Computer free...

[bikerchick68]

I've been riding computer free since I got back on the bike. Mine is dead. I thought about replacing it... but did a couple rides before I got it done... and heck, now I'm just sort of enjoying not knowing... it's weird really. I have no clue how fast I'm going at all... and it's great! I feel sorta free... just riding for the sheer joy of it without putting any pressure on myself to perform any certain way...

I DO have the new computer tho... and am amping up my training again (thank goodness for the early time change!!! Comeon 3/11/07!) so will be putting it on soon. The new one has even more gadgets... including cadence and heart rate and altimeter...

anyone else ever ridden without a computer briefly? And did you enjoy it like me or did it make you crazy?

[Pax]

My SO laughs at me playing with my computer, she points out that I'm on a PC all day at work, a bunch of time in the evening and on weekends...then we go for a ride and I constantly play with my bike computer. So far I've resisted the urge to put one on my hybrid/commuter.

[Running Mommy]

I have a garmin 205 mounted on my stem and I would be lost without it. I'm such a geek! I need my info! lol
I guess the term "tri geek" is fitting in my case ehh??

[Popoki_Nui]

When I restored my 60's vintage Falcon last summer, I debated whether or not to add a computer to her. I decided not, because computers didn't exist in this bike's era, I usually ride her on roads and paths where I know the distances, and I find I like the feeling of not knowing (or caring) how far/fast I've gone. Just riding for the joy of riding is very appealing. I have other bikes with computers, so having one without is kind of liberating.
Back in the day, we had those soup-can size mechanical speedometer/odometer thingys. Big dial mounted to the bar with a thick cable going to a gear on the front hub. Remember those? If I found one of those in good shape, I might consider installing it on the Falcon. They were pretty cool. Otherwise, it's au naturel for now.

[Artisan]

I have a garmin 205 mounted on my stem and I would be lost without it. I'm such a geek! I need my info! lol
I guess the term "tri geek" is fitting in my case ehh??

I feel the same way for the most part. I have the garmin 305 edge and I get all excited about hurrying home to check out all the data it has collected.

I do like going computer free some days because sometimes I just want to enjoy being outside, say howdy to people I pass by and enjoy the calmness of it all.

[Bad JuJu]

Interesting thread--to compute or not to compute.

Since a couple of you have mentioned the Garmins, let me ask whether you actually use/pay attention to all the info they collect. I had thought about adding a Garmin Edge to my Christmas list last year, but decided not too because I thought it might be information overload. OTOH, I'm kinda like some of you in that I just love coming home and checking out my computer's take on how the ride went--and comparing to my own intuitive sense of the ride. I like that synthesis of "responses" (if you can call what a computer does a response ).

Anyway, do any of you Garmin owners feel like it's a bit much, or are you pretty happy with your computers?

[Mimosa]

I ride without a computer. I do have a heartrate monitor/watch on my handlebars, the rest I do based on time on the bike. I set out on a specific heartrate and time.

I had a compu on the bike to measure speed and distance but took it off since I found it irritating. I kept on pushing to keep a certain speed and no longer on my heart rate.

[Artisan]

Anyway, do any of you Garmin owners feel like it's a bit much, or are you pretty happy with your computers?

I'm extremely happy with the Garmin. The detailed information is great. I come home and go over the entire ride. I don't really look down at my computer much at all while riding so coming home and seeing what my cadence, heart rate and speed was at a particular section of the ride is great. You can see exactly where you hit your max heart rate, highest speed and more. I especially like uploading the info to motionbased because you can map out the ride and view it from an aerial perspective.