[sundayrider]

hey,

I'm wondering why you dont see bike computers/speedos, whatever you wanna call them, on dh bikes.
In a sport that is solely measured by time, it seems to me a speedo would be an excellent training tool. Knowing average speeds in sections; whether you're faster relaxing here, pedaling there, would be great to know, and fun as well (maybe im a nerd).
Maybe people do use them but I just havent seen them. Does anyone know of a good one for dh; a bit more heavy duty, with lap (section) times, and maybe a button located near the thumb as opposed to on the computer...?

 

[ciszewski]

I used to use one. Won two at an XC race series At Camp Fortune. So I thought I would try em on my DH rig.

Neither of them lasted more than a day. First one was my fault, wired it up while I was on the bike and didn't account for sag. First run, first jump, the fork extends and cable snapped.

Second one the wire broke after I layed the bike down on a slick clay corner.

Now I just use them for the stopwatch function, for timed practice runs.

I thought about getting a wireless one at one point for fun, but figured it would just be a waste of money, especially if it broke too. Also one thing I noticed is that sometimes max speed cannot be accurate because if you launch a jump, sometimes the wheel spins faster than it had left, therefore giving you a higher maximum speed. Although saying that you hit 80 clicks and then showing your buddies the speedo is a pretty good feeling.

 

[Jettj45]

http://www.sicklines.com/reviews/dmc_moto_trainer/

Something like this is all you really need. Who actually has time to look down and see in different sections what speed your going...

 

[sundayrider]

yeah thats exactly what im after, but with a speed fuction. No need to look down, it would all be recorded, if what i want exists..

 

[sanjuro]

What about the GPS devices? Any of them can tell your speed in a certain section?

 

[Brian HCM#1]

Just ride

 

[joelsman]

I would think it's more important to know your split times than speed, though seeing your max speed through some sections would be cool but you would have to slow down to look. that and overall distance.

an altimeter would be pretty sweet too.

 

[oldskoolbiker]

What about the GPS devices? Any of them can tell your speed in a certain section?

Yeah I'm pretty sure these can. Look at something like a garmin forerunner 205. You can switch these to "bike" mode although from the name of the product you'd think it's just for running. But they cost like $200 though.

https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?pID=348

 

[Kntr]

I have run an odometer on my DH bike for the last 10 years. I love it. I like to see my time and distance right away. It give avarage speed too. If you run the wire right, they will last a year or two. Ive had mine last a month to 2 years. Just buy a cheap $19 Specialized Sport. When you break one, go buy another. Always keep the old one though incase you need parts to fix it. With all the parts I have, I can usually fix whatever I lose or break. My buddys give me crap all the time about it. Its funny how they always ask me how long the trail is or what is a good time. I always tell them to go buy an odometer and they would know.

 

[fred.r]

I've had one of these on my bike for the past 2 years. Never broken, ridden in snow, rain, and has been through some of my nastiest crashes. Cheaper than the one featured on sicklines.com.
http://cgi.ebay.com/SportCount-Ring-Stopwatch-Timer-Run-Bike-Swim-Track_W0QQitemZ170302912148QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item170302912148&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72:1205|66:2|65:12|39:1|240:1318|301:1|293:1|294:50

 

[Bicyclist]

I've had one of these on my bike for the past 2 years. Never broken, ridden in snow, rain, and has been through some of my nastiest crashes. Cheaper than the one featured on sicklines.com.
http://cgi.ebay.com/SportCount-Ring-Stopwatch-Timer-Run-Bike-Swim-Track_W0QQitemZ170302912148QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item170302912148&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72:1205|66:2|65:12|39:1|240:1318|301:1|293:1|294:50

I have that exact timer, it works pretty well. The only thing is that you've got to be really sure you hit the button to start/stop, and time it properly.

 

[fred.r]

I have that exact timer, it works pretty well. The only thing is that you've got to be really sure you hit the button to start/stop, and time it properly.

True. I've crashed a few times at the bottom of a run because I was trying to hit the button and forgot to brake...

 

[Dreyzar]

I got a Garmin Edge 305 over the holidays and used in on DH runs a few times. Its mostly a roadie training tool with a heart rate monitor and optional cadence sensor, but its pretty neat to get a bunch of numbers about your dh runs. Its a lot more accurate than a wheel-sensor speedometer. Spits out a gps map of your trail. You can see things like elevation drop, speeds and times through different sections of the trail. It'll give you a graph of your speed relative to the changing grade, etc. That being said, most times i don't bother with it. But for 'serious' training, it is nice to get some objective data, shows things like how feeling fast doesn't always correlate to faster times.