Hooray, connecting to the rower finally, but bugs!

So finally got to test-drive the Concept2 rower + F6 functionality we've all been whining about for years! Awesome seeing power come across.

Couple of weird details though:

  1. Stroke rate is just missing entirely from a saved 10k row this morning. Won't show in GCM, won't show in GC web, not sure if it's in the FIT file itself.
  2. Power seems to be really bringing out the workarounds in the Connect ecosystem - brings up my cycling power curve (which kind of makes sense but kind of doesn't?) in GC web.
  3. The C2's total distance is brought over, but I don't get auto-split functionality that's in ErgIQ as an example. So I have 10000 meters, correctly. But I don't have the 20x500m splits I'd expect from the way I programmed the row on the C2 side.

All in all, a really pleasant experience "just working" this morning, so lots of thanks to the Garmin sweng team on this one - will be really interesting to see how it behaves in a multisport setup, since now I'd be able to capture rowing power from evil brick mornings!

Now onto the next complaint - where's our third VO2max number to complain about!? : )

  • Thank you Garmin

    Finally had the chance to test this properly. Chose one of the structured workout to see how the watch behaves. I connected both, ErgData app on the phone and Fenix 6 at that worked fine. I did not notice any dropouts and the data was conistent between both apps.

    Let's focus on the watch now. I changed my screen to show 6 different data fields and to resemble ErgData screen as much as possible. First thing I noticed (I was really hoping this would work) was that there is no auto-start functionality like with ErgData as soon as you start with the first stroke. I had to stop rowing and start the activity on the watch. I am not sure if this is hardware constraint or there could be something done in the software to enable this on the watch side. I could see the pace and everything going, similar to when running on pause. I guess you need another hand :-) or a person to start and stop the activity if you would like to record a time trial or something like that. For normal activities this is not a big deal.

    Second thing for me was already mentioned, and this is the lack of auto laps for intervals. Would be really nice, and I guess this is kind of related to the autostart, so both functionalities could be taken care of at the same time.

    Both ErgData and watch activities synced to the cloud and I was able to compare the data. C2 log over-reported the calories, 300 vs 282 in Garmin. I trust Garmin on this. Power is a bit of a mystery to me so can't comment too much on that. One thing I noticed, activity that was synced from C2 Log shows max power 270w, while Garmin shows 279w. I actually saw 279w while rowing so Garmin recorded this correctly. Work, as reported by C2 Log was 106 kJ, while Garmin shows 326 kJ, that is a huge difference. But, I have a feeling that C2 Log only accounts for the intervals and not the recoveries (I did a pyramid, of 2000, 1500, 1000, 500 with 3min recoveries after each distance). So I guess, 12 minutes of work was not missing in C2 Log.

    At the end of the session, I had to hit the stop button.

    Overall, it was great to get the native data directly in Garmin. Training effect, power, and all the other stuff should work nicely with the rest of your sporting life. If you are serious rower, or when doing key activities in your rowing training plan, you would like to stick with ErgData, but for everything else, ad especially if you do not own your own C2 rower but use the one in your local gym, this is a great addition to Garmin ConnectIQ family. I am looking forward to the further developments.

  • First thing I noticed (I was really hoping this would work) was that there is no auto-start functionality like with ErgData as soon as you start with the first stroke. I had to stop rowing and start the activity on the watch.

    I'm not aware of a single example of a native Garmin activity app being started by a signal from an external source.  So I don't think it would be a trivial thing for Garmin to implement and would be specific to Concept 2 rowers with PM5 and up to firmware, potentially breaking things for integration with any other brand of indoor rower that uses the ANT FE-C profile.  Of course the ErgData app works seamlessly with the PM5, as it's Concept 2's own app and they almost certainly have tweaked their own PM5 firmware to work well with their app.  I'm sure if Garmin made their own rowing machines, they'd have all of this integration singing; but Concept 2 and Garmin are entirely separate companies, so integration expectations need to be tempered accordingly.

    Second thing for me was already mentioned, and this is the lack of auto laps for intervals.

    No it doesn't pick up the auto laps from the PM5, but you can easily set up your own on the Fenix Settings>Activities & Apps>Row Indoor>Row Indoor Settings>Auto Lap>On and set Auto Distance to 500m or whatever you desire.

    C2 Log only accounts for the intervals and not the recoveries

    Yes, C2 Logbook only uses the Interval sprints and essentially pauses the activity recording during rests; whereas the Fenix caries on recording the distance and pace transmitted during the rests.  Oddly an activity recorded by ErgData and uploaded to Strava via C2 Logbook, also includes the rest distance.  So this seems to be a Concept 2 world thing, where rest metres don't count.

    At the end of the session, I had to hit the stop button.

    Yup, to ensure I capture all metres from the C2 Rower, I start the watch then start rowing, at the end I stop rowing and then stop the watch.  Sure there's a few spare seconds recorded on the watch, but if you want to do a ranked time on the C2 Rower, you've got to record with the ErgData app anyway (the data from Garmin will not be accepted as a 'verified' time by C2).

    Intervals programmed on the PM5 don't record so well on the Fenix due to the different way C2 handle the rests between intervals just discussed.  That said, structured workouts created in Connect (use the 'Custom' type of workout) or Training Peaks do execute perfectly on the Fenix, you just need to have the C2 rower in 'Just Row' mode and follow the workout on the watch.  The potential to have some really cool workout features on the Garmin side is there; whilst there aren't custom rowing power zones available within Garmin Connect right now, Training Peaks does have this and they do transfer to the Fenix perfectly.

  • Hi All,

    First of all I want to thank Garmin for their ecosystem (training status, load, load focus... ), which is really pushing my nerdy/lazy side off my bed to go out and put those stats where they should be. Great work!

    This said, I am really happy with the work done to integrate C2 and Garmin ecosystems, with my Fenix 6 I am trying to mimic the Suggested Workout of the day and I find that it helps keep my Load Focus balanced. Do you know if there is a way to train with the Suggested Workout in a Row Indoor activity? This would be ideal and I think it should not be very hard to implement.

    However I am also trying to understand the reason for pretty large discrepancies in the HR frequency readings: in my experience, Garmin was consistently higher than the PM5. This of course comes into play especially if you want to to a Base training, but raises doubts on data accuracy in general. Since the data displayed and recorded on the Fenix are coming from the PM5 wich is "seen" as a sensor by the Fenix, I would expect that (although there may be some latency) the data are quite consistent. To try and solve this, today I tried disconnecting the HR chest belt from the Fenix and I seemed to have almost identical data, but the Garmin was still around 1% higher than the PM5 would display. Of course, iI would prefer f there is a more practical way without having to manually disconnect the chest belt each time.

    Appreciate your feedback and keep up the good work!