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Is Strava accurate?

Chuchote

Came back from a two-and-a-half-hour cycle yesterday and was surprised to find that Strava said it was 16km; it felt like about double what I'd cycle on a normal little hour-and-a-half run, which Strava measures as 16km. I was grousing about this to a family member, who said "Wait, what, Strava says to Ringsend and back is 16km???"
They said no way was this correct - it would be about 10km. But Strava has been measuring it as 16km for the last year.
So this morning I pulled up Google Maps, and sure enough, it calculated my normal route as 10.6km there and back!
I'm well pissed off, because I was using these runs to work out whether I'd be up to a 100km cycle next month. If I was doing 16-20km every day, I'd be well up to 100km on a single, exceptional day. But if what I'm doing is only 10km, that's another matter.
What???

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Daroxtar

Chuchote wrote: »

Came back from a two-and-a-half-hour cycle yesterday and was surprised to find that Strava said it was 16km; it felt like about double what I'd cycle on a normal little hour-and-a-half run, which Strava measures as 16km. I was grousing about this to a family member, who said "Wait, what, Strava says to Ringsend and back is 16km???"
They said no way was this correct - it would be about 10km. But Strava has been measuring it as 16km for the last year.
So this morning I pulled up Google Maps, and sure enough, it calculated my normal route as 10.6km there and back!
I'm well pissed off, because I was using these runs to work out whether I'd be up to a 100km cycle next month. If I was doing 16-20km every day, I'd be well up to 100km on a single, exceptional day. But if what I'm doing is only 10km, that's another matter.
What???

You sure Google maps didn't say 10.6 miles?

C3PO

I've always found Strava distances to be fairly accurate (when compared to Garmins) - where are you cycling from to Ringsend?

RacoonQueen

I would say it's 10.6 miles it's saying. Strava default is miles.

Peregrinus

Is the Strava app accurately mapping your journey? I.e. does it show you starting at your actual starting point, using the streets/routes that you actually use, and ending up at your actual destination?

The Strava apps get their mapping date from OpenStreetMap, which is also the source for mapping data for many other commercial users. Presumably the data is reasonably accurate, or we'd be hearing about it from more that users of just Strava.

If you're not mapping your route, but just using Strava to calculate speed and distance and so forth, regardless of location (can you use Strava this way? I have no idea) then you're dependent on the quality of the SatNav function of the device you are using. In that case the problem may not be with Strava.

DaDerv

I've used Strava for a long time now but lately I've noticed that it can stop in the middle of a trip. Yesterday it did the same for me.

There is an auto pause feature which should be disabled imo and can cause issues. But yesterday I didn't stop at all during a run and it still suddenly finished my run just after the halfway mark. I only noticed as the flag was in a weird position. Perhaps I lost GPS but this had never been an issue before as its a regular route.

Keeks

have you a link to the segment?

Any segment created would have used the original GPS data that recorded the ride....so unless that is inaccurate.....
Create a new segment from one of your rides and see if they match

ThisRegard

What device are you using, sounds like a phone? Shouldn't be that hard to verify the distance of the route that's mapped out in Strava with google maps.

Chuchote

I'm using a phone. I don't have my Strava sectors public… hang on till I take a look. Here's a bunch of them:

Yesterday 16.7km, 106 minutes
June 26 22km (looped around to go to the bank in Baggot Street and back along canal)
June 8 6.7km 106m (it only seems to have kept half of the ride)
June 7 16.7km 106m
June 6 17.0km 108m
June 2 17.4km 118m

I'm riding from Harold's Cross to Ringsend; occasionally I'll nip over to Sandymount. Yesterday I was cycling with a friend, and we took a leisurely loop through Ringsend Park, across Tom Clarke, along the Liffey, stopped for a sit and to watch someone throwing a ball into the Grand Canal Dock for his dog, then over to Boland's (tax office) and back along the Grand Canal cycle path and up through Rathmines and back to Harold's Cross.

spyderski

Chuchote wrote: »

I'm using a phone. I don't have my Strava sectors public… hang on till I take a look. Here's a bunch of them:

Yesterday 16.7km, 106 minutes
June 26 22km (looped around to go to the bank in Baggot Street and back along canal)
June 8 6.7km 106m (it only seems to have kept half of the ride)
June 7 16.7km 106m
June 6 17.0km 108m
June 2 17.4km 118m

I'm riding from Harold's Cross to Ringsend; occasionally I'll nip over to Sandymount. Yesterday I was cycling with a friend, and we took a leisurely loop through Ringsend Park, across Tom Clarke, along the Liffey, stopped for a sit and to watch someone throwing a ball into the Grand Canal Dock for his dog, then over to Boland's (tax office) and back along the Grand Canal cycle path and up through Rathmines and back to Harold's Cross.

While strava may occasionally have some small errors in accuracy, especially on a phone, they are not of the significance you appear to be experiencing.

I think the 106m you're calling "minutes" refers to metres of altitude gained.

If you really are riding at 8km/hr your 100km ride will be a long day in the saddle...

C3PO

I don't think Harolds Cross to Ringsend is anything like 16.7kms .... more like 5km!

Chuchote

spyderski wrote: »

While strava may occasionally have some small errors in accuracy, especially on a phone, they are not of the significance you appear to be experiencing.

I think the 106m you're calling "minutes" refers to metres of altitude gained.

