Being Tracked Again

It only took 6 months to resolve but I finally have a GPS again. Last August my Garmin Edge 305 that I purchased last May developed a black blob and lines in the screen. I contacted Garmin who said it was most likely caused from a fall and it would be $49.95 to be replaced. If I had legitimately dropped the Garmin I would of owned up to it but considering the GPS had been in my garage on the work table charging and was fine one day and blobbed and lined the next, I got hard nosed and put the GPS away in a drawer.

Fast forward to two weeks ago and I have been considering another GPS for the upcoming Spikefest this summer. Funds are low though and theres lots of racing opportunities to consider as well as a few changes I want to make to the Falcon so I pulled the Garmin out of the drawer and started an email exchange with Garmin.

1st email said that now it would be $89.95 to replace the unit so I called and waited the standard 25 minutes hold time. I got a good customer service rep who said as long as the unit still looked brand new he would replace it. That is an unreasonable request I told him and added that there was no cracks in the screen, no dents in the unit, and the unit functioned fine otherwise, I just couldn't see the screen or a route to follow.

He relented and agreed if it looked otherwise undamaged, he would warranty and replace the unit. Unit was mailed last Saturday and today, only 6 days later I have a new Garmin 305. Spikefest will once again be a success.

One of the issues I had with the Edge was the fact that it lost its charge after about 12 hours of use. I lost 3 miles of Spikefest last year, 2 hours of the West Empire Death March, and a few hours of riding in Fruita. My buddy Ko who also has an Edge 305 suggested the Gomadic Garmin Edge 305 portable AA battery extender. According to Ko, you can use it on the go on the trail while the unit is still on. He used it on his almost 5oo mile ride of the Colorado Trail last year recharging his 305 with just the Gomadic so I'll trust his input. I just got mine and look forward to putting it to the test.