You can use a GPS receiver for almost any type of outdoor sport where you’re in motion. Here’s how GPS fits into the context of several specific sports.
GPS for cyclists
If you’re a road cyclist or mountain biker, a GPS receiver can replace your bike computer because it can display time, speed, and distance information. Most GPS receiver manufacturers make bike mounts for their handheld models; these mounts also fit on motorcycle and snowmobile handlebars.
The main advantages of using a GPS receiver for biking are that it
- Doesn’t need calibrating
- Is easy to switch between different bikes
- Has navigation features including maps (if supported)
- Compared with bike computers, GPS receivers have a few disadvantages:
- Shorter battery life Higher price Larger size
- Accuracy affected by tree cover
If you just want to use your GPS receiver for logging data, such as recording trail routes under heavy tree cover, try stowing your GPS receiver in a backpack and mounting an external antenna on the top of your bike helmet, threading the antenna cable out the back of the helmet and into the pack where it’s plugged in to the GPS receiver. It might sound and look geeky, but a setup like this gives you optimum satellite reception. Just make sure that the antenna cable is tucked in and secured so it doesn’t catch on a tree branch.
Some Garmin GPS receivers, notably the eTrex models when used with Garmin bike mounts, can intermittently shut down when biking on rough terrain. Your GPS receiver probably isn’t defective. The battery compartment of the eTrex doesn’t provide a snug fit for the batteries; vibration can jostle the batteries around, causing power loss. If this happens, tape the batteries together or use a small piece of cardboard as a shim to fill the extra space.
GPS for golfers
Because golf is all about distance and getting a ball from Point A to Point B in the least number of strokes, GPS offers some interesting possibilities.
The simplest way to use GPS in golf is to bring your GPS receiver with you the next time you play and mark the center of greens as waypoints. When you play the course again, you can select the waypoints for a pretty good idea of the distance to the next green and use that information when selecting an appropriate club. (GPS receivers and devices like laser range finders aren’t allowed in tournament play — and some of your purist golf partners might not approve of electronics for casual play.)
Some golf courses are on the GPS bandwagon, offering cart-based computers that display color maps; the distance to the greens, holes, and hazards; pro tips; and other information. As an example, visit www.riteconcepts.com to see a demonstration of its OnCourse GPS product.
A number of personal GPS products are developed specifically for golfers:
Suunto G9: Suunto makes an oversize watch that’s a GPS receiver that measures your strokes and stores game statistics (www.suunto.com).
SkyGolf: SkyGolf sells a standalone GPS golf computer, the SG2 Personal Digital Caddie (www.skygolfgps.com).
PDA software: A number of popular golf software packages come bundled with a GPS receiver for Pocket PC and Palm PDAs, including
• StarCaddy: www.starcaddy.com
• GolfPS: www.golfps.com
GPS golf devices can slow down the game while players fiddle with their electronic gadgets. If you use a GPS golf device, remember to be courteous to other players and not get too engrossed with your nonregulation helper.
GPS for paddlers and rowers
For athletes who row or paddle for fitness or in competitions, a GPS receiver provides a quick and easy way to gauge distance and speed without installing a speedometer in your boat; they’re also cheaper than venturi speedometers.
I’ve seen GPS receiver cases mounted to canoes, kayaks, and rowing shells using Velcro, duct tape, webbing, and custom-made fiberglass holders, all optimally placed to let the athlete read the screen and click buttons.
Obviously, make sure that your GPS receiver stays dry. Your GPS receiver should have an IPX 7 rating (submersible for 30 minutes in one meter of water). Regardless of the rating, I use a waterproof bag. Voyageur bags (one is shown in Figure 23-6), priced under $25, are durable, watertight, and buoyant; it’s easy to see the screen and use the receiver while it’s in the bag. You can get information on the Voyageur product line by visiting http://voyageur-gear.com.
Windsurfing and GPS
GPS receivers are popular in windsurfing. Windsurfers use GPS receivers in waterproof bags to measure maximum speed and record tracks. Dennis Cornhill wrote a nice Excel spreadsheet for analyzing windsurfing track logs:
www.geocities.com/denniscornhill/ SailTrack.html.
Figure 23-6:
A GPS receiver in a Voyageur dry bag.
If you’re using a GPS receiver in any type of watercraft, tether the GPS receiver (or its case or bag) to yourself or the boat. This is good insurance against your receiver swimming to the bottom.
GPS for race directors
If you’re organizing and promoting a race with running, cycling, cross-country skiing, or just about any other activity that follows a set course, a GPS receiver can be a handy tool. With it you can
- Measure the course distance.
- Create a map of the course by overlaying tracks on an aerial photo or topographic map.
- Use waypoints to mark the precise locations of aid stations.
- Publish the course track log on the Internet for athletes with GPS receivers who want to train on the course before the race.
One of my favorite programs for race planning is TopoFusion. It imports waypoints and tracks from GPS receivers and displays them on aerial photos and topographic maps downloaded from TerraServer-USA.Its PhotoFusion feature makes it excellent for promoting races on the Internet.
If you bring a digital camera while recording course information with your GPS receiver, you can take photos at key points (such as intersections, extreme terrain, aid stations, or scenic views). Afterwards, TopoFusion associates the time you took the photo with time data in the track log and gives you the coordinates where you took the picture.
TopoFusion can automatically generate a Web page that shows the recorded tracks overlaid on both an aerial photo and topographic map. Wherever you stopped and took a photo with your digital camera, TopoFusion places a camera icon at that location on the map. (Just make sure your digital camera clock is synced with the time on your GPS receiver.) When someone views the Web page and moves the cursor over the camera icon, a thumbnail image of the photo is displayed in the upper-right corner of the window. If a camera icon on the map is clicked, the full-sized photo is displayed. Because athletes like to have as much information about a race ahead of time, participants will love you if you add this to a Web site promoting a race or an event.
TopoFusion does all the HTML and JavaScript coding for you; you don’t need to know anything about developing a Web page. Just upload all the digital photos and the files TopoFusion created to a Web server, and you’ve got an instant online information source and interactive map for your race. If you can code HTML, you can modify the page’s information and appearance.
