Ok, so i'm quite interested to see how many miles I ride in 2014 and intend to log all of my rides (mainly out on curiosity)

Is it just a case of recording everything on my Dakota20 and uploading it from there onto Stava?

Basically, yes.

Pretty much. The Dakota won't speak directly to strava like an edge will but you can upload the files it's recorded. If you've kept them for the year you can upload them retrospectively.

Strava takes the fun out of riding and you end up chasing numbers.

Only if you let yourself - I just turn log it to see what ive done, it gives me an idea of my total milage as I dont do every single mile.

I wish I had a penny for every time Ive heard that.
Fit a cycle computer.

I've got an Etrex 20, which Strava also doesn't recognise. Just upload to Garmin Connect and export manually into Strava as a gpx file.

Have you had any problems with your Etrex 20 freezing/jamming?

I wish had a penny for every time Ive heard that.
Fit a cycle computer.

Only if I can have a penny for everytime someone reckons they know me better than I do.

It's perfectly possible to use Strava for fun. Much less faff than jotting down numbers into a log.

johnnystorm wrote: Only if I can have a penny for everytime someone reckons they know me better than I do.

It's perfectly possible to use Strava for fun. Much less faff than jotting down numbers into a log.

Fair enough :)
Ive only got computers on a couple of my bikes and I just check the Odo at the end of the year.

RobMac wrote:Have you had any problems with your Etrex 20 freezing/jamming?

No, not yet. Is it a common problem then?

Apparently yes, I was interested in getting one after I saw the Bargain Alert Thread on here (good price BTW) so I did some research (YouTube amongst other things) have a look for your self.

RobMac wrote:Strava takes the fun out of riding and you end up chasing numbers.

About two years ago Strava became my motivation to ride. Chasing numbers has renewed my fun, thank you very much. But I have the ability to switch off too, so I don't turn into some orange-eyed Strava monster

Chew wrote:Is it just a case of recording everything on my Dakota20 and uploading it from there onto Stava?

When the device is connected to your PC, you can browse to the current.gpx file and upload that, provided a) you've cleared your track history before the ride and b) don't have any other saved tracks on the device. If for any reason I have not done a or b, I view in Garmin Basecamp and export the section I need for the ride.

I don't necessarily think it's Strava. I think it's any time you have a cycle computer. I'm a Strava fan but find whenever I have a cycle computer on I end up chasing average speeds (especially on the road bike).
When my Garmin Edge packed up, it was interesting to see how my riding changed. That all went out the window though when I replaced it...

Just joined Strava for 2014. I also have a Dakota and managed to copy it from my gps ok. Also looking to log some miles and hopefully see some improvements on some hills on some occasions. Hope not to become an orange eyed monster!

Three questions:

1) Is there a Bearbones Strava club? I seem to have some recollection of a mention in a thread but cannot find it.
2) It is not showing me on any KoM leaderboard thingy for some of the sections despite giving me times for them. (I was on a common local chain-gang route so loads of sections and stuff) So I can see other peoples time and my own on the track. I am not shown as 195th on the 'Duffield Poggio, for instance. Do I need premium for this?
3) Is Strava power hungry on mobile phones? Will download app but plan is to use the Dakota usually.

Number (2) above is purely self-flaggelation at how slow I am on climbs.

Regarding my not being on KoM lists I have solved this. I have now found myself. Sadly, I am taking twice as long as the quickest and in the last 2 or 3 on a couple of segments. To be fair I was mostly just riding along.

Just remembered - there was a headwind.........

I seem to remember you had a flat and stopped to help an old lady across the road.
Insert your excuses here....

Blackhound wrote: 1) Is there a Bearbones Strava club? I seem to have some recollection of a mention in a thread but cannot find it.

http://www.strava.com/clubs/bear-bones-bikepacking

Strava is pretty hard on your smartphone battery. Switch off wifi & 3G to eke out a bit more life.

Thanks for replies on BB Strava club and battery usage. (I typed 'bearbones' into search engine and it was not recognised)

I'll admit I use it for chasing times/average speeds etc, but that's down to using it mainly for keeping an eye on my training on the road bike for triathlon purposes. Not that I'm any good (which is obviously actually the correct state of affairs for triathlon). I don't use it to compete with others though, purely to see how I'm doing against myself.

durhambiker wrote:I don't use it to compete with others though, purely to see how I'm doing against myself.

Personally I think "racing" against others is pretty meaningless unless they have done exactly the same route as you. Unlikely. Self improvement is the best thing about Strava IMO.

GPS recording is just not that accurate anyway. I think it was at the winter bivi someone had a story about having 2 GPS units on a tandem and the stoker getting a time something like 9seconds quicker on a segment than the pilot did. GPS units tend to be more accurate than smartphones though.

i'm giving strava a go at the moment, mainly to see if I can improve against myself and track my mileage.

Comparing against others is pretty useless for me as all road sections are ruled by roadies, so comparing it against my own performance on an mtb is meaningless.

I find a great deal of the segments pretty annoying too. People seem to have put up partial sections of climbs that they can go at it and get a time and just cruise the rest of the hill.
The LBS has a lot of stories of people 'sessioning' climbs to get KOM's too.

Or they are doing hill reps & getting better!

Here is a good alternative I've used. A good one for those not keen on the KOM aspect. Very good at giving stats such as miles riden over time.

http://www.runningfreeonline.com/