Garmin Edge 200 (Final Review)

Well this post has been a long time in the making. I wanted to give this product a fair amount of time before I wrote what I thought about it, but I didn't anticipate it being this long. I have noticed that's initial review of the Edge has been one of the most viewed posts on my blog and thanks to those of you that are returning to read my final review. ( the Garmin I used for my review was purchased by me.)

In my initial review I spoke on the mounting and functionality of the Edge 200. I want to dive a little deeper now. This was also my first GPS enabled device I had used for cycling. I have used standard cycling computers on the past and they just left me wanting more information about my rides and a better look at my accomplishments in the saddle, I.e elevation, calories burned. I found these things in the Garmin Edge 200. This device is perfect for the guy that goes out on the bike to have a good time and collect data to upload on strava or track their fitness with different trackers. Strava is good to compare your riding to a friends or just random folks that ride where you ride.

I thought I was completely content with just knowing my elevation, average speed, calories burned, but after riding with the Edge 200 for a season I wanted more information. I have become a little more curious about my fitness these days. That being said I now want to track my heart rate to get a better picture of how the rides are benefitting my body. I also want to track my cadence which brings me to the cons of the Edge 200 in my eyes. The Edge 200 does not have ant+ capability. There are many different sensors out there from gain to track your riding and they communicate with different devices through ant+. Another con to some could be the data cable. Many Garmin devices now can upload to your computer wirelessly. This model does not do that. It never really bothered me too much because it must be plugged up to charge. Now there are some pros as well. I really like the style and ease of use of this unit. It is very easy to scroll through your information during your ride. Another pro would have to be the price. It is a fairly inexpensive unit. I believe it still retails for around $150. Some of the more advanced cycling computers out there are close to that minus the GPS capability.

With all that being said the Garmin Edge 200 is perfect for the average cyclist. It is all enough to through in your pocket too for the occasional runner as well. I used mine for runs many times. The Edge 200
Would be a great gift for any cyclist that is not concerned with tracking heart rate and cadence. Although I will end by saying that I didn't have any care to track those things either until I bought this product and started using it. The Edge 200 gives you just enough information but it left me wanting to know more.





I want to take this opportunity to say that I have a slightly used Garmin Edge 200 for sale. I have used it for a season but it is in great condition. I comes with all the original packing that I can find as well as two mounting brackets for the bars. Also the data cable too, can't forget that. I am wanting to get $85 obo for it. You can email me or just leave a comment if interested. Thanks for checking this out! Will consider shipping the product within the continental US. Free shipping on full price offer.

"Take A Kid Mountain Biking"

This past weekend I was out helping EP/BC with their first ever "Take A Kid Mountain Biking" event down at Poor House Farm Park. This was an event sponsored by the bike shop but also largely sponsored by Specialized Bicycle Company and IMBA.(International Mountain Bicycling Association) The main purpose of this event is to spread the word about mountain biking and introduce this great sport to the children as well as their parents.

Trail Tools

Down at Poor House Farm there are a few trails cut throughout the Frisbee golf course in behind the fishing pond. These trails have not really been managed really well or taken care of so they are overgrown and not really that well known. I have ridden there a few times in the past and had not gone back due to poor marking and the confusion of the trails mixed with the course. I also have gotten flats every time I have ridden there, including this event but i can pinpoint my mistake this time. The trails are not kept up and ridden much so the trails hold a lot of hazards for your tires. With the success of this event I am hoping this will change. On Friday, myself and Brian Weber, the owner of EP/BC met up at the park and walked out about 1/2 mile of singletrack for the kids to ride the next day. Once we got the course marked out which included some existing singletrack as well as some new that we had to cut, the trail maintenance begun. After we had worked at the trails for a little over an hour a few more helpers showed up to help us finish. All in all we had about 2 hours into cutting in and cleaning up 1/2 of singletrack. After a few pre-ride laps around out beginner and intermediate courses we were set for the event the following day.