If you really are riding at 8km/hr your 100km ride will be a long day in the saddle...

I'm very auld, and I am indeed slow. I also tend to get off the bike and spend 10 minutes now and then admiring swans and cygnets or sitting and watching the water.
16.7km
Distance

1:41:46
Moving Time

106m
Elevation

Yeah, you're right, it's metres of altitude.

crosstownk

C3PO wrote: »

I don't think Harolds Cross to Ringsend is anything like 16.7kms .... more like 5km!

Yep. From Sundrive (Lwr Kimmage Rd./Sundrive Road) to Ringsend via the canal & South Lotts Road to Ringsend is just over 5km.

loyatemu

Chuchote wrote: »

I'm very auld, and I am indeed slow. I also tend to get off the bike and spend 10 minutes now and then admiring swans and cygnets or sitting and watching the water.
16.7km
Distance

1:41:46
Moving Time

106m
Elevation

Yeah, you're right, it's metres of altitude.

by default Strava should auto-pause while you're birdwatching.

Chuchote

C3PO wrote: »

I don't think Harolds Cross to Ringsend is anything like 16.7kms .... more like 5km!

Well damn and blast Strava, it's been fooling me all these months. (By the way, the 16.7km is there and back - but still…

C3PO

Chuchote wrote: »

Well damn and blast Strava, it's been fooling me all these months. (By the way, the 16.7km is there and back - but still…

Ahh ... well depending on how much "wandering" you are doing then that's quite possible!

Chuchote

My route, by the way:

Cut across to Cowper Road
Through Milltown Path and unnamed lane opposite to Richmond Ave Sth
Along Luas, down to Nine Arches
Into Milltown Park and along to Beaver Row
Cross metal bridge at Beaver Row and across to Bective
Through Eglinton Tce or Ramparts Ln
Along Baggotrath by side of Herbert Park
Right and left and right to Anglesea Rd & into Beatty's Ave
Along to Fitzwilliam Quay

Mostly not a lot of wandering.

Macy0161

Even with a garmin, the GPS will show you moving somwhat in my experience even if you're stationery, as the GPS loses and regains signal. If you're moving around, and under trees etc it will probably do that more. On my old 310xt, I left GPS on for a club turbo session by mistake and the GPS track had me constantly moving, albeit in a small area!

fwiw I use auto-pause for traffic lights/ short stops/ junctions, but for anything longer (like a coffee stop/ sportive food stop), I manually pause.

crosstownk

Chuchote wrote: »

My route, by the way:

Cut across to Cowper Road
Through Milltown Path and unnamed lane opposite to Richmond Ave Sth
Along Luas, down to Nine Arches
Into Milltown Park and along to Beaver Row
Cross metal bridge at Beaver Row and across to Bective
Through Eglinton Tce or Ramparts Ln
Along Baggotrath by side of Herbert Park
Right and left and right to Anglesea Rd & into Beatty's Ave
Along to Fitzwilliam Quay

Mostly not a lot of wandering.

Using that route (more or less) comes up just under 9km from Sundrive Road/Lwr Kimmage Road crossroads. That fits with the round trip distances you outlined.

magicbastarder

yep, i tried that from the main fork in harold's cross and it came to 8.7km for me.

Chuchote

Ah, ok; odd then that Google Maps says 5km…

Peregrinus

Google maps doesn't say 5 km by that route. The route suggested by Google maps would be down Harold's Cross Road and along the Grand Canal, which would be much shorter.

Cee-Jay-Cee

Install 'Map my ride' or 'Cycleneter'onto your phone and use them alongside Strava abd see is there any variance in distance recorded.

magicbastarder

Chuchote wrote: »

Ah, ok; odd then that Google Maps says 5km…

you're going a very indirect route though.

6034073

Chuchote

Cee-Jay-Cee wrote: »

Install 'Map my ride' or 'Cycleneter'onto your phone and use them alongside Strava abd see is there any variance in distance recorded.

Yeah, was going to try Runkeeper.

magicbastarder wrote: »

you're going a very indirect route though.

Yes, my route is designed for peaceful river views and lack of unpleasant other humans :rolleyes:

Wishbone Ash

Chuchote wrote: »

...I'm well pissed off, because I was using these runs to work out whether I'd be up to a 100km cycle next month. If I was doing 16-20km every day, I'd be well up to 100km on a single, exceptional day....

Regarding the 100k cycle next month, it may be more beneficial to go for longer 'straight' cycles rather than pottering about.

If it's an organised 100k, you probably won't have the same 'distractions' that you factor into you're current rides and therefore you may find it a lot more tedious.

Why not try to do Enniskerry, Skerries, Naas, Blessington etc. Probably all around 50/60k there and back from HX.

Chuchote

It's organised by me, for me, and involving me - unless any of you would like to come along, though you'd have to learn to cycle at more or less a standstill, as you'll see from my average speed

Wishbone Ash

Chuchote wrote: »

It's organised by me, for me, and involving me - unless any of you would like to come along, though you'd have to learn to cycle at more or less a standstill, as you'll see from my average speed

Ah right - I thought it may have been a sportive, charity cycle etc. where you may be under a bit more pressure to keep moving.

BKWDR

This is by far one of the best, most polite
, uplifting thread I've read in a long time with a happy conclusion...