Popular fitness tracking device manufacturer Fitbit today announced a partnership with Strava in a deal that has the two companies giving users the ability to automatically share their fitness data between the two ecosystems.
Once users connect their Fitbit and Strava accounts any activity logged on Fitbit will be posted to Strava and any activity posted to Strava will end up on a user’s Fitbit timeline.
This comes as a welcome surprise to Fitbit Surge GPS watch owners who only last month got the ability to easily track bicycle rides on their devices. On the launch of the new bike feature many Fitbit Surge users felt that tracking a bike ride without being able to post it to Strava defeated the whole purpose of tracking the ride in the first place. That appears to no longer be a problem.
Strava already syncs with many GPS enabled devices and now a legion of Fitbit users will have to opportunity to see their activities tracked and ranked against Strava’s competitive disciples.
The only downside is for those who like keeping their two fitness timelines separate. Some use Fitbit for tracking casual activities like walking, sleeping, and dietary intake while saving Strava as a record of serious training efforts. Once the two apps are connected users will no longer have the ability to keep the two timelines apart.
In the end Strava gets a whole new set of compatible devices and Fitbit gets access to loads of location based fitness data while the users get a smoother way to combine their activity tracking timelines.
Everyone’s favorite bike writer Phil Gaimon (Pro Cycling on $10 A Day) has a new Diamondback Podium that is nicely kitted with milk and cookies thanks to his work with the UnitedHealthCare Children’s Foundation.
“We developed this cookie bike to donate to the UnitedHealthcare Children’s Foundation (UHCCF) for a charity auction, and to raise awareness of Optum p/b KBS, Diamondback and the UHCCF’s shared commitment to health & wellness,” said Diamondback’s Marketing Director Steve Westover. “In future races Phil will ride a version of this so that we can keep the awareness of “Earning your cookies” and leading a healthy and active top of mind throughout the year.”
Wonder if those graphics are scratch ‘n sniff. . . we hope not. Close-up after the jump. [click to continue…]
This little gem from the Global Cycling Network might as well be titled The 10 Amgen Tour of California Riders That You May Have Heard Of Before and it features a voice over by some new guy, with no English accent, who can barely read. Is this someone GCN just pulled off the street? Okay, that was a rhetorical question. We all know who it is and we’re just joking.
Big box outdoor retailer REI has reportedly given PeopleForBikes $100,000 in support of their Green Lane Project to help US cities build better bike lines and makes streets safer. Work is currently going down in six cities: Atlanta, Boston, Denver, Indianapolis, Pittsburgh, and Seattle.
The grants are designed to help the cities advance their protected bike lane infrastructure and build public support and ridership for low-stress networks. Grant recipients will engage their local REI store in the project and provide a clear plan for measuring success. . . “Thanks to REI’s support, we will be able to demonstrate the many benefits that come to a city when it invests in safe, accessible places to ride,” said Martha Roskowski, PeopleForBikes vice president of local innovation. “These grants will help our focus cities become better places to live, work and play. ”
For the official word from PeopleForBikes, please follow the jump. [click to continue…]
Carlsbad, California eyewear company Spy is holding its infamous annual Spy Belgian Waffle Ride and Fitness Expo this weekend on Saturday and Sunday April 25-26, 2015. For 2015 the entire 145 mile event is centered around the Lost Abby Brewery.
The ride itself takes place on Sunday, April 26th and once again, it will be surrounded a two-day bicycle and fitness expo, kicking off at The Lost Abbey brewery in San Marcos, CA, which is also where the start of the race will be. . . Now in its fourth year, the SPY BWR is a grueling 229-kilometer, multi-terrain cycling race that began as a tribute to the beautiful and taxing rides staged in Belgium each spring. The course includes 11,000 feet of arduous climbing through the unrelenting hills of San Diego County and includes a relentless barrage of mud, dirt, single-track and water crossings. . . The Expo will include multiple food trucks from Gear Grinder Grill as well as more than 30 performance and sports related exhibitors.. . More than $10,000 in prizes will be raffled off, including bikes from Giant, Felt, Masi, Haro, as well as prize packs from lululemon. . . The family friendly festivities will also include an astro jump and bouncy house for children in attendance.
After being completely sold on Smith’s Koroyd material in our Forefront mountain bike helmet, we’re looking forward to testing the new Overtake. It fits well, is very aero, and seems light. We’ll let you know after we put a few miles in under it.
Garmin announced today (April 16, 2015) that they are upgrading their power tracking pedals the Vector and Vector S to the Vector 2 and Vector 2S.
Vector 2’s dual-sensing pedal-based power meter measures cadence, total power, left/right balance and displays cycling dynamics, revolutionary metrics that provide feedback to cyclists on their position and pedal form. With cycling dynamics users can tailor their training around specific weaknesses and strengths by viewing exactly where they are generating power throughout the pedal stroke. Cyclists can also view where force is being applied on the pedal itself to ensure proper cleat position, as well as when and how long they were seated versus standing during a ride to gauge position effectiveness.
The new Vector pedals also make transferring the power meters from bike to bike, much easier. Those who already own Vector pedals, don’t worry. There is an economic upgrade path that will get you rolling on the latest for $149.99 or less. And that sounds great. Now, if only they had a MTB pedal we’d be all set.
Don’t let anyone tell you that road bikes should only be ridden on the road. Truth is they’re quite capable of handling nearly anything you throw at them for a while. A 135 mile Belgian Waffle Ride might be a little much for some bikes, but if you’re going to ride or race on a little gravel there are a few things you can do to make that ride a little more enjoyable. Here Art’s Cyclery goes through some of the details.
Velonews’ Logan VonBokel got his hands on some of Mark Carvendish’s new Oakley’s Jawbreakers and they look epic. A nice reworking of the original Oakley Eyeshades with a tech upgrade from the future.
“Sunglasses,” doesn’t seem do the Jawbreaker design justice. The sheer size and its features make “sport shield,” a more apt descriptor. So let’s discuss the size of the Jawbreakers. They’re some of the largest, if not the largest, sunglasses I’ve tested. Something everyone I rode with also noted. A couple of friends remarked that the Jawbreakers look like something a baseball player from the 1990s might wear.
Or, maybe, a cyclist from the 2020s. . . can’t wait to try these bombastic face covers out. The bigger the better! The new Jawbreakers go on sale April 15, 2015 and will retail for $200.
Have a pair of carbon or alloy Specialized Aerobars? If so, it’s time to stop using them until Specialized sends some replacement mounting hardware, according to the Consumer Protection Safety Commission.
This recall involves carbon and alloy Aerobars sold individually and with model years 2012 through 2015 Specialized Shiv bicycles and model year 2013 Specialized Transition Apex bicycles. The carbon Aerobar was sold in black with a white Specialized logo on the top side of the handlebar, and the alloy model was sold in black with no markings. . . The firm has received four reports of the Aerobars bolt loosening. No injuries have been reported.
Click here to contact Specialized and they’ll hook you up with the replacement parts. . . Just one more reminder to make sure things are always tight and right before rolling out.
