Day 9 – When technology goes wrong…

It was a good day today. The girls and I made our plans to go out blueberry picking. On the way, we stopped at the sports store to pick up a heart-rate monitor for running. I had decided to get another Sigma since it would be compatible with my bike computer. It was a great idea (in theory). However when we reached Oltedal, we stopped for ice cream (sorbet for me) and, wouldn’t you know it, the grocery store had Suunto T1 heart rate monitors on sale for half price! Norway’s a funny place that way. You want a new camping stove? You go to the grocery store. You want a new pair of skiis? You go to the grocery store. And yes, apparently they’ve now started selling heart-rate monitors too. Anyway, to make a long story short, I now have two (three if you include the bike computer) heart-rate monitors. I think that I may have a problem. After the girls went to bed, I hopped on my bike for a night ride. The sun had just set and there was a cool breeze in the air. I had a clean bike and I felt fast. But thanks to modern technology, I’ll never know just how fast I was. You see, it turns out that Suunto has built some sort of radio jamming device into their watches that prevents Sigma bicycle computers from working. No speed, no heart rate – I was pissed off for 40km (I think). I blamed Sigma. But, after taking my watch off and putting it on the shelf at home, I noticed that my bike computer was, once again, working. I’m just happy that I didn’t call the help desk. Thumbs up for Sigma. A gesture of displeasure for Suunto.