I Went How Fast?

[LITTLEKAT]

Hi Everyone,

 

I'm very new to this game and love it already just having found my first two caches this weekend following a crash course in GPS operation. But yesterday I went out with some friends in my kayak and when we reached our destination they wanted a demo of the trip stats. OK, time moving, 1.7 hours, distance 4.9 miles, Max speed.........109 mph???????????? IN A KAYAK???

 

Ok someone told me they had that problem with low batteries. Not the case here, brand new and full scale on the indicator. So my question is, how can it get such a reading? My GPS is a Garmin Etrex. Is this a common glitch with these or is it something I'm doing or reading wrong?

 

Appreciate your help.

 

Littlekat

[+Robespierre]

are you sure there wasn't a decimal in there somewhere?

[+Langner91]

I have seen stuff like that before. Your GPS got itself into a position where it couldn't get a solid "fix" for a few seconds.

 

At that instant, it thought it was actually somewhere else, for a few seconds. The speed to get from your last known position, to the "false" location in the proper time would work out to be 109MPH.

 

Does that make sense?

[LITTLEKAT]

Thank you, yes, it makes perfect sense. But can that happen out in the open water? We were on a very big wide river, actually called Lake Lilinonah which is joined by another very large river. Unless it happened at a time that we might have been near the tree lines.

 

Nope, no decimals. First thing I checked for.

 

Actually, that's very funny. I mean, losing it's fix for a while and thinking it just caught up. This is going to be more fun than I thought.

[+Team Red Oak]

Recently my GPSr read that my max walking speed was 14mph. Of course I thought that was pretty fast since we were on the Appalacian Trail in PA. I kept watch on it and I just couldn't walk that fast again even on the flat areas. I guess I must have lost reception in the trees and then the GPSr caught up.

[LITTLEKAT]

Thanks for all the comments, folks. I'm going to enjoy this. I just got the coords for another few caches in this area. I'm going out tomorrow night!

 

Cache you later.

[+Sputnik 57]

It isn't a common glitch, but it does happen. Somewhere there is a thread with a picture posted of someone going like 1000mph (and they weren't on a jet). It is rare, but it is just a glitch.

[+Green Achers]

Oh ya. You should have seen when I learned my lesson about this problem that keeps occuring with my Garmin. I took my GPSr up to my wife and asked why she was driving at over 100 miles per hour! Man did I get my head bit off and then the kids rolled over on dear old dad and said it was me. The dog house was looking sweat compaired to were I was.

 

Now I know it's Garmin's fault so they owe me a vacation or something.

[+EKYHunter]

Was your Gps in good LOS. with the SAT'S ? Or did you have it your pocket ?

 

Alot of different things can cause your Gps to lose signal , clothes and being upside down are a few.

[+Wacka]

It wasn't speed, but Saturday afternoon while I was about 30 miles from home standing stilland the GPSr said I was 650 miles away! Turned the unit off and back on and it was ok.

[TXcachehunter]

I have also had the same problem with my yellow etrex once. No problems since.

[LITTLEKAT]

Wellllllllllllll, I wasn't upside down. I'm doing flatwater, and although they say my GPSr is water resistant, I didn't want to take the chance of doing whitewater without a dry bag. I DID have it in my PFD pocket, but the signal was strong. I had the top out of the pocket and checked the signal that way and it seemed to be good. Maybe that and the combination of an occasional brush with shoreline trees. In any case, I'm very glad to hear I'm not the only one who has had that happen. Thanks for the stories, especially the one about your wife driving over 100.

 

Thanks again, folks. I'll check back tomorrow. Nitey nite time for me now.

[+chris-mouse]

I don't know if this counts, but I did take this picture of the GPS mounted on my bicycle handlebar.

From top to bottom, the numbers on the display are speed in km/hr, current time, distance to go, in km, and turn direction.

 

 

Oh, and for those who aren't familiar with SI units, that's just under 60mph, and yes, I really was travelling that fast.

[LITTLEKAT]

I love your geo-name, Chris-mouse. I have a special reason I may relate at another time. Hey, can anyone tell me what these titles at the side of the posts are like "Tadpole" etc?

[+Sputnik 57]

Hey, can anyone tell me what these titles at the side of the posts are like "Tadpole" etc?

For your first 10 posts, you are a tadpole (named in honor of Signal the Frog). It helps us regulars remember to cut you some slack. Then, you are a Geocacher.

