Slave to the computer

I am a slave to the computer, and no I don’t mean the one at work.  I mean the ones on my bike.  I recently downloaded an app for the iPhone called “Run Keeper“.  It is a wicked little app that tracks your journey through the use of GPS and a Google API, it keeps track of your time, and distance.

It provides a pretty detailed map of where you rode, as well as altitude and speed. With all of this data it will calculate your average speed, your average pace, total metres climbed and best of all calories burned.

You can also transfer this map information to Google Earth which provides incredible satellite imagery of the journey coupled with people’s photos.

All cool as this is however it is only part of the information I require.  On my bike I have a small computer that relays information about my speed, time cycling and top speed in real time.

I also utilize my Suunto 6C.  It is a watch that connects to a variety of instruments  such as a heart rate monitor to tell you your optimal effort zone.

The watch can also connect to what are called PODs which attach to your shoes or bike and help measure distance, speed, etc.

The funny thing about all this is this is information that training athletes need and for years they were the only ones with the dedication and need to pay for it.  But now it is so cheap (Run Keeper is free and watch was $250 used) that anyone can afford it.

I could correlate, aggregate, and dissect the data ad nauseum, to determine my peak riding hours.  I haven’t but I could. And while I may not ever do anything with the data, it is fun to collect.  I’ve now reached the point that riding without collecting data is just a waste.  Now at least I can claim part of my life is data driven.