Revisiting bike computers for tours…

[Bicycle Belle Ding Ding!]

Hi Friends,

I’m a week away from my mother-son bikecamping trip. I’ve been practicing pitching my tent in the backyard and breaking it down, trying to perfect and speed up the process. I’m pretty good! 

I’ve been sitting down to really plan my route, and it’s been frustrating. I have an iPad with a keyboard that I do everything with, and it seems like maybe Ride with GPS was meant for laptops. It’s awkward. It doesn’t feel intuitive. I feel like I’m always losing where I’m at and what I’m looking for. But it seems to be the universal favorite app for route planning, so I’m sure it’s me that’s the problem.

Meanwhile, everyone in my bike club has a bike computer. The club plans routes on Ride with GPS. And at the ride start they say things like “Does everyone have the route?” I paid for the Ride with GPS membership so I could have the route on my phone, but it drains the phone. So I never use it. Thus, I never “have the route.” 

This mattered less in the club because SOMEONE always has the route, but when I set off on my tour with my son, we will be in charge of navigation. It might be nice to have turn-by-turn without running down our phone batteries.

I don’t know. I really liked just having my iPhone on my bars, but maybe with the amount of miles I ride, I should reconsider. Who has opinions about bike computers and Ride with GPS? 

Thanks!

Leah

[Robert Blunt]

Leah,

Would it be worth traveling with an additional power bank to deal with power drain? I do this sometime if I am doing a long ride. I keep the power bank (which is quite a powerful one so it charges the phone quickly) in my front rando bag and I run a charging chord from the rando bag to my mounted phone. Then you could charge the bank at night if you have access to power at your campsite. 

Best,

Rob Blunt

Pennington, NJ

(Lindsay’s cousin)

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[Richard Rose]

Hi Leah! I just hook my phone up to a fully charged “brick” that I have in my handlebar bag. But, you have a dynamo, right? You could get one of those chargers that runs on your dynamo. That way the “brick” stays charged. I think Sinewave offers a pretty nice one that is not too big or heavy? Not certain about any of this so maybe others can chip in with more info. But yeah, Ride with GPS works great with my phone so I’ve not invested in a bike computer. FYI, I also use Cyclemeter. I love the app & it’s less expensive than Ride with GPS. I would get a fancy GPS unit if I planned to get lost in the back country or similar.

Sent from my iPhone

On Jun 28, 2025, at 2:46 PM, Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! <jonasa...@gmail.com> wrote:

Hi Friends,

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[Lucia Matioli]

Hi There!

I feel you on this and recently got a Wahoo Elemnt Bolt 3, because my phone drains so quickly, and it causes me some anxiety on unknown routes. It boasts 20hours of battery time as well as probably more depending on screen light settings. The screen is on the small side and not a touch screen. But it seems pretty intuitive and easy. 
I have yet to use it, but bought it from REI in case I need to return. It loads all of my maps from 3rd party apps (Ride with GPS and Strava, Trailfoks, Kamoot, etc).
I also like that it has a route to home or starting point, so if I need to bail on any ride, it will get me there on the fastest route. Pretty cool option. It also comes preloaded with maps of the us, asia, so american, europe etc, so it will be able to find your gps route. Since I don;t have experience with it yet, I can't tell you yet how I feel about it, but it seems like it will do the trick. 
It have a cue sheet page as well as overall map, which alerts you on turns, but the one thing I am curious about is not being able to see the street names on the map-it's highlighted with arrows and again cues you on turns, so I don't think that will be a big deal. 
I would rather carry a brick to charge this vs my phone, but would probs carry all three things. :)

*I am not a representative from Wahoo (re-reading my note makes me seem like it! hahahaha)

Best,

Lucia

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Lucia Matioli

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[Leah Peterson]

Thank you, friends. I DO have a power bank! I could use that for this tour and save the money. We’ll see. Still reading about these contraptions.

Lucia, I think you’ll love that little computer. The girls in my bike club have Wahoos and they just love them. I really like that they tell your true speed because they stop counting time when you are stopped. My Apple Watch does not, so I always look slower on the report than I actually am. Every time we are at an intersection and have to wait, it’s counting against me! 

Of course there’s this really spendy Garmin that is just the bee’s knees and can solar charge. I should not!

