Strava - narcissistic?

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Comments

  • milemuncher1
    milemuncher1 Posts: 1,472
    Dinyull wrote:
    The best and only way to use Strava is to compare yourself to yourself and chart your progress.

    Absolutely pointless comparing to a mate or random who might've had a hella tailwind whilst sitting on someone else's wheel in a TTT.

    Quite, there are so many ways to blag Strava, the only comparison you can safely make is you to yourself.
  • neeb
    neeb Posts: 4,473
    Yeah, flat segments are a little pointless due to drafting, but once the road heads up significantly the only real confounding factor is wind. That's just part of the game though - you don't target a KOM into a headwind and you look for good days to have a go at particular climbs. On a steep climb a tailwind will gain you a few places but it won't turn a 500th place into 10th..
  • peat
    peat Posts: 1,242
    Dorset Boy wrote:
    You can find out where your Kudos comes from and who you are in Kudos debt to using the Strava Labs project:
    http://labs.strava.com/kodos/ :D

    That is spectacular.
  • ugo.santalucia
    ugo.santalucia Posts: 28,317
    A forgotten segment close to my home town in Italy... the KOM is up for grabs... I've only heard of that climb... never seen it, it's supposed to be brutal towards the top
    I might have a go next month... :wink:

    https://www.strava.com/segments/7566381
    left the forum March 2023
  • Frank Wilson
    Frank Wilson Posts: 930
    Peat wrote:
    Dorset Boy wrote:
    You can find out where your Kudos comes from and who you are in Kudos debt to using the Strava Labs project:
    http://labs.strava.com/kodos/ :D

    That is spectacular.

    Who on earth spent time writing a programme to collate that nonsense.

    My Athlete Rank for receiving Kudos is 1406878th I feel sure it would be even less for giving it as I am in debt to all the people who have given me Kudos.
  • vinnymarsden
    vinnymarsden Posts: 560
    I have read this thread and smiled at some of the comments, and cringed at just how "important" it seems to some people that everything is accurate!
    We live in times when EVERYTHING is measured, the one minute attention span..we NEED info now now now, hence the rise of social media in all it's forms..I use Strava, and I log everything because I just do, I have NEVER ever been KOM on any segment up or downhill, which may I add, I simply don't understand....how in the name of cycling can you be called a KOM whilst going DOWNHILL!! But hey, it's there and people go for it, to the extent that some people go out at 330am so the road is quiet just to "smash" it..get on with it, but not for me.
    I like Strava, because I simply am a bit of a gadget man, hence I like computers/power etc, but that's all for my personal consumption, I don't really care about other people, who I don't even know being faster etc.
    I do agree with the OP, that it is becoming more of a social media based tool but that is modern life, when young people text each other in the same room then what can you expect!!!
  • charlie_potatoes
    charlie_potatoes Posts: 1,921
    For me the biggest plus point is that it is free.
    I couldn't see that I would use it if you had to pay.
    "You really think you can burn off sugar with exercise?" downhill paul
  • milemuncher1
    milemuncher1 Posts: 1,472
    VinnyMarsden wrote:
    I have read this thread and smiled at some of the comments, and cringed at just how "important" it seems to some people that everything is accurate!
    We live in times when EVERYTHING is measured, the one minute attention span..we NEED info now now now, hence the rise of social media in all it's forms..I use Strava, and I log everything because I just do, I have NEVER ever been KOM on any segment up or downhill, which may I add, I simply don't understand....how in the name of cycling can you be called a KOM whilst going DOWNHILL!! But hey, it's there and people go for it, to the extent that some people go out at 330am so the road is quiet just to "smash" it..get on with it, but not for me.
    I like Strava, because I simply am a bit of a gadget man, hence I like computers/power etc, but that's all for my personal consumption, I don't really care about other people, who I don't even know being faster etc.
    I do agree with the OP, that it is becoming more of a social media based tool but that is modern life, when young people text each other in the same room then what can you expect!!!

    I feel your pain, fam.
  • milemuncher1
    milemuncher1 Posts: 1,472
    edited March 2017
    Charlie Potatoes wrote:
    For me the biggest plus point is that it is free.
    I couldn't see that I would use it if you had to pay.

