Uhl in Eagle, ID – I've always thought that combining GPS route information with power meter data would be a great marriage between the two technologies. Being able to click on a point in a power chart to see exactly where that effort was on a map would be extremely useful. So would the inverse: Clicking on a spot on a ride route to quickly jump to that point in the power chart. This type of functionality would make post-race analysis very easy.
I'm sorry, I don't race staring at my odometer or timer, so trying to figure out where so-and-so attacked and I nearly got dropped, is pointless unless I happened to make note that it was 1:15:23 into a race. On the other hand, I almost always remember where something occurred. For instance, so-and-so attacked right before the turn onto Cloverdale. So just click on the map at that location and the cursor goes directly to the corresponding point in the power chart! With location data, it would be possible to sync that point with Google Streetview!
Well my vision of this type of analysis is getting closer to reality. Quarq has been developing a crank-based power meter which should give SRM a run for their money, while Garmin has adopted Ant+Sport wireless protocol in their GPSs that will also be supported by Quarq and future SRMs. This means that you'll be able to mix and match power meters and head units to build a solution that best meets your needs. The Peaksware blog has recent entry on the topic along with a screenshot of exactly the post-ride analysis I've been waiting for:
I have a Garmin Edge 705 on pre-order and rumor has it'll start shipping soon. Quarq is on a little bit delayed scheduled but from the rumblings I've heard I bet we'll see them shipping their CinQo cranks this spring. While I've been happy with our PowerTaps over the last six years, I'm looking forward to the day I can use our 1,100 gram, deep-section racing wheels and still have power meter data when I use them for those A-priority races!!!
