Garmin Vector 3's on a MTB?

[WrightJnr]

Have ordered a 4iiiii from CRC and will cancel the Vector order. Many thanks for the help guys.

Not a single days issue with my 4iiii on my road bike. Less than 2 min to install. Good choice.

 

And as with most PM’s, stick to 3 second power for your head unit and don’t forget to exclude “zeros” for your average power.

[madbradd]

Just a thought. Are shimano road and MTB cranks compatible? Like if you got a 4iiii Ultegra left arm, would it fit on an XT spindle? Assuming they are the same crank lengths.

 

If this were the case you could slap the road 4iiii on your MTB cranks, then after your stage race move it to your road bike and put your non-power crank back on your MTB

The arm offset is different. MTB cranks stick out about 10-15 mm further (I recently checked as there is a cheap XT unit in the classifieds and I was going to put it on my 105 crank). The clamp section of the MTB arm also looks alot deeper/thicker. This is looking at a 105/5800 vs an XT785 crank.

[aquaratza]

I'm a bit late to the party, but for a time (a year) I used PowerTap pedals on an MTB... offroad. They survived really well, but the setup was definitely sub-standard for offroad use. I particularly remember having to walk through some mud and also having to climb over fences (Tygerberg MTB trail above Oatlands) - but yes, they worked. The bike was an old carbon dual suspension 26'er. The combo worked well for lighter trails and gravel.

 

I eventually got a SRAM XX1 Quarq, which is spider based. I was so impressed that I got a second unit. Best of luck to the OP - power meters rawk! It's great having the long term data and seeing a progression (thank you intervals.icu/David Tinker).

[Jehosefat]

And as with most PM’s, stick to 3 second power for your head unit and don’t forget to exclude “zeros” for your average power.

 

Agree on the 3s power but  why would you exclude zeros? You are massively overstating your power output if you exclude them because it includes all the benefit of the recovery without taking into account the actual recovery time...

 

For cadence averaging I would agree that you should exclude zeros but certainly not power.

[J Wakefield]

I have recently started working with a coach preparing for a stage race/event in May/June, who plans my workouts around power. On the Kickr during the week, this is perfect, but my weekend outdoor rides are based on my perceived rate of exertion or heart rate, neither of which I am very good at being aware of. I was looking at a power meter option for the MTB and popped into CRC to look at the 4iiii option. The guys there suggested that, as I ride both MTB and road, and only really want to measure power on the MTB leading up to this event in May, after which it is more useful to me on the road bike, and that most of my current training rides with the MTB are on the road, that I get a Vector 3S pedal power meter and train with my road shoes. I went ahead and ordered, but am keen to get a second opinion before they arrive and I start using them. 

 

Does it make sense to ride the MTB with road shoes, albeit only on the road? I will revert to normal pedals and shoes off road? Is the above a good solution to my needs? 

 

Any help much appreciated 

 

nothing wrong at all if you ride with road shoes on the mtb on the road. you want to collect data so go for it.

 

you could even go off road but then I would suggest gravel and easy type roads where you not having to unclip and walk etc. 

[WrightJnr]

Agree on the 3s power but why would you exclude zeros? You are massively overstating your power output if you exclude them because it includes all the benefit of the recovery without taking into account the actual recovery time...

 

For cadence averaging I would agree that you should exclude zeros but certainly not power.

Agree, sorry that was a typo. Truth be told I only look at Normalized Power, IF and TSS after a ride.

[Jbr]

you can use NP on your datafields as it then gives you an idea of where you are compared to what you are used to, but after your ride only average power is taken into account on strava etc, I don't see how you cancel zeros from your average anyways ? except auto pause but that only works if you stop, not if power input stops

[Jehosefat]

you can use NP on your datafields as it then gives you an idea of where you are compared to what you are used to, but after your ride only average power is taken into account on strava etc, I don't see how you cancel zeros from your average anyways ? except auto pause but that only works if you stop, not if power input stops

 

It's an option on the Garmin bike computers to include or exclude zeros from power and cadence averages. And that average is passed through to Strava. Excluding the zeros is pretty easy, you just divide total work (or pedal strokes) by total pedaling time rather than by total time.

 

E.g. in the Amashova last year I did a 2:57 with 12306 pedal strokes (and 2:19 of actual pedaling time). I've got zeros removed from the average on my Garmin which gives me an average cadence of 88rpm (12306 r / 139 min) and that is the same average cadence that I see in the Strava activity. Including the zeros, the average would have been about 69 or 70rpm (12306 r / 177 min).

[Jbr]

I actually checked, I've got do not include 0 for cadence, but include zeros for power. I didn't even know of that option

[BigDL]

Just arrived