Strands Review - Win A Pair Of Shoes!

When I first heard about Strands.com a year ago and signed up I didn't have much time to give it much of a chance.  One of the things Strands has going for it is that they offer almost anything you could think of with a running log.  I have tried many running logs over the past 3 years and they all seem to be missing some key things that I would like to have.  Strands has a few of those which I will mention later, but none of which I would consider to be core needs.


I have resurrected my Strands account and have given it another go at their request.  This time I have spent much more time just getting to know the interface and checking out what it has to offer.


They have thought about almost everything.  All the basics are there, the profile, the gear, the routes, and the ability to log your workouts and races.  One of the pleasant surprises was how well the mapping utility works.  I have tried this same feature on many sites and they are either clunky or just not very accurate.




Facebook and Twitter integration is there just as you would expect from any good social site (which Strands also is), however I would like to see a little more information posted to my Facebook profile.  The one liner seems to work on Twitter, but is really not enough to peak the interest of Facebook users.


I have an off-brand GPS that is not natively supported, however the list is quite long of ways to import your runs directly into Strands.  Garmin, Nike+, and Polar are just a few that are available, but also a simple csv file can be used.  I find it very impressive that they also have an iPhone app which is not something that many running logs have yet.  I would just like to see a Blackberry app since I am not an iPhone user.


There are a few things that I think are missing.  I, obviously, am a blogger and blogging is a big part of my running and social interfacing with others.  While they offer badges for blogs, I would much prefer to see a widget that would post my recent wourkouts, races, and PR's.  I also really wish they allowed me to directly link blog posts or other url's in the note portion of a workout or race.  Many times I want to go into much more detail than would be practical on a running blog.  Having my url's clickable is really an important part of the interaction between my running log and my blog.  I also would like a place for my blog to be linked from my profile, it would be really cool if my RSS feed was automatically posted to my profile for my followers to read.


Have you given Strands.com a test drive yet?  If not, here is your chance...... and you could get rewarded while you are at it!  How does a new pair of Mizuno shoes sound?


Prizes:
Grand Prize: A Running Log that is all that you ever wanted (everyone wins!)
First Prize: A Pair of Mizuno Shoes (1 awarded)
Second Prize: A Strands.com/Mizuno Tech Shirt (3 to be awarded)
Third Prize: A Strands Goodie Bag (3 to be awarded)


How to enter:
Create a Strands.com Account if you do not already have one.
Share a workout, route, or status of your run.
Post a comment on this post with your Strands username and your thoughts on Strands.
(some great profiles to follow - mikereneau, marian1984, foxieratliff, timwilson)


....want additional entries?

Tweet this contest (leave comment)
Share this contest on Facebook (leave comment)
Mention this contest on your blog (leave comment)


The giveaway will run through June16th at which time the 7 winners will be selected via random.org.  Sorry, prizes can only be shipped to the US.


Thanks for stopping by and I hope to see you again soon!  While you are here why not take a moment to follow me on Twitter, like my Fanpage, follow my blog, or subscribe to my feed.


Tim Wilson - blog.262quest.com - subscribe - follow blog - twitter - fanpage - call

20 comments:

  1. I have signed up with strands.com tonight. They offer a lot of stuff, no doubt but I'm not loving the interface. I'm getting lost in it. Like it's telling me that I need to add PRs to my profile for am ore accurate race prediction but when I click the link I can't find the place where I could enter a PR.

    I'd also mention that the Polar integration does not work from the desktop sync app at all and on the site it only syncs the gpx file but not the hrm file. I much rather share my charts than my routes.

    But hey, a free pair of shoes sound good so I registered with username gregstransform and I also tweeted it under gregstransform.

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  2. love strands...just updated my post, ozrunner.....great giveaway...thanks

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  3. I'm a DailyMile user, and Strands feels really confusing to me. It feels almost as bloated as Facebook. The thing that is probably going to be a dealbreaker for me is that I'm unable to sync my old school Garmin with the site, which I finally figured out how to do on DailyMile. If I had any of the other gadgets that sync with Strands -- like the Wiithings scale -- I might change my mind.