Singletrack out of the Intermediate Course

I showed up at the event right at the start. I was running a little behind but that's okay. Once I got out of my truck I saw the first 3 kids heading out with their father to ride our trail. that was neat to see. There was a pretty decent turnout for a Saturday considering all the things that go on in our area. I was pleased to see that we had a good mix or ages as well as young boys and girls. I had the pleasure to ride the course over and over kind of keeping an eye out and helping kids along the way. I think our beginner course was a little easy for some of them but I know they all found parts of the intermediate course to be challenging. I also rode with a young boy that wanted to try the intermediate course with me and he had a blast! He left wanting to do more and try different stuff and that is awesome! I think we may have hooked a few more mountain bikers in our area this weekend. With that being said many of the parents and kids were asking us when we are going to be building more trails. That is probably the second best thing that came of this weekend. Poor House Farm Park has potential to be a good spot to ride we just need volunteers that are willing to put in the time. I for one cannot wait to see the progress that is made at the park in the near future.

If you are reading this and want to help you can either drop me a message or stop in to EP/BC and sign-up and there will be organized work days in the future. Again thanks for reading this and I hope that many others will venture out in the woods and discover this awesome sport I love so much!

Part of the climb on Intermediate Course

Start of the decent on Intermediate Course

Looking up to the rock garden on Intermediate Course

Start of Beginner Course

Little obstacle and zig zag to finish

"Ride Your Way Lean"

Well it has been a while since I have written a post. A lot has happened in my life in my absence from the blog. The most important of those being the birth of my second child, Lincoln. It was another awesome experience for our family. I have also been pretty busy training for the Tough Mudder coming up in just a week and a half. All that and a few other things has made it hard to sit down and write. There has been a few topics I have been outing back to write about and this was at the top.
I have started a new cycling program strait out of the book, "Ride Your Way Lean" Selene Yeager (see picture below)  . I have noticed that I had put on a few pounds while on baby leave without the consistent running or biking that I had been doing. It was time to renew my subscription to "Bicycling" magazine and I recieved this book as my gift. It's funny, I subscribed on my Nook but they sent a paper copy book to me as a gift. I dove into this book immediately. I found it very interesting and the author added many success stories along the way to help keep you motivated. It really didn't take me long to decide to do one of the cycling plans laid out in this book.
There ate many different plans laid out in the book but I decided to go big or go home. I started the 30-50 pound weight loss plan right out of the gate. (See picture below) I had some pretty good success in the foray week of the program, I am only in week two now. The first week I logged over 80 miles and seven plus hours of saddle time. That is more riding in a week then I have done in a long time. I have been taking advantage of my gym time at work to ride so that really helps, then I try for one good rode on the weekends. It's hard with having little ones but my wife rocks so I am able to squeeze a ride in here and there.
I would suggest this book to anyone really but even for experienced cyclists this is a good read. I also like that there is no meal plan to go along with this, just some suggestions of meals and types of foods to help one achieve their goal.
"Ride Your Way Lean" - Selene Yeager

Motolite SOLD...!

I am sorry that I did not get this up any sooner. The bike was sold on eBay July 3rd and was on a truck heading to a new home in Nevada on the 5th. I have been pretty busy with work and the any day arrival of my second child. I don't seem to have any spare moments these days.

I was in a big rush to get the bike sent off and I didn't get any pictures of the packing and shipping process. I am a little upset about that but its okay. There was one ironic thing with this whole thing though; I ended up sending the Titus in a Cannondale box that had the same model bike shipped in it that I "replaced" the Titus with. I thought that was kind of funny.

I haven't heard from the buyer so I guess that is a good thing. If you read this man I would love to see a pic or two of it out on the Nevada trails!

2009 Titus Motolite FOR SALE....!!!!

                             SOLD!!

I think it is finally time to move out one of my bikes from my inventory to make way for a few future ventures. I have always loved this bike and I won't lie, its hard to sell it but I think I need to send it to a good home where it will be ridden more then I can ride it.

