I’m DC RAINMAKER…
Here’s how to save!
Wanna save some cash and support the site? These companies help support the site! With Backcountry.com or Competitive Cyclist with either the coupon code DCRAINMAKER for first time users saving 15% on applicable products.
You can also pick-up tons of gear at REI via these links, which is a long-time supporter as well:
Alternatively, for everything else on the planet, simply buy your goods from Amazon via the link below and I get a tiny bit back as an Amazon Associate. No cost to you, easy as pie!
You can use the above link for any Amazon country and it (should) automatically redirect to your local Amazon site.
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Check out my weekly podcast - with DesFit, which is packed with both gadget and non-gadget goodness!
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5 Easy Steps To The Site
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In Depth Product Reviews
You probably stumbled upon here looking for a review of a sports gadget. If you’re trying to decide which unit to buy – check out my in-depth reviews section. Some reviews are over 60 pages long when printed out, with hundreds of photos! I aim to leave no stone unturned.
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Read My Sports Gadget Recommendations.
Here’s my most recent GPS watch guide here, and cycling GPS computers here. Plus there are smart trainers here, all in these guides cover almost every category of sports gadgets out there. Looking for the equipment I use day-to-day? I also just put together my complete ‘Gear I Use’ equipment list, from swim to bike to run and everything in between (plus a few extra things). And to compliment that, here’s The Girl’s (my wife’s) list. Enjoy, and thanks for stopping by!
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Have some fun in the travel section.
I travel a fair bit, both for work and for fun. Here’s a bunch of random trip reports and daily trip-logs that I’ve put together and posted. I’ve sorted it all by world geography, in an attempt to make it easy to figure out where I’ve been.
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My Photography Gear: The Cameras/Drones/Action Cams I Use Daily
The most common question I receive outside of the “what’s the best GPS watch for me” variant, are photography-esq based. So in efforts to combat the amount of emails I need to sort through on a daily basis, I’ve complied this “My Photography Gear” post for your curious minds (including drones & action cams!)! It’s a nice break from the day-to-day sports-tech talk, and I hope you get something out of it!
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The Swim/Bike/Run Gear I Use List
Many readers stumble into my website in search of information on the latest and greatest sports tech products. But at the end of the day, you might just be wondering “What does Ray use when not testing new products?”. So here is the most up to date list of products I like and fit the bill for me and my training needs best! DC Rainmaker 2024 swim, bike, run, and general gear list. But wait, are you a female and feel like these things might not apply to you? If that’s the case (but certainly not saying my choices aren’t good for women), and you just want to see a different gear junkies “picks”, check out The Girl’s Gear Guide too.
Author Archives: Ray Maker
A Singapore Runaround
It’s been a while since my last official ‘runaround’ post in the long-standing series. Not because I haven’t been running around all sorts of random cities, but rather, posting about it usually gets knocked down the totem pole of things … Read More Here
JetBlack WhisperDrive Smart Trainer: An Interim Review
One of the challenges with writing reviews that the whole world will see, especially on products that are in relatively limited supply, is what happens when things aren’t finished baking yet. Not in the sense of a transient bug that … Read More Here
5 Random Things I Did This Weekend (Final Australia Edition)
And just like that, it was time to say goodbye to Australia. After being here a bit under three months, we were ready to begin our trek home. How time has flown by! I can’t believe it’s been that long, … Read More Here
Skydio R1 Autonomous Sports Drone In-Depth Review
My quest to find a drone that can follow me while cycling and running may finally have found its maker. After years of trying all sorts of products, the Skydio R1 came along. And it did so in a big … Read More Here
Getting pulled over by five police vehicles while riding our bikes
I got a bunch of questions about my Strava pic from a ride I uploaded last week, so I figured I’d color in a bit more detail. It would only be appropriate that while on a group ride with the … Read More Here
5 Random Things I Did This Weekend
While it was a bit cooler this weekend in this little section of Australia I’m in, it’s still a heck of a lot warmer than the rest of Europe – so I consider that a win! Here’s what I was … Read More Here
Week in Review–March 18th, 2018
The Week in Review is a collection of both all the goodness I’ve written during the past week around the internet, as well as a small pile of links I found interesting – generally endurance sports related. I’ve often wondered … Read More Here
