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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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/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!
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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 2024 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.
Tag Archives: Extravaganza
It Begins Monday: Giveaway Extravaganza Time!
Yes, the time is once again almost upon us: The Annual DC Rainmaker Giveaway Extravaganza! While typically mid-summer, we’re going with late-summer for this edition (yes, it’s still summer for another couple of weeks…just barely). Next Monday (September 10th) starting … Read More Here
The 2017 Giveaway Extravaganza Winners!
Wow – yet another massive Giveaway Extravaganza in the books! Yesterday was pretty crazy once again, with what can only described as an absolute crapton of people stopping by the site to enter the dozen giveaways. You’ve once again stated … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza: Garmin Forerunner 935 GPS Watch
All good things must come to an end. And this, my friends, is the end. To wrap things up I’m giving away my current running and triathlon watch – the Garmin Forerunner 935. Affectionately known as a plastic Fenix 5, … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza: GoPro Hero5 Black
It’s rare that I leave the house without an action camera in my pocket. And when I do, it’s almost always the GoPro Hero5 Black. Be it for a run, a ride, or just a trip to the pool with … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza: Polar A370 & Polar M460
Sometimes you need a breather. And other times you just want to double-down. With only three giveaway sets left, I figured we’d double-down in this one. Not one, but two devices this time! The A370 is Polar’s latest optical HR … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza: Tacx Neo Smart Trainer
Boom – time to kick this up another notch! You wanna train like me? No problem. First, start with cupcakes. Lots of them. Then, probably some pasta (fresh, preferably). And finally, add in the Tacx Neo trainer. Bike also required. … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza: Garmin VIRB 360 Action Cam
What if you could always capture everything, all the time. Well, with the VIRB 360 you can. I mean, as long as it’s not behind your back. Or behind a wall. Or behind any other opaque object. But glass is … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza: The Anything Unannounced Soon Giveaway!
What if I could give you the future? Or more specifically, the unannounced future? Yup, I’m going to do just that. Over the next 3.5 weeks there’s going to be a crapton of new products announced. Almost all of these … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza: PowerTap P1 Power Meter Pedals
It’s time to kick this party up a (another) notch. For this next gifting I’ll be handing out two pedals. Albeit, just one set. But still, you do technically get two of something. These PowerTap P1 pedals will handily measure … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza: Wahoo ELEMNT BOLT
I’m not gonna lie, I think it would be somewhat funny if for the winner of this giveaway, I initially just stuck a hardware store bolt in an envelope, and then wrote ‘Wahoo’ on the side with a Sharpie. Just … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza: Favero Assioma Duo Power Meter Pedals
You’ve got the power. And…that’s as clever as I could get for this one. Well, in actuality you have some power. Whether or not you have much power remains to be seen. And these power meter pedals from Favero (better … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza: Suunto Spartan Sport Wrist HR
Look at that, we’re onto Giveaway #3. Feelin’ tired yet? No?!? Good, then go out for a run. And for that activity you could use the new Spartan Sport Wrist HR, which includes a fancy optical heart rate sensor embedded … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza: DJI Spark
Watches aren’t your thing? No worries, I’ve got you covered. Literally in this case – the DJI Spark can make sure you’ve got coverage from above. Almost all selfies look better from further away, and this will do exactly that … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza: Garmin Fenix 5
And so it begins – the mother of all giveaways once again! Thus, it seems appropriate to begin with what is effectively the mother of all fitness smart watches: The Garmin Fenix 5. No other watch on the market has … Read More Here
In Just 7 Days….
Yes, the time is once again almost upon us: The Annual DC Rainmaker Giveaway Extravaganza. While most of my neighbors are out on vacation, I’m here to step up the game and wake up the neighborhood. Or at least, keep … Read More Here
The 2016 Annual Giveaway Extravaganza Winners!
Wow – another massive Giveaway Extravaganza in the books! Yesterday was pretty crazy for sure, with what can only described as an absolute crapton of people stopping by the site to enter the dozen giveaways. You’ve once again stated loud … Read More Here
In Just 7 Days…
Yes, the time is once again almost upon us: The Annual DC Rainmaker Giveaway Extravaganza. Albeit slightly later in the summer season than years’ past – but worry not, I’m not skipping it! Next Tuesday (August 4th) starting at exactly … Read More Here
In Just 7 Days…
Yes, the time is once again almost upon us: The Annual DC Rainmaker Giveaway Extravaganza. Next Tuesday (June 24th) starting at exactly 12:00AM Eastern (0600 CET/CEST) the pinnacle of sports technology giveaway awesomeness will commence. Last year the numbers were … Read More Here
The Giveaway Extravaganza Winners!
