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
5 Random Things I Did This Weekend
It’s been a busy few days in the DCR world, here’s what I’ve been up to! 1) An openwater swim in Saint-Malo I started off the weekend in Saint-Malo, on the northwestern French coast. We’ve been there a few times … Read More Here
Week in Review–June 19th, 2016
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
5 Random Things I Did This Weekend
Ok, sorry for the slightly belated weekend post. Better late than never, right? Here’s what we were up to this past weekend! 1) Start of the Euro We kicked off our weekend being lazy. In our case that meant watching … Read More Here
Week in Review–June 13th, 2016
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
Garmin Forerunner 735XT In-Depth Review
It’s been almost exactly a month since Garmin announced their latest triathlon watch, the Forerunner 735XT. This watch aims to take the software of the larger FR920XT triathlon watch and compress it down into a smaller package. All while also … Read More Here
Dîner en Blanc 2016–the best night in Paris!
For the past three years we’ve been going to Dîner en Blanc. It’s without question our favorite night of the year here in Paris. Sure, Bastille Day (Fête nationale) probably ranks as our favorite overall day. There’s the parades, air show, picnics, … Read More Here
Hands-on with new Withings Body Cardio WiFi Scale
Update: My Full In-Depth Review for both the Withings Body and Body Cardio scales can be found here! Today Withings released their WiFi scale, the Withings Body Cardio along with the new Withings Body scale (sans-Cardio). Like all past Withings … Read More Here
Suunto announces new Spartan Ultra GPS watch, rolls out refreshed Movescount site
Today Suunto’s refreshing both its website as well as its flagship multisport GPS watch series. With the website, they’re making it a bit easier to find and plan new routes, while with the watch they’re giving it a color touchscreen. … Read More Here
5 Random Things I Did This Weekend
Phew – a crazy weekend – one unlike any other that we’ve ever had here. Let’s get right into it. 1) Returned from Amsterdam The Girl and I were up in Amsterdam from Wednesday till Friday evening. I had meetings … Read More Here
Week in Review–June 5th, 2016
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
The May $600 Gadget Giveaway Winner!
Last weekend I held the $600 gadget giveaway. I considered it somewhat of a going away party for spring, as we segue into the summer months. A whopping 6,499 of you entered over the weekend – which one-ups the last … Read More Here
Paris 2016 Triathlon Race Report
It’s pretty rare that I’d ever have two race weekends back to back, but with the Eurocup being hosted in France this year, the city of Paris has moved virtually all non-Eurocup athletic events out of the June 10th to … Read More Here
5 Random Things I Did This Weekend
This weekend was great; lots of fun and totally different things going on. Here’s what I was up to in the rainy city of light! 1) Kodak SP360 4K Action Cam Unboxing Last Thursday I decided I wanted to mount … Read More Here
Hands-on with Elite’s new Drivo, Kura, and Rampa trainers
Today Italian trainer company Elite joined in on the 2016 Trainer announcements bandwagon with the unveiling of four new indoor training products, including one set of rollers. These announcements marks not just new trainers, but most notably a cleaner and simpler … Read More Here
Week in Review–May 30th, 2016
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
A May $600 Gadget Giveaway!
This is the last giveaway. I mean, the last giveaway until the annual Giveaway Extravaganza next month of course! I’ll let you read all about what that madness was like last year, but for now, we’ve got to get down … Read More Here
Initial Thoughts: New Pebble 2 with optical HR, and Core with 3G, GPS & Spotify
Today Pebble announced two new fitness focused devices, the Pebble Time 2 and the Pebble Core. Both are squarely targeted at competing with existing fitness companies, but in this case Pebble is taking a bit of a different twist on … Read More Here
Versailles Triathlon 2016 Race Report
This past Sunday I raced in a popular sprint triathlon just outside of Paris. It’s officially the Triathlon du Roi (Roi means king in French). But more commonly it’s known as the Versailles Triathlon, which I last competed in back … Read More Here
5 Random Things I Did This Weekend
While the weather was almost totally crap for much of the weekend, we still made the most of it here within the pockets it stopped raining. Or in some cases, we just dove right into the water…literally. Here’s what the … Read More Here
The May 20th Sales Begin: Garmin, Wahoo, Suunto, CycleOps, Saris, Pebble, TomTom, Pioneer
What? You didn’t know there was such a thing as the May 20th sales? Well, neither did I. But apparently this year there is. Everyone must have gone out one night at some industry event or something and decided to … Read More Here
Garmin Vivoactive HR In-Depth Review
It’s been a few months since Garmin announced the Vivoactive HR while at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. The unit started shipping last month and I’ve been wearing it on my wrist 24×7 since then. The Vivoactive HR sits in Garmin’s mid-range watch pricing … Read More Here
Riding around the Velodrome at the UCI World Headquarters
It’s time for a non-product post. And given today sits in between two different in-depth review posts, I figure we’ll travel back in time to almost a month ago when I visited the UCI (Union Cycliste Internationale) for the CycleOps Hammertime launch … Read More Here
Cycliq Fly12 Bike Light/Camera In-Depth Review
It’s been over a year since Cycliq first introduced their Fly12 combo bike light and HD camera. While the road to shipping was certainly longer and bumpier than the company wanted, they started shipping units to customers last month. You’ll … Read More Here
5 Random Things I Did This Weekend
Finally, a relatively calm weekend here at home. Now technically the weekend is still continuing here, as Monday is a public holiday for many in France. And while the weather wasn’t quite as nice as last weekend, we made the … Read More Here
Hands-on with Garmin’s new Vivosmart HR+ (now with GPS)
They grow up so fast. Less than two years ago the original Vivosmart was a slightly awkward and kinda scrawny activity band. It’s dim display hardly living up to its fitness features. Then just this past fall came the Vivosmart … Read More Here