Leah

On Jun 28, 2025, at 3:45 PM, Lucia Matioli <lucia....@gmail.com> wrote:



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[Igor]

Coros Dura has incredibly long battery life. 
https://bikepacking.com/gear/coros-dura-review/

[Garth]

Yes you should Leah ! I mean if you're going to delve into bike computers you may as well go all in the first time and get the Garmin Solar as you won't be so dependent on conventional charging. 

On Saturday, June 28, 2025 at 10:11:07 PM UTC-4 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:

[James Poulson]

Leah

I would agree with others that a back up battery is a good idea for your phone, especially if you are camping since you might be challenged to find outlets at all your stops. I try to grab power where  I can along the route. 

Another thing that I have found to be hugely helpful is to put your phone is 'Airplane Mode' while riding. The gps will work fine while in this mode but your phone won't be wasting battery trying to find a cell phone tower/signal. Ride with GPS will still work fine. You just won't be able to receive phone calls, text or random notices. 

Good luck and have a great time with your son. 

Boy Scouts would have been a cure of his 'no planning' planning, but too late for that. Hopefully experience and maturity will cure him of that foolishness.:-)

James P

MO

[Leah Peterson]

There is so much foolishness, James. My good advice that he should cut his hair is also being ignored! Actual words from him: Mom. What is the POINT of practicing first? If we get stuck, we get stuck. What’s the difference?” 

Gee, kid. How about getting stuck without a necessity for just the one overnight and realizing it before we set out for 215 miles and 6 days?!

Good tips about airplane mode! I didn’t know Ride with GPS would still work!

Thanks!

On Jun 29, 2025, at 3:02 PM, James Poulson <jlpo...@gmail.com> wrote:

Leah

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[Kath Sparrow]

I also agree a wahoo is a good bit of kit in regards to routes and battery power. I am a bit of a gadget fanatic though. 

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[Lucia Matioli]

Hey folks!

I just used it today for the first time and loved it. 

It’s still at 98% and I was out for 3 hours. 

Was able to listen to music on my ride which I loved without my phone draining. 

I’ve done the airplane mode but it still drained an awful lot. ESP listening to music. 

Cheers!

Lucia

Lucia Matioli

Sr Creative Consultant

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linkedin.com/in/luciamatioli/

              

   

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[Shannon Menkveld]

I'm new to the GPS bike computer party, but I had mag-sensor ones for years. I just got so irritated with using my phone as the actual navigation device that I started looking around at GPS units.

And it ended up that I bought one, and started using it, and, as I climb the learning curve, which gets pretty steep pretty quickly if you're the kind of user who tweaks the hell out of their devices, I'm enjoying it quite a bit. Out of the box, it works just fine... you could own the thing for years and never feel the need to change anything. Adding the RideWithGPS integration is easy enough, and while it's a bit awkward in use at first, it's not hard to learn and it always works the same way.

Or, you can dive down the customization rodent warren, like I have. After a couple of days of ownership, I've already added a bunch of 3rd-party functions. There's kind of a "shareware community" around these things. They're Turing-complete, general-purpose touchscreen computers with a task-specific OS. The manufacturers very smartly released SDKs for them, so that anyone with the skill set who thought "wouldn't it be awesome if it could do <$COOL_THING>?" could actually make it happen. As is always the case, good things followed from this decision.

Of course, many bad things also followed, like the infestation of social media features and Strava and all the rest of that rot. But it hasn't been hard so far to avoid stepping in any of it... just the occasional annoyance of "Would you like to share this ride with social media?" and not much else.

My big tip:

Craigslist.

GPS units are the kind of things that decline in value like a peregrine falcon going after a baby duckling. The top-of-the-line model from a generation or two back can usually be had for less than entry-level money. I got my Garmin Edge 1030, so two gens old, (1030 --> 1030+ --> 1040,) for $120 bucks. These things are typically bracket-priced, so the 1040 is the $799 Garmin now, and the 1030 was then.

And, while the thing's about as far away from the "fly low and slow, with proven solutions and high-quality simplicity" ethos that shapes so much of how we do what we do, and why we do it that way as it can be, it shows all the signs of being useful enough and good enough to live nearly full-time on my bike...

And that's enough.

--Shannon

(Plus, if I end up hating it, I can probably sell it and almost break even.)

[Leah Peterson]

I’m thinking more all the time that I’d like the convenience of one of these little computers. One thing I will miss, however, is knowing how many miles/hours I’ve spent upon each bike. I have a basic cyclometer on two of my bikes presently, and it’s nice to know how many miles I get. I have an Apple Note for each bike and I write down info like how many miles I had on the chain before I replaced it, etc. I think there’s a crummy workaround but need to look into that further.

