5 ms·

I bought a rowing machine, not top of the line but still pretty expensive, and I was annoyed to discover the computed distanced rowed and all the rest of those

by hanoz 5y ago

I bought a rowing machine, not top of the line but still pretty expensive, and I was annoyed to discover the computed distanced rowed and all the rest of those stats were derived solely from the number of times the seat passed a sensor, with no account whatsoever taken of how much the flywheel was turning or any other measure of how hard you were actually pulling each stroke. Which all made it seem rather pointless.

rattray 5y ago
Yeah, I got one of those and sold it within a week. Bought a used Concept2 Model B (from the early 90's or so) and have loved it.
pstrateman 5y ago
That doesn't sound like it was a Concept2 rower. I don't think they even have a sensor for the seat.
- drewg123 5y ago
  Same comment but with WaterRower. The sensor measures the speed of the turbine in the water tank.
- hanoz 5y ago
  The sensor itself is in the rail with, I assume, a magnet in the seat. But no, not a Concept2, it's a Horizon Oxford IV. £600 new several years ago. Luckily I bought it second hand, but still, not the bargain I thought I was getting! I did wonder how common this ruse is on other machines. Anyway, doing something on the flywheel might make an interesting Raspberry Pi project one day I suppose, although calibrating it to any meaningful distance travelled might be a problem. Suppose I'd have to get a professional rower in to estimate what it felt like!
- Someone 5y ago
  Indeed. https://www.concept2.com/indoor-rowers/training/tips-and-general-info/damper-setting-101 https://www.concept2.com/indoor-rowers/training/tips-and-gen...: “Between each stroke, the PM measures how much your flywheel is slowing down to determine how sleek or slow your “boat” is. This rate of deceleration is called the drag factor. On your next stroke, the PM uses the drag factor to determine from the speed of the flywheel how much work you are doing. In this way, your true effort is calculated regardless of damper setting. This self-calibration is what allows us to compare scores from different indoor rowers, making things like indoor racing and the online world rankings possible.“
mrfusion 5y ago
Sounds like a cool project for you …
brk 5y ago
Not sure what you classify as expensive. I have this Proteus unit: https://www.fitnesszone.com/product/PROTEUS.html https://www.fitnesszone.com/product/PROTEUS.html ~$1,500, and it calculates via the flywheel, not seat movement. Not sure how much distance I have on it, it doesn't hold stats after a power reset. I'd guess around 1M meters after several years, but I usually only get to use it about once a week on average. Rowing is usually Tuesdays on my M-F workout circuit.

by hanoz 5y ago

rattray 5y ago

Yeah, I got one of those and sold it within a week. Bought a used Concept2 Model B (from the early 90's or so) and have loved it.

pstrateman 5y ago

That doesn't sound like it was a Concept2 rower. I don't think they even have a sensor for the seat.

drewg123 5y ago
Same comment but with WaterRower. The sensor measures the speed of the turbine in the water tank.
hanoz 5y ago
The sensor itself is in the rail with, I assume, a magnet in the seat. But no, not a Concept2, it's a Horizon Oxford IV. £600 new several years ago. Luckily I bought it second hand, but still, not the bargain I thought I was getting! I did wonder how common this ruse is on other machines. Anyway, doing something on the flywheel might make an interesting Raspberry Pi project one day I suppose, although calibrating it to any meaningful distance travelled might be a problem. Suppose I'd have to get a professional rower in to estimate what it felt like!
Someone 5y ago
Indeed. https://www.concept2.com/indoor-rowers/training/tips-and-general-info/damper-setting-101 https://www.concept2.com/indoor-rowers/training/tips-and-gen...: “Between each stroke, the PM measures how much your flywheel is slowing down to determine how sleek or slow your “boat” is. This rate of deceleration is called the drag factor. On your next stroke, the PM uses the drag factor to determine from the speed of the flywheel how much work you are doing. In this way, your true effort is calculated regardless of damper setting. This self-calibration is what allows us to compare scores from different indoor rowers, making things like indoor racing and the online world rankings possible.“

mrfusion 5y ago

Sounds like a cool project for you …

brk 5y ago

Not sure what you classify as expensive. I have this Proteus unit: https://www.fitnesszone.com/product/PROTEUS.html https://www.fitnesszone.com/product/PROTEUS.html ~$1,500, and it calculates via the flywheel, not seat movement. Not sure how much distance I have on it, it doesn't hold stats after a power reset. I'd guess around 1M meters after several years, but I usually only get to use it about once a week on average. Rowing is usually Tuesdays on my M-F workout circuit.