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Start/Stop Activity Timer...

barcaroller
over 3 years ago

I use my Garmin Edge 1030 Plus in two ways.

One, I have no specific route.  I get on my bike, press the Start/Stop Activity Timer at the bottom right of the device, do my ride, and then press the Start/Stop Activity Timer again to end my ride.  The device asks if I want to save my ride, and I press the check-mark on the screen.  This always works perfectly; I've never had a problem and the Virtual Partner feature never comes into play.

Two, I load a GPX/FIT file onto my device, I choose that route in my Saved Courses, and click on the "Ride" button on the screen.  I DO NOT press the Start/Stop Activity Timer at the bottom right of the device.  The device works properly in the sense that it gives me the directions.

This, however, is consistently causing me problems (and I think it is caused by the Virtual Partner feature).  Here are some of those problems:

  • Sometimes, during the ride the device tells me that my distance is 0m (even though I've covered 50km).  I then stop the bike, press the Start/Stop Activity Timer (for the first time), and then the device starts updating the distance.  By then its too late; half my ride is gone.
  • Sometimes, during the ride, the device suddenly tells me to do a U-turn at x meters, but when I reach x metres, the device ignores the U-turn and ask me to keep on going as if nothing happened.  I double-check the GPX/FIT file on my Mac when I get home and there are no U-turns anywhere.
  • Most of the time when I reach the end of my ride, the device plays its congratulatory/celebratory tune indicating that I've arrived.  But sometimes, it doesn't and I end up having to press the Start/Stop Activity Timer to tell the device that I've arrived (even though I did not press the timer at the beginning of the ride).  And here is where things get tricky: after pressing the timer, the device will end my ride and ask if I want to save the ride (good) _OR_ it will reset the ride and tell me that I've done 0m (bad).  When I check the history on the device, the device tells me that I did a 0m ride, even though I just came back from a 100km ride (during which the device was working properly and giving me directions).  How could the device give me directions over 100km and then at the end tell me I've done 0m, and record that 0m ride in the history instead of the 100km ride?

Overall, it's been a frustrating experience.  I have two questions:

  1. When exactly should the Start/Stop Activity Timer be pressed and when should it not be pressed?
  2. If my ride starts before the route starting point, the device will ask me if it should navigate to the starting point.  Regardless of whether I say yes or no, should I press the Start/Stop Activity Timer, and if so, should I press it before or after reaching that starting point?

Thanks much!

  • 0 over 3 years ago

    When navigating, the start button still needs to be pressed at the beginning of the ride if you want the ride recorded. You might want to consider activating the setting that will start the timer when you reach a certain speed.

  • 0 over 3 years ago in reply to cheracogoff
    cheracogoff said:
    When navigating, the start button still needs to be pressed at the beginning of the ride if you want the ride recorded.

    Is correct. Any time you want to "record" a ride you must press the Start/Stop button. A course can be navigated without this being done, but it cannot show you distance values since it has no start point in terms of an activity being recorded. 

  • 0 over 3 years ago in reply to Garmin-Blake

    Thank you both for your replies.  I do not mean to start a war, but I put your answers to a test and it's not what you expect.

    Yesterday, I went for a 105km ride.  I loaded the GPX/FIT route, and pressed Ride.  I DID NOT press the Activity Timer button.  I then went for my ride.  All the screens and fields were working properly.  When I got back, the device did not play the expected congratulatory/celebratory tune (which it usually does), so I pressed the Activity Timer button (for the FIRST time) to end the ride.  The ride was properly recorded and uploaded.  Please note that the Timer Start Mode on my device is set to Manual.

    Is it possible that pressing the Ride button on the screen automatically activates the Activity Timer?  If yes, why doesn't it do so consistently?

  • 0 over 3 years ago in reply to barcaroller

    If you are near the start of your course when you press Ride, the Edge will prompt you & ask if you would like to start? If you press the 'tick' on the screen, it will start the timer & begin to record your ride without you having to press the start/stop button. Is this what happened? 

  • 0 over 3 years ago in reply to hotdogpartysausage

    Yes and no.  When I pressed the Ride button on the touch-screen, the device started the ride immediately (I was already at the start point).  It DID NOT prompt me and ask if I would like to start, and there was no 'tick' to press.  In regards to the timer; yes, I suspect that the timer was automatically started when I pressed the Ride button on the touchscreen, but that would contradict what cheracogoff and Garmin-Blake said in their replies.

  • 0 over 3 years ago in reply to barcaroller

    It sounds to me like you have the timer on the auto start mode which is one of three options. Normally if set for automatic start, you have to reach a speed like 6 mph. Review the manual to see the timer options.

  • 0 over 3 years ago in reply to cheracogoff

    No, I just checked again.  As I mentioned in my previous reply, it's in Manual mode (and always has been, since the day I purchased the device).

    In the 1030 Plus Owner's Manual, on page 4, under "Racing a Previous Activity", it clearly states at the end "Press 'tick' to start the activity timer".  I don't know if this is a typo but it's the only place in the manual where they suggest that the activity timer can be started by not pressing the Start/Stop button (when the Activity Timer Start Mode is Manual).

  • 0 over 3 years ago in reply to barcaroller

    Very strange indeed. So when you press Ride do you see the Green 'play' icon pop up on the screen?

    Sometimes after a firmware update the settings can get a bit screwed up & what is displayed in the setting isn't what the device is actually doing. If you haven't already done so try changing changing the auto start setting to another option then back to manual & see if that changes anything

  • 0 over 3 years ago in reply to barcaroller

    I have been using Garmin computers for about 14 years and all of them operate as I have stated. If yours is working differently, then you need to call Garmin Tech support. They will probably tell you to first try resetting the Edge.

  • 0 over 3 years ago in reply to cheracogoff

    I just tried the most different ways to start the timer.
    And this is how it is:
    After a course is loaded, "Ride" (In German „Los“) appears at the bottom of the display.
    Tapping "Ride" does not start the timer. Never did!
    But after tapping "Ride" the question can follow: "You are at the beginning of the track, do you want to start?" If this is answered with yes, the timer starts to run. In this particular case, the start button does not need to be pressed.
    If Autostart is set to manual, this is the only case where the start button does not have to be pressed.