I’ll prob get this at my bike shop because I so rarely buy anything from them but service (though we did get an e-bike this year). The College Clem is getting some work done, so I’ll ask about the computer when I pick that bike up.

On Jun 29, 2025, at 10:08 PM, Shannon Menkveld <shannon....@gmail.com> wrote:



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[ascpgh]

I opted gadget last fall and got a Wahoo. I hadn't used my phone for navigation unless curious or in hand for a taking a picture so this was a jump. It's been a very good source of information and conservative of energy compared to my phone on long or multi day rides. Jan Heine's hand written cue sheets in his bag top map sleeve remind me of some of the references I've provided myself in the past including taping a list of points and their interval distances to a water bottle.

Part of my appreciation of big rides is knowing from the beginning that they are my rides. I define them, set my objectives and expectations but above all ensure that I will conclude them without taxing others. Maybe the real point of them is to be away from the supports that life is full of and pass through voids where cell service doesn't exist, Google isn't available and I am the only resource when solving problems. I do keep my wife and interested others informed of my progress to allay their concerns but propel myself through all that I am out there to experience.

When planning trips I am aware that the wild cards like weather, smoke from distant forest fires or other people who are not prepared for where they've found themselves and need assistance will reduce what I should expect of myself. The things on a new multi day trip that can make travel difficult compared to the known miles of a familiar out and back day ride are not always overt but you can support your intentions with situational awareness learned from experiences past.

James' point about the Scouts is well taken (I lived in the St. Louis then). I didn't overtly realize the benefits of my time while participating but in each step of life since I've been surprised by how impactful it was. In college I was drawn a group with many others who were Eagle Scouts. When going into the military I was surprised by how much it seemed like Cliff Notes for those who didn't have scouting experience. When I plan and pack for a trip or build a bike there are many lessons from those times that guide my choices. 

Experiences are empty if they don't provide some lesson to take forward. I'm glad I had the opportunity early on to realize this and appreciate how it has complimented my cycling. 

Andy Cheatham

[Zachary Cannon]

I have a Garmin edge 530 along with my son and a couple of my friends I bike pack with and do long gravel rides on remote routes. It works great for that and is pretty easy to use. I tend to use Garmin courses rather than ride with gps and find create routes on it earlier.  The edge 540 would be a great choise and easy to use and likely forward capable for long term usage. 

In terms of Garmin vs wahoo and others, I’d recommend going with what your friends use if you ride with any users. Rather than thinking Garmin is better, I found it convenient that my family and friends occupy the same ecosystem. It makes getting advice and sharing routes easy. Kind of like having all the mountain bikes in the family shimano vs sram. I’m not sure one is better but I like unity in the family. 

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[Shannon Menkveld]

<blockquote>One thing I will miss, however, is knowing how many miles/hours I’ve spent upon each bike. </blockquote>

I'd be pretty surprised if there wasn't an on-device app for that, or if the supporting app / website doesn't allow you to do it offline.

--Shannon

[aeroperf]

The subject of Cycle Computers is a rabbit hole as deep as you want to go down.

I spend most of my time riding on a marked bike trail - the Silver Comet.  When I go overseas for touring, though, I’m sometimes on a marked bike route, and sometimes not.
If I’m riding the Canal du Midi or the Nantes to Brest Canal, then there is a clear velo route and a computer is a waste of money.
If I’m riding through the bootheel of Italy or along the north coast of Spain, I definitely would rather have a GPS computer instead of the “map in a waterproof case strapped to the handlebars”.

So, first, decide if a computer is a waste of money, a necessity, or something you just want to play with.

Then, though you probably won’t know what exactly you want, do some “what features do I want/need” research.

Then (like a used Rivendell is cheaper than a new Rivendell), go get a good used unit and try it.

There is a group for bicycle touring:
https://groups.google.com/g/bicycletouring
A number of RBWOB folks are already members of this.
There you can find a large selection of GPS computers, lightly used, at good prices.
Example: A Garmin 840 solar, originally $450, used 1 season, asking $300.

So if you Don’t Know, but want to try one, buy used not new.

