Hey gang, curious what others are planning to use for lights at next spring's Trans Iowa. I'm going with a dynamo hub and light/USB charging, either a KLite or Sinewave Beacon. How about you?
Did you see the TI post GT did a few weeks ago about lights? Think I am going with the Lezyne 1100i with external battery for my bars and night rider on my helmet.
Not TIing, but for gravel roads I'd lean towards the German dynamo headlights with cutoff optics (SON Edelux, B&M IQ-X / Luxos U / Cyo Premium) and something like the Sinewave USB convertor (except for the Luxos, which has it built in).
I just use two bontrager800 lights one on my helmet and one on my bars. I bring a portable charger for my garmin and phone so I charge lights during the day. Ride w a group through the night and you’ll see more without running your lights on med/high. Unless your going for the win .
Lbc wrote:I just use two bontrager800 lights one on my helmet and one on my bars. I bring a portable charger for my garmin and phone so I charge lights during the day. Ride w a group through the night and you’ll see more without running your lights on med/high. Unless your going for the win .
lbc Newbie to gravel racing and more so newbie to using a Garmin. How do you recharge your Garmin during the day while riding with it?
A generic battery pack/portable charger should work for most people. I haven't done (and don't plan to try) TI, but I would use my basic Anker (they make many versions) power bank and run a cord to the light from a bento box or top tube bag.
I recently grabbed a Lezyne 1100XL (not the 1100i version) and it's a killer light. The Lezyne specific battery is $80 and does the exact same thing any battery does, except it has a bike specific mount. At only 20wh (watt hours) it's awfully pricey for a battery. This $25 battery is very popular and holds 36 watt hours. That would give you ~15 hours at a pretty bright 450 lumens. It's not hard to find waaaay more capacity than that for nearly the same size and weight.
You can also grab this $9 cord and charge all your devices (headlight, taillight, Garmin/Wahoo/computer (if using one), phone and your friend's phone) all at once during any stops.
Zman- I use a garmin 810 it will take a charge on the go and maintain its recording and navigation... I’m not sure on the 520 but I know the 500 will not work this way.
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\nBrowndog- I got an amazon ravpower portable powersupply. I charge my lights directly when dawn hits and then my garmin when needed. I leave the Harmon backlight off also to save battery and there’s no gpx file anyway .... good luck
Regarding GPS recharging while on the go - I have a Garmin Edge 1000 and you can set the screen to read as vertical or horizontal. Setting it at horizontal allows the GPS to be fully locked in to it's mount, while leaving the charge/comm port accessible. My question is regarding the charging method while riding on rough gravel roads. The Garmin and external battery pack can be secured solidly, but the cable is only held in the port by the force of the connector (no external clamping mechanism). I would think that after a while, the force of gravity combined with the constant rumbling would dislodge the cable connector from the port. But I could be wrong, I just don't have any experience with it.
I looked at Garmin's website recently, and it looks like their newer models (Edge 1030) has a different charging system that is compatible with their new external battery pack. The pack fits in on the underside of the handlebar mount, and adds an extra 24hrs of battery life (on top of the claimed 20hr life of the internal battery). Might be a foolproof option going forward.
As a new owner of a 520, what exactly happened on the DK? How long did the 520 last before you had to plug it in?
Newbie to Garmin also but looks like the battery life only lasted 8 hrs. Here is my question though. With as many riders as the DK has couldn't you just kind of follow the pack some or wouldn't you know who was doing the 100 or 200?
I’ve done plenty of gravel events (DK, Anti-Epic, Odin’s Revenge, Gravel Worlds) and never had a problem with the microUSB cable popping out of my Garmin 510 - the retaining tabs on the connection work just fine.
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\nAs for “why don’t we just follow the pack?”, mainly because once you get past the first checkpoint, there’s no guarantee you’ll see anyone ahead or behind you when you come upon a turn. 1000 people spread over 200 miles (or 150 miles) is a lot of empty roads. Basically, don’t be an idiot, use a GPS.*
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\n*You can also totally navigate using a non-GPS bike computer and cue sheets, if you so choose. Just don’t try to do without either.
My 520 has a battery life of 7 - 8 hours. At DK I started with the battery pack plugged in and it died after 8 hours. After that I was on the 520 battery. That worked great for DK but will not for Trans Iowa. I will need to be plugged in the entire time. Up to 34 hours. I will also need to charge my lights.
Noah_Deuce wrote:I’ve done plenty of gravel events (DK, Anti-Epic, Odin’s Revenge, Gravel Worlds) and never had a problem with the microUSB cable popping out of my Garmin 510 - the retaining tabs on the connection work just fine. As for “why don’t we just follow the pack?”, mainly because once you get past the first checkpoint, there’s no guarantee you’ll see anyone ahead or behind you when you come upon a turn. 1000 people spread over 200 miles (or 150 miles) is a lot of empty roads. Basically, don’t be an idiot, use a GPS.* *You can also totally navigate using a non-GPS bike computer and cue sheets, if you so choose. Just don’t try to do without either.
Can confirm: there were at least 2-3 times on the DK100 that I had to stop/slow to get directions from my mates behind me.
I have a Garmin Edge Touring Plus. If I do not turn the Garmin on, it will turn itself on when I turn on the power to the power pack that I have plugged into the Garmin with the charging cord. The power pack is in a top tube bag with the zipper closed enough to keep the battery in and the elements out. When the course gets rough, the cord will come out of the Garmin, but it gives me a warning before it turns itself off and I push the little USB connection back into the Garmin. My Garmin usually shows 100% charge at the end of the race.
Garmin makes a rugged mount for their motorcycle GPS that is wired to the 12-volt system of the bike. The GPS has an internal battery, but when attached to the mount, it runs off of the motorcycle.
If I were riding TI, I would consider an auxiliary power supply that uses batteries that can be purchased in a convenience store. It would be a lot faster to swap batteries in a parking lot instead of trying to find a place to plug in and have to wait for a recharge.
I wouldn't count on people being around you, I rode most of the third section of DK alone and you are responsible for you.
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\nDisable Bluetooth and set the virtual partner to 0 mph and you should be able to get to checkpoint 2 without a recharge. My 520 lasted over 13 hours and had 15% of battery power left. If you take a long time at checkpoints, just recharge then.
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\nFor Trans Iowa I am planning on plugging my 520 into an external battery the whole time. I'll carry an extra charger as well. I have Exposure Lights that last 36 hours, but I might carry an extra charger for them too.
