I just have to say, strava is incredibly useful

[veggieburger]

I was talking about Strava yesterday. The gist of the conversation - it has changed the way I ride. I get 3% less joy and 75% more training and value out of my rides.

I'm a fan.

[73Bronco]

I like the ability to see the heat maps so I know where the popular routes are. I assume those are more bicycle friendly/safer.

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[73Bronco]

Whatever feature that texts me whenever my buddy starts his ride needs to go away.

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[madsciencenow]

So has anyone used Strava and then decided to turn it off?

I've used it for a couple of years and am finding that it is sucking the life out of my rides. My rides are already stashed in Garmin so I don't really need the analysis.

Thoughts? Regrets from those that used and then quit?


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[floxy1]

Agree I'm a strava fan and really good for new areas. Try strava routes. It uses activity data to help you generate a route. I've found it very helpful when I wanted to get from point a to b but not knowing the most popular / safest way.

[stien]

Originally Posted by 73Bronco

I like the ability to see the heat maps so I know where the popular routes are. I assume those are more bicycle friendly/safer.

I've actually noticed the opposite. Apparently people ride their bikes in dumb places.

[ojingoh]

Originally Posted by madsciencenow

So has anyone used Strava and then decided to turn it off?

I've used it for a couple of years and am finding that it is sucking the life out of my rides. My rides are already stashed in Garmin so I don't really need the analysis.

Thoughts? Regrets from those that used and then quit?


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I'm close. I have a power meter though, and damn boring when I ride, I have only 4-5 main routes and don't GAS about other people's times. I basically use it to keep in touch with out of town buddies.

[tylercheung]

I like the tracking features, I don't get "less joy" but I am not using it competitively.

I do keep myself private; there is a rumor that there are bike thieves casing out routes on public strava in SoCal, not sure how much truth there is but still...

[madsciencenow]

Maybe private is the way to go? Then I won't have to GAS about what other riders are doing (and believe me I don't want too but then I start giving Kudos ...).

I'm not in SoCal so bike thieves are prolly not a concern but one guy did warn me that I should be watching out for rednecks with trucks as I rode past his front yard.


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[KJMUNC]

I love Strava, but I'm a cheap bastard, so I don't pay for premium. However, I do love the ability to look at an area an find where segments are to map out rides. I travel a lot for work and often have my bike. When I'm in a new area my first stop is Strava to see where other people ride. It helps identify good roads for cycling where I'm less likely to get run over as well as finding the most challenging segments to try out.

On my normal/weekly rides I love the ability to track my progress. I've never been scientific enough to buy a power meter....heck, I don't even ride with a freakin' computer, so I like the ability to see my times on certain loops coming down the more frequently I ride, which confirms my feelings on the bike about my fitness. Also sometimes helps when I feel like crap to convince me that the ride wasn't as terrible as it felt.

Overall it's the most used app on my phone other than maybe Spotify (different thread altogether).

[pasadena]

Strava is great.

Strava rarely messes up my record and it's a good training diary for the lazy, and I always carry my phone on rides anyway.

There is a nice social aspect to it, which I like too.

When travelling, it's really invaluable. You can track and meet new cycling friends and groups as well as routes.
Download the gpx and do all your research before you go. It's great, can't say enough good things about it.

[pasadena]

That's great, that's totally me too

Originally Posted by KJMUNC

I love Strava, but I'm a cheap bastard, so I don't pay for premium. However, I do love the ability to look at an area an find where segments are to map out rides. I travel a lot for work and often have my bike. When I'm in a new area my first stop is Strava to see where other people ride. It helps identify good roads for cycling where I'm less likely to get run over as well as finding the most challenging segments to try out.

On my normal/weekly rides I love the ability to track my progress. I've never been scientific enough to buy a power meter....heck, I don't even ride with a freakin' computer, so I like the ability to see my times on certain loops coming down the more frequently I ride, which confirms my feelings on the bike about my fitness. Also sometimes helps when I feel like crap to convince me that the ride wasn't as terrible as it felt.

Overall it's the most used app on my phone other than maybe Spotify (different thread altogether).

[Mark McM]

Strava, at least the non-premium service, is free to users. Therefore I assume that the users are the product, there to provide something of value to sell to paying customers. So my questions are, who are Strava's customers, and what product do the users provide that Strava sells to them?

[Anarchist]

I tried Strava once upon a time, I no longer use it at all.

I do use an app/program called Runtastic and find it much more comprehensive in the list of activities they support.

The metrics for different types of activities are very different.

Runtastic is either supported, or owned, by Adidas so there is money behind development and I find that although it is not as ubiquitous in North America it seems to have a stronger following elsewhere - so searching for routes for walking, running, swimming, etc is more fruitful.

I don't have anything on my handlebars but I run it while canoeing or riding etc and it populates diary for me so I find I don't update the Excel spreadsheet anymore.

In addition, they have things like a program called "Results" which is a 12 week body weight training program (with Apple TV app as well) which will kick your behind.

Overall I think it is much more complete than Strava for far more activities - but it depends on what you want.

I also give Premium memberships to both of my kids and my wife each year.

PSA ---

One thing I will say - if anyone cares to check Runtastic and feels inclined to buy the Premium - do it through the website - MUCH cheaper than buying through the App Store. I am too ashamed to say how I learned this.

[Wasatch]

Originally Posted by 73Bronco

Whatever feature that texts me whenever my buddy starts his ride needs to go away.

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Talk to your buddy. When you start a ride you have an option to send a "beacon text" to a preselected person.