grail of watch displays!
Sarah
http://www.thinfluenced.com
How mean to hope that the cake would be crushed!
The problem with your approach is that the camera lens will introduce a distortion. When all the watches are in a row on your double-wide rolling pin, the watches in the middle of the pin will be closer to the camera than the watches on the edges, which means that it will be difficult to make accurate visual size comparisons. You’ll either have to shoot the picture with a very long telephoto lens to minimize this effect, or you’ll have to correct for the distortion using high-end image processing software like DxO Optics Pro. A third possibility is to make a new web site like camerasize.com.
You truly are worlds best sports blogger, no matter what scoreboards may tell you!
Quick translation for what you can use it:
Our Multi+ glue glues in all cases a lot of materials such as : rubber/metal, cardboard/epoxy, leather/bakeliet (black hard plastic, Belgian invention!!! Yey Belgium :)
The Multi+ glue is recommended for: plastics (except polyethylene, polypropylene and PTFE), PVC, ABS, leather, rubber, cork, cardboard, tissue, metal, aluminium, wood (interior and exterior), cement, epoxy, marble, stone, plaster, canvas, skin, daim, bakeliet, glass, neoprene, polystyrene
As you can see, a lot of English words came from French (history you know).
I guess your French lessons aren’t going so well? ;)
Next step, I suggest you take the rolling pin with all watches and take them for a bike ride sitting on your handle bars. I’d love to see a set with all of them going at one time! Ha!
Nice! What’s the watch model second from the left (between the FR70 and rcx3)?
That’s the new Garmin FR10 (men’s edition). Check out the sidebar for the latest review on that.
Enjoy!
Hi Ray,
I currently own a 310XT that I’ve had for quite some time. Seeing your extra long rolling pin prompted a question in my mind: if the 310XT works well, is there a good reason to upgrade to the 910XT?
Richard
Love the watch setup.
Hi Richard-
The primary reason is really swim metrics in the pool. There’s some additional swim metrics within openwater (stroke primarily), and slightly improved openwater distance metrics.
Also, for power meter folks, there’s TSS/NP/IF.
Beyond that, they are pretty similiar watches.
hey ray
weird question, beside of the Comparison part, what do you do with so many watches ?
Companies often update the firmware on watches, so I end up updating to be able to update reviews/etc as applicable. As well as answer questions on all the review posts. Some of the posts have 500+ comments/questions on them that I try and keep up with.
If you used a basic wood glue you’ve have gotten a joint equally as strong AND I’d still feel safe using it for rolling mega-pastries
It’s only a matter of time until it will be too small for your ever growing collection ;)
Ideas for future expansion… Broom stick, tree branch (hone those whittling skills) or a table leg… Good luck because we as consumers want to keep seeing new developments which means many new models… Plus you’re well on the way to creating the rainmaker museum…. 20 years fom now when we all laugh at the size of the old technology
Speaking of updates, do you have updated thoughts on the Timex Global Trainer by chance?