Speed Coach?

[Quickbeam]

I've now had my Speed Coach now for almost two months and am very pleased with it.  It's a model 2 with the training pack.  It mounts perfectly in the GoPro mount on my Starboard All Star and use the forward leash loop with a zip tie to secure the Speed Coach leash.

You can change the information shown by the Speed Coach.  I continue use my Garmin 310 XT  to track my total time,  time of day and distance.  On the Speed Coach the displays are set for strokes per minute,  distance per stroke,  speed and heart rate.  I use a Wahoo heart rate monitor which interfaces with the Garmin (by ant) and Speed Coach (by bluetooth) at the same time.  The .fit file produced will also show distance, time, heart rate and calories burned. 

Getting the information downloaded and into Garmin Connect is quite easy on my Mac.  Spend a few minutes with the device and the instructions and you will master it all in little time.  The amount of information that you can get on an Excel download is amazing but information overload for me.  A simple .fit file provides all of the information you need.   

The current speed is probably the most important piece of information you get.  However the distance per stroke and stroke rate have really helped my technique and its great to be able to see my heart rate immediately.

The Speed Coach has a pretty long battery life and I only recharge it after 5 or so hours.  I would suggest you delete workouts once they are downloaded.

There should be no question mark after "Speed Coach" in the title to this thread.  When I use other boards I feel kind of lost.  My only regret is that I didn't get one sooner.

Questions?

I have been wavering back and forth between the Speed Coach and the Velocitek Makai, so maybe if I could tell you a bit about my situation and what I’m looking for you can tell me if the Speed Coach is a good option.

We have a lakefront cabin and this is where I do the majority of my paddling. What I want to do is get on my board and paddle about 15 minutes without engaging whatever device I get. This 15 minutes takes me down to one end of the lake. Once I get there I want to engage the device, paddle to the other end of the lake and back again. Once I’ve done that I want to be able to shut the device off, paddle back to my cabin and then record the data once back at the cabin. And while I’m on the board, I want to be able to see the device. I don’t want a wrist option as I don’t want to have to stop paddling to see how I’m doing.

The things I’m most interested in are current speed, average speed, distance traveled and elapsed time. While I can see how things like strokes per minute, distance per stroke and heart rate would be a benefit, I really don’t see myself using these very often, if at all.

So with what I’m looking for I initially thought the Velocitek Makai would be a great option. There are only two drawbacks I can see. The first is that I don’t particularly like the way it is mounted and I really don’t like that there is no way to tether it to the board. The second, and probably biggest drawback for me, is that from what I understand the minute I turn the device off, all the data it has recorded is lost. So while I am leisurely paddling back to my cabin after my workout, I would need to leave the device on and keep it recording data, or if I shut if off I have no data to record. I should also say the fact that I can’t download data from the Velocitek is not a big deal to me. No matter which device I get I’ll probably just set up my own spread sheet and manually enter the numbers in (as you may be able to tell, I’m not the most tech savvy person).

In any case, for the reasons above I’ve kind of ruled out the Velocitek. I guess one of my questions for you, is given what I’m looking for, would the Speed Coach work for me? How many different readouts can you have showing at one time? And I am assuming it does record current speed, average speed, distance traveled and elapsed time? Could I have all these items on the screen at the same time? Can you easily see the readout while you are paddling? Are you satisfied with the mounting mechanism, and from what I understand from your post there is a way to tether it to the board?

And finally I wanted to ask about battery life. You said it had a good battery life at 5 hours? I am thinking that is probably good enough, but I have a friend who has the Velocitek Makai who was doing some long distance paddling, and told me he had 17 hours on it with still lots of battery left. Maybe with all the extras the Speed Coach has it’s not a fair comparison, and maybe my limited knowledge about tech toys is showing, but I was surprised to hear you say that you needed to recharge after 5 hours.

[kayadogg]

Hi Quickbeam, I'll chime in since I think I can provide some insight based on your questions and concerns. I've been using a Speedcoach for about a year and a half. Disclaimer: I am a Speedcoach dealer but I don't work for them, I simply carry them in my shop and use them. I also own a Garmin 910XT and that is what I used before switching to a Speedcoach. I'm not trying to sell Speedcoach, just giving you honest feedback. I've also been a part of some testing that Garmin is doing on a new software release that will provide distance per stroke among other things, so they do have things in the works too.

