Millbank/MI5

[MichaelO]

There must be quite a few commutes who cycle along Millbank... I've had a really odd experience with my Garmin in the last couple of weeks & wondered if it was just me. I take the left turn off Millbank at Lambeth bridge - and for my last 3 commutes my Garmin has switched off at exactly the same place, just after taking the left. I know the Edge 810 has had "switching off" issues in the past, but the only 3 occasions I've suffered from it, it's been at exactly the same place. Just coincidence, or, is there some conspiracy theory because it always happens outside MI5?!

 

[Sittingduck]

I go past there daily but straight on at the (Horseferry rd?) RAB and on to Parl Sq. Never had a switch off issue. Could be battery or power related and it's getting drained temporarily after a certain duration which coincides with your passing of the unmentionable...?

I'm totally making that up by the way - the bit about a power drain anyway...

 

[MichaelO]

It's always >50% charged, and I've never had a problem when I've taken different routes to the office (or indeed, on longer rides at weekends). It's truly got me stumped! Going to go straight over & loop back through Parliament Sq & back down the Mall for the next couple of weeks & see if the same thing happens.

 

[Sittingduck]

Just so you know that parl Sq is a bit of a cluser F at the moment with the closure of lane/s opposite Big Ben. You can go from Abingdon St, around it and up Whitehall but I don't think you can do a 360, could be wrong... worth checking out!

 

[Dommo]

Have you tried making a little tin foil hat for it?

Apparently it seems that the most likely culprit for GPS jamming is van drivers and the like using small dashboard mounted units to block the onboard GPS recorder. It seems unlikely you'd run across the same thing in the same place regularly though.

That said, MI5 could easily jam the GPS signal for a good radius around their building but given your receiver actually turns off rather than just losing signal it seems just a fault that happens at around the same time on your ride? Maybe try recording your ride on your phone at the same time and disable the phone function which allows it to use cell tower info and wifi networks (ie it relies solely on the GPS signal) and see if it has a gap for that area?

 

[MichaelO]

Agreed - a GPS interference would just mean a missed section of the ride, rather than switching the unit off. Up until last week I wasn't going along Millbank, but was cutting through Eaton Gardens - never had an issue with it switching off previously, or on the 4-5 hour ride on Saturday. And I don't always arrive at that point at the same time each day - my commute is almost 20 miles, so arriving there can vary by at least 5-10 minutes.

Very confused! Maybe time to revert to the original last mile to work

 

[StuartG]

MI6 surely? The new Q is a bit of a hacker so if your GPX's have taken you were you shouldn't I would take another bridge.

Seriously I have a problem with my bog standard Cat Eye wireless computer. There was one spot on the Brighton Road in South Croydon where the speed went to zero for a hundred yards or so. Same place every time. Then it disappeared but re-appeared further down the road. I've not seen this anywhere else so it is something strange presumably broadcasting on the same frequency as the speed detector. May be that's where MI5 are hiding out?

 

[andyfraser]

My Garmin turned itself off on the way home tonight. I hope this isn't the start of something.

 

[thatname]

I have had the same issue in the past. Not cycling along Millbank but my Garmin switching off several times at a similar location on my commute. I spoke with my LBS from where i purchased it and they said that it is most likely a bug from a recent updated file that i downloaded from the Garmin website. They are apparently renown to play havoc with your device from time to time. Had to do a full factory reboot but has worked fine ever since. I am now somewhat reluctant to download all these file updates but i do and i back up any info on my device in case i need to do a full reboot from scratch. Problem when you do this is that the device takes bloody ages to acquire the satellite fixes on the first time you start it up again

 

[thatname]

and lastly the only issues i have with Millbank is Millbank Tower on a windy day heading west. Its like hitting a brick wall if you catch a gust of wind as it swirls around that building.

 

[andyfraser]

I was going to do a factory reset on mine because it had switched off a few times. I deleted the 3 months worth of rides and it's been ok this week so far. Fingers crossed that that was all it was, too many ride files.