Now that everyone has had time to take a breather (though likely still waking up in a bit of a post-giveaway extravaganza hangover), it’s time to announce the winners! First up, I want to say a huge thanks to everyone … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza: The ‘iPack’–Wahoo RFLKT, 4iiii’s Viiiiva, Blue SC, and more!
All good things must come to an end…and the end is regrettably here. And by here, I mean after explaining this last giveaway. I decided to make a bit of a basket of things for the iPhone/iPad/iPod carrying person. First … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza: Garmin Edge 510 or Edge 810
Sometimes you just can’t decide. Like when eating donuts. Apple fritter or maple bar? That’s sorta how it was for this giveaway. I couldn’t decide between the 510 or the 810. Some folks want mapping, and some want a slightly … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza: Wahoo Fitness KICKR Trainer
I told you I wasn’t going to stop with just watches and power meters…. While it may be a few days into summer for those of us up north, that doesn’t mean you can’t spend some quality time on the … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza: Garmin FR910XT GPS Multisport watch
Sometimes you just need a friend when you’re going out and swimming, cycling and running 140.6 miles. No, not scuba fins like Finman. But something more technologically advanced, like, the FR910XT. This multisport watch will track your swims, bikes, and … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza: SRAM Quarq Riken Power Meter
What? You thought I’d be just doing watches today? Oh how wrong you are…you just wait…I’m only getting warmed up. The Quarq power meter allows you to more accurately pace your race and training efforts, ultimately increasing the likelihood of … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza: Timex Run Trainer 2.0 GPS Running Watch
Yes, that’s a glass of chocolate milk. When I went sifting through my library of product photos for the single shot to use for the Timex Run Trainer 2.0 giveaway, I stumbled upon the above photo. It was in a … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza: Polar RC3 GPS Running Watch
There’s no question that the RC3 is my most favored Polar product to date. It’s the first Polar unit to fully integrate GPS into the watch itself. The unit is primarily aimed at the running crowd, but can easily do … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza: Suunto Ambit 2 GPS Multisport Watch
First up this year, the Suunto Ambit 2! This triathlon focused watch crossed over from starting off as a hiking/ultra-runners watch and then within the Ambit 2 line, they added in all triathlon sports (swim/bike/run/multisport). Of course, even if you … Read More Here
Starting in 24 hours! The DCR Giveaway Extravaganza!
For those loyal readers who were around last year, you’ll remember the massive Giveaway Extravaganza I launched last year about this time. Normally when I do a traditional giveaway, I giveaway a single item and the entry period lasts a … Read More Here
The Giveaway Extravaganza Winners!
A huge thanks to all that participated in Friday’s Giveaway Extravaganza, it was certainly pretty crazy around these parts! At some points the entries were coming in at one per second, that’s just nuts! Overall, you clocked in nearly 50,000 … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza: Timex Global Trainer
The Timex Global Trainer will easily track you across any sport (or medieval battlefield). Which is exactly what Mythbusters did last summer. They combined the unit with knights in shinning armor last summer to measure distance and speed/pace. How much … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza: Polar RCX5 with G5 GPS
Are you of the Polar persuasion? Then this watch is definitely your cup of tea (or cup of Gatorade). It’s their top of the line triathlon watch, complete with the the G5 GPS pod. And, unlike virtually every other watch … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza: Wahoo BlueHR, Quad Lock Bike Case, iPhone Running Case/Band
Think of this as the ultimate iPhone running kit. You’ve got the fancy Bluetooth low-energy heart rate strap, then the sweet iPhone Quad Lock case (with all the stuff shown above), and then I’m throwing in a iPhone running case/band. … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza: Garmin FR910XT
Here’s your chance to grab a brand new Garmin FR910XT. As you probably know, the FR910XT can be used across a number of sports. You could swim effortlessly in a giant vat of beer, compete in tandem mountain bike racing, … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza: Timex Run Trainer
Sure, any device can track a run for a few hours. But can your device track a run that’s over a 100 hours long? Well, the Timex Run Trainer took the cake on the longest running recording battery of any … Read More Here
Giveaway Extravaganza Twofer: Polar RCX3’s
Yup, for this giveaway I’m giving away two separate units out to two winners. One white edition, one black edition. Twofer!!! The Polar RCX3 is Polar’s latest slimmed down triathlon and running watch that doesn’t attract much unneeded attention with … Read More Here