Gear, tested heavy
Gear reviews from a 225 lb dad training at 5 am in Denver. Most reviews come from light, fast testers with open calendars.
The $750 watch that needs a $170 strap
Review 001 is the Garmin Forerunner 970, a first look for an extreme tri build. I bought this one. Garmin's brightest Forerunner adds a sapphire lens, a real LED flashlight, a speaker and mic, and two headline metrics, Running Economy and Step Speed Loss, that stay locked until you add the HRM 600 chest strap.
$749.99 for the watch plus $169.99 for the strap is $919.98 all in, at US list prices checked Oct 2026. The question that matters: will it still be alive at hour 16 above Penticton?
Race it? Not yet. Promising, and on probation, with a full verdict after 30 days of logs. Read the first look in post 001.
Will it last your race?
The bars are Garmin's published claims for each satellite mode, not my measurements. The measured bar stays empty until the day-30 review logs drain per hour in race-like settings.
- GPS only26 hrs 7 to spare
- SatIQ, auto-select23 hrs 4 to spare
- All systems, multi-band21 hrs 2 to spare
- Race settings, measuredNot yet
At 19 hours, the Ogopogo cutoff, the GPS-only claim leaves 7 hours to spare, SatIQ leaves 4 and full multi-band leaves 2.
The six questions, after a first look
Every review answers the same six questions, in the same order, and ships with a flaw list. This is where the 970 stands before a single logged week, from Garmin's specs and the first-look questions in post 001.
- Does it fit a big athlete?Needs proving. Strap length, button feel with gloves and heart rate lock on cold mornings get judged after real weeks.
- Does it survive dad hours?Looks right. A built-in LED flashlight, with a red mode that saves night vision and sleeping kids.
- Does the battery math hold?Needs proving. Garmin claims up to 26 hrs on GPS only, 23 with SatIQ and 21 with all systems and multi-band, against a 19 hr cutoff.
- What does it cost to own?Spec. The two headline metrics need the HRM 600 strap, so the system costs $919.98.
- What broke, annoyed or lied?Gives pause. Garmin lists 15 days of smartwatch battery, down from 23 on the older 965. The full flaw list waits for real weeks.
- Would I race Ogopogo with it?Not yet. Promising, and on probation.
In the queue
Next on the bench, no dates yet. Each one gets the same six questions.
- Garmin HRM 600 strapAdds Running Economy. Worth $169.99 more?
- Wetsuits for big shouldersFor a dark, cold swim in Skaha Lake.
- Trail shoes under loadFor 43 km and 1,675 m on tired legs.
- Climbing gears for ApexFor 3,100 m of climbing at 225 lb.
Who owns what
I own Origin Endurance, so gels and sports fuel get lab-note coverage only, never rankings against rivals. Watch, bike, shoe and apparel reviews state how the product arrived, bought, loaned or gifted, and brands never see a verdict before you do. Affiliate links, if added later, will be labeled on the page.
Gear verdicts land in the Sunday note first
One email a week. The numbers and the gear call of the week, before it hits this page.
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