Regarding paddling 15 minutes to the end of the lake and then engaging the device... this is exactly how I used to use it. When I lived in Dana Point, I paddled with a training club 4 days a week and we would launch from a dock and leisurely paddle to the area of the harbor where we would start our workouts. I always started my Speedcoach once we got to that area. You can turn it on and then when you're ready to start it, you hit the power button once, it switches to "Ready" and then it will start once you actually take your first stroke. You can also pause it and then stop it for good when you're done. Your workout will be saved until you either download it and delete or until you end up running out of room (usually at least 20 workouts). Before switching to Speedcoach, I used my Garmin and fell in love with the Garmin Connect website and how easy it was plus the reporting and other tools built in. I didn't want to give that up and you don't have to. You can export a .fit file and then upload it to Garmin Connect (if you use that). There's other sites that you can upload to, or you can simply take the CSV dump and open in Excel, which as someone else pointed out, contains more info than you probably care about.

Regarding the display and settings, I attached a picture of my Speedcoach and how I like it to show. Top left is strokes per minute. Top right is current speed. Bottom left is time elapsed. Bottom right is distance. All of these quadrants are very easy to view, even in glare. You also have the current time in the top menu bar but I'll be honest, that can be difficult to read when standing up, so if you need to see that, squatting a little bit helps to read the current time. You can change what is displayed in the four quadrants but average speed is not one of the options unfortunately. Your export of the workout will have that info however.

I've also included some pictures of the way that I mount it, along with a short video showing you how I set it up. It comes with a mount that raises it up off the board at an angle but I didn't care for this mount. I tried it but had it too close to where I stand and I would hit it sometimes when switching my paddle from side to side. The mount is compatible with standard GoPro mounts. They also make a flat mounting bracket, which you will see in my video and that's what I use. I put hook and loop tape on it and then on my board. This allows me to quickly move it between boards. I also add a stick-on EZ-plug which I use to tether the Speedcoach to. The Speedcoach comes with that little lanyard that you see in the video, so between the hook and loop tape and the EZ-plug tether, it's pretty secure. I've taken my board out in some chest-high surf and suffered a few wipeouts and while it broke free from the hook and loop tape, the tether kept it attached. Speedcoach includes a floatable keychain you can attach which will keep it afloat too but I have never used that.

And finally battery life. I definitely get more than 5 hours. The training sessions I used to do were an hour and 15 minutes long and there were 4 per week. I would go at least two weeks between charges, so I was getting closer to 10+ hours. I was not using a HR monitor so I don't know if this factored into the battery life. It certainly won't get you through a 15 or 17 hour paddle but unless that's of great importance, I think it's pretty sufficient otherwise.

Hope this information helps. And if you do decide to explore the Speedcoach option, I can extend a Zoner discount to you 

[Glowmaster]

I have the first version of the Speedcoach.  Awesome.  No data, no heartrate, no music. hehe.

I supplement the Speedcoach with a waterproof iPhone in pocket running MotionX GPS recording the tracks.  Wahoo heartrate monitor linked to Motion X. Playing music from bluetooth speaker, interrupted by the pace bitch from Motion X with average speed, distance, and heartrate.

Next season I am going to turn down the damping on the Speedcoach to average over less strokes.  What do you guys have that setting at?


ed 

[Quickbeam]

Kayadogg,

Wow, what a great review! Thanks so much for all the information. Hope you don’t mind, but I do have a couple of follow up questions. First, is there some kind of attachment that goes on the paddle with the Speed Coach 2, in order to measure strokes per minute and distance per stroke?

Secondly, I’m still not sure how the mounting works. Please excuse my rather limited knowledge on this, as I’ve never used a Go Pro and know very little about them. My board has an “FCS GoPro Camera Nose Plug”. It is very close to the nose of my board. Will this work to mount the Speed Coach? And if it will work, do you think I’d still be able to read the screen if the unit is that far out in front of me (close to the nose of the board)?

Thanks so much once again for the time you took and all the information you provided. I’m thinking if I do get one of these units it will probably be sometime in the Spring, but I’ll definitely send you a P.M. to get your pricing. The only real problem is that I’m guessing you are in the U.S.? I’m in Canada and right now the exchange rate is killing us, but I’ll still be in touch.

[wannaride]

Kayadogg - what he said.   

Not much to add except that the effective battery life of the Speed Coach unit certainly exceeds 5 hours.  I charge it at around 5 hours 'cause I hate running out of battery.   I do the same thing on my Garmin 310XT and have done it for now 5 plus years with little degradation of battery life.  I have heard that during Chatterjack some had issues with battery life but that's a very long race and other factors likely came into play.

A Go-Pro camera mount should work with the Speed Coach but I think on a 12'6" or longer board the nose is a bit far.   The unit comes with sticky mounts that generally work pretty well and allow you to mount it,  and the leash holder,  wherever you like. 

I also looked at the other unit but the fact that you can't download the workout info was a deal killer for me.   

Good luck.  I think you'll be very happy if you get one.

[Quickbeam]

Sorry, should have mentioned that my board is 12' 6".

