Bad elevation data from outside rides

Hi all.
My outside rides automatically sync from garmin connect / strava to trainerroad, carrying over the elevation data from my garmin head unit. This is always way out, so I use the elevation correction on both garmin connect and strava to properly reflect the ride. Is there any way to correct the elevation data on trainerroad? Or perhaps to re-sync the ride? Ideally I’d just like it to pick up the corrected data from garmin connect

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Have you contacted TR support about this or posted on the Ask a Cycling Coach Podcast Group’s Facebook page? I would love to know if there’s a simple solution.

I experienced this problem the other week after I’d completed a ride in foul weather conditions (wet and cold), which affected the elevation data recorded on my Garmin 820. The Garmin automatically uploaded the ride data to Strava as soon as I got back in the house, and then the ride data synched over to my TR account. Once I’d got showered and changed, I went to edit the ride data on Strava using their recalculate elevation data function. The new ride data duly appeared on the ride in Strava and everything was fine. However, the original ride data still remained on my TR account (showing the incorrect elevation data and profile).

My crude but effective solution? I hit the nuclear option. In TR under Ride Synch (in my account), I disconnected my TR account from my Strava account and deleted all past rides. I did this with the intention of re-connecting the two accounts so that all my past rides in Strava would be re-synched with my TR account and would therefore re-appear in TR. (I chose this method as opposed to keeping existing rides because I wasn’t sure if all my rides from Strava would appear as duplicate rides in TR if I just chose to synch rather than delete and synch.)

While it is a crude approach, it’s also an effective one. However, you have to wait 48 hours between disconnecting TR from Strava and re-connecting them. If you try it any sooner, your rides in Strava are not transferred over to TR. It would be so much better if there was a way of re-synching individual rides. If you find anything out, please post the solution on here.

Hey Paul!

Thanks for reaching out to us about this!

Sadly, there is no way to correct the elevation data within TrainerRoad at this time :pensive:. Strava and Garmin Connect both use a mapping correction software that we simply do not have at this time. Incorporating mapping software is something we may do in the future, but due to its high cost of implementation, it is a fairly low priority. We feel that tracking TSS and other power-based metrics provides much more actionable insights.

This is something that we would be more likely to add in the near future. Having the ability to manually edit the elevation data could be an easy fix. I’ll pass your suggestion onto our Product Managers :slight_smile: .

Thanks for the reply Bryce. I guess the most useful thing would just be being able to re-sync the ride so that the corrected values are picked up. Users would then be able to use the ride analysis tool much more easily to see their performance on climbs (whereas currently it’s really difficult for me to see the climbs as the raw elevation data is too poor quality).

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There’s also the root cause to consider. Could the barometric sensor hole on your Garmin be blocked? Obviously assuming the model you have, has this.

Scott

Yeah, it’s probably a bit blocked up - I’ve tried clearing it out but it doesn’t make much of a difference. I’ve got a Garmin 820 which has mostly been brilliant but the elevation data has always been all over the place, even when new.

I think I read a suggestion on DC Rainmaker to soak it in warm soapy water. Obviously at your own peril. :wink:

I also set an elevation calibration point outside my front door. When I’m getting ready I leave my bike outside with the Garmin on and it calibrates the unit when the satellites are found.