Operation Gadget

Category: Fitness Gadgets

Fitness-Related Applications Popping Up for Google Maps

Reading Time: < 1 minuteEarlier today my friend Maria Norton sent me the following message: Hi Dave, Hope you’re getting settled into the new place. Just wondering, have you heard about the

August 2, 2005
Polar Precision Performance Software Update Provides New Features and Calendar Themes

Reading Time: 2 minutesPolar Precision Performance Software: A new update has been released which includesnew screen themes like this. [ Image: Polar Electro ] I recently received word that Polar Electro has released a free update to its Polar Precision Performance Software for that comes with its high end Heart Rate Monitors like the Polar…

August 1, 2005
Lance Wins Stage 20 Assuring a Seventh Yellow Jersey, Others Have Equipment Problems

Reading Time: 2 minutesLance Armstrong clinched a seventh victory in the Tour de France today by decisively winning the Stage 20 Time Trial. I was not surprised that Lance won or that Jan Ullrich finished a close second. What did surprise me, however, was the relatively poor performance of Ivan Basso and the incredibly bad…

July 23, 2005
Bike-Powered VoIP System Created for Use in Developing Countries

Reading Time: < 1 minuteJonathan Maus told us that Inveneo has developed a bicycle-powered, Linux-based VoIP phone system for use in developing countries. No kidding. I found an explanation of a Pedal and Solar Powered PC and Communications System on the Inveneo web site. This article does not discuss the inclusion of the Asterisk open…

July 20, 2005
SRM and Polar Using Auxiliary Transmitters to Boost Signals from Bike Computers

Reading Time: < 1 minuteOne of the questions I asked in the recent article Heart Rate Monitor Data Integrated into OLN Broadcasts was how is heart rate monitor data transmitted beyond the receiver on rider’s bikes? The standard transmitters for most heart rate monitors have a range of about 2 meters (6 feet). The other…

July 13, 2005
Heart Rate Monitor Data Integrated into OLN Broadcasts

Reading Time: 2 minutesPolar Electro has gotten a lot of airtime in the first week of the Tour de France by providing live data from their heart rate monitors in use by many riders. Data from their heart rate monitors appears in rider identification graphics, with the rider’s current heart rate, maximum heart rate, and…

July 9, 2005
Lance Should be Glad that Time Trial Helmets Must Protect Riders’ Heads

Reading Time: < 1 minuteI haven’t been doing as much reading as I normally do during the run up to the Tour de France. Most of you who read Operation Gadget regularly know that we moved last week and we’re still unpacking. In spite of my preoccupation, I saw the news about Lance Armstrong’s training…

June 30, 2005
Closeup Photos of Fred Rodriguez’s Bike

Reading Time: < 1 minuteFred Rodriguez’s Bike photographed after the Wachovia Cycling Series- Lancaster Race. See more in the 2005 Wachovia Cycling Series Photo Gallery. [ Photo: Dave Aiello ] While everyone else at the Wachovia Cycling Series- Lancaster race was asking questions about race tactics, I was taking photos of Davitamon-Lotto rider Fred Rodriguez’s…

June 4, 2005
Altitrainer Seized by Italian National Police in Investigation After Stage 10

Reading Time: 2 minutesAn Altitrainer appears to be a training device used in conjunction with a stationary bike or treadmill. Is this the device that was seized by Italian police? [ Photo: SMTEC, S.A. ]. Robbie McEwen of Davitamon-Lotto edged Fassa Bortolo rider Alessandro Petacchi in the Stage 10 finishing sprint into Rossato Veneto. Petacchi…

May 20, 2005