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
1
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!
3
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.
The right stuff–equipment I use
Back about a month ago I got an e-mail from a reader regarding what equipment I use day to day in training and racing. I ended up putting together a quick hit-list at the time, but didn’t really do it … Read More Here
The NYC Red Bull Air Races…and other items in NYC
When I heard about the Red Bull Air Races a few years back, I mentally jotted it down as a pretty sweet thing to eventually go check out (btw, check out videos like this to see what I mean). At … Read More Here
Weekly Mailbag–June 19th, 2010
Here’s this week’s edition of the weekly mailbag. This is a weekly series where I feature a handful of the e-mailed questions I received from the previous week or so. I try and pick a wide variety of questions. Some … Read More Here
Whisky Foxtrot…Part II
If you’ve been following my blog long enough – at least two years – then you may remember the comical story locker room story of Whisky Foxtrot (if you haven’t, then you must click.that.link). Now while he’s seemingly disappeared from … Read More Here
Race Day & Race Travel Checklists
Every time I travel to a race, my biggest worry is that I’m going to forget something. You know, something so tiny – but so important, such as a small-but-required part for my bike, or sometimes something even much bigger … Read More Here
7 New Sports Technology Companies I’m Watching
If you follow the blog, you know I tend to be pretty interested in what a whole slew of sports technology companies are doing out there. I often include links to companies I’m watching, or occasionally mention their products or … Read More Here
Tidewater Triathlon 2010 Race Report
The Old Point Tidewater Triathlon is a semi-local triathlon a few hours south of Washington DC in the Virginia Beach area. We picked the race as a nice ‘in between’ race after Rev3 Knoxville in May and the NYC Triathlon … Read More Here
Weekly Mailbag–June 12th, 2010
Here’s this week’s edition of the weekly mailbag. This is a weekly series where I feature a handful of the e-mailed questions I received from the previous week or so. I try and pick a wide variety of questions. Some … Read More Here
Many many loops….transition practice!
With a race just over 24 hours away, it was time to get in some much needed transition practice. Why practice transitions you ask? Well, it’s easy free time. Sure, people always say ‘free time’, but that’s not exactly true … Read More Here
Withings WiFi Scale Giveaway Results
Wow…holy cow – there were 323 entries into the giveaway contest in the last seven days for the Withings WiFi Scale. Which is just simply incredible! I definitely appreciate all the comments made, especially the ones about the blog! When … Read More Here
Timex Ironman GPS Global Trainer First Look Review
Note: Please see the final Timex Ironman GPS Global Trainer In Depth Review posted here (it’s a whole lot more detailed and in depth, and includes updates and discussions from Timex as well). – Aug 3rd, 2010 The Timex Ironman … Read More Here
Baptizing the new bike
I was going to post about all sorts of things this weekend, from the way-too-hot run, to swimming to making homemade pizzas at home. But…then my new bike came in. And all that went out the window! After my other … Read More Here
Weekly Mailbag–June 5th, 2010
Here’s this week’s edition of the weekly mailbag. This is a weekly series where I feature a handful of the e-mailed questions I received from the previous week or so. I try and pick a wide variety of questions. Some … Read More Here
Duck…Duck…FIRE!
When you cook a fair bit, there tends to be occasional mishaps. Some are minor, like forgetting to put in an ingredient, and some are more…umm..catastrophic…like nearly melting your BBQ and burning down your house. This is the tale of … Read More Here
Withings WiFi Scale Giveaway
I haven’t done a giveaway on the blog yet up until this point mostly because I’m sorta selective. I want giveaways to be big, meaningful and useful to ya’ll. Oh, and kick-ass. None of this half-eaten gel pack that I … Read More Here
The New Garmin Forerunner 310XT Openwater Swim Mode…In Depth.
Last week Garmin quietly introduced a new upgrade to the Garmin Forerunner 310XT watch that now enables an open water swim mode. This new feature aims to allow you to get accurate distance in the water while using the watch … Read More Here
2-Mile Swim Race & a bunch of other stuff
Saturday brought a whole bunch of tiresome activities. First, there was the waking up early thing. That in and of itself is tiring. 7:30AM? On a Saturday? It’s almost as if we’re training for an event or something. Need to … Read More Here
Weekly Mailbag–May 29th, 2010
Here’s this week’s edition of the weekly mailbag. This is a weekly series where I feature a handful of the e-mailed questions I received from the previous week or so. I try and pick a wide variety of questions. Some … Read More Here
Friday Tidbits
Just a bunch of little updates for the week going into the long weekend here in the states. I do however want to say thanks for the huge response on the Withings Scale review. It was by far the biggest … Read More Here
Withings WiFi Scale In Depth Review
I’m just gonna say it upfront – this is perhaps the most well put together and thought out device and set of services I’ve reviewed yet. I know, it sounds funny given it’s ‘just a scale’, but – it’s a … Read More Here
Understanding Sport Device GPS Elevation Issues
You’ve just completed your out and back bike ride out on the flatlands of Florida, yet your GPS device is telling you that you went out and climbed the rocky mountains. Why is that you ask? Well, the answer is…it … Read More Here
Finally, a calm weekend.
It doesn’t seem to happen often around these parts, but this weekend was actually pretty calm. There was no race, no getting hit by a car, no space shuttles, nor any skydiving. As such, this post will be relatively short. … Read More Here
Weekly Mailbag–May 22nd, 2010
Here’s this week’s edition of the weekly mailbag. This is a weekly series where I feature a handful of the e-mailed questions I received from the previous week or so. I try and pick a wide variety of questions. Some … Read More Here
DC Bike to Work Day 2010
Bike to Work Day in the DC area is probably one of the best days out there to get free stuff if you’re a cyclist. Not sure what I mean? Well, let me take you along on my journey this … Read More Here
Swimming in the big boy (and girl) pool
During my day to day training antics, I normally swim in a simple 25 yard pool. While the pool itself is actually a 50 meter full size pool, it’s divided up into some 14+ lanes, each 25 yards across. So … Read More Here