e was doing, comparing stats, and ultimately getting annoyed by ego-fluffing ride titles and novel-length explanations of “why I didn’t win the race or get that KOM.”

That is not my Strava experience at all, but my friends and I are all recreational cyclists in it for fitness and fun, so maybe that’s why.

It’s amusing that someone is talking about paid features in response to an article that is only available for people who subscribe to Bicycling magazine.

But every other article I’ve seen like this inevitably gets into the destructive possibilities of pushing for koms. Yes, you can do dumb things. That’s not really Strava’s fault.

Personally I find Strava to be extremely helpful for understanding how a ride actually went. Some days I feel like crap, but I then realize I was riding better than ever. Relying on my feeling is just too subjective, I want the hard and fast data.

I like seeing how my friends are doing. I just saw one did a race on zwift today and got 11th place. Good for him.

Not using Strava doesn’t mean I’m devoid of data or tracking. I use cycling computers and smartwatches to track my rides, as well as TrainingPeaks, with a coach, to plan out and analyze my efforts after a race or workout. TrainingPeaks also functions as a journal where I keep notes on how I felt through different training cycles or events.

LOL. Yeah, I mean, if you’re already training and tracking using other services and devices (did the author say bike computers and smartwatches??), you don’t need Strava on top of that.

I’m forced to Strava (fake info, alias, etc…) only because the group I meet with posts on Strava and Instagram, and I refuse to go back on Instagram.

There is value to using these platforms, if your goal is to improve your fitness. But Strava in particular has enshittified their platform, so there’s far less value in using it, unless you want to pay for features on a subscription model. 🤢 Crazy that you have to pay for something, when it’s damn certain they’re selling our collective data, too.