    A lot of folk I know do pay for all the added features. I like it because it's free, and I like the 'relive.cc' thing that you get emailed, after a ride, if you link to it.

    https://www.relive.cc/view/887819360
  • fat daddy
    fat daddy Posts: 2,605
    Well, I am offended by it .... I use strava, and the people I follow upload there rides .... these rides appear in my feed (assuming I am viewing everyone and not just a subsection.

    the feed shows everyone and a brief summary ... distance, pic of the map, feet climbed ... but when I tap on the map it takes me to a detailed page about the ride .. and sometimes people upload pictures and comments and I am made to look at them and read them .... its an outrage, it shouldnot be allowed .... 1 picture max, or an option to not look at them all should be in place ..... they just are using strava how I use it, they should all be banned. some people are even quicker than me, they must be cheating !

    outraged and offended
  • bobbydazzla
    bobbydazzla Posts: 289
    If someone does a ride that I find unacceptable to my autocratic vision of how Strava should be used, then I've started writing "FAKE NEWS !" in their comments section so everyone can see that their ride and any associated achivements are utterly meaningless....

    If the wind was blowing = FAKE NEWS !
    If they were in a group = FAKE NEWS !
    If they drafted a bus = FAKE NEWS !
    If they were on a turbo = FAKE NEWS !
    etc etc etc etc etc

    And I'm going to build a massive wall round Watopia so no-one is able to ride on Zwift and then upload their ride to Strava. These Zwifters are a major danger to the future of Strava, they must be stopped at all costs.
  • ben@31
    ben@31 Posts: 2,327
    bobbydazzla wrote:
    And I'm going to build a massive wall round Watopia so no-one is able to ride on Zwift and then upload their ride to Strava.

    Are we going to make Zwift pay for the wall

    and an executive order banning travel into Watopia?
    "The Prince of Wales is now the King of France" - Calton Kirby
  • fat daddy
    fat daddy Posts: 2,605
    Good luck getting Zwift to pay up .... its been a year and they still haven't mended the broken rail over the mountain pass ... and the brand new mountain roads are already cracked and collapsing
  • ben@31
    ben@31 Posts: 2,327
    Dinyull wrote:
    The best and only way to use Strava is to compare yourself to yourself and chart your progress.

    Absolutely pointless comparing to a mate or random who might've had a hella tailwind whilst sitting on someone else's wheel in a TTT.

    If they have a powermeter fitted this will show how much was down to the riders own effort and how much was the tailwind / paceline / gradient.
    Even on Strava.... A rider with a powermeter can be identified on a segment by a lightning bolt symbol next to the power figure. The other "power figures" without this lightning bolt symbol are just a wild guess generated from a Strava algorithm.
    For example, theres a road near me that I always thought we were flying along it. But after buying a powermeter I soon realised that speed is irrelevant when you're only doing 70w down that road.
    "The Prince of Wales is now the King of France" - Calton Kirby
  • charlie_potatoes
    charlie_potatoes Posts: 1,921
    ben@31 wrote:
    Dinyull wrote:
    The best and only way to use Strava is to compare yourself to yourself and chart your progress.

    Absolutely pointless comparing to a mate or random who might've had a hella tailwind whilst sitting on someone else's wheel in a TTT.

    If they have a powermeter fitted this will show how much was down to the riders own effort and how much was the tailwind / paceline / gradient.
    Even on Strava.... A rider with a powermeter can be identified on a segment by a lightning bolt symbol next to the power figure. The other "power figures" without this lightning bolt symbol are just a wild guess generated from a Strava algorithm.
    For example, theres a road near me that I always thought we were flying along it. But after buying a powermeter I soon realised that speed is irrelevant when you're only doing 70w down that road.

    I refer you to a reply that I made on the previous page :)


    www.fitfiletools.com :wink:
    "You really think you can burn off sugar with exercise?" downhill paul
  • KevinA
    KevinA Posts: 492
    Teebs_123 wrote:
    Charlie Potatoes wrote:
    Teebs_123 wrote:
    Is it?

    I used to follow Strava Wankers when I was on Twitter, which showed Strava for all its bad points, but is it getting worse for Narcissism etc?

    Our local club Strava group has been inundated with some of the local University riders and jesus, every ride is 10 photos with a minute by minute description of their ride. A guy local to me has 5,000 followers, does the same route every other day and gets 1000 x Kudos? - what's the point?

    It's a great tool when used correctly, but it's almost becoming as bad as Facebook

    Moan over :D

    Totally agree. I have a love hate relationship with Strava. I like to click the kudos button though as it is a good way to 'stay in touch' with other riders that I don't see every week.

    Don't get me wrong, someone does a good ride and they'll get Kudos, but receiving 500+ for a 5 miles ride is just chuffin odd.

    Then again it all depends on the rider, if you are clinically obese or have just come back from a injury and 5 miles is a challenge you may deserve more kudos than the seasoned cyclist doing a 100 mile route.

    I love strava, love planning routes and then doing them or getting lost and then reviewing on the map when I upload my ride.