As many of you may have read on here before I just recently finished up a major overhaul to this bike. I wanted to clean it all up and get the frame powdercoated to get rid of the "purple" anodized paint. I completed all that and also changed all the bearings out on the frame. I also added a new sticker kit from Titus and clear coated the front triangle over the stickers to protect them. Along with the face lift I also updated the bike to a Sram 2X10 setup. Originally I went with a full X-9 setup but ended up with a mix of X-9 and X-7 components. The build out of this bike is comparable to a bike costing close to $2000 these days. I am wanting $1400 dollars for the bike but I understand that I won't get that out of the bike. I have it currently listed on ebay for $1350 obo. I am hoping I can get some offers that I can consider.

For those of you visiting my page from the eBay listing I hope some of these pictures help...

Red circle shows the cut in fork that happened during shipping to me originally, cosmetic...

Close up

A few little brushes on the rear, some chain rub...

Carbon seat stays

Ride before I stripped it down...

CASA River Century

Pulled from the CASA website

A few weeks back I rode a ride to benefit the CASA kids of the Eastern Panhandle. This was my first organized road ride ever. I have bone numerous mountain bike rides but never a organized road ride. I would have maybe tried the whole century if time had permitted me on that day. I was supposed to be on a military trip to Japan for the better part of last month but it was cancelled. My buddy Tony asked me to do the ride with him only days before the event. If I would have had a little heads up weeks prior I may have done the whole century instead of the one 50 mile loop.



The course of this century took riders through most of the nicer roads to ride on in our area. I rode the Berkeley 50 loop. There was also a Jefferson 50 loop as well. I have ridden the majority of the Jefferson loop on other rides and those roads are amazing too. Tony and I set out on our journey together but didn't stay together for long. Tony hasn't been riding a road bike for too long and still has some cadence and gearing problems. I rode with him for the first 15 miles or so but I think he felt bad that I was always waiting on him at intersections and slowing on straitaways so he could catch up. He finally told me not to wait on him and by the 20 mile mark and the first rest stop I was about 8 minutes ahead of him. I rested there with him until he was ready to go, we started together again but a mile into the course from there is a climb on Thatchers road N that didn't sit too well with him. I felt good on the climb and I did my personal best on that road! From that climb on I was riding alone. I did talk to different riders along the way, ones that I slowly gained on and passed. I came up on a couple riding a tandem bike but it took me a long time to pass them. They could get so much more speed going downhill. The second rest area was at mile 38. I waited for Tony there just to make sure that he hadn't given up on me. He came rolling in about 35 minutes behind me but  I left the rest stop once he arrives for the final 12 mile push to the finish.


 I felt really good considering that 36 miles to that day was the longest I had been in the saddle at once. I rolled back into Shepard University with a ride time of 3 hours on the nose. I ended out riding a touch over 50 miles and averaged 16.7 or something like that. When I was riding with Tony in the beginning we where only riding 15 on average. I was pretty happy with my time. I think Tony finished around 45 minutes after me, ride time, but his goal was a sub 4 hour ride. We where both happy to get into the line for food once we had finished. I did find myself wishing I had a little more time to do the 25 mile loop they had laid out for beginner riders to put me at the 75 mile mark for the day. I believe I could have done the 75 but not too sure about the 100. One of these days I want to do 100 in a day. thanks for reading!  

9Hrs of Cranky Monkey

I am a little late on this write-up but better late then never I guess, that what they say at least. This is probably my favorite race that I do each year. Granted I only do a few but EX2 Adventures do a great job with their events. The race was a few weeks earlier this year then last and I was slated to be out of town on a military trip for most of May so at first I didn't even register for the race. My trip got cancelled and the night I learned that news I registered a team for the cranky. I had wanted to do a two man relay team originally but ended with a trio team. A few days before the race one of my teammates backed out of the race on me and I was scrambling to find a replacement. After a lot of looking we found a guy. A beast rider named Brian Toro. I was kind of worried that I would embarrass him on the trail but realized it would be nice to have a strong rider to bring our total ride time down a little. Well enough of the pre-race build-up, lets just fast forward to Shane and I arriving at Rocky Gap State Park for the Cranky Monkey Race!