[kayadogg]

Quickbeam, there's no attachment needed for your paddle to measure distance per stroke. I won't claim to know exactly how they are measuring but I know that it has to do with the sudden "lurches" that the board goes through when you're pulling your paddle, which is different than the board decelerating during the recovery phase of your stroke. Again, I'm not saying the Speedcoach is the best product out there but I've heard that it's more accurate than Garmin devices. I don't believe the Speedcoach is using doppler in it's GPS (PonoBill can elaborate on why that's the best, it's beyond me) but it does read from the satellites 5 times per second, which I think is more than the Garmin, therefore making it a little more accurate. I've tested with my Garmin on my board right next to my Speedcoach and the Garmin reported higher speeds and longer distance. I had a friend map the route with the GPS in his boat and it was almost spot on with the Speedcoach.

Your FCS GoPro mount would work and having it at the far end of the nose of your board would actually be ok, it's still readable from there. A friend of mine has a 14' and has his Speedcoach mounted all the way up on his nose. He calls it his mini TV. He can see it just fine and he's "old". The only issue that I see with this is difficulty in starting it from the water, pausing it, etc. Wannaride is correct, it comes with sticky mounts that do work pretty good but in my opinion, the flat plate and hook and loop tape works the best since it provides a bigger surface area to stick to and allows for very quick removal of the Speedcoach. I guess the point is that you have a lot of mounting options, so I wouldn't worry about that.

One thing that I forgot to mention, is a feature that I absolutely love, but it often gets overlooked. I've been slacking with flat water paddling lately so it slipped my mind. The Speedcoach has a backlight that automatically comes on using a sensor. This is really pretty awesome, especially when you're paddling at dusk or even at night and all of a sudden you realize that it's dark but you can still see the screen perfectly. You can change this setting, which obviously will affect the battery life.

A plus for the Garmin though is that it's a watch too, so if you bike, run or do any other activity where you'd want to track your distance and speed, it can be used for that. Might be kind of awkward carrying the Speedcoach around on a run 

[Quickbeam]

Quickbeam, there's no attachment needed for your paddle to measure distance per stroke. I won't claim to know exactly how they are measuring but I know that it has to do with the sudden "lurches" that the board goes through when you're pulling your paddle, which is different than the board decelerating during the recovery phase of your stroke. Again, I'm not saying the Speedcoach is the best product out there but I've heard that it's more accurate than Garmin devices. I don't believe the Speedcoach is using doppler in it's GPS (PonoBill can elaborate on why that's the best, it's beyond me) but it does read from the satellites 5 times per second, which I think is more than the Garmin, therefore making it a little more accurate. I've tested with my Garmin on my board right next to my Speedcoach and the Garmin reported higher speeds and longer distance. I had a friend map the route with the GPS in his boat and it was almost spot on with the Speedcoach.

Your FCS GoPro mount would work and having it at the far end of the nose of your board would actually be ok, it's still readable from there. A friend of mine has a 14' and has his Speedcoach mounted all the way up on his nose. He calls it his mini TV. He can see it just fine and he's "old". The only issue that I see with this is difficulty in starting it from the water, pausing it, etc. Wannaride is correct, it comes with sticky mounts that do work pretty good but in my opinion, the flat plate and hook and loop tape works the best since it provides a bigger surface area to stick to and allows for very quick removal of the Speedcoach. I guess the point is that you have a lot of mounting options, so I wouldn't worry about that.

One thing that I forgot to mention, is a feature that I absolutely love, but it often gets overlooked. I've been slacking with flat water paddling lately so it slipped my mind. The Speedcoach has a backlight that automatically comes on using a sensor. This is really pretty awesome, especially when you're paddling at dusk or even at night and all of a sudden you realize that it's dark but you can still see the screen perfectly. You can change this setting, which obviously will affect the battery life.

A plus for the Garmin though is that it's a watch too, so if you bike, run or do any other activity where you'd want to track your distance and speed, it can be used for that. Might be kind of awkward carrying the Speedcoach around on a run 

Thanks once again kayadogg for all your help. It’s good to know that at least for visibility, the Speed Coach placed at the nose of the board would be O.K. because like your friend, I’m also “old” (ha! ha!). Seriously though, it is nice to know there are a number of different options for mounting. Just curious, once I decide on the best option for me, can I then purchase whatever mounting system I decide on separately? I’m thinking if I wanted to use the Speed Coach on more than one board I would need more than one mounting mechanism.

And lastly I was wondering if there is any way to use the Speed Coach on an inflatable? This is not a deal breaker for me, but I do have an inflatable that I sometimes use as a touring board. It would be nice to be able to keep track of at least the distance I’ve traveled (and if I could also look at all the other functions that would be a bonus). I suppose if all else fails I could just put the unit in my pocket and look at the distance after I’ve finished my paddle.