    I dont care about the numbers in a competitive way but it is good to see average power going up, or fastest 40k, fastest miles etc.
  • imafatman
    imafatman Posts: 351
    VinnyMarsden wrote:
    I have read this thread and smiled at some of the comments, and cringed at just how "important" it seems to some people that everything is accurate!

    Same. I don't see why people get so worked up about it.

    I love Strava. It's a great tool for training and measuring your progress. It's also great for keeping up to date with the progress of friends/family. I've been having a Strava duel with my cousin - we've been egging eachother on posting bigger and bigger rides and seeing who can do the most number of miles in a week.

    I couldn't give a flying f--k if someone rides on the back all day or uses a kite to catch a tail wind. There will always be "cheats" - that's their own business and frankly I feel sorry for anyone who feels the need to cheat to get social kudos. It's becoming a depressing epidemic these days but I ignore it becuase if I let affect me then I'd be just as sad as those lot.
  • charlie_potatoes
    charlie_potatoes Posts: 1,921
    imafatman wrote:
    VinnyMarsden wrote:
    I have read this thread and smiled at some of the comments, and cringed at just how "important" it seems to some people that everything is accurate!

    Same. I don't see why people get so worked up about it.

    I love Strava. It's a great tool for training and measuring your progress. It's also great for keeping up to date with the progress of friends/family. I've been having a Strava duel with my cousin - we've been egging eachother on posting bigger and bigger rides and seeing who can do the most number of miles in a week.

    I couldn't give a flying f--k if someone rides on the back all day or uses a kite to catch a tail wind. There will always be "cheats" - that's their own business and frankly I feel sorry for anyone who feels the need to cheat to get social kudos. It's becoming a depressing epidemic these days but I ignore it becuase if I let affect me then I'd be just as sad as those lot.

    I bet your cousin is winning.
    "You really think you can burn off sugar with exercise?" downhill paul
  • fat daddy
    fat daddy Posts: 2,605
    imafatman wrote:
    There will always be "cheats" .


    its the point that people think its cheating that worries me .... pretty sure there isn't a strava rule book that states how to legitimately ride. The only rules are the ones you bestow upon yourself.
  • ben@31
    ben@31 Posts: 2,327
    fat daddy wrote:
    imafatman wrote:
    There will always be "cheats" .


    its the point that people think its cheating that worries me .... pretty sure there isn't a strava rule book that states how to legitimately ride. The only rules are the ones you bestow upon yourself.

    Everyone who's faster is a cheat, apparently ?

    Everyone with a better bike is a Dentist who's all the gear no idea, apparently.
    "The Prince of Wales is now the King of France" - Calton Kirby
  • imafatman
    imafatman Posts: 351
    Charlie Potatoes wrote:
    I bet your cousin is winning.

    Pretty close until this weekend when I posted a couple of big rides so he's got some catching up to do this week. Fail to see the point of your comment though.
    fat daddy wrote:
    imafatman wrote:
    There will always be "cheats" .
    its the point that people think its cheating that worries me .... pretty sure there isn't a strava rule book that states how to legitimately ride. The only rules are the ones you bestow upon yourself.

    I agree, drafting, tailwinds, all just cycling. However using Strava on your moped - now that's definitely cheating but it doesn't bother me what sad people do in their spare time to boost their sad e-penis points.
  • dinyull
    dinyull Posts: 2,979
    Does that actually happen? Moped strava that is. I mean does anyone actually do that, or is it some urban myth that originated in a internet message board somewhere long ago?

    If they do, it's working. Winding up people who should know better.

    But they don't.
  • fat daddy
    fat daddy Posts: 2,605
    Dinyull wrote:
    Does that actually happen? .


    I dunno ... one of the true joys in life is not being good enough at something to have to worry about being the absolute best.

    If someone is going to use moped to cheat, they are not going to do it to get 15th on a climb ... they are going to try to pip 1st by a believable amount

    so that leaves at least 10 people that are legitimately better than me .. and by some margin
  • ryan_w-2
    ryan_w-2 Posts: 1,162
    I had a shake-down on Saturday round RP and felt like giving a little dig on the way home:

    https://www.strava.com/activities/913773721#22286715336

    Very strange speed data, definitely some GPS issues going on there...

    Got the KOM by 5 seconds, that made my weekend since my life is Strava... :roll:
    Specialized Allez Sprint Disc --- Specialized S-Works SL7

    IG: RhinosWorkshop
  • thomasmorris
    thomasmorris Posts: 373
    Dinyull wrote:
    Does that actually happen? Moped strava that is. I mean does anyone actually do that, or is it some urban myth that originated in a internet message board somewhere long ago?

