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WatWare is founder, myself, Dave Watkins. I have been cycling regularly since 1993, writing software since 1983, and working as an Electrical Controls Engineer since 1986.
The Story behind VeloLogger™
I have been logging my miles since 1993 using a Microsoft Excel® spreadsheet. The first version just logged the ride date and the distance. The spreadsheet would calculate a total distance for each week, month, and for the year. Eventually I included average speed and a field for what bike I used. I wrote a macro to track totals for each bike. I used this system for several years. I had been tracking component distances manually, but was looking for a way to add this to the spreadsheet. The spreadsheet was quickly growing in complexity, linking spreadsheets from past years to obtain lifetime totals and adding tracking for components. The solution was leaning more toward the need for database, rather than a spreadsheet. Early in 2001, over the course of a few club rides, discussion on the topic of logging personal ride data came up. Some of the riders had tried a few of the available programs for logging data, but were discouraged by the complexity of using the software, or the lack of features. With my current need to track component data along with ride information, I decided to create a complete Cycling Data Logger Application. The data would be stored in a Microsoft Access® DataBase *.mdb file, but since not every cyclist would own a copy of Access®, I decided to write a front end using Microsoft Visual C++®. That way the end user would not need to worry about owning any other application to run my data logger application. I started designing VeloLogger™ in May of 2001. The initial release took six and a half months to complete.
Cycling History
In 1993 I re-discovered cycling. My riding consisted of 10 to 20 mile rides through
the Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation area. I joined a local bicycling singles club
in the spring, and my riding distances increased as I found others to ride with. I set
a goal of 1,000 miles for the year. I enjoyed cycling so much that I reached my goal
by June! My riding distances continued to increase as I completed my first Century ride
(100 mile ride) in July! That was the toughest ride that I had ever ridden. I was
completely exhausted at the finish. This would be the beginning of my addiction to long
distance cycling. I continued riding into the winter months and even in the snow!
In the winter of 1994, I was diagnosed with type II diabetes, so cycling became more than just
riding for recreation. In February of '94, I retired my old out-dated bicycle that I
used while in High School, and purchased a new Trek 2300. In
June of '94, I attempted my first Double Century, a 200 mile un-organized ride with a
friend. It was a hot day and we had to call it quits at 147 miles. We were
disappointed with our "failure", so the next weekend we tried it again, completing
the 200 miles in less than 13 hours. That year I belonged to three local bike clubs.
In 1995, I met my wife on a club ride, and in 1998 we were married. In 1997 I began riding
in Ultra Marathon events, completing my first Triple Century (300 mile ride). In 1999 I
became a member of the Ultra Marathon Cycling Association (UMCA) and became the webmaster for
the events and standings pages on the
UMCA
website. In 2000 I began leading UMCA
Hub
Rides. A Hub ride is an informal ride where a group of cyclists get together for the
day and cover distances anywhere from 100 to 200 miles. Since 1993 I have been logging
between 6,000 and 8,000 miles each year, and my collection of bicycles has grown to 2 mountain
bikes, a touring bike, a road bike, an ultra bike, and a tandem!
View more on my personal cycling and
other cycling links.