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Because when you're out on the course, all that's there is your internal monolog

Wahoo Fitness KICKR Power Trainer Wins Eurobike Gold Award


Wahoo Fitness KICKR Power Trainer Wins Eurobike Gold Award

This in my mailbox this morning.  No surprise to me here.  I love my KICKR!

KICKR profile right

 

(Atlanta, GA – August 28, 2014) – Wahoo Fitness, the leader in fitness apps and products that take advantage of the power of smartphones, announced today that the KICKR Power Trainer has received

the Eurobike Gold Award in the accessories category, the most prestigious award of the Eurobike Tradeshow.

 

The KICKR Power Trainer was selected over an impressive list of submissions. “We are honored to have been selected for the Eurobike Gold Award from such a deep field of competitors”, said Chip

Hawkins, CEO of Wahoo Fitness. “Being chosen for a Eurobike Gold Award is a true testament to the entire Wahoo team and our dedication to create the ultimate indoor cycling experience.”

 

The winners of the Eurobike awards were presented at a ceremony in Friedrichshafen, Germany during Europe’s largest bicycle industry tradeshow. Selected by an independent jury of industry experts, the

award winners were deemed to stand out from thousands of products based on a number of criteria including functionality, design quality, and degree of innovation.

 

Using Bluetooth 4.0 and ANT+ technology, the KICKR Power Trainer connects to a wide range of smartphones, tablets, and PCs, allowing full resistance control during your training session. While

pedaling, users can increase or decrease resistance, structure interval workouts or even simulate real world bike courses all from their connected device.

Review: Koala Bottle

During a club ride a few months ago, I met one of the editors for Bicycling magazine who showed me a product he’d started using: the Koala Bottle.

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The Koala “bottle” is a bit of a misnomer, but rather a really well designed magnetic bottle retention system.

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The system is comprised of a bottle with a ferrous ring and a “cage” with 2 super-strong magnets positioned to align with the ring.

Now, of course, you’re thinking: “A magnet to hold a waterbottle?! No way, it’ll pop off!”  Well, I can tell you after several hundred km with these mounted it’s not been a problem on the bottles mounted on the downtube or the seat tube.   I also have one mounted between my arms on my aerobars.

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This one has bounced free once or twice after hitting a pretty significant pothole, but it reseated itself almost immediately.  I’ve also get a Koala bottle setup on my mountain bike, where it’s taken some serious bumps (and falls) and the bottle has stayed firmly attached to the cage.

I have to say, I really love this system.  The bottles are held firmly, but are also easily accessible.  Clearly it isn’t a solution to every problem (what is): you don’t want to use this system behind the saddle as you could pretty much guarantee ejection there.  Using a strong-grip cage behind the saddle with these bottles to swap into active use works well.

You also probably don’t want to use these bottles anywhere you’re going to be ditching empty water bottles (perhaps use these for fuel and disposable bottles for water), since the rings are something you’d have to replace at a cost.

Small caveats aside, I really like what Koala bottle has done here.  Would love to see a carbon version to shave some weight, but really, compared to the weight of a bottle of water, the weight of the plastic in the “cage” is pretty minimal.

 

EFS vs Skratch Labs vs Osmo: An Electrolyte Hydration Drink Comparison – First Endurance.

Yup just a great product from an awesome company

6 Foods That Behave Like Addictive Drugs In Your Body

6 Foods That Behave Like Addictive Drugs In Your Body.

Tour de France Physics | Science Blogs | WIRED

This is fun 🙂

Tour de France Physics | Science Blogs | WIRED.

Wahoo Introduces RPM Cadence Sensor With Bluetooth & ANT+ Connectivity

Another from the press-release files.  Love Wahoo Fitness.  Have their Kickr, and RFLKT+.  They’re a modern-thinking company, with good products.  I haven’t physically evaluated the RPM but thre’s little to investigate here.  It either works or it doesn’t and I know that Wahoo wouldn’t release a dud.

My only concern with it was battery life and how to change the battery.  The unit attaches to the crank-arm with very strong double-sided tape or zip ties and the battery can be end-user replaced without removing the sensor from the crankarm.   I love the endless march of developers towards open standards (bluetooth) and feel that in time, openness will win over incumbency but as an ANT+ (primarily) user love the dual-mode devices even more 😉


 

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Wahoo Introduces RPM Cadence Sensor With Bluetooth & ANT+ Connectivity

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RPM now connects with nearly any device, fits on any bike, and does not require charging

(Atlanta, GA – June 24, 2014) –Wahoo Fitness, the leader in iPhone powered cycling, running and fitness, is pleased to announce dual-band capability of the RPM Cadence Sensor. Now, the user can pair the sensor with both Bluetooth 4.0 and/or ANT+ devices, increasing its versatility. The sensor is available immediately at WahooFitness.com and at specialty retailers later this summer for $49.99.