    If they do, it's working. Winding up people who should know better.

    But they don't.

    I think it does. Like i said up thread I had a bit of strava stalker. They posted a ride which I think was in a car or scooter. The route led from near their house, paused along 10 mile of motorway, then then switched back on at my junction and did three or four segments which I had KOM on. It was Sunday, and would have been a very strong headwind on those segments, and they took the KOM doing 40 mph for 2-3 km on flat roads.

    Just completely bizarre behavior.

    Latterly their rides were slightly more believable, but looked either ridden on an electric bike (slow average but quick up hills) or altered using a writer tool. Maybe they worked out they didn't need to drive around to create fake rides? Who knows.

    The person must have been quite a fan of cycling, as their profile names were often semi-famous cyclists, including more obscure bloggers like 'DurienRider' etc. which I wouldn't expect the average Joe to know.

    It seems like they were doing it 'just to annoy people on the leader boards'... but it seems such a very strange thing to do. Most the people at the top of the local segments race, and wouldn't care about their strava position. I wasn't bothered myself, until they came near my house and then started creating profiles in my name with my picture, then I reported all the accounts to strava support (who swiftly deleted them).

    Whoever it was created dozens of accounts, seemingly just to annoy or prove some point to people on some electronic leader board, who don't care anyway? Some 'trolling' on the internet is taking the piss to prove a point, or to wind up people who are too highly strung for their won good... but if the people the trolls are winding up don't care, aren't the trolls just waiting their own time?

    Milemuncher1 says he did similar this ("to annoy the stravassholes"), I would be interested to know why? Presumably Milemuncher1 doesn't know these people, he has no idea how seriously they're taking it or not, or what they're like in real life?
  • charlie_potatoes
    charlie_potatoes Posts: 1,921
    imafatman wrote:
    Charlie Potatoes wrote:
    I bet your cousin is winning.

    Pretty close until this weekend when I posted a couple of big rides so he's got some catching up to do this week. Fail to see the point of your comment though.

    Does your cousin care as much as you do about not caring?
    "You really think you can burn off sugar with exercise?" downhill paul
  • dinyull
    dinyull Posts: 2,979
    Charlie Potatoes wrote:
    imafatman wrote:
    Charlie Potatoes wrote:
    I bet your cousin is winning.

    Pretty close until this weekend when I posted a couple of big rides so he's got some catching up to do this week. Fail to see the point of your comment though.

    Does your cousin care as much as you do about not caring?

    Kudos
  • benjamess
    benjamess Posts: 159
    Dinyull wrote:
    Charlie Potatoes wrote:
    imafatman wrote:
    Charlie Potatoes wrote:
    I bet your cousin is winning.

    Pretty close until this weekend when I posted a couple of big rides so he's got some catching up to do this week. Fail to see the point of your comment though.

    Does your cousin care as much as you do about not caring?

    Kudos

    be careful giving that stuff out to people you don't know :roll:
  • imafatman
    imafatman Posts: 351
    Charlie Potatoes wrote:
    imafatman wrote:
    Charlie Potatoes wrote:
    I bet your cousin is winning.

    Pretty close until this weekend when I posted a couple of big rides so he's got some catching up to do this week. Fail to see the point of your comment though.

    Does your cousin care as much as you do about not caring?

    Yawn. Still fail to understand your point. Do you intentionally speak in riddles or are you just mentally slow?

    I suppose I will have to make a guess in that you are trying to say I am contradicting myself.

    I enjoy Strava because I keep up with friends and family and get to see their progress despite the fact we are separated by thousands of miles. I still don't give a flying f--k about internet randos do nor how many miles they posted drafting at the back.
  • charlie_potatoes
    charlie_potatoes Posts: 1,921
    imafatman wrote:
    Charlie Potatoes wrote:
    imafatman wrote:
    Charlie Potatoes wrote:
    I bet your cousin is winning.

    Pretty close until this weekend when I posted a couple of big rides so he's got some catching up to do this week. Fail to see the point of your comment though.

    Does your cousin care as much as you do about not caring?

    Yawn. Still fail to understand your point. Do you intentionally speak in riddles or are you just mentally slow?

    I suppose I will have to make a guess in that you are trying to say I am contradicting myself.

    I enjoy Strava because I keep up with friends and family and get to see their progress despite the fact we are separated by thousands of miles. I still don't give a flying f--k about internet randos do nor how many miles they posted drafting at the back.

    I'm just trying to befriend you so I can get closer to your cousin. She sounds nice!
    "You really think you can burn off sugar with exercise?" downhill paul

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