Thanks once again so much for all the information. I’m pretty sure it is the Speed Coach I’ll be getting. When I’m ready to purchase I will definitely send you a PM to get a price from you.

[heyheysup]

Hello! I can see the benefits of these dedicated units over the usual Garmin or Suunto gps watches in terms of more features, like cadence, or more accurated instant speed record. However, the difficulty in reading the speed when watch is in wrist can be solved easily by putting the watch on a waist pack (i use one for hydration). In that position is always easy to read no needing to stop paddling. I secure it with a little cord to my pants and done!!

[Rideordie]

Disclaimer:  I have only used my new Speed Coach SUP II a few times, but here are my thoughts:  I am spoiled by my Garmin 310 XT's ease of use for reporting.  Doubt that I will fool with untying the lanyard and removing the Speed Coach from the board, downloading the info and then converting it for use.  Just too much trouble, but we will see.  I really like the immediate average stroke rate, immediate average speed and distance traveled.  Keeps me on task and I immediately know when I am loafing.  However, I can NOT believe that they do not have a cumulative average speed display option.  This is critical in my mind for training to know if you on track for 1) your current mile and 2) your overall pace.  I think Garmin is superior in this regard.   I do love being able to see the display easily.  I have sold my race board and await delivery of a new one.  I don't have a lot of data on my other boards, so I can't really say if this additional information has improved my pace.  I have noticed something unusual though.  It seems that for the first 2 or 2.5 miles the Speed Coach seems to display a significantly lower speeds than my Garmin.  After that point, it seems to correct itself.  I have a friend who has observed the same thing with his equipment.  He also has both Garmin and Speed Coach.  Has anyone else noticed this?  Any explanation?                             

[Foilman]

I'm really getting interested in one of these. My friend had one for a while and is doing very well since using it. Besides, my girlfriend needs something for her board so she's going to inherit my speed puck. Anyone offer any zoner rebates for this thing?

Rob

[Quickbeam]

Thought I’d give everyone a quick update on my Speed Coach. I’ve only used the Unit once (hopefully I will be using it again later today) but I found a couple of things that might be of interest. One thing I noticed is that the Unit itself will not let me enter my personal data. You need to enter your weight, age, etc., so the unit can calculate the calories you are burning. I called the Nelson Kellerman tech support and they told me they just recently became aware of the problem. It is a problem from their latest firmware and they will have a fix out sometime this week.

The other thing I noticed is that when I download the csv file data onto my computer, it does not give me either maximum speed or distance per stroke. The data breaks down into a summary of the data and then shows intervals. It shows intervals even if you aren’t actually doing any intervals, and you can get maximum speed if you look under the interval section, but it would be nice to see it in the summary. Also, for the distance per stroke, you can get this information from the unit itself and then manually enter it into the file on your computer, but again it would be nice to have that in the summary information on the computer. The fellow I spoke to in tech. support took all this information down and said he would pass it on.

There is one other kind of odd thing I noticed. I have my unit programmed to run in km. for distance and km. per hour for speed. When I uploaded the fit file information into the “Strava” website it automatically converted the information into miles for distance and miles per hour for speed. No problem with that, except that for the speed conversion it did not convert it correctly. The distance conversion was almost dead on but the speed conversion was off by quite a bit. When I spoke to the Nelson Kellerman tech support they had not heard of this issue, but they had me e-mail them both my csv and fit files and they said they would look into it.

And finally, I have to say that while it is still very new to me, I really like the unit and was also very impressed with the service I received when I spoke with the tech. support.

[FloridaWindSUP]

I like my Speedcoach SUP 2 but it definitely has some quirks. I think the customer service and tech support are well-intentioned, but significantly behind the 8 ball when it comes to fixing glitches, etc.

I also have mine set in KM and do not have an issue importing to strava. However, the calorie counter on mine seems to be incompatible with KM, because it tells me I burn like 2000 calories per hour. Was frustrated that no solution was offered for this except switching my unit to Miles.

In strava you can see your max speed pretty easily, so it doesn't bug me that it doesn't show up on the speedcoach itself. I don't use the data recall function much on the unit itself- I just look at the analysis after I offload the data to Strava or Excel.

The HR monitor function is pretty useful and interesting.

http://jimbodouglass.blogspot.com/2015/07/post-race-analysis-of-speedcoach-sup-2.html

[Quickbeam]

I haven't been able to use my new Speed Coach very much as the weather is really not cooperating right now. One thing that did concern me just a little was the float being a dark colour. I thought that if it went in the water the float would be difficult to see.

Very easy fix was some bright yellow electrical tape wrapped around the float. In the event of a mishap, the float should be easy to see now.