Outside Magazine DCR Article: A bit behind the scenes
It was 13 months (to the day) prior to the Outside Magazine article being published in print (and then yesterday, a month later online) that I got my first e-mail from the author, Andrew Tilin. He had wanted to chat … Read More Here
Specialized Power Cranks Power Meter In-Depth Review
Today Specialized has finally announced their new power meter crankset, aptly called Power Cranks. This crankset has been in the works for quite some time, both in rumors as well as on pro team riders bikes (as I showed at … Read More Here
Quad Lock Cycling Phone Mount In-Depth Review
There is no category of gadgetry that I get more manufacturer e-mails on than phone accessory junk. Which is somewhat ironic considering I can’t even remember the last time I reviewed a phone-specific thing. Still, once you get on some … Read More Here
5 Random Things I Did This Weekend
This seemed like quite the long weekend, in large part because we extended it to be a four-day weekend – the reason I was a bit quiet last week. Here’s what I was up to! 1) Down the coast without … Read More Here
Garmin Forerunner 645 Music GPS Running Watch In-Depth Review
It’s been almost two months since Garmin announced the FR645 and FR645 Music (aka FR645M), its first wearable with music onboard. Past Garmin watches could control music on your phone, but none could have music loaded on it and play … Read More Here
5 Random Things I Did This Weekend
It was a hot one this weekend! Climbing over 90°F (32°C), it’s a good reminder of why I’m here…versus the rest of Europe at temperatures that would keep an ice cube properly chilled for longer than I’d want to be. … Read More Here
Week in Review–March 3rd, 2018
The Week in Review is a collection of both all the goodness I’ve written during the past week around the internet, as well as a small pile of links I found interesting – generally endurance sports related. I’ve often wondered … Read More Here
Behind the Scenes: Spending the day at YouTube
When I was still working in the tech industry, one of the things that was cool about my job was that I was ‘required’ to squeeze in 4 weeks of training per year. I say required in air quotes because … Read More Here
PowerTap Significantly Drops Prices, Plus Detailed Power Meter Pricing Trends (2018 Edition)
It seems like it’s that time of year again – when we start to see shifts in power meter pricing and companies tweak their strategy for the year ahead. The first to move this year was actually Pioneer, back in … Read More Here
First Look: COROS’s new Pace GPS Multisport Watch
[Heads up! COROS has now released the Pace 2, which is a significantly more powerful watch than the Pace 1…but at the same awesome $199 price. Check out my full review here on that instead.] How on earth is it … Read More Here
5 Random Things I Did This Weekend
All sort of goodness went down this past weekend, including both gadget and not gadget stuff. The perfect blend! 1) Riding to the shipyards Friday afternoon I set out for a quick ride to and from the shipyards a bit … Read More Here
Hammerhead Karoo Cycling GPS In-Depth Review
After an elongated delivery timeframe, the Hammerhead Karoo is finally shipping. If the various engagement metrics I track tell me anything, it’s one of the most awaited bike computers of the last year. It could be the fast touchscreen display … Read More Here
GoPro Fusion 360° Action Camera In-Depth Review
Just shy of a year ago GoPro announced initial details around their consumer-oriented 360° action camera, Fusion. But it wouldn’t be until this past November that the company started shipping the $699 dual-lens unit. Since then I’ve been using the … Read More Here
5 Random Things I Did This Weekend
Despite my rainmaker moniker – it hasn’t rained a single day on me during my stay in Australia to date. Instead, it’s been endless sunshine. Well, actually, it was overcast one afternoon here in Perth. But otherwise, it’s the best … Read More Here
Week in Review–February 18th, 2018
The Week in Review is a collection of both all the goodness I’ve written during the past week around the internet, as well as a small pile of links I found interesting – generally endurance sports related. I’ve often wondered … Read More Here
Stages LR (Dual-Sided) Power Meter In-Depth Review
It’s been a long time coming. For Stages, the development path of Stages LR has been over three years till it started shipping last month, with most of it in the public eye in the most watched bike on earth: … Read More Here
Sports Tech Round-up: Stryd Live, BSX officially ends BSX Insight, PowerTap C1 Scaled Back
Every once in a while there’s a run of a few days where a handful of sports tech items are worthy of discussion in more detail than a passing ‘Week in Review’ mention, but less detail than a full standalone … Read More Here
5 Random Things I Did This Weekend
Another awesome weekend down in Australia, getting in the swim/bike/run variety that makes this place so easy to love. Plus of course, some other tidbits. Here’s what I was up to! 1) A quick power meter check ride Last week … Read More Here