Do You Wear a Wristwatch When You Ride?

[6zfshdb]

If so, which one and what features do you use?

I gave up wearing a watch when I retired and began using a smartphone. I get the time from my bike display and usually keep the phone in my pocket when I ride rather than mounted on the bars. That way, I can call for help if I get separated from the bike in a crash. It gets annoying though to have to pull the phone from my pocket to check alerts, texts or emails. I've been looking at smart watches lately but don't know if they are really worth the price.

There is a confusing array of sports watches out there so I'm curious as to what other riders use and why.

 

[DiggyGun]

I use a Garmin Epix Gen 2 Pro Sapphire 47m. This connects to the phone, front light and rear light / radar.

Record your route which can be viewed on the watch and phone.

Garmin are very good and have a large range of models and prices

Previously had the Instinct 2 Solar 45mm but much prefer the colour screen, easier to read.

Initially, I had an Apple iWatch. However, the battery life was horrendous, lasting less than a day. Whereas, the Garmin can last for 14 days.
DG…

 

[Viking1]

Just a basic Apple Watch. Monitors my heart rate and let’s me know if important information quickly without having to get my phone out of my pocket.

 

[Chibbie]

I also ride with an Apple Watch. Very useful. (And it’s true that the battery needs to be recharged daily, but I’m not doing multi-day or remote rides, so battery life isn’t an issue.)

I would also note that whether it’s my watch or phone (which I carry in my pocket), I try to avoid looking at them while actively riding. I mean, I’ll glance briefly at my heart rate on the watch every now and then, but that’s about it.

 

[rob feature]

Usually ride with a Samsung watch. I don't track rides much anymore, but it gives me text, Webex and phone call info without looking at my phone - which is never easily accessible. It also lets me know when it's time to re-up on the sunscreen.

 

[Mr. Coffee]

All of my tracking and data needs these days are provided by a Hammerhead Karoo 2. Which is pretty much the best such head unit on the market in terms of capability and usability. Though it does have a few quirks.

For a long time I used a Polar HRM Watch. I'd still heartily recommend them. Before I used the Polar I used a Suunto Watch for a long time. They were okay except for very poor battery life. Hopefully that has substantially improved.

I still use a Polar Chest Strap sensor which used ANT+ and/or Bluetooth to connect the the Karoo or my iPhone.

 

[BlackHand]

I have a Fitbit Versa2. Its best feature is only having to charge 1x per week. Not very useful for text/calls/etc while on the bike as (at least on my flat bar bike) you have to pull your hand off the grip to actually see and read the watchface. And if you need to interact (like scroll the screen or hit 'ok' to a dialog) with it then you have to remove both hands and look at the watch which is... not really ideal to say the least. It does OK for ride tracking, but my bike does this automatically now so I don't bother having the watch do it also.

I do like the heart rate and sleep tracking trends, and use it for texts and email checks at work since we don't keep personal phones on us at work.

Probably the best feature for cyclists would be the fall detection and emergency calling that the newest Pixel and Apple watches have. Not sure if Garmin or others also have this now. In your case, phone on the bar to handle notifications etc and watch on your wrist in case you go off the bike may be a good solution.

Black Friday is usually the best time of year to get a smartwatch. Pretty common to see $50-100 discounts.

 

[indianajo]

I would like to but the band wore out, and nobody in this tiny city of only 2000000 will change watch bands for watches they didn't sell. I like to watch the sweep second hand for 5 seconds to count my pulse. It is a radio receiving watch to set the time from the USGS station.
I don't like to buy electronic devices from the country that got me drafted in 1974, got my uncle drafted in 1952, put 1000000 people in reform school in 2018 for looking like criminals, bullies it's neighbors out of oil & fish, etc etc etc. But my brother gave me this one. The Lords of Commerce have dictated all electronics come from that country. I have to own a cellphone in case of accident heart failure or stroke, but I bought the cheapest one for sale. A flip phone that might survive an accident with a car without breaking the screen, and ride in my pocket through the air into the ditch. I ride on road 99%.
Edit 11/18/23 Flew to Houston last 11 days to meet a college buddy who was going to the reunion. Digging cellphone out of pocket and unfolding it to tell time is a PITB. Did a lot of that riding the bus to the airport. In Houston went to a watch shop in the barrio that was open to 1830. The watch repairman installed the Casio band for $5.He showed his competence by telling me since my watch was solar rechargeable he couldn't change the battery. He did not have one. He did take it out and get the number off it for me to order. I offered to pay the $10 to change the battery anyway, but he refused to charge me. Battery ordered and received. I can now check my pulse or check my car speedometer between mileposts by watching the sweep second hand.

