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.
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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.
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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?
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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.
The French Tourism Board should start sponsoring you as well. Great post!
Be care of cows if there have calves with them!! The mothers can get very aggressive if they are frightened about their children… In emergency case: Try to escape downhill…. Uphill you won’t have any chance… :-)
Hi Ray, France remains a nice country to travel. I was wondering, I use the gusto capsules as well at work, but I figured they are quite cheap on amazon when you get bunch. I must say I quite buying them now, as I fill them with my own ground coffee from home. In this way I can get other flavors they do not offer. But for the cupcakery that is not an convenient option.
Ah yes, box wine – you can get it here in NZ as well; we’ve dragged a box of red around on tiki tours. In our experience it is generally quite ‘young’ (Wednesday, a great vintage!) and mostly indistinguishable from grape juice..
Wait when you say ‘Wednesday’, do you mean it is possible to get wine that is less than a week old?
It’s humour – antipodean style!
The single-serving wines are available stateside, too. 500 ml tetra-pack and single cup 187 ml size. Alas, most of the wine in them is pretty uninspiring, but it’s convenient for hiking/boating/etc.
The single serve wines premiered on the show “shark tank” I think in the US it’s limited to what the inventor produces, but I’m sure part of the deal was securing licensing agreements abroad. Shark Tank is definitely a guilty pleasure of mine!
Pacers shirt!
Dang! Those crepes do look good. Forget the cows, might even use the crepes photo as a screen saver.
I love the huge French hypermarkets. One day I’ll find somebody to explain all the different sorts of pre-packed ham in the ham isle to me! In the meantime, I’ll be in the cheese aisle…
Target has grocery stores in some of them now too.
Sort of off topic but.. when The Girl is away from the shop I often wonder if she is confident that the business is run correctly. In other words is the cash flow safe from employees. I to own a small business and I have great people but it is in the back of my mind here and there.
We’ve got great employees and have had no problems. At the same time, we’re pretty much in constant contact with them. We have Dropcams inside the shop which make it easy for us to check-in on things 24×7 (and everything is recorded to the cloud), plus, we can keep track of sales in realtime up to the minute via apps there too. But ultimately, it all comes down to having a great team of employees – which we have. :)
Dijon is a nice city to visit ! You should take a note for next July and go for the triathlon. Did it last month while traveling in France, pretty challenging with nice scenery on the bike ride. Swim is in the lake Kir and run is following the lake too.
I’m new to your site. I’ve read your info. Question: What do you do for your ‘regular job’? You said something in tech. I also notice you say you didn’t go to college. I’m curious for more details and how is it humanly possible to work, travel, review products, post, blog, photo, video…etc…
Good stuff from what I’ve seen. Thanks!
Hi Neil-
I think in your follow-up e-mail you found more info, but for others, here’s a bit more background here: link to dcrainmaker.com
I didn’t go to college as I had a small software development company in high school and then continued that before moving into more of an IT consulting role. I had applied, been accepted, etc… But at the time it just worked out.
As for fitting everything in…not much sleep!