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.
Week in Review – May 26th, 2012
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 Paris night run from Notre Dame
(Quick Heads Up: REI has the Garmin FR610 down to $299 (with the heart rate strap, usually $399) on some sort of temporary sale. Thanks to all that sent this in. And, that particular REI link helps out the site … Read More Here
Garmin releases Edge 500 update, adds TSS/NP/IF & more
It’s been nearly 10 months since the announcement that TSS/NP/IF metrics would come to the Edge 500, and as of 11AM central time – it’s finally available. For those that want to get right to the action, you can swing … Read More Here
A quick pile of odds and ends
I’ve only got a few minutes for a quick post, as I’m trying to wrap up packing for a work trip again on Wednesday night. I’m headed back over to Paris for Thursday/Friday, and then staying around for what is … Read More Here
Behind the Scenes at Recon Instruments
I’m never one to turn down the opportunity to chat with folks in the sports technology industry about what all of you want in consumer products. So last Thursday night I made a beeline for the airport, first catching a … Read More Here
A busy weekend running, riding and testing–including the Magellan Switch and Switch UP
From Friday evening until Sunday evening, virtually every hour of my weekend was accounted for down to the minute. It isn’t until now that I’ve had a chance to really sit down and do anything. It started with a redeye … Read More Here
Week in Review–May 19th, 2012
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 $800 Bike Part III: Looking for your assistance trying to bike the bike…somewhere, anywhere.
We left off about a month or two ago with me having narrowed down your list of 120+ sub-$800 bike suggestions to my top five bikes. You may remember that the goal of the ‘game’ was to spend a $800 … Read More Here
SRAM RED 2012 Quarq Power Meter In-Depth Review
Earlier this year Quarq announced their new SRAM RED Quarq 2012 power meter, alongside the SRAM RED 2012 group set. This would mark the first full new product release for Quarq since being acquired by by SRAM. It would also … Read More Here
A weekend in Paris: Chocolates, Cycling and Running
On Friday and Monday, I had/have work related meetings in Paris, so I decided to make it a bit of a weekend, and The Girl came along as well. From the moment we got off the plane, we knew that … Read More Here
Week in Review–May 13th, 2012
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
Test of the weekend: Battle of the fitness/step monitors
Bonjour! This weekend is more than just two days, for me, I’m making it a four-day affair. I’m over in Paris for some work related stuff on Friday and Monday, so I decided that given I’ll be doing a ton … Read More Here
A look at tonight’s hard brick workout with the Garmin Fit app and new Live Tracking service
Earlier this week, Garmin introduced a new bit of functionality to their existing Garmin Fit iPhone/Android app. This is the app that uses their Garmin Fit iPhone adapter to access ANT+ data. It came out last fall, and for the … Read More Here
Ironman National Harbor 70.3: A lesson in how not to cancel a race
It’s understandable that sometimes in life, things don’t go as planned. And in the case of races, sometimes events get cancelled. But this past Friday evenings cancellation of one of the newest Ironman 70.3 branded races is only serving as … Read More Here
Riding along in a fog
Before we get to my foggy ride, we’ll start with my trail run. Coach and I made a last second change of venue to Prince William Forest National Park, instead of Fountainhead. The reason was that he came up with … Read More Here
Week in Review–May 5th, 2012
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
Timex Marathon Trainer GPS Giveaway Results
Last week I kicked off a giveaway for a new Timex Marathon GPS unit, which is one of the new sub-$100 GPS units on the market these days. I think this watch and others fulfill a good market segment that … Read More Here
Photo of the day: A swimming pool on the highway
Roughly every other day, I drive to the swimming pool. But, I’ve never quite driven with the swimming pool, nor had one driving along side of me. Yet this morning, that’s exactly what happened. On the way to work, in … Read More Here
The MySwimIt Safety Device: Good or bad for triathlon races?
This evening I got an interesting comment posted to an old post of mine from last summer. My original post was about the NYC Triathlon swim deaths that occurred during the 2011 Nautica NYC Triathlon. That post touched off a … Read More Here
A Weekend of Trail Running and Mountain Riding
While I spent quite a bit of time myself working out, I started the weekend watching others work out. Or, more accurately, watching them race. The Carpenters Shelter 10K race was held on the street in front of our place, … Read More Here
Week in Review: April 29th, 2012
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 Bridge Running Path Magical Sound Wall
As a runner, you tend to seek out any running route that offers something unique or special. In my case, I often do long runs that intertwine Virginia, Maryland and DC. The ability to include all three states (and non-state … Read More Here
Timex Marathon GPS Giveaway!
With less than a week left in May, spring is flying by! I’ve been trying to plan out weekends for the next two months, coveting a way to spend each weekend day, usually in the great outdoors. And often based … Read More Here
My favorite workouts in each sport
Yesterday while reviewing my schedule for the week ahead, I realized I’ve been on a run of workouts I really enjoy (or plan to enjoy). Saturday I’ve got my first trail long-run, and Sunday I’m back in the mountains for … Read More Here
A weekend with dueling power meters, activity monitors and more!
After a rather busy travel week last week, I was looking forward to relaxing a bit this weekend. I landed safely back in DC around 1AM Saturday morning. I mention ‘safely’ since our plane had a minor gear issue which … Read More Here