Other pits along the course

Our pit area

As soon as we pulled into the park we noticed the pit area full of tents from racers that had camped the previous night. We walked around a little scoping for a good pit spot ourselves and I noticed the course layout to the finish was a little different then last year, but better. The end of the loop brought you down by the lake one last time before the finish instead of through the parking lot. We were able to pit under a big tree right on the finishing sprint. This year our pit was a little bigger due to other friends riding the race too, we all pitted next to each other. This made the between lap time go by faster. Once our pit was all set-up Brian arrived and we got our packets and bib numbers, now it was about time to get rolling.

Racers running to there bikes La-mans start

We figured that Brian would be our strongest rider so we elected him to lead us out. The race features a La-mans start, which means there is a foot race to your bike to start. Brian did a good job of getting in the front of the pack and out on the trail quickly (one mistake I made last year on my 1st lap).  Well the race was now underway and that left me to start warming up a little before Brian came in for the hand off. The course is a little over 8 miles long. I had no idea what kind of time to expect for the first lap. .

Brian Beats Toro grabbing his steed

I was in the hand off zone at about 30 minutes into the race just to be sure. The first riders started to come in shortly after that and Brian came rolling through around 55 minutes. We made the exchange and I was off! This is a beautiful course with some amazing singletrack to start you off. The first 4 miles or so skirt the edge of the lake. This makes for amazing views and fun riding. After the first couple miles the course takes a turn uphill for a decent climb on asphalt through some campgrounds the back on a fire road for  a                                                                                     ways to the next climb. This next climb is always a killer for me. It seems to never stop going up! I hit it a little better this year then years past but still ended up pushing the last quarter of the initial climb. I say initial climb because after the steep climb there is a little bit of down before you go right back up for another mile it seems. This section of the course is up off the lake on the mountain. Up here is were the name Rocky Gap came from...All that climbing is rewarded with a long downhill that is really rocky and the rocks are loose so it made for an out of control decent. That DH section brings you right back out to were the climb started then takes you right back along the lake. This back side of the lake is my favorite section. Most of the time one came make up some time on this section of singletrack. It is smooth and fast! I looked down at the ol garmin and noticed that I was on track to make a sub 50 minute lap, which was a personal goal of mine this year. There is a part of the trail that crossed big concrete spill ways to thew lake that is a good spot for a jump or two exiting the spillway but I guess one guy in front of me a ways landed a little wrong and flatted both tires. I stopped to see if he had all he needed then continued. After that the trail is pretty narrow singletrack until the sprint to the finish. I got bottled up with about 10 other racers. I passed a few in the end sprint but everyone was going for it at the end of the loop. I ended up coming in around 51 minutes. I was pretty happy with myself for that lap. Oh and I almost forgot the best part of that lap, My crank arm decided to work its way loose after the long DH so I was worried the whole back side of the lake about losing my crank. A quick couple turns of the 10mm hex and I was back in business. Now time to wait on Shane and Brian to do a lap before I go again.

Bike after first lap...

Well Shane came in around 52 minutes for his first lap then Brian headed out for his second lap. I ate a little food and tried to re-energize before Brian came in to hand off to me. This lap he came in quicker then before but I was ready. I was unsure of his time when I began but it turned out to be the same time to the second of my first lap. On my second lap I kept a close eye on my garmin. I wanted to see about when I was hitting different sections of the trail. I noticed that I reached the climbs right around the same time as my first lap, but now I had a new obstacle to overcome. The rain clouds came and it had started pouring rain as soon as I started the climbs. It mad for a miserable climb thats for sure, but then again they are all miserable to me. My glasses started fogging up so they had to go in the jersey pocket. I do not see very well without my glasses so I rode the DH section a lot slower then the first time and the back side of the lake started to get really muddy and rutted out, I came in that lap around 55 minutes or so. Yet again it was time to get dried off a little and refuel for the next.