 

[Taylor57]

I wear my Garmin. Tracks my heartrate and also distance to the pin on the golf course!

 

[Deacon Blues]

I wore a watch every day until I retired. Then, I stopped If I wanted to know what time it was I looked at my smartphone.
Last year I purchased an Apple 8 watch, which I wear on all of my rides.

 

[fooferdoggie]

I have the Apple Watch butI dont use it to record my rides. that's because it would kill the battery plus the way it pauses and calculates calories its pretty off. I use it for notifications and such. I would prefer the Garmin watch for riding.

 

[PCeBiker]

I stopped wearing a wrist watch about 10 years ago.
I do miss not having the calculator with me for doing quick and easy math. (Like converting $/# to $/kg)

I stuck a watch on my e-bike instead.

I originally bought a $4 watch to stick to my ebike.
I broke it within 10 minutes of receiving it, and threw it out.
I tried to set the time and it fell apart.

Then I bought a high end $14 watch with certified Japanese Movement !!

If so, which one and what features do you use?

I use the $14 watch.
It lights up at night if you push the right buttons.
(Like I'm going to be able to find the damn button in the dark. )

I use the feature that tells me what time it is.

 

[PCeBiker]

I wore a watch every day until I retired. Then, I stopped If I wanted to know what time it was I looked at my smartphone.

Yeah, me too, but I had to pull over and stop to get my phone out of my pocket to check the time.
Now I know the "time" all the "time".

 

[Brian-s]

Garmin Fenix 6 here. For me I like that through Garmin connect, it updates All Trails and komoot. And since I swear by my varia radar, I like that it links to that and buzzes at me for approaching traffic.

 

[offthewall]

If so, which one and what features do you use?

I gave up wearing a watch when I retired and began using a smartphone. I get the time from my bike display and usually keep the phone in my pocket when I ride rather than mounted on the bars. That way, I can call for help if I get separated from the bike in a crash. It gets annoying though to have to pull the phone from my pocket to check alerts, texts or emails. I've been looking at smart watches lately but don't know if they are really worth the price.

There is a confusing array of sports watches out there so I'm curious as to what other riders use and why.

Apple Watch here. Monitors heart rate and integrates with the Cobb.bike and Apple Fitness/Health apps.

 

[Dmac]

Apple Watch Ultra which connects to the COBI app and sends my ride info to the Fitness app all automagically.

 

[harryS]

I wear a Timex. Need it to make sure I don't miss my tee times.

 

[Catalyzt]

Oh, my God, the question for me would be more like, "Which of your 40 watches do you wear?" (I collect them.)

I do not use Smart watches, I don't believe in the metrics, and I don't want to support Apple or Microsoft more than necessary. My next computer will definitely be a Linux, custom-built laptop. I also don't want to get out of the habit of trusting my own body and sensations to let me know if heart rate or blood pressure is too high, I've been meditating for half a century and studied method acting for years, so I better be able to objectively assess my own physical condition from moment to moment.

The Edifice line of Casios is my go-to, and for night riding, they must have Auto-EL, though I also have some G-Steels in rotation. The GSTB200 is quite good, probably has the best display, but recently I've been using my ECB-900 a lot. I frequently use the stopwatch for timing segments, because the only metric I use for monitoring my exercise is pure time: Time pedaling, not coasting, as best I can approximate it (stopping the stopwatch for descents.) I don't count walking as exercise unless it's uphill-- for my health condition, vigorous exercise is more important, and I try to average a minimum of 120 minutes a week, more recently more like 170-200 minutes per week.

 

[PedalUma]

I walked into a bike shop and the guy behind the counter said, OMG, you have Bill Gates' watch! Then proceeded to show a video of it. Anything 'smart' is dumb, so I got rid of my 'smartphone' about five years ago, so will I keep sharp and self-reliant. That was hard to kick for the first couple of days. I am glad to be free of the distraction. The watch is super accurate and durable. It is good to 200m and has a dive watch bezel that I use all the time. For example, if I have a meeting at 1, I will set the bezel to 1. Or, if I am cooking and need to attend to something in 20 minutes, I will set it forward by 20 minutes.

 

[PedalUma]

Tea Time...

I remember when the border would shutdown at 4 every day.