[ascpgh]

When I ride on the Great Allegheny Passage, the mile markers and a watch with a second hand can keep you engaged by calculating my speed with the rate of their passing.  Five minutes is 12mph, four minutes is 15mph, etc. Key points along the trip for me are great for averaging those spot speeds. I'm not out there competing for time, these are additional logistic considerations that can affect certain objectives but also tell me about my condition. Sometime the latter can be a check down as they are taking a toll and I need to make adjustments.

Cumulative speed becomes more useful to me since it takes in to account the frequency and duration of stopped time that keeps the ride interesting, which varies by time of year. If I know the next landmark interval, say 20 miles, I can make an increasingly accurate forecast of my arrival by knowing an increasing distance average speed. Keeping up with my average over a longer distance provides a better forecast of my ETA at the day's destination. 

Sometimes my calculated ETA demands that I slow down, enjoy the places I am passing through or visit more when I see others. An Air B&B I like has a 3pm sign-in time and often dictates more dawdling from the pace I'm making that day. 

All that said, my Wahoo Elemnt Bolt has been really useful and frees up my bandwidth when riding with others or even by myself.

Andy Cheatham

Pittsburgh

[Leah Peterson]

Well, I really went and did it. Got the Garmin, which was not cheap, but I didn’t find anything on Craigslist and we’re leaving this weekend for our first bikepacking trip, just me and my 19 year old son. The bike shop had mismarked the price - $100 cheaper. I didn’t even notice, but the sales guy did and said he’d honor it. I said it was ok, and I didn’t mind paying but he refused and said that’s bad business practice! I don’t think this model really goes on sale, so I might have the only one new in box at that price!

I am both excited and terrified about this trip. I’m excited to have this time with my kid (who is so dang agreeable and easy). But I’m afraid I’m really going to love bike touring/camping and then I will always be scheming for more. And I really have no one to do it with. I have considered going solo. On last night’s club ride I asked 2 different women if they would set off by themselves, maybe up Michigan’s coast and both said no way. Not safe. I have zero mechanical expertise, another problem. But my Rivs seem like they so rarely have problems, and tubeless has pretty much taken care of flat issues for me. I might get by with ineptitude.

But if our trip goes well, I will have all this nice gear and a fresh case of the wanderlust. I’ll figure it out. 

Most of what I observe on here is what I call “mixed marriages.” One person loves bike and the other doesn’t/is ambivalent. Oddly in my bike club there are tons of couples who ride and tour together. Michigan knows what’s up! 

Leah

On Jul 1, 2025, at 9:41 AM, ascpgh <asc...@gmail.com> wrote:

When I ride on the Great Allegheny Passage, the mile markers and a watch with a second hand can keep you engaged by calculating my speed with the rate of their passing.  Five minutes is 12mph, four minutes is 15mph, etc. Key points along the trip for me are great for averaging those spot speeds. I'm not out there competing for time, these are additional logistic considerations that can affect certain objectives but also tell me about my condition. Sometime the latter can be a check down as they are taking a toll and I need to make adjustments.

To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/869a78e6-2618-441e-a151-894ab41ee91dn%40googlegroups.com.

[Zachary Cannon]

My kids use strava for that after Garmin syncs their rides. It keeps a running total and annual total. 

 I can be bothered to remember to indicate which bike I used on strava/Garmin so I just load it onto a google spreadsheet. 

One thing I enjoy about Garmin/strava is the way it gives me an annual elevation total. 

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[Jonathan Carmack]

Maybe DC summers hit different but I’ve had terrible luck with Wahoo units being humidity survivable, garmin 4lyfe

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[Hugh C]

I would also suggest using a Garmin (no experience with Wahoo). It can make for extra stress on a bike tour/camping trip to have to worry about your phone going dead on you! I use the free ride w GPS and just pin the planned route and it will show up magically on your head unit in saved routes. You have to use the Garmin Connect app on the phone but it doesn't need to be active while riding, only to upload the route. I used an Edge 800 for years but the small screen made it hard to see route directions with my old man eyes. I have a 1030+ which I like a lot. 

On Monday, June 30, 2025 at 2:33:03 PM UTC-4 shannon....@gmail.com wrote:

[Toshi Takeuchi]

Leah, enjoy your Garmin and your trip. My Garmin has treated me well. I don't take my bike computer on my commute bike and was using Ride with GPS to track my ride on my Apple Watch, but I got tired of draining the battery after a 1 hour ride, so I just bought a Garmin watch too. (Many are on sale on a pre-prime day sale on Amazon). I am also using my watch to broadcast my heart rate when I am too lazy to put the chest strap on (which seems to be most of the time, I am finding). I know it's not as accurate, but better than nothing!