The sleek, 7-gram wireless cadence sensor eliminates magnets, and it connects wirelessly to your iOS, Android OS 4.3 or greater, or any device with Bluetooth 4.0 and/or ANT+ capability. The RPM collects and displays your cadence data through the free Wahoo Fitness App or your favorite cycling app. The sensor runs on a coin cell battery, does not require charging, and the universal fit allows the RPM to work with any bike. The RPM can also be worn vertically on your shoe like a traditional footpod for indoor cycling.

“We’ve seen an incredible emergence of devices that connect to Smartphones,” says Chip Hawkins, CEO of Wahoo Fitness. “Adding ANT+ connectivity to our proven RPM Cadence Sensor only serves to make it more flexible and useful for a wider range of cyclists.”

ANT+ and Bluetooth 4.0 capable, the RPM Cadence Sensor easily connects to a range of smartphones and GPS devices. RPM can also be paired with a range of the most popular cycling and fitness apps including Strava, MapMyRide and Cyclemeter.

This just in my mailbox today.

I love my Ogio bags. I have a few of them, several more than 3 years old.  They take a lot of abuse and hold up like no other I’ve had.  My swim bag is 2 years old, and 5 days/wk gets rammed into and pulled out of a locker at the Y – it still looks new!


 

ogio

OGIO becomes Licensee and Sponsor of IRONMAN

Salt Lake City, UT (July 1, 2014) – IRONMAN® athletes can now rely on the OGIO brand for a durable, lightweight collection of all-purpose bags for all of their race day, training and lifestyle needs. The IRONMAN by Ogio Collection consists of 7 total pieces and includes transition bags, backpacks, luggage and a briefcase.

“The collaboration with IRONMAN is monumental for the OGIO brand and is the next step towards our ongoing commitment to cater to endurance athletes with high quality bags,” says Mark Talarico, VP of Endurance at OGIO International. “We are thrilled to be an official supplier of IRONMAN and to provide a collection of bags that reflect the spirit of IRONMAN: Durable, tough and ready for the long haul.”

“We wanted to partner with a brand that combined a stylish, intelligent design with durability and reliability, and OGIO is the perfect fit,” said Carola Ross, Chief Sales Officer for IRONMAN. “Their bags boast a vibrant look while offering great carrying capabilities and organization to our athletes who demand so much of both during IRONMAN events and in their every day lives.”

The Flagship M9 transition bag is designed to organize and protect an athlete’s full compliment of gear. It’s crafted with extremely high tensile strength light weight fabric and features 2 crush proof tech vaults, multiple storage pockets, a huge wet/dry area for wetsuits, external helmet storage and a stowaway rain cover ($159.95). The collection also features the Newt M15 backpack ($89.99), Terminal M22 luggage piece ($149.99), M2 training bag ($49.99), and other bags for training and everyday use.

Now athletes who have crossed the finish line or who are still in training can wear the IRONMAN® brand proudly with the new IRONMAN by OGIO Collection.

Trek, Scott recalling 125k bikes because of problem with SR Suntour fork | Bicycle Retailer and Industry News.

Mental Strength – Ronnie Schildknecht trying to draw a line through a blurry subject | Biestmilch’s Seven.

Great interview with Ronnie – worth the listen.

yurbuds: you have to love this company!

I love my Yurbuds.  I’ve used them for training for years.  I try other buds and earphones from time to time, but always come back to the yurbuds because, well, they’re so amazing.  I think right now I have 3 or 4 pairs (some with mic’s some without) that I’ve purchased when I found myself somewhere without a set.  Can’t go wrong 🙂

I almost always buy the Inspire or Inspire Pro.  Being a glasses wearer I prefer the in-ear styles to the over-ear ones.

Yurbuds also recently came out with a Vivid line – bright colours to suit your mood, match your clothes, or just mix it up a bit.  Kinda fun and hey, why not! 🙂

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They also have a limited edition “Boston Strong” set.  This came through my email this morning:

yurbuds® Supports Running Community with Sponsored Boston Team and Donation to the Challenged Athletes Foundation – Endurance Sportswire | Endurance Sportswire.