Cycling Tech

I am riding in this years MS Ride “Venture the Valley” and I am a tech nerd.  So how can I incorporate technology into my ride?  Well for me it all starts with my iPhone.

Venture the Valley is a 150 mile, two-day bike ride where the proceeds go to MS research.  First things is first, if you would like to donate to the cause, please follow this link.  I committed to raising $300 for the event and anything you can give is greatly appreciated.

I mount my iPhone to my bike using the Bicio GoRide bike mount.  To track my rides and my progress this summer, I am using an iPhone app called Cyclemeter made by the guys over at abvio.com.  Cyclemeter tracks your ride progress and gives you feedback.  I wear my bluetooth headset when riding and if you follow the same course, it can be set to give you ride statistics at periodic increments during the ride, updating you of your progress versus your other rides.  For me I have it set to five-minute increments which means I can concentrate on riding and not looking at the screen.  Another nice thing is does is automatically send out emails, twitters, and Facebook updates with your statistics and a map of your ride.  I have it set to send an email to my wife every 5 minutes so that if something happens, she knows what area I am in and can come find me.  You can check out one of the sample maps of my rides it sends out here.

But a 75 mile bike ride creates problems for me.  This program will drain the battery in about 2.5 hours and I need it to last 8 hours or more.  To combat this problem, enter the Satechi iCel 4800mAh battery extender.  It can charge any portable device that can charge with a USB cable.  I have it setup with a charge cable running under the frame of my iPhone and into my saddle bag where the battery is placed.  It gives me an extra 8 hours or so of battery life for those long rides.

Check out the video below for my setup.