# Garmin Edge 500 for mountain biking?



## lilhoodlem (Nov 28, 2006)

I am considering purchasing an edge 500 to switch back and forth from my road bike and mountain bikes. My question is, will the GPS signal work while in the woods with tree cover. I have friends who love the unit for the road bike, but none of them use them off road. Any experience with this would be appreciated. Thanks


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## slalomnorth65 (Oct 18, 2009)

I've been doing this same thing for years with garmins, including my edge 500. Never any problems really that I've noticed.


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## 3034 (Apr 12, 2006)

The 500 is NOT good for single track/steep slopes/tree cover.
an edge 305 (if you can find one) is the best bang for the buck right now
do a search in this forum


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## Sparty99 (Mar 18, 2008)

I'm considering the same thing, but my question is how durable is this? If I drop the bike and the thing shatters, I know I won't be getting a signal. Anybody want to admit to dropping their bike with this lil' computer mounted to the handle bars? Results?


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## chiplikestoridehisbike (Aug 8, 2007)

I have had 2 pretty bad wrecks with mine mounted. Last one involved a number of stitches to my knee and ankle (OTB at speed). Also got stuck in an 8+ hour rain mud fest race last year that included numerous creek crossings. 500 has held up great and works well for me.I use a flat bar, I would think a riser would protect it better. I am sure you can bust it, but centered in the stem it is pretty well protected.


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## slocaus (Jul 21, 2005)

I do not want to post all the references again (I have done so many, many, many times).

Do a search in the GPS forum for the keyword "algorithm" and my user name. I have posted many references to the fact that Garmin designed the 500 as a road bike computer that presents limitations for mountain bikes. Reading these might save you some of the frustrations that users like 3034 have had with it.

Use the Search, Luke.......


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## miss rides a lot (Jul 23, 2008)

I've been using mine off-road and it has been fine. Sometimes I lose the signal for a second or two, but I've had that happen with the 705 and the 800 as well. It never goes out for 3+ seconds at a time.

I haven't specifically dropped or crashed the 500, but my 705 fell off the hood of a car a few summers ago, minor scratches to the screen no other damage. 

My 800 (the original) was inadvertently run over and thus useless. 

Garmin does do crash replacements for $100-$150 depending on unit, I believe. 

I had a crash with my 305 a few years ago (OTB where I got pretty banged up). It was mounted on the bars, not the stem, and the face was smashed in. Same thing, eventually did crash replacement.


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## deadwrong666 (Aug 5, 2009)

I dont have any problems with my 500 on the mtn bike. Maybe the odd time it loses the GPS signal for a few seconds (as seen in the horrible BLING map).

I did a race and crashed 4 times and nothing happened to the 500. I bet I have crashed 10 times with it, no problems.

I use a Oregon 450 on the bars when i need more of a GPS function - cheaper than a 800. And i put the 500 in my pack to monitor ohter stuff and view that at home. Typically I dont go gonzo with a 450 on the bars so i havent crashed with that (yet)


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## snellvilleGAbiker (Apr 30, 2009)

slocau is right. The edge 500 is design mainly for the road. If you're using it for mountain biking, your milage will not be accurate due to lost of signal. I wish i had known that.


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