Simple Garmin Question...

mdg1157

Once you've loaded your course into training centre, bring themap view up. You can then zoom in and work out where the junctions are, and then add a coursepoint a little way before the junction.
Then when you do the ride, a little box and a beep shows with an arrow and 'turn left' etc will pop up.
Make sure you set them before the junction to give yourself time to see the direction .
If you get lost, or badly off course (I ended up on a farm track once, and lost the route totally), press the enter button until the compass comes on screen .This shows you the direction to get back on course, the distance to the course, and the time it will take you at your current speed .
Doesnt tell you any of this in the manual.

daniel_b

NWLondoner wrote:

I too use mapmyride. save to CRS then export to my 205.

Works really well. Shame you cannot upload your data to mapmyride yet.

When you follow a route on your garmin does it still record in your history the actual route you take (in case you deviate)?

I am getting more and more tempted ot get a Garmin 305, especially for £145 or so.

From the qoute above - are you not able to upload a route you've done to googlemaps, and then just re-map to mapmyride?

For example if you went out for a ride with no preset route, and just rode wherever took your fancy.

When you are using it, does it actually povide you with a moving map, showing you where you are, and does it call out directions to you, or just provide arrows or text on the screen?
Is the map on the screen effectively google earth maps, as in what you plotted the route in if you used mapmyride?

I would imagine audible directions would make most sense?

I know it isn't a proper useable car gps system, but depending on the method it directs you, presumably you could plot your car route on mapmyride, and then import it and use it in the car?

Would there be any compelling reason to get the 605 http://www.navcity.co.uk/Health%20and%20Fitness/Cycling/Garmin%20Edge%20605___1145.htm over the 305?

Incidentally, just found it with either cadence of HR monitor for £149.99 with free delivery here: http://www.globalgizmos.co.uk/products.php?category=85

Cheers

Dan

SteveR_100Milers

I didnt get the chance to use mine as a "satnav" yesterday, as I didnt have time to reprogramme the course (which means that it became one hell of a training ride to stay with a group who knew the route....having punctured twice!)

I'd be grateful if someone could explain how it works when in use (as in markers waypoints or warnings etc) as the manual is pretty useless in this respect...

popette

hi steve
I use the waypoints approach to plan a route - i.e. I plot up to 100 points along the route I want to take, save as GPX and then upload to garmin. (Garmin uses either courses or routes and I'm not entirely sure of the difference)
With this approach, I get warned about 10 seconds in advance of when I need to turn. Garmin gives a beep and then the screen changes from the screen of my speed/time/distance etc to show the direction towards the next waypoint. Sometimes the next waypoint may be straight ahead as the crow flies, but you may be at a t junction with an option to turn left or right - in those cases, it's good to rename your waypoint as LT0001 (left turn) etc so that you know where you need to go.
Hope that makes sense.
Popette

SteveR_100Milers

thanks popette, by the way i cant see how to import gpx files....i downloaded and installed the latest TC realease from the Garmin website but the file import options are .crs (course) and .tcx , .hst, and .wkt files. I am assuming that the general exhange type is the .tcx (training centre exchange) files. How do I convert Garmin Data Exchange files (gpx) to any of these?? Its not a huge problem as mapmyride can export in .crs format, but lots of event organisers use gpx formats and i cant see how to import into my device...

popette

SteveR_100Milers wrote:

thanks popette, by the way i cant see how to import gpx files....i downloaded and installed the latest TC realease from the Garmin website but the file import options are .crs (course) and .tcx , .hst, and .wkt files. I am assuming that the general exhange type is the .tcx (training centre exchange) files. How do I convert Garmin Data Exchange files (gpx) to any of these?? Its not a huge problem as mapmyride can export in .crs format, but lots of event organisers use gpx formats and i cant see how to import into my device...

that's where I use the gpsbabel app. http://www.gpsbabel.org/

I found this explanation of difference between routes and courses. I use routes because I don't want to be looking down at a map, I just want it to tell me when to turn.

There is a marked difference between doing a Route and a Course. On a Route you are navigating to the next Waypoint, when you approach that waypoint the Garmin Edge 205/305 will bleep and change screen mode. It gives you a 10 second countown and a distance reading to the waypoint. It’s great to place these waypoints at roadjunctions and name the turn direction.

On a Course, once you have selected Do Course and are on the Course nothing much happens until you are off Course. Then the Garmin Edge will warn you that you are off course. I think the warning sensitivity is set to about 25 yards. Once back on course the Garmin Edge will bleep Course Found.

You can save your ride as a Course on the Garmin Edge without any software by going into the History and saving it as a Course, it’s that simple. Map mode is used more heavily when doing a course as you will be monitoring the track.

TBH, I hardly use the training centre. I upload all my data to motionbased - I think garmin own the website - and it gives you loads of data about your ride including ability to download (gpx and other file formats) of your journey.
Not sure if this has been answered yet but Garmin does store your exact journey even if it differs from the route you had planned (including going to a cafe, finding it shut and then whizzing about town looking for somewhere else to eat!).