I am sure you are now synchronizing your Garmin and Ride with GPS to get routes and rides uploaded to and from the bike computer. It's pretty seamless. Have fun!

Toshi in Oakland who has never gone bikepacking, but hopes to someday

[Jay]

It's something new to learn and to see where it can benefit you.  I'm sure you'll find it handy.  If you end up not liking it so much, can sell it.

I have my small Garmin on a k-edge mount that has an adaptor below it so I can run a light underneath the Garmin; very handy.  And you can definitely add each of your bikes and when you turn on the Garmin before a ride you select the bike.  Garmin app on phone (and computer), and lots of stats to track if that's your thing.

[Nick Payne]

On Tuesday, 1 July 2025 at 4:33:03 am UTC+10 shannon....@gmail.com wrote:

<blockquote>One thing I will miss, however, is knowing how many miles/hours I’ve spent upon each bike. </blockquote>

I'd be pretty surprised if there wasn't an on-device app for that, or if the supporting app / website doesn't allow you to do it offline.

With a Garmin GPS, you can do that with the gear tracking feature: https://support.garmin.com/en-US/?faq=9EtB5L0OA26gp56Yv9tyH9&productID=73207&searchQuery=Garmin%20Gear&tab=topics. I don't know if the same capability exists in other brands, but there's probably something similar.

Nick Payne 

[Jason Fuller]

A power bank is a must for bike camping in my opinion, and with phone batteries as large as they are today, I recommend 20,000 mAh capacity for anything more than an overnighter. I tend to burn through battery like crazy on camping trips as I'm taking a ton of photos compared to normal.  It's also something that every emergency kit should have, so it can do double duty for that when you're not on a trip! 

I have never tried to plan via RWGPS on an iPad but definitely agree that it is meant to be used in desktop browser mode for such activities. I really like using it to plan routes, but perhaps I've just gotten used to its quirks. The GPX export / import into a GPS unit is quick and easy. 

I use a Wahoo Element Roam and it's very nice to use, but might be overkill for your needs. I only use it for longer rides or when I need navigation; most day to day rides I just record on my phone. 

[Chester]

On Tuesday, July 1, 2025 at 9:02:26 AM UTC-7 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:

Well, I really went and did it. Got the Garmin

Hope you get all sorted with it before your trip. And hope you find that it's a great bit of gear for you.

I find it hard to use the map display to find my way around if I don't have a route programmed in, but when I do, it makes complicated routes a breeze. I try to stick to slow streets as much as I can, and in the suburbs, this usually requires a lot of meandering. I've got to try RideWithGPS for mapping and discovering routes, but haven't had any complaints using Garmin's Connect web portal for making routes and synching them to my Edge 1030. I like being able to glance at info like the time of day or speed or whatever, and also really appreciate being able to see climb elevation profiles so I know how much suffering might lie ahead. If you need to reply to text messages while riding, you can do that with your Garmin, too, using pre-canned messages.

A few suggestions, in case they're helpful:

• If you didn't get a bundle including one or get one separately, you can get an "out front" mount for the computer. Save a little handlebar space. Here's one Garmin makes but many companies make compatible ones and you can get them in different colors to coordinate with other colored bits and bobs: https://www.garmin.com/en-US/p/521668/
  These will usually have a GoPro-style mount on the bottom for mounting a camera or a light. And that part can typically be removed if you have no use for it and don't want an unused nub protruding. 
  
  
• Garmin makes the Varia line of rear radar units. With and without lights and/or cameras. You get a little beep when it detects a car behind you, and your computer will show the car(s) as dots getting closer and closer to you. It's really nice to be able to just ride in the middle of a lane and not check over your shoulder or even glance at a mirror to be sure no cars are approaching. You just assume you can take the lane until you hear a beep. 
  
  The ones with integrated lights will modify the light's blinking pattern or light intensity so that drivers approaching you see something dynamically change as they get closer. And if you ride with a group in a paceline, there's a "peloton mode" that decreases the brightness for the sake of those behind you. And peloton mode also synchs Varias in proximity so that everyone's lights are displaying their lights in unison as a group.
  
