GPS for biking (newbie)

[macjedimatt]

I'm looking to get a GPS to track bike trips etc. I need one that will measure the speed and the length of a trip in miles or km. I am currently looking at a Magellian Meridian on eBay. Is this a good one that fits my needs. I would also like the maps for navigation and caching.

 

Thanks

-Matt

[+Team Shibby]

I am pretty sure ALL gps receivers track speed and distance traveled. I cant speak for Magellan, but my Garmin logs all that information and more with each trackpoint it marks along the way.

 

By clicking on a waypoint in my tracks I can see my speed, distance traveled since last waypoint, the time of day, the lat and longitude, my bearing and my elevation.

 

Although most people have no need for this kind of information, it is cool to look back at it when you are done with your trip

 

P.S. There is also the trip meter that gives you the total distance traveled, how long you were traveling and how long you were stopped, your average speed and all kinds of info.

 

Garmin is known for a better tracklog.

Kar

[dsandbro]

Some makes and models have clips or mounts designed specifically for bikes.

 

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"The time has come" the Walrus said "to speak of many things; of shoes and ships and sealing wax, of cabbages and Kings".

[+Team Shibby]

quote:

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Some makes and models have clips or mounts designed specifically for bikes.

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There are companies out there that make mounts for just about every GPS ever made. One of them that seems to be real popular amongst cachers is RAM

[+user13371]

quote:

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Quoth macjedimatt:

I'm looking to get a GPS to track bike trips etc. I need one that will measure the speed and the length of a trip in miles or km. I am currently looking at a Magellian Meridian on eBay.

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Matt:

 

I use a Magellan SporTrak Pro on my bike, and it's pretty good. I especially like uploading the track log to my computer and replaying it to compare against my notes.

 

I only have one minor gripe, but it this might affect you also. The SporTrak does offer "max speed" and "average speed" displays, but I don't like how they work. Two reasons:

 

1) These numbers are not preserved when you power off. Turn the GPS off for a second, and the max and average speed reset when you power back on. They also reset when you use the "Clear Trip Odometer" feature. But the trip odometer IS preserved when you power down, so I don't know why max & average speed aren't.

 

2) The average speed factors in stopped time as well; it's TRIP average rather than a MOVING average. But I don't need a GPS to tell me 100 miles in 6 hours is 16-2/3 MPH, including my stop at the coffee shop mid-ride. What I want is for the GPS to tell me my average while I was on the move, EXCLUDING the stopped time.

 

Finally, I don't know if all Magellan models have average and max speed functions (yet). I only found it after the most recent firmware upgrade (4.0.6) and I don't know if it's in the Meridian firmware.

 

Hopefully the next firmware update will preserve the numbers between power off/on, and offer a moving average.

 

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LDR.

[+HartClimbs]

I've got a Garmin Rino and it displays both time spent MOVING as well as time STOPPED (along with average moving speed and average overall speed).

 

I don't have a bike mount, but clip the GPS to my camelback shoulderstrap while mountainbiking and it works great (probably a little easier on the unit than mounting it on the handlebars).

 

Good luck - I'm very happy with the Rino. Probably not the cheapest alternative - but I've been very happy with Garmin.

 

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There is no such thing as "fun for the whole family." -Jerry Seinfeld

[+Night Hunter]

quote:

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Originally posted by HartClimbs:

I've got a Garmin Rino and it displays both time spent MOVING as well as time STOPPED (along with average moving speed and average overall speed).

 

I don't have a bike mount, but clip the GPS to my camelback shoulderstrap while mountainbiking and it works great (probably a little easier on the unit than mounting it on the handlebars).

 

Good luck - I'm very happy with the Rino. Probably not the cheapest alternative - but I've been very happy with Garmin.

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Hartclimbs: If I send a copy of all of your posts to Garmin and they decide to send you a check, would you share it with me?

 

Just kidding, I know how you feel, I love my Rino too.

 

I would have suggested it here too, but I don't know anything about biking.

 

Night Hunter

I, Madam, I made radio!! So I dared!! Am I mad?? AM I????

[+briansnat]

The Meridian might be a little big to put on your handlebars. The Garmin eTrex line is a good size and they sell a handlebar clip for the unit. My uncle has a Legend on his bike and it seems to be perfect. Like the Rino it displays both time spent MOVING as well as time STOPPED, along with average moving speed and average overall speed. Unlike the Sportrak, these numbers stick around if you turn the device off, or change batteries. You have to manually reset them. I think this gives the Garmin an advantage as far as this feature.

 

Supposedly the Legend can be had quite cheap these days. In another thread someone mentioned they bought a Legend at Staples and paid $85, using various discounts and the Garmin $50 rebate.

 

"Au pays des aveugles, les borgnes sont rois"

[+Geofool]

I use the eTrex Legend on my bike. I bought the Garmin mount at REI for $15.00. Nice compact setup. Works well for me. Amazon has the eTrex Legend for 139.00 with shipping after $50 rebate. Best bang for the buck I believe.

 

GF

 

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Fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me.

[+sept1c_tank]

Having used a GPS for the same reason, I reccomend just getting a bike computor. They're inexpensive, smaller and lighter, and they have all the functions you mentioned. Oh, and a good map.

[+user13371]

quote:

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Originally posted by sept1c_tank:

...just get a bike computer. They're inexpensive, smaller and lighter, and they have all the functions you mentioned. Oh, and a good map.

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I think if the only thing I wanted to know was speed and distance, I'd agree with that. But tyhe bike computer is a single purpose device, you install it on the bik and it doesn't do you any good anywhere else.

 

I had the GPS already for driving, hiking and geocaching, so it seemed like a natural to try it on the bike. All of the info *I* needed while riding, INCLUDING the maps.

 

On the other hand, for speed and distance, I'd say the GPS is probably LESS accurate than a properly calibrated cyclometer.

 

And the GPS doesn't tell me cadence

 

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LDR.