As some may remember, I took up biking again this year. It has been an extremely enjoyable and rewarding endeavor to get back into, and I'm happy with the results. (We'll talk about my obsessive nature in pursuing such things later. )

One thing I noticed is that this hobby tends to collect a lot of IT folks. The field is littered with technology add-ons and technical talk to optimize your riding. I just did the 150 mile Scenic Shore ride this past weekend, and I met several people who talked about some of the technology. As a result I thought I'd share some links of some really cool gadgets and web-sites related to biking. I figure there at least some out there that will appreciate this. If you have any other accessories that you use and love, post them here in the comments.

• Garmin Edge 305 - This is a GPS device that tracks multiple categories (position, climb, speed, cadence, heart rate). The battery power is ok, the price is steep, but the data it gives you is endless. I really wish the device could have actual maps on it so you could see (e.g.) "Oh, I'm coming up on Highway 42 now".
• Even though you don't have maps, you can create a course on your PC and sync it to your Edge.
• Ascent software - If you have an Edge, it comes with bundled software that is adequate. But for $35, this software is well worth it. The downside for most people is that it only runs on a Mac. The upside is that the Animation, Statistics, Profiles, Google Earth usage, and tight integration with the Edge are unsurpassed.
• MapMyRide.com - This is a web site that lets you input routes and capture your training data online. You can also publish routes to share with others (see the link to the Scenic Shore 150 above for one such example). You can either draw the route by hand, or integrate with your GPS device. As a social networking site, I think this site does it right. It's very targeted in what it tries to do, and it succeeds in that regard.
• Using a Garmin Edge to Plot Cycle Routes with Google Maps on Linux, Macs and Windows - Nice technical information that a developer may find helpful on what you need to do to interface between Google Maps and GPS devices.