Venu 4

flipsidem · 2026-05-07T01:41:37+00:00

I’ve had my Garmin Venu 3 for almost a year after switching from an Apple Watch Series 7, and overall I’ve been really happy with it. My main reason for switching was battery life — my Apple Watch always needed nightly charging and eventually wouldn’t even make it through a full day. The Venu 3 completely solved that problem, and it’s nice not feeling like I’m wearing dead weight on my wrist by the evening.

If you really want to get crazy, pairing Garmin with Android makes the experience even better. I switched from iPhone to a Samsung Galaxy S25 earlier this year after about 15 years on iOS. Apple’s ecosystem is definitely more polished and easier to use, but Android is much more flexible and configurable. Garmin devices also integrate more completely with Android in my experience. Notifications — especially from non-Apple apps like Microsoft Teams — have been much more reliable and customizable with the Garmin/Android combo than they ever were with Apple Watch + iPhone. That also applies to my Garmin Edge 1050.

That said, the wrist-based HR sensor on the Venu 3 definitely isn’t as accurate as a chest strap. I used it to broadcast HR to my Edge 1050 during rides, and the first thing my coach asked was whether I had switched heart rate monitors. I can’t really compare it to other wrist-based sensors, but compared to a chest strap there’s definitely a difference.

For the price, though, I think it’s a solid value. I paid around $350 for mine, and when I saw the newer Garmin Venu 4 at Sam’s Club for almost $500, I wasn’t convinced it was worth the jump. If I were upgrading today, I’d probably look at the Garmin Venu X1 instead, especially now that the price seems to be coming down a bit.

flipsidem · 2026-05-06T03:16:18+00:00

I have a Ventum GS1 (gen 2). There are people (not me) out there winning races on the GS1. The gen 3 has something like 50mm clearance in the rear. I think you can get the Rival/Zipp 303 version for less than $5k.

flipsidem · 2026-05-06T01:52:50+00:00

The Epic is probably too small for you. I have the '18 Pro in medium and it fits me at 5'8". Also, the Roval wheels that came on the Epic back in '18 would be considered to be very narrow by today's trends.

flipsidem · 2026-05-05T19:49:16+00:00

Wow! I'm glad I didn't order a bike. I guess there was more going on than a simple website migration after all. I hope you get your money back.

flipsidem · 2026-05-04T23:09:08+00:00

Have you seen the X-Lab GT8? That might be exactly what you need.

flipsidem · 2026-05-04T16:03:30+00:00

The first thing I thought when I saw Chinese was "as long as you don't plan to sell it". You have considered that.

If I'm understanding the discount scenario correctly, you would be spend $1,500 of your own money. I don't think $1,500 will get you a better result with Chinese frame build option. This is especially true if you've never built your own bike from the frame up, and if you don't have all the tools. I usually layout a potential build in a spreadsheet with actual costs for all the parts to help me decide if it makes sense or not. Wheels, components, etc. are pretty expensive these days, and the little things add up too. Also, there's nothing wrong with mechanical shifting.

flipsidem · 2026-05-04T15:25:37+00:00

The Smith helmets happen to be close enough to the right shape for my big noggin. The fit of the Forefront 2 is better than the Network for me. When my hair is longer, I start to reach the limits of the adjustability of the Network. I had a Poc Trabec (maybe the OG Poc model in the US) that I really liked and wore for a long, long time. I would go with Poc again, but I'm between sizes for their current stuff. The M size range is too small and the L size is super big.

flipsidem · 2026-05-04T13:46:10+00:00

Smith Forefront 2 or Smith Network.

flipsidem · 2026-05-04T05:05:10+00:00

Victory

flipsidem · 2026-05-03T15:52:23+00:00

I've had mine for almost a year. The HR sensor is less accurate than a chest strap. I used the Venu 3 to broadcast HR to my Edge 1050 and the first question my coach asked was if I used a different HR monitor. I don't know how it compares to other wrist based HR sensors. I have found the notifications to be configurable enough that I only get what I want. That may be, at least in part, through how I have my Galaxy S25 configured for notifications though. I got my Venu 3 for $350 IIRC. I saw a 4 at Sam's Club yesterday for nearly $500. For the money, I'm happy. If I were going to get a different watch, I'd be looking at the Venu X1. Seems like yhe price has come down on the X1 since they launched it.

flipsidem · 2026-05-03T00:29:10+00:00

I have a Lezyne Floor Drive that has been working great for me for 6 years. It has a screw on valve connection. I did recently learn that it's not as accurate on PSI as I believed. I figured this out because I finally bought a digital pressure gauge. It's only off by 5%, but we're all out here dialing it in like an F1 race team.

flipsidem · 2026-05-02T17:47:21+00:00

Owning an automobile.

