Using PowerPod with Xert
Posted: Thu Jul 05, 2018 10:51 am
I'm trying a subscription to Xert online training app to see if it can improve my training.
I've had trouble with my PowerPod positioning as long as I've owned it. From time to time, it doesn't get positioned exactly as it was on the previous ride, and when this happens, the first ~ 8 minutes sometimes has to be trimmed from the .fit file from my Garmin or it makes me look like Superman, with a 300 watt FTP instead of my Clark Kent-like 225w. (The new firmware update should reduce that to ~ 90 seconds, but the file will still have to be trimmed. Even 90 seconds of 1500 Watts will render the Xert data useless. See below for more on positioning the PowerPod.)
I was wondering if there's some other sequence I could use at the start of the ride, especially now that the re-calibration will take place in 90 seconds.
If, for example, I get my sensors and the PowerPod all linked up to my Garmin 1000 edge, but don't press "start" on the Garmin for the first 90 seconds of a ride, will the PowerPod recalibrate itself during this period to eliminate any stray high power readings? Or does the PowerPod not recalibrate until the Garmin "start ride" button is pushed?
Positioning the PowerPod
This is a suggestion rather than a question, and I don't need a response. You can use it as you see fit or ignore it if this isn't a problem for most PowerPod owners.
I've mounted my PowerPod on three different mounts. The worst was the Go Pro handlebar mount. It was more difficult to get it in exactly the same position each time. The best has been the K combo mount that has my Garmin on top and the PowerPod underneath. I've had to tighten the PowerPod on with a screw driver to get it really solid, but have found that by taking care to position it exactly the same each time, and tightening it well, I've eliminated ~ 90% of the "recalibration" sequences at the start of my rides.
This is one aspect of the PowerPod to bike mounting issues that requires extra care when using Xert. Otherwise, I've just ignored the first few minutes of my rides, but when the Xert algorithm uses this data, it makes the Xert data misleading - even worse than useless.
If the tabs on the PowerPod were a precision fit with the mounting bracket, this problem would likely be eliminated. But I find the Go Pro mounts and the PowerPod mounting tabs allow far too much rotation, and the instructions to "press forward on the PowerPod" don't help because the mounting seems to be sensitive to how much one presses forward. Precision in the PowerPod mount could fix that all that. If many will use Xert, or if people have other reasons to want their ride files uncontaminated by extraneous readings in the first few minutes, this could be a worthwhile area of improvement.
I've had trouble with my PowerPod positioning as long as I've owned it. From time to time, it doesn't get positioned exactly as it was on the previous ride, and when this happens, the first ~ 8 minutes sometimes has to be trimmed from the .fit file from my Garmin or it makes me look like Superman, with a 300 watt FTP instead of my Clark Kent-like 225w. (The new firmware update should reduce that to ~ 90 seconds, but the file will still have to be trimmed. Even 90 seconds of 1500 Watts will render the Xert data useless. See below for more on positioning the PowerPod.)
I was wondering if there's some other sequence I could use at the start of the ride, especially now that the re-calibration will take place in 90 seconds.
If, for example, I get my sensors and the PowerPod all linked up to my Garmin 1000 edge, but don't press "start" on the Garmin for the first 90 seconds of a ride, will the PowerPod recalibrate itself during this period to eliminate any stray high power readings? Or does the PowerPod not recalibrate until the Garmin "start ride" button is pushed?
Positioning the PowerPod
This is a suggestion rather than a question, and I don't need a response. You can use it as you see fit or ignore it if this isn't a problem for most PowerPod owners.
I've mounted my PowerPod on three different mounts. The worst was the Go Pro handlebar mount. It was more difficult to get it in exactly the same position each time. The best has been the K combo mount that has my Garmin on top and the PowerPod underneath. I've had to tighten the PowerPod on with a screw driver to get it really solid, but have found that by taking care to position it exactly the same each time, and tightening it well, I've eliminated ~ 90% of the "recalibration" sequences at the start of my rides.
This is one aspect of the PowerPod to bike mounting issues that requires extra care when using Xert. Otherwise, I've just ignored the first few minutes of my rides, but when the Xert algorithm uses this data, it makes the Xert data misleading - even worse than useless.
If the tabs on the PowerPod were a precision fit with the mounting bracket, this problem would likely be eliminated. But I find the Go Pro mounts and the PowerPod mounting tabs allow far too much rotation, and the instructions to "press forward on the PowerPod" don't help because the mounting seems to be sensitive to how much one presses forward. Precision in the PowerPod mount could fix that all that. If many will use Xert, or if people have other reasons to want their ride files uncontaminated by extraneous readings in the first few minutes, this could be a worthwhile area of improvement.