Google My Tracks

I tried using Google’s My Tracks, available for the Android platfrom, for a training ride this weekend. I was running the application on my T-Mobile Samsung Galaxy S “Vibrant” phone with a custom ROM (Bionix-v 1.3.1 by Team Whiskey). I liked the application, though it has some shortcomings.

It was fairly easy to share the map and the results of my ride with other people. If you save it out as a “my map” on Google Maps, you can even embed it into your blog.

View 2011-04-24 15:40 Blue Hills in a larger map

If you get to the detailed level on the map, you can see that the GPS coordinates are an overlay on the map, with no correction. That means if the GPS coordinate I received was off by 10 meters, and it put me off the path, the path on Google Maps was not corrected. A good feature to have in the future would be auto-correct to fit a line that is appropriate to the activity.

The elevation map on Google Maps:

Also, there is a summary of the ride/run/walk available both on the device and embedded into the map:

2011-04-24 15:40 Blue Hills (End)
Updated 11 hours ago
Created by My Tracks on Android. Total Distance: 39.58 km (24.6 mi)
Total Time: 1:42:58
Moving Time: 1:40:00
Average Speed: 23.06 km/h (14.3 mi/h)
Average Moving Speed: 23.74 km/h (14.8 mi/h)
Max Speed: 104.40 km/h (64.9 mi/h)
Min Elevation: -67 m (-221 ft)
Max Elevation: 183 m (601 ft)
Elevation Gain: 1111 m (3645 ft)
Max Grade: 36 Min Grade: -43
Recorded: Sun Apr 24 15:40:10 EDT 2011
Activity type: cycling

The information is approximately right and generally matched what I was showing on my inexpensive cyclocomputer (Cateye Micro Wireless), with a few exceptions. First, there is no way I was descending at 65 mph. Second, my knees would crumble into dust if I tried climbing a 36% grade.

My friend Duncan Gross has a high-end Garmin cyclocomputer with GPS. His results seem to have similar anomolies in his rides. Also, his cyclocomputer keeps track of temperature, cadence, and heart rate. Some of these stats would be available for My Tracks, if you purchase Zephyr Bluetooth accessories.

The application does drain battery, so make sure the phone is charged before you take it on a ride with My Tracks on. It would be a luxury to have the type of tracking that is possible with a higher-end GPS-enabled cyclocomputer. For now, I take my phone on rides anyways, so I can see myself using this more often to track my routes.

Bottle Cages

I’ve been troubleshooting a problem with my bottle cages that was interesting. When I bought my Tommaso Monza, I received two bottle cages. Both were elevated a little bit, similar to the one on the downtube in the following picture.

You can tell that the cage bracket is actually below the cage, allowing for the setup to work. The bottle cage on the seat tube was from Tracey’s bicycle, and the bracket is where it is supposed to be in relation to the bottle cage.

Well, These cages are quite ugly, and I wanted to swap them out. I found a pair of cheap carbon fiber bottle cages on Alibaba Express, so I ordered them. However, the positioning of the brackets caused a conflict in the bottles, preventing me from using them.

As you can see from the picture above, this was not a workable situation. I was considering manufacturing my own jig/adapter to allow for a fit, but I found an interesting solution on the web. Shimano’s ultra-high end DI2 system has a battery pack that can conflict with the bottle cages, so they ship the system with a part (Shimano Cage Adapter SM-BA01) that allows you to move the placement of the cages.

(Picture courtesy of KevinSaunders)

That Cyfac bicycle is drool-worthy. I can’t afford one, so I’m content with what I have. As you can see in the picture below, the result is a lot better than what I started with.

Andy Hampsten’s 1988 Huffy Giro d’Italia

I love this look at Andy Hampsten’s bicycle from 1988. That’s it.

DIY Bike Repair

Here is a bicycle repair person in Karen, a small town outside of Nairobi. He’s made up his own tools (truing stand, etc.) to repair bikes. Fun to watch, if you’re into bikes.

Oh, one more thing – I won’t be updating this blog for the next two weeks, since I’m heading to Hawaii to get married. See you in a bit!