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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.
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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.
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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.
Thanks for sharing, Ray.
The story of the Cofidis rider has to be from last year: David Moncoutié crashes out of his final tour on a descent. Started as a pro in 1997 with Cofidis. 21 wins and 66 podiums prior to the tour of 2012, crashed out in the merciless Tour de France of 2012 – his last:
link to letour.com
In paris for the marathon in a week so i’ll swing by and have a look. You know if there is anywhere nearby where you can pick up prints?
I don’t believe so. However, I’ll poke around a bit this weekend up there and see if there’s anything obvious.
Can’t wait to find out what Wiggins was doping with, had to be some crazy good stuff to own the entire field like that in the TTs.
Thanks for sharing photos – interesting and ‘good’, but kinda see what you mean about lacking the ‘wow’ factor.
I always recall reading about how if there is a photography you can recall or picture in your mind, one that made you weep or laugh, or forever changed your view of something, one that really stands out as truly ‘iconic’ – chances are it was taken by a Magnum photographer.
There’s a series at link to inmotion.magnumphotos.com that’s worth a look. I think these capture the true spirit a bit better than some of the examples from the park.
Did they put up any images of disgraced dopers? The Fuentes bunch that were kicked out of the 06 tour, Landis, Hamilton, Ullrich, Armstrong, Merckx, Veranque, Festina, etc…? I assume that’s why there weren’t many photos from the 80’s – 2005.
Thanks for sharing these photos. We went to take a look at them this afternoon. They were in alphabetical order of the French departements. Amazing to see how much gear the cyclists had to carry in the old days – spare inner tubes everywhere. Also, all the clothes everyone wore in the 1920s and no-one without a hat. Would also like to have these photos in book form.
Thanks for Sharing! Tiny detail: 2013 is not the 100th anniversary of Le tour. That was in 2003, the first tour was 1903. This will be the 100th Tour de France. Due to WWs I and II TdF has not been run for 11 years.
I took a stroll by the Gardens this morning, and made my way through the exhibit with no one else around-some really great shots. Thanks so much for the tip, as I wouldn’t have gone back by Luxembourg on this trip. Also, running workouts on the gravel are a must on any Paris trip.
Simply…….happy Easter to you and the Girl ;)
Thanks for this, probably wouldn’t have known about it otherwise. Might have to book that Eurostar trip to Paris that I keep promising myself…………….
Thanks for sharing! Your report reminds me of a visit to these gardens some 10 years ago, when they had an awesome exhibition of HUGE pictures by Yan Arthus Bertrand of “The earth from above”. I see a pattern there :)
I went by after the Paris Marathon. If you know your teams and riders, it’s easy to pick out a lot of people. I found it curious that Fabian Cancellara was perhaps the most featured rider with at least four pictures of him in yellow, mostly because he wins prologues. You can also pick him out because he was often number 13 on CSC and he wore his number upside down. There was one of Thor in yellow, one of Wiggins in yellow, and even one of Lance in yellow with the Discovery Team.
My favorite photo, however, was from 1921. A good bit of the crowd were soldiers in uniform with their rifles, and there was a dog running counter to the field.
Thanks for letting everyone know it was there!
I was on my way to see the Marc Chagall exhibition in the musee de Luxembourg when I came across the photoexhibit for the celebration of 100th Tour de France in 2013 .Without a lot of background knowledge I was impressed by the overall sensation it created. There was a lot of movement I liked the format and the place chosen for the exhibit.