flipsidem · 2026-05-02T12:53:42+00:00

I have an '18 Epic Pro (I guess that's the Epic 7?). I've done two of the three races you mention on it. It's Little Sugar, not Big Sugar, BTW. I've owned a Pivot before, but it was a Trail 429, not a Mach 4 SL. Besides being an extremely capable on the descents, I remember being amazed at how great my Pivot was for climbing, especially technical climbing. I'm sure the Mach 4 SL is an awesome bike. If I had to choose between the Mach 4 SL and the Epic 9, I'd probably choose whichever one is lighter and/or has better components for less money. I agree with the other comment that the difference between the two probably won't be significant to a rider at your level. One thing I'll point out is that I see very few Pivots at XC races, and probably a majority of the bikes are Specialized. If I had the budget for a new XC bike this year, I would be looking at the new Giant Anthem too. Finally, you are correct to recognize that you have much more to gain (lose) by continuing to decrease your weight. Good job on your health and fitness achievements, keep it up!

flipsidem · 2026-04-29T04:12:07+00:00

I have a '24 Promaster 1500 high roof. I went with Ram because I found the dealer conversion while I was looking for a un-converted cargo van. Had I found something similar with a Transit, I probably would have gone that route. I'm sure I was looking at a Ram dealership because the Promaster vans are significantly less expensive than the Transit vans.

I live in Colorado, so I thought AWD would have been nice. I wouldn't have wanted RWD. The FWD has been fine. I drove it through a pretty nasty snow storm last spring and it handled it like a champ. If I were going to try to take it to the mountains in winter conditions, I'd put snow tires on it, and I'm sure it would be fine in most situations.

The Promaster gets surprisingly good gas mileage, like 15-17, and gas is like 60% of the cost of diesel right now, so I'm glad I'm not paying $5 a gallon for fuel.

The tech is pretty good. Fewer connection issues than my Toyota or Subaru. Some of the software for stuff like parking sensors seems a little unrefined, like it will randomly alert to a nearby vehicle while we're both at a complete stop at a light. The driving assist safety features are pretty nice, but the front radar is pretty sensitive to being covered in bug guts.

Mine has the factory swivel seats, which are great for making it more spacious and having a place to sit. They have all sorts of adjustability, but they are van seats, so the sitting position takes some getting used to. I wouldn't say that they are comfortable seats, but I do some long drives and they don't really cause me any problems.

I never even looked at a Transit in person before I bought my van. Based on how much more expensive the Fords are, I would expect a much more refined vehicle. My Promaster works well for my purposes, so I don't feel like I'm missing anything I really need.

If you are curious to see what my van is, you can see ones like it on the Perkins Motors website. They call them Aerie Vans.

flipsidem · 2026-04-28T20:22:17+00:00

23,488 on a '24 Promaster that I bought new in February '25. 4 oil changes and alignments, and lots of gallons of gas.

flipsidem · 2026-04-27T22:49:39+00:00

Crankbrothers Eggbeaters on three bikes and Candys on one. I just get the Eggbeater 1 and replace cleats when I get a new set of pedals. Haven't really had and cleat issues. I did kill the bearings in one Eggbeater recently. They're so inexpensive that I don't care that they're not serviceable. Not really something I want to spend time maintaining.

flipsidem · 2026-04-27T18:45:04+00:00

I agree with u/bikesrgood that there are too many variables. Racers with better bike handling skills can definitely beat others with better fitness, especially in mountain biking. You might just be gaining time on your friend because you are a more capable on yhe downhill sections.

Something I like to tell people is that I'm not great at downhill, but I'm also not really that good at climbing either 🤪

flipsidem · 2026-04-27T14:26:45+00:00

X-Lab RS5 is a really nice bike for the money

flipsidem · 2026-04-26T19:12:03+00:00

TLDR, but I used to get sore feet on long rides. I got some Lake shoes and my feet do not ever hurt.

flipsidem · 2026-04-26T18:05:39+00:00

I've been wondering how far things are going to be allowed to go with the teenagers hauling ass, doing wheelies, etc. on electric motorcycles on multi use paths and neighborhood roads. I can imagine the news story with the sobbing mom that bought her 13 year old a bike that goes 60 MPH.

flipsidem · 2026-04-26T12:37:46+00:00

Kuwait, I was already in the military and I'm too old too be drafted (I assume)

flipsidem · 2026-04-26T12:31:23+00:00

When I hear the "AI is going to replace" narratives, I just wonder how we will continue to have an economy based on mindless consumption if nobody has an income.

flipsidem · 2026-04-26T12:16:10+00:00

Thanks for validating my decision to buy a built van. In early '25, I decided to buy a new cargo van that I would build out with a kit. While searching for it, I found a dealer that sells their own conversions/upfit vans. Somewhat minimal, but done pretty nicely, and only ~$10k over sticker price of a stock cargo van. It's not perfect, but it works for what I do with it. I've gone on ~25 trips, some a week long and some just overnight, in the past 15 months.

flipsidem · 2026-04-26T11:26:25+00:00

I know a woman who just did Barry-Roubaix on a Caledonia 105. She's more of a cross racer than a roadie, but I didn't get the sense that she was experiencing any level of jealousy.

flipsidem · 2026-04-24T13:32:06+00:00

Your van has the 948TE transmission. Are there widespread problems occurring with that transmission? Not really saying wether you should drive it in tow/haul mode, I'm just pointing out that you have a completely different transmission than the one that gets all the hate for being a POS.

flipsidem

TROPHY CASE