  You can use a phone for this, with the Varia app, but then your phone screen is just being used for the Varia display. With the computers, you can get that dot proximity display on the edge of all the normal screens the computer will display.
  
  https://www.garmin.com/en-US/c/sports-fitness/cycling-bike-computers-bike-radar-power-meter-headlights/

Chester

SF Bay Area

[Leah Peterson]

Chester, I can make routes on the Garmin app?!? I had no idea. One Out Front mount came with the computer, and they had one more in stock, which I bought. I need another for the purple bike and *maybe* one for the mermaid.

Tonight was my first ride with that contraption. I immediately was confused when the ride started and a beep sounded and things were flashing on the screen. I’m wobbling and hitting buttons and panicking a little. Oh, it’s just telling me the clock is starting. We got out on the road and my Garmin said, “Pothole ahead!” 

“You guys! The Garmin says we got potholes!” Everyone giggled because they know this is my first ride with a bike computer. Then it proclaimed, “HIGH TRAFFIC ROADS AHEAD!!” which I parroted in a know-it-all tone.  Also funny. Less funny to them was my anxiety that our average speed was dropping and could we speed up? Now I can see in real time what our average is shaping up to be and it is making me a monster. 

And, most amusing, “GUYS! The Garmin has announced that (Insert teenager’s name) is hoping to have a sleepover tonight!” IT EVEN GIVES YOU TEXTS?!? they said.

The consensus seems to be that all these other women have them and none seem to be proficient with them. They get their computers set up and forget about them. 

I need to put nose to grindstone and learn route planning tomorrow. I really dread it. But this computer stuff is interesting, and it’s good to learn and to be brave enough to be bad at something new.

Leah

On Jul 1, 2025, at 9:36 PM, Chester <cheste...@gmail.com> wrote:



To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/f364d0b5-c5a8-403e-aabe-47190781b95cn%40googlegroups.com.

[Leah Peterson]

Also, this Garmin is causing a crisis of arrangements on my bikes. I have so much stuff on my bars already, and I need to make room for the mount. I have cyclometers on 2 bikes because I really want to know how many miles each of those bikes gets in its lifetime. There is no other good way to keep that running tally. There are some bad workarounds with the Garmin, like using Strava to tell which bike did what. But basically, it seems dumb to have a cyclometer AND a Garmin. Plus, it’s getting cramped on those bars.

Thank you again for all your posts. I read them all and even if I don’t comment on all of them know that I am using them to learn and it’s been wonderful!

L

On Jul 1, 2025, at 11:43 PM, Leah Peterson <jonasa...@gmail.com> wrote:



[Zachary Cannon]

I appreciate seeing the texts and being reassured most are not urgent. 

Setting up a course on Garmin connect on your home computer is fairly intuitive and a bit fun.  Then you can sync it to your bike computer. Also, if your route has been done before or is common, you can try searching for it in Garmin courses. 

To make a course you basically drop pins and Garmin connects them. I find it’s important to check Garmin connect your pins as you intend or I go back and make the pin closer to elicit my desired route. 

Good luck!!!

To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/4BBB81B7-7E3F-498D-BA0B-A50B94AA9967%40gmail.com.

[Toshi Takeuchi]

Yeah, easiest is if the route is already made, then you can sync it from Ride with GPS/Strava/Garmin etc. The second easiest for me was to use Google maps and tell it I'm on a bike, set the beginning and end points, and in the Bay Area it does a good job of avoiding heavily trafficked roads and using bike thoroughfares. I synched that to Ride with GPS and then to my bike computer. I've never made my own route, but I'm glad to hear that it's not too hard.

Toshi

[Will Boericke]

I honestly would not turn the cranks without my Wahoo mounted at this point.  I like to know where I'm going and be able to map a route in a new place.  About to head on a 4 day bikepacking trip (no camping) in VT, and have already made the Ride w/GPS segments in my library so everyone can download and follow.

Will

[Chester]

On Tuesday, July 1, 2025 at 8:43:23 PM UTC-7 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding! wrote:

Chester, I can make routes on the Garmin app?!? I had no idea.

There's so much going on in Garmin Connect (mobile app or web) that it's kind of buried. You have to go to "Training & Planning" (".../More" first in app) and then "Courses." Make a new Course and then Send to Device.

I've never tried to make a Course in the app. Like others say, plotting out a custom route on small phone screen seems like it'd be too fiddly. I make them on the Web version.