From what I've read, with the garmin 605/705 you have the option of basemaps - so rather than seeing just points on a screen with lines between, I think you can see that within the context of a proper map. I personally don't feel I need it and I've also read that it's quite expensive to buy those basemaps. I compared the units side by side on the garmin website and didn't think that the new features were worth the extra cash, IMO.

HTH

SteveR_100Milers

Thanks, that's much clearer. Sounds like I should be making routes not courses as I want the turning to be indicated.

popette

SteveR_100Milers wrote:

Thanks, that's much clearer. Sounds like I should be making routes not courses as I want the turning to be indicated.

that's as I understand it but I'm new to Garmin too so maybe someone out there knows an elegant way of getting it to tell you when to turn based on a course.

phil s

Popette, not sure about the beeping because I hardly ever read instruction manuals. I usually have the navigation screen so I can see turns well in advance.

NWLondoner

Daniel B wrote:

NWLondoner wrote:

I too use mapmyride. save to CRS then export to my 205.

Works really well. Shame you cannot upload your data to mapmyride yet.

When you follow a route on your garmin does it still record in your history the actual route you take (in case you deviate)?

I am getting more and more tempted ot get a Garmin 305, especially for £145 or so.

From the qoute above - are you not able to upload a route you've done to googlemaps, and then just re-map to mapmyride?

For example if you went out for a ride with no preset route, and just rode wherever took your fancy.

When you are using it, does it actually povide you with a moving map, showing you where you are, and does it call out directions to you, or just provide arrows or text on the screen?
Is the map on the screen effectively google earth maps, as in what you plotted the route in if you used mapmyride?

I would imagine audible directions would make most sense?

I know it isn't a proper useable car gps system, but depending on the method it directs you, presumably you could plot your car route on mapmyride, and then import it and use it in the car?

Would there be any compelling reason to get the 605 http://www.navcity.co.uk/Health%20and%20Fitness/Cycling/Garmin%20Edge%20605___1145.htm over the 305?

Incidentally, just found it with either cadence of HR monitor for £149.99 with free delivery here: http://www.globalgizmos.co.uk/products.php?category=85

Cheers

Dan

Sorry you NOW can upload your ride data to mapmyride. Ot is in Beta mode but does work.

So you can now easily see the route you took on a proper map. Not the c**p map Garmin Training centre has

gbr236

thanks for this folks
305 on the shopping list.
just need to find the cheapest hr and cadence kits...

popette

305 from halfords comes with hr and I paid £140 for it.
Having used my turbo with cadence, I don't feel I need cadence on my bike computer anymore. I've got a good idea of what my cadence is now.

SteveR_100Milers

I'm still unimpressed with the lack of seamlessness of the whole garmin GPS data system: TC is pretty pants, the instructrion manual is vague, data transfer from mapping software to the device isnt excatly straightforward witness the traffic in this thread etc etc. Now I cant even upload the course file for the cymru gran fondo sportive, I get an invalid course data error cannot open file error message....anyone else had this problem? When it works its brilliant, but its infuriatingly unreliable.

Gav2000

SteveR_100Milers wrote:

I'm still unimpressed with the lack of seamlessness of the whole garmin GPS data system: TC is pretty pants, the instructrion manual is vague, data transfer from mapping software to the device isnt excatly straightforward witness the traffic in this thread etc etc. Now I cant even upload the course file for the cymru gran fondo sportive, I get an invalid course data error cannot open file error message....anyone else had this problem? When it works its brilliant, but its infuriatingly unreliable.

Stick to mapmyride to get your .crs file and just use Training Centre as the means of loading that course into the Garmin. This gives you a course that you can follow throughout your ride, audible warnings if you go off course and is quite quick to define new routes if you use the 'Follow Roads' option in mapmyride.

I have just had an invalid course message like you mentioned though. There was some sort of error in the mapmyride route that was creating a corrupted .crs file. I ended up starting the course again and got no problems the 2nd time. FYI the course was 45 miles from Northampton to Hemel Hempstead, it took under 5 minutes to map including being very particular around Milton Keynes to avoid the A5.

Give mapmyride another go though, I am now very impressed, courses using the .crs format that mapmyride produces are the key though.

Gav.

daniel_b

NWLondoner wrote:

Sorry you NOW can upload your ride data to mapmyride. Ot is in Beta mode but does work.

So you can now easily see the route you took on a proper map. Not the c**p map Garmin Training centre has

Hello chaps, sorry to drag up an old thread, but this one seemed to have the most pertinent information already on it.

I did an offroad ride route on Saturday morning, got home and plugged it into the laptop, training centre automatically fires up, and takes the route off the device.

So I now have a route in TC, and I can see my speed, route, etc etc

I see from TC, I am able to 'View it on Google Earth' which works quite well, but I would like to be able to export it to Map My Ride instead, but when on map my ride, it would appear that the only way you can import a file is as a gpx file, or direct from the Garmin.

The file in TC, is a .crs file, so when I ask mapmyride to import it, it shows nothing and just has 0 miles.

So is the only method of getting a course into mapmyride to plug it into a pc with out TC installed, and then upload it to mapmyride.
Unplug it, plug it into a macine with TC on it, and take the data off as usual.

I can't see a setting within TC to ask it not to start up when a Garmin is attached...

Can anyone confirm this is the right method?

Cheers

Dan