 

If you have paid for a premium membership, you are a Premium Member, but can change your title to anything you'd like. If you paid for your Premium Membership during the first year (I think), you are a Charter Member.

 

Hope that helps.

 

Edit: By the way, here's a link to the thread I mentioned. Markwell is well over 4000mph!!!

Edited August 9, 2005 by Sputnik 57

[+Faith the Aquariaqueen]

Sounds like you have a male GPSr.

[+ohgrl]

Sounds like you have a male GPSr.

[+Bob Blaylock]

  See this thread.

[+Markwell]

As Sputnik mentioned this post is a screenshot of my GPS that says the max reading was 4267 mph.

 

Not bad. I think that's close to Mach 5.75, and would get me from my front door in Southwest Chicago Suburbs to Cape Town Africa in about 2 hours.

Edited August 9, 2005 by Markwell

[+Glenn]

Thank you, yes, it makes perfect sense. But can that happen out in the open water? We were on a very big wide river, actually called Lake Lilinonah which is joined by another very large river. Unless it happened at a time that we might have been near the tree lines.

 

Nope, no decimals. First thing I checked for.

 

Actually, that's very funny. I mean, losing it's fix for a while and thinking it just caught up. This is going to be more fun than I thought.

Depending on fequency and at what angles are made by you the satelites and the water. The water can act one large mirror or even many, many small mirrors to the signal coming from the satelites.

[+beopots]

Does it make a difference if it's set on 'max speed' vs. 'actual speed'?

I mean doesn't the etrex record how fast you've gone overall? so maybe you went that fast on the way, not actually in the kayak, or if it was bought from someone maybe they went that fast, try a reset.

 

Maybe I'm wrong, I don't mess with that part of things very often....

[+Markwell]

Does it make a difference if it's set on 'max speed' vs. 'actual speed'?

I mean doesn't the etrex record how fast you've gone overall? so maybe you went that fast on the way, not actually in the kayak, or if it was bought from someone maybe they went that fast, try a reset.

 

Maybe I'm wrong, I don't mess with that part of things very often....

4267 mph?

 

[+beopots]

4267 mph?

 

I'm not saying that no glitches ever happen, in fact I've experienced a few. But is the point I proposed previously(hooray for alliteration) entirely out of the question?

[+Markwell]

Not really.

 

The actual speed shows what your speed is RIGHT NOW. If you accelerate it will go up; if you decelerate, it will go down. The Max Speed will record what the GPS reaches at the point just before you decelerate, and then retain that number.

 

Think of someone speeding up and slowing down. If I start at 20mph and get up to 50 mph, and then I'm now going 45 mph, my ACTUAL SPEED is going to clock at 45 mph, and my MAX SPEED is going to clock at 50 mph.

 

[+briansnat]

I've seen this happen before. Not often, but once in a while I'll get back from a hike to see my max speed was 300 mph. I always wondered why it happend. At one time I thought perhaps it might have come when I tripped and the GPS moved very fast in my hand as I was trying to regain my balance.

[+pater47]

Mine shows it's maximum speed as 695 mph. It hasn't been on a plane and my 96 toyota corolla with 248K miles on it couldn't make 80mph falling off a cliff.

[+Kai Team]

I don't know if this counts, but I did take this picture of the GPS mounted on my bicycle handlebar.

From top to bottom, the numbers on the display are speed in km/hr, current time, distance to go, in km, and turn direction.

 

Oh, and for those who aren't familiar with SI units, that's just under 60mph, and yes, I really was travelling that fast.

Let me see if I have this straight: This was actual speed (vs. max speed)? Which means you took that picture while riding your bicycle at 96.3 km/hr?

[+Harry Dolphin]

It's a bizarre difugality. I get it a lot on my little Yellow Etrex. (Is it a red one? No no no no. Is it a blue one? No no no no. It's a little Yellow Etrex.) (Thank you, Ella)

My current max speed is 306 MPH. It pops up when the moon is in the seventh house, and Jupiter aligns with Mars. Which seems to be every time I turn it on. So, I ignore that feature.

[+Wabsrck]

I had a simliar thing happen to me but I was traveling 1200 MPH!! It totally screwerd up my trip stats because it said I went to St. Louis and back to New Mexico so my trip odometer was a ton of miles.

 

Anyway just wanted to share