One tip: there may be times when Routing via "Follow Popular Routes" or "Follow Roads" allows you to plot your course on a path you want, because it's not recognized as one. E.g. a shortcut through a parking lot. You can switch Routing to "Freehand" for the necessary plot points, then go back to one of the others.

Getting texts is sometimes nice and sometimes terrible. On a recent ride, I was in an area where bad cell coverage was preventing my phone from reporting my location to my wife via Google Maps, but good enough that I got a worried text from her telling me to let her know I was okay because Google Maps was showing that I'd been in the same area for 30 minutes. Was able to read the message and, from the Garmin Edge, tap a few times to reply "Okay" and "Can't talk now" which was reassuring enough, though in hindsight wasn't super reassuring. Can be terrible: another time, I was (excruciatingly slowly) grinding my way up a climb and already pretty miserable when a group chat I'm on blew up with a steady flurry of activity, which just added to the general suffering and specific annoyance of the gnat that had settled on a stalking orbit of my head for the prior 10 minutes (again: excruciatingly slow).

Chester

SF Bay Area

[Shannon Menkveld]

I turned text notification & relay functions off pretty soon after I got my Edge 1030. They're super annoying, 'cuz I can't do anything about them while riding anyway, so the only difference between just hearing my phone chime from my handlebar bag and having my GPS display the notification is that I know who texted me and the first few words of what they said. So, more annoying than informative.

Also, text messages are a deliberately asynchronous communications medium. (In this case, read "asynchronous" as synonymous with "delayed.") If you require an immediate response, well... that's why phone calls were invented. (Bonus: text messages alert one time and then shut up. Phone calls ring until they're answered, or until the caller gives up in frustrated impatience. Guess which one is more likely to get answered, if an answer is really important?)

--Shannon

[Earl Grey]

I second the suggestion of getting a used GPS (or sticking with your phone + power bank). 

I had been using my phone, but I got a used Garmin Edge 1030 from a friend for $150 right after the 1030+ came out, which, early adopter that he is, he had already bought. I happily used it for 3 years or so when the battery literally exploded, popping the screen off the computer. Ordered a new battery, and while waiting for it, put my phone back on the bike and discovered that I really liked how Ride with GPS could display a useful map (with heat map for spontaneous route changes), and at the bottom of the screen the data I also wanted to track. namely heart rate, cadence, power, etc. I liked using the phone so much that I didn’t bother replacing the battery for months. I finally did, and now I am back to using the computer. Here is why:

The main advantage of the GPS is that the screen is much more legible in bright sun light. The second advantage for me is the much longer battery life. Third in line is the super clear turn by turn navigation.

The main advantage of the phone for me is the simultaneous display of map and data. 

I did also have the problem recently that while commuting in a light rain, enough water got into the charge port that the phone refused to charge. So if you do use your phone and a power bank, make sure to plug it in before it starts raining. I actually started looking into power banks that can lock to a phone case and a bike mount and charge wirelessly, but there are only a couple of options and they are $80-100 if I recall. Plus the mount and the case. 

Here is a good video lauding the benefits of older computers. I think their favorite is the Garmin 830, a smaller version of the one I have.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B6SPRDitfiM

Cheers, and have fun!

Gernot

[Michael Cinibulk]

Gernot (Earl Grey) wrote: "Ordered a new battery, and while waiting for it, put my phone back on the bike and discovered that I really liked how Ride with GPS could display a useful map (with heat map for spontaneous route changes), and at the bottom of the screen the data I also wanted to track."

You can do this with your Garmin as well. Shortly after I got my 1030Plus I read somewhere about highly recommended Apps to download from Connect IQ. The only one I have on my device is called MapDashboard. It allows you to add 6 data fields to the bottom of your map page instead of the default two. The data fields are a bit small so as not to cover the map, but I highly recommend it!

I would be interested in hearing of other apps available via Connect IQ that are useful.

Mike C.

Bellbrook OH

[Shannon Menkveld]

I 2nd MapDashBoard, with one caveat: The fields in the 6-field version are pretty small. If that's an issue, there's a 4-field version. I've used both, but haven't decided which one I'll be sticking with long-term. (I just got the Garmin.)

The other IQ-store data field I use all the time is WindField, which computes the effective wind based on your heading and speed, combined with local WX from nearby stations. And the RideWithGPS integration app, but that's so unobtrusive that I forgot I'd installed it.

--Shannon