Shane came in around 56 minutes and Brian went out again for his third lap. I found myself thinking that Brian was killing it riding a singlespeed for this race. I know if he was riding a geared bike he would be riding sub 45 minute laps here. He came in on his third around 52 minutes. Then it was time for me to ride my third and final lap. I made about the same time to the climb and noticed I did the climb just a few minutes slower but I hit the DH better this time because the sun was back out and my glasses weren't fogging up. I came into the back section of the lake with high hopes to make up some time and try to come in around 55 or less but the trail had other plans. The back side is primarily clay and it started to dry and became really tacky. I was doing fine until someone wrecked in front of me and I had to stop. Once I stopped i couldn't get started again and kept getting out of the way of others so I didn't wreck them.I ended up walking too much of that back side and came in just over an hour for my last lap.

After my last lap...

Post race mud

Our team ended up doing 9 laps all together which landed us in 7th out of 15 teams. I accomplished what I set out to do at this race. I shaved a little over 20 minutes off my total ride time from last year. I did 3 laps last year as well but much slower. We had a good group of guys and it was great to see one of my good friend Brian Patton win the solo division doing 10 laps. He is a monster! Also another group of buddies representing the 167th Cycling Ops turned out 11 laps putting them in 6th in their division. They were only seconds away from a podium finish but they killed it anyway! It was awesome riding with good friends at a good venue. I can't wait for next year! Get ready Brian Toro...maybe a duo team next year...? HAHA 

Greenbrier Challenge 2012

This past weekend I had the privilege to ride in the 9th annual Greenbrier Challenge put on by the Potomac Velo Club. This race really is a challenge. This course is only a 5 mile loop but there is close to 700ft of elevation gain in the first mile and a half of the race loop. There are some awesome sections to this course as well, rock gardens, roots, climbs, downhills, and even some open sprinting to the finish line. The venue is also amazing. The Greenbrier State Park has a beautiful lake as well as a beach and wonderful camp sites. The course starts and finishes right on the lake.

My main goals for this race were to beat my times from last year and do a little better in my category then I did last year as well. I am proud to say that I accomplished both of those goals. Last year I did a 44 minute lap then a 50 minute lap. I entered in the same category as last year, Cat3 19-29, which had more entries this year then last. Our group went off at 10 am and I have to say I was not ready!

When that whistle blew I tried not to over do it right off due to the climbs right out of the gate but excitement got the better of me and on the second climb I got overheated. I was pushing up this climb and watched more then half of my field catch up and pass me. I was really discouraged with myself. When I looked down at my Garmin Edge 200 on my first lap I noticed that I was coming in right at 40 minutes and hit my nice lap feature on the device and hammered for the second lap. I felt like I was doing everything better on the second lap besides climbing. I made better time on the few climbs that I always make but the monster climb a mile one kicked my butt. I ended my second lap at 44 minutes which awarded me the 12 spot out of 18.

All in all it was a great race at a great mountain biking trail in Maryland. I was also able to leave there knowing that I accomplished what I set out to do... (I feel like I could have done better, but the will be next year for that!) 

Just a side note, my buddy Brian Patton raced this race as well and I am proud to report that he is the Maryland State Champion for the Cat 1 Pro men 30-34. He raced an awesome race and won in the end even with mechanical issues! Awesome man, when you go pro remember me, I would love to wrench on your bikes, or even wash them for you at your races...haha!



*Sorry there aren't more pictures, I was all by myself for this race, none of my buddies made it out for this one!

First Upgrade To The Flash...

One of the things that I wanted to do right away to the Flash was to drop the 44T chainring on the front, add a bashgaurd and run it as a 2X10. Seeing as I already had a Sram X-9 2X10 set in my garage all I needed was a bashguard. Brian over at EP/BC ordered me an awesome bashguard and that was it, after a shifter and front derailleur change I was set! Here is a pic! I am pretty happy with the bike and its performance. I also got all this done just a day before my first of only two races that i am doing this season. Very soon I will do a write-up about the first race, the Greenbrier Challenge and in a few days i have the other race to be followed by a post.