    However, I'm also a little concerned about the site's security and privacy. They don't allow complex passwords (only alphanumeric ones), and it looks like it stores your Twitter user name and password rather than using the Twitter connect API. That's information I don't want stored on Strands if they get hacked.

    My Strands user name is elainevdw.

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  4. buschdr2010 on strands. I've decided to get my act together. I'm going to lose a little over 60lbs (4 separate 10% chunks); I've started the C25K program and should be completing a 5K by 26 July. A 10K by 20 Sept and a 1/2 Marathon by 1 January.

    I'm pretty much a mess as I get started; but after only 2.5 weeks; I'm feeling hopeful. There might be something to this running thing. I hope it keeps getting better

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  5. Big fan of Strands and Team Strands runner Josh Moen.

    My strands user name is dulax34

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  6. I've been a strands user for just over a year, but didn't really start using it regularly until about 10 months ago when I got my Garmin 305 and used the synching features of that. The site's gone through some pretty major upgrades over the last year and has definitely improved.

    I'm not a big social-networking person so I can't speak to the various twittles/facepage/blag integration bits.

    The synch tool works well to upload my garmin routes, mapping them nicely to google maps including topo. That's one of the main features I use, and is a great way to be able to share routes with friends. The only improvement to that functionality that I'd like would be for it to also calculate (accurately) the elevation gain and loss for a workout. The garmin does a terrible job of that on its own, so having that would be slick.

    I'm a mountain biker and trail runner, so some more specific bits geared toward those segments, rather than just "cyclist" and "runner" as they are now, would also be good. Strands username is rosss.

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  7. Just created a strands account. Seems like it's FB, Twitter and DM all rolled into one thing. I can't figure out how to link it to my other social sites, though...

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  8. OK. Figured it out.

    I'm at http://www.strands.com/momvsmarathon of course. :)

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  9. I love my Strands! With this I can track mileage on multiple pairs of shoes. AND I've met lots of runners! Its great to find so many fabulous/elite runners that I can actually talk to and get advice from.

    MrsFishbread

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  10. Just created a strands account have to play with it some more

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  11. Have opened a new strands account, looks a great site to post daily training, and also list upcoming events... It will take a little work to post recent information..

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  12. This seems really cool! I've just created an account and am trying to muddle through it... my username is runningwithguts! I use RunningAhead, which may be simple enough for my general purposes, but I'm going to give Strands a good try!

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  13. Just mentioned the giveaway on my blog!

    http://runningwithguts.blogspot.com/2010/06/erm-recovery-sort-of.html

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  14. Checking out Strands.com now. Not so sure how I feel about it yet.

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  15. Just linked the giveaway on my blog's sidebar.

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  16. The winners have randomly been selected - you can find them here

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  17. Just mentioned the giveaway on my blog!

    http://runningwithguts.blogspot.com/2010/06/erm-recovery-sort-of.html

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  18. Just created a strands account have to play with it some more

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  19. OK. Figured it out.

    I'm at http://www.strands.com/momvsmarathon of course. :)

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  20. I'm a DailyMile user, and Strands feels really confusing to me. It feels almost as bloated as Facebook. The thing that is probably going to be a dealbreaker for me is that I'm unable to sync my old school Garmin with the site, which I finally figured out how to do on DailyMile. If I had any of the other gadgets that sync with Strands -- like the Wiithings scale -- I might change my mind.

    However, I'm also a little concerned about the site's security and privacy. They don't allow complex passwords (only alphanumeric ones), and it looks like it stores your Twitter user name and password rather than using the Twitter connect API. That's information I don't want stored on Strands if they get hacked.

    My Strands user name is elainevdw.

    ReplyDelete