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:
With TPC (The Pro's Closet), you'll save $40 on purchases over $200 with coupon code DCRAIN40 for tech and non-tech purchases!
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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Check out my weekly podcast - with DesFit, which is packed with both gadget and non-gadget goodness!
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5 Easy Steps To The Site
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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 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!
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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.
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My Photography Gear: The Cameras and Equipment 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! It’s a nice break from the day to day sports-tech talk, and I hope you get something out of it!
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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.
Garmin announces Vivoactive HR & Vivofit 3
!!!Update! I’ve since posted a full hands-on and first run look at the Vivoactive HR! Swing on over to that post for all the hands-on details and videos!!!! Today Garmin announced two new products – the Vivoactive HR, and the … Read More Here
The Love You Wanted: $600 Gadget Giveaway
What’s that? Your Valentine’s Day was a bust? No worries, I’m here to try and cheer ya up. It’s your opportunity to win something you’ll really love (which, may be in addition to someone else you love). The winner will … Read More Here
Understanding continual (24/7) optical HR data and resting heart rate
(Updated April 9th, 2017) More and more devices over the last 1-2 years have begun to include the ability to record your heart rate (HR) data around the clock. No longer are you limited to just workout HR data, but … Read More Here
5 Random Things I Did This Weekend in Mallorca
From Wednesday of last week until last night, I was down in Mallorca, which is a small Spanish island located in the Mediterranean. It’s a super-quick journey from Paris, yet has mostly warm and sunny weather, even this time of … Read More Here
Week in Review–February 14th, 2016
The Week in Review is a collection of both all the goodness I’ve written during the past week around the internet, as well as a small pile of links I found interesting – generally endurance sports related. I’ve often wondered … Read More Here
Behind the Scenes at Quarq HQ
A while back (ok, a long while back), I went on a bit of a circuit around the US and visited a number of companies. One of those was Quarq. As long-time readers know, I occasionally do Behind the Scenes … Read More Here
DCR Expansion On the Horizon
Over the last few months, many of you have asked how I might expand the DCR blog. For example, with it becoming a full-time thing, a number of you wondered whether I’d expand into new product categories like bike components, … Read More Here
Garmin Index WiFi Smart Scale In-Depth Review
It’s been a few months since Garmin announced their Index WiFi Scale (at $149), so it’s time to dive in on an in-depth review and see how things have shaped up. Most importantly: Is the scale worth the premium over … Read More Here
A Week of Skiing in the Alps
Rather than a ‘5 Random Things’ this morning, I’m going to do a quick recap of my time last week in the Alps. A group of us rented a ski chalet on the side of the mountain and enjoyed a … Read More Here
Week in Review–February 7th, 2016
The Week in Review is a collection of both all the goodness I’ve written during the past week around the internet, as well as a small pile of links I found interesting – generally endurance sports related. I’ve often wondered … Read More Here
First Look: Fitbit announces new Fitbit Alta activity tracker
Today Fitbit announced their latest activity tracker – the Fitbit Alta. This unit is effectively a replacement for the existing Fitbit Charge (or previous to that, the Force). However, unlike those, this unit sports smartphone notifications, move reminders, and the ability … Read More Here
Power meter prices plunge further as Pioneer & SRM join PowerTap in price cuts
(Updated 11AM US Eastern Time Feb 1st with SRM addition) The power meters prices be fallin’ again, and the snow and ice hasn’t even thawed yet on winter. Here’s what’s been dropping. Pioneer Price Drops: Today Pioneer dropped their power … Read More Here
Week in Review–January 31st, 2016
The Week in Review is a collection of both all the goodness I’ve written during the past week around the internet, as well as a small pile of links I found interesting – generally endurance sports related. I’ve often wondered … Read More Here
Microsoft Band 2 In-Depth Fitness & Sport Focused Review
This past fall Microsoft released their second activity tracker, the Microsoft Band 2 – near exactly one year after they released the original Microsoft Band. This new Band tweaks the sizing a bit and cleans up much of the exterior … Read More Here
ISPO 2016 Sports Tech Roundup: FINIS Optical HR Swim Tracker, Kuai, Evalu, WatTeam and XMetrics
Yesterday I grabbed an early morning flight to ISPO, in Munich, to check out the massive sports-focused show. Anything and everything to do with sports was there, spread out over a convention floor area that would make Eurobike look like your average … Read More Here
5 Random Things I Did This Weekend
Here’s the latest and greatest from the land of…well…me? 1) Reverse Unboxing Sometimes, unboxing comes after product usage. As strange as that may seem. Occasionally I’ll get final products without boxes. Either because the boxes weren’t ready yet, because I … Read More Here
The New Suunto Ambit3 Vertical: An Explainer
About 10 days ago Suunto announced the Ambit 3 Vertical, making it the latest high-end watch from the company, and a continuation of the Ambit lineup. However, with the announcement has come a bit of confusion around what exactly is … Read More Here
BSX Insight Gen2 In-Depth Review
Update – Aug 20th, 2017: Warning – BSX has discontinued sales of the BSX Insight product line, and plans to discontinue the platform as of August or September 2018. After which point it’s unclear what, if any, portion of the … Read More Here
5 Random Things I Did This Weekend
After much traveling over the holiday period and into CES, it was finally back home for the weekend. Glad to be enjoying the city and not bouncing around. 1) A quick test ride This past week was mostly a ‘catch-up’ … Read More Here
Garmin Vivosmart HR In-Depth Review
Back about two months ago, Garmin announced their first wrist activity tracker (non-watch) with optical HR capabilities, the Vivosmart HR. The Vivosmart HR was designed to build upon the release of the Vivosmart a year earlier. Essentially it’s a daily … Read More Here
18 Sports Tech Things at CES That I Didn’t Write About
My week at CES is structured around an extensive amount of walking, talking, and photographing. Which might lead you to believe there’s also an extensive amount of writing, but that tends not to be the case. Instead, I pick and … Read More Here
Peloton’s Interesting Indoor Cycling Bike Platform
By some stroke of complete and total coincidence, a friend of mine called me last Wednesday morning and asked about the Peloton bike system. You may remember the company from about 2.5 years ago when they first launched into the … Read More Here
Initial impressions of a production Bragi Dash unit
This week at CES, folks got their first look at the now final production units of the long-awaited Bragi Dash. The company began shipping development kits a bit ago, but only just now is working to get the first few … Read More Here
Garmin’s New Tactix Bravo: An Explainer
While earlier in the week I gave you a look at the new Garmin Fenix3 HR, the extent of my Tactix-Bravo photography was rather limited (I only included one photo). However, the reasoning will explain why this post will be … Read More Here
A 360° Action Cam Roundup: Nikon, 360Fly, Giroptic…and GoPro
Just as last year was the year of the drone at CES, this year there is a lot of buzz about virtual reality. Lots of news surrounding bunches of new VR headsets. And to do VR, you need 360. As … Read More Here