Itch Has Been Scratched...

Well as I had said before the itch for a new bike and a 29'er got the better of me this year. I have been wanting a 29'er for a few years now but wasn't really ready to make the jump. I have been looking and researching as well as riding many different styles, and brands of 29'ers. As many of you may know I work part time down at EP/BC and they carry many brands and my decision came down to three bikes, the Cannondale Flash alloy series, the Specialized Stumpjumpers, or a Breezer Lightning. I had rode many of these bikes and decided to go with the Cannondale Flash 2...

Picture taken right when I brought her home...

I choose this bike for the way it felt mostly but I also like the styling of the bike as well. Cannondale doesn't go overboard on the designs of their bikes and I like that, I like the clean lines on the bike, nothing crazy about it. Oh...the Lefty fork was also a bike selling feature! That fork is awesome, not only is it unique looking it is light, stiff, and responsive. I got this in a medium frame and that is just perfect for me. I am not sure of the actual weight of the bike, I still need to weight it soon but this sucker is so much lighter then any other bike I own besides my roadie.

After the big climb at Greenbrier waiting for Rapsack to catch up!

Pic by the lake at Greenbrier

Pic from my commute home after 12:30 am...

I have only took it out once on the trail so far and commuted to work one night and did some XC type riding on the grounds of the base were I work. I only have 14.5 miles on her so far and I am itching for more. So far this bike rides like a dream, I climb faster and descend faster as well. I think this bike will make me a better rider and I can't wait to ride it more!

Setup:
Frame: Flash 29'er Medium
Fork: Lefty OPI
Tires: Schwalbe Rapid Robs 2.2
Wheels: Sun Ringle Infernos
Hubs: Formula rear, Lefty front
Shifters: Sram X-7 (I have X-9 to swap out)
FD: Sram X-7 3X10 (I have X-9 2X10 to swap out)
RD: Sram X-9
Crankset: Sram S1400, 3X10 44/33/22 (I have X-9 2X10 chainrings to swap out)
Brakes: Elixer 3's

Post ride pic at Greenbrier! Again waiting on Rapsack HaHa!

I Got the Itch...

I know that it is a bad time right now but I am wanting a new bike bad. Don't get me wrong I really like the way that my Titus turned out but I am really wanting a 29'er. I have been working in at the shop part time for a couple months and every time I take one on a test ride I want one more! I love the Cannondale product. They look nice and sharp. The one I want is the same paint scheme as the first bike I ever bought. They call it BBQ. As you can see in the picture it comes with a Lefty fork and a Sram X-9 2X10 set-up. Right now this is my dream bike. I have a few races coming up this year and I would love to get this bike to ride in those races. That means I have most of the month of April to figure out how...haha or I could just wait I guess. Hey do any of you guys want to buy my Titus? I may have to put an ad up in some different places.

New Garmin Edge 200-(initial review)

I recently left my roadie on my rack overnight and it happened to be a night with a heavy dew. Needless to say my cycling computer was no longer working. I was looking at a replacement computer and stumbled on Garmin's new product the Edge 200. I was surprised at the price for a cycling computer that was also a GPS unit. The Garmin retails for 149.99. This price was fairly good considering the cost of most cycling computers that are not GPS capable. The Garmin Edge 200 was a breeze to get started with, just charge, mount, and ride. There are many features on this unit such as auto pause, saved routes, split times, lap times, and others. I have only used this on one ride so far and love it. From what I can tell the battery lasts a long time too. It was also very easy to load my activity onto the Garmin Connect site as well as other ride tracking sites such as Strava. I will write a final review of the product after a few more uses. I want to take it off the beaten path and see how she does in the woods!As always EP/BC was the place for these awesome products plus the knowledge to keep your bike going...