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.
2
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 2023 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.
Tag Archives: Running
1.4* North
I arrived into a cold and snow Seattle a bit later than planned Sunday afternoon. Apparently, SEATAC airport does not own any snowplows, as there was no discernable difference between the runway and the grass. Both were covered in snow. … Read More Here
Running like a skirt
Yesterday was the Celtic Solstice 5-Miler held in Baltimore. A small group of us went up the night before and had a big ol’ slumber party. Well, as exciting a slumber party can be when you’re a bunch of runners … Read More Here
Tidal Basin 3K Race Report (oh…I kinda won)
It’s been about a year. A year since Peter first started poking me about coming out and running the Tidal Basin 3K monthly race. But earlier this week I poked him back and asked him if he was going to … Read More Here
Jingle Bell 10K Race Report – Umm..that hurt.
This past Sunday represented the last race of the year. Well, the last race I’d ‘race’ anyway. I still got some goodness coming up this weekend, but that’s just for fun. You say all races are fun? Umm…no…not all. Sure…before, … Read More Here
Late for the race
It started first with somehow showing up late to the race shuttle bus. Because I missed it I had to hitch a ride on a golf cart that speed to catch up to my wave. I arrived just in time … Read More Here
Baking the shoes – review of Sof Sole Energy foot beds
A few weeks back I was given the opportunity to review and check out a pair of Sof Sole Adapt Energy foot beds, as well as some socks. These are designed to fit into your shoes to more appropriately support … Read More Here
A White Christmas (Tree) and a run in the snow
But before we can get to the Christmas Tree, we have to get beyond a run in the cold and some weight lifting. Yesterday’s morning run was quite a bit of fun. Well, I thought it was fun anyway – … Read More Here
Philadelphia Marathon 2008 Race Report
There’s really no better place to eat your night-before-the-race-dinner than a restaurant named the ‘Marathon Grill’. With that, begins my (hopefully quick but turned out not so quick) 2008 Philly Marathon Race report. Since the race was kinda a blur … Read More Here
BQ Baby…BQ!
Things went spectacular at the Philadelphia Marathon today. Finished in 2:54:39 at a pace of 6:39 – which gave me plenty of time for a Boston Qualifying (BQ) time. This is awesome in that it both qualified for the Boston … Read More Here
Gambling at the track
First, it was off to San Fran on an early Tuesday morning flight. After landing, I ping-ponged back east again over the Sierra Nevada mountains. We descended past the bright red rocks of Red Rock Canyon National Conservation area. And … Read More Here
Spinning around after a long run
There are few times in my little athletic life where working out after I’ve already worked out sound appealing. I’ve just finished another 20+ miler and my legs are already unhappy with me, but what’s on the schedule? A bike … Read More Here
Loops, Flips and More Loops
Loops Saturday marked the beginning of the taper for the Philly Marathon in two weeks. It included an interesting run workout that I hadn’t done before. It started off with a 10 minute warm up, and then stepped down temporarily … Read More Here
A few less than ideal ways to lose weight
I set off at just after 6:30AM on Saturday morning. My plan was to run about 21 or so miles in the 2 hours 30 minutes I had allotted for Saturday’s long run. The plan consisted of a run from … Read More Here
Turning into a pumpkin…or a turkey
Halloween has many pieces – there’s the pumpkins, the costumes and of course the candy gathering (even if as an adult that simply means going to the grocery store and buying the candy instead of standing at peoples doors).Tuesday evening … Read More Here
A 10K, a marathon and wilderness in between
Let’s try and keep this weekend recap quick. On Friday night myself and two friends drove down to Charlottesville, VA to run in a 10K race there (Bad to the Bone 10K aka Charlottesville Fall Classic). (I’m in the lower … Read More Here
Run towards the buns
Saturday is all about the run. Run far, run sorta fast…but run long. So I did. Just shy of 21 miles worth of bank deposits in 2.5 hours. I was a bit unhappy though as I couldn’t get the speed … Read More Here
Track Rabbits
Just a quick post to prove that this not-so-early-bird can indeed be up before the sun shines. 5:22AM – I start on my first lap at the track at the middle school just across the street from my hotel. A … Read More Here
The Army 20-Miler Race Report and Weekend Update
I had originally planned earlier this year to use the Army 10 Miler Race to try and go sub-60 minutes. But after my coach and I developed a plan for the year which included going solidly below 3:00 for the … Read More Here
The wheels on the track go round and round
After flying somewhere on the order of a 300-400 times in/out of SEATAC (Seattle-Tacoma International Airport), I’ve gotten really really good at figuring out which side of the aircraft to sit on on for the best views (outside the plane, … Read More Here
How do you like them apples?
So it’s twofer post Sunday I guess. I had a really busy – but awesome – weekend. The good news for you is that both of these posts are ‘short’ by my normal standards. Lots of pics, but otherwise short.If … Read More Here
Failboat, now arriving
Within the small circle of friends that I run with on a regular basis we often joke about committing a ‘fail’ – as epitomized on the fail blog via the Failboat. While I personally manage many fails on a daily … Read More Here
Back to the track…and Seattle.
The last few days in Seattle have been great. I’ve been out here for work, but I’m able to get a ton of non-work things in as well.After arriving Monday afternoon I swung downtown to pickup my relevant conference speaker … Read More Here
Kayaking, Long Swims and Rifles
I’ve been a wee bit busy over the last few days – especially since Thursday afternoon. I’m SOOO far behind in e-mail, catching up with reading folks blogs, and really just about everything. So here’s the rundown. I tried to … Read More Here
Going Long
This weekend was all about the long game. Long swim, long bike. The usual long run comes Tuesday. I actually spent Saturday morning baking, making a nice breakfast and making ice cream (which is a post for later this week). … Read More Here
The long run
Given tonight was my usual Tuesday 20-miler night, I had about 2.5 hours to think to myself. While I was realizing the error of having a Chipotle Burrito for lunch (holy crap…no really..holy crap – I had to go so … Read More Here