I consider Ride With GPS to be the best site for creating routes, planning cycling group activities, and analysing rides. I first signed up for a year's subscription to RWGPS in 2016 and have been doing so nearly every year since. The RWGPS segments feature can be used in a very special sort of way, as I will demonstrate in this article.
The Garmin Edge 810 bike computer is capable of alerting you when you approach a Garmin Connect marked segment. Unfortunately, many segments that I created and sent to my device, do not work as expected. The alternative, Strava Live Segments, requires a premium Strava subscription. For one, you'll be financially supporting a company that profits from holding historical user data in ransom. Technical problems arise too, and, unlike the good people at RWGPS, the Strava and Garmin corporations are less invested in replying to questions when things do not work as expected. As I already invested in the Garmin device, I make the most of the poorly-maintained segment feature while it still exists.
For those Garmin Connect Segments that will not show on my device, I use a course file. This method worked for me when my primary device was the Edge 800. This bike computer does not have the segment feature, but it does allow the loading of a course. If a selected course contains the necessary race data, a virtual partner screen will provide the same feedback as a Live Segment does. The only difference being the course will need to be loaded just before reaching the start point of the segment.
I will now explain how to prepare a course file that will function similar to a Live Segment race.
