{"id":2722,"date":"2016-08-15T08:44:44","date_gmt":"2016-08-14T23:44:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/2016-08-15\/2722"},"modified":"2016-08-15T08:44:44","modified_gmt":"2016-08-14T23:44:44","slug":"strava-segment-tutorial-removing-suckage-and-promoting-quality","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/2016-08-15\/2722","title":{"rendered":"Strava Segment Tutorial: Removing Suckage and Promoting Quality"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n<div style='background-color: #644;border: 3px white solid; width:70%; padding: 8px 0.5em'>\n<p style='margin-top:0; margin-bottom:0'><b><i>TL;DR<\/i> Summary<\/b><\/p>\n<p style='margin-top:8px'>This is <span class='nobr'>a ridiculously<\/span> long and verbose tutorial on Strava segments. <span\nclass='nobr'>The summary<\/span> is that many standard segments suck, and that better versions often exist but are invisible to you unless\nyou visit the web site version of Strava and inspect the <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>hidden efforts<span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> list.<\/p>\n\n<p style='margin-bottom:0'> If you hide the sucky segments and unhide the good segments, you'll have <span class='nobr'>a\nbetter<\/span> Strava experience going forward, even when using the phone app. <span class='nobr'>If enough<\/span> folks do this,\nthe experience improves for everyone.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n<div class='ic wide tight' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF4_012177_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"459\"\nalt=\"Random photo from my archive that evokes &amp;#8220; segment &amp;#8221; , sort of. Koutouin Temple (\u9ad8\u6850\u9662), Kyoto Japan -- Koutouin Temple (\u9ad8\u6850\u9662) -- Copyright 2012 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/ -- This photo is licensed to the public under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc\/4.0\/ (non-commercial use is freely allowed if proper attribution is given, including a link back to this page on http:\/\/regex.info\/ when used online)\"\nid=\"i012177\"\nitemprop=\"image\"\ntitle=\"Random photo from my archive that evokes &amp;#8220; segment &amp;#8221; , sort of. Koutouin Temple (\u9ad8\u6850\u9662), Kyoto Japan -- Koutouin Temple (\u9ad8\u6850\u9662) -- Copyright 2012 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/ -- This photo is licensed to the public under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc\/4.0\/ (non-commercial use is freely allowed if proper attribution is given, including a link back to this page on http:\/\/regex.info\/ when used online)\"\/>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Nikon D4 + Nikkor 50mm f\/1.4 &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>160 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/1.4, ISO 360 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF4_012177_sm.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF4_012177_sm.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<div style='margin-top:5px'>Random photo from my archive that evokes <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>segment<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>, sort of.\n<br\/><span class='subtle-less' style='font-size:90%'>Koutouin Temple <span class='nobr'>(\u9ad8\u6850\u9662),<\/span> Kyoto Japan<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Random photo from my archive that evokes &amp;#8220; segment &amp;#8221; , sort of. Koutouin Temple (\u9ad8\u6850\u9662), Kyoto Japan -- Koutouin Temple (\u9ad8\u6850\u9662) -- Copyright 2012 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/ -- This photo is licensed to the public under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc\/4.0\/ (non-commercial use is freely allowed if proper attribution is given, including a link back to this page on http:\/\/regex.info\/ when used online)\"\/><\/div>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF4_012177_sm.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2012-11-20'\/><\/div>\n\n<p style='margin-bottom:0'><b>Table of Contents<\/b><\/p>\n<ul style='margin-top:0'>\n<li><a href='#intro'>Introduction<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href='#hidden'>What Are <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Hidden<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> Segments?<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href='#why'>Why Would <span class='nobr'>I Want<\/span> to Hide or Unhide Specific Segments?<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href='#hiding-manually'>Hiding Segments Manually<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href='#unhide'>Unhiding Segments Manually<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href='#rating'>How To Promote <span class='nobr'>a Good<\/span> Segment in the Community<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href='#downsides'>Downsides to Manually Hiding or Unhiding Segments<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href='#qualities'>Okay, <span class='nobr'>So What Makes<\/span> <span class='nobr'>a Segment<\/span> Good or Bad?<\/a><\/li>\n<li style='margin-bottom:15px'><a href='#map'>Inspecting <span class='nobr'>a Segment<\/span> on the Map<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href='#bad'>Qualities of <span class='nobr'>a Bad<\/span> Segment...<\/a><\/li>\n\n<li><a href='#sloppy-start'>Undesirable Trait #1: Sloppy Starting Point<\/a>\n<ul>\n<li><a href='#local-considerations'>Local Considerations for <span class='nobr'>a Good<\/span> Starting Point<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n<li><a href='#sloppy-end'>Undesirable Trait #2: Sloppy Ending Point<\/a>\n<ul><li><a href='#inappropriate-for-conditions'>Inappropriate for Conditions<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n<li><a href='#bad-track'>Undesirable Trait #3: Bad Road Tracking<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href='#bad-stats'>Undesirable Trait #4: Bad Summary Statistics<\/a>\n<ul>\n<li><a href='#dorky-stats'><span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Correct<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> but Meaningless<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul><\/li>\n<li><a href='#stupid-name'>Undesirable Trait #5: Stupid or Selfish Name<\/a>\n<ul>\n<li><a href='#branding'>Segment <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Branding<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n<li><a href='#unremarkable-road'>Undesirable Trait #6: Unremarkable or Inconsequential Length of Road<\/a>\n<ul><li><a href='#strava-generated'>Strava-Generated Segments<\/a><\/li><\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n<li style='margin-bottom:15px'><a href='#promiscuous-matching'>Undesirable Trait #7: Inappropriate for Strava's Matching Algorithms<\/a>\n\n<ul><li><a href='#fix-mismatches'>How Strava Can Fix This<\/a><\/li><\/ul>\n\n<\/li>\n\n<li><a href='#conclusion'>Conclusion<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<hr style='margin-top:30px'\/>\n\n<p style='margin-top:20px' class='h2716' id='intro'><a href='#intro'>Introduction<\/a><\/p>\n\n<p>I enjoy reliving <span class='nobr'>a bicycle<\/span> ride by reviewing the statistics on <a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/'>Strava<\/a>, seeing how well <span class='nobr'>I did<\/span> on certain stretches of road compared\nto how I've done before, or perhaps how <span class='nobr'>I compare<\/span> to my friends.<\/p>\n\n<p>In the Strava universe, sections of road are broken up into <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>segments<span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>, and if your ride traverses <span class='nobr'>a segment,<\/span> you'll get info about how you and\nothers have done on it. <span class='nobr'>If your ride<\/span> transverses lots of segments, you'll get <span class='nobr'>a\nlot<\/span> of info.<\/p>\n\n<p>Segments can be created by any Strava user at any time, which on one hand is really great and flexible, but sadly, many\nsegments are poorly constructed. Whether through ignorance, sloppiness, or selfishness, many segments are bad, misleading,\nmeaningless, and\/or repetitious, and this can create <span class='nobr'>a flood<\/span> of data for <span class='nobr'>a\nseemingly<\/span> simple ride. This article is <span class='nobr'>a tutorial<\/span> on how to change the flood to <span class='nobr'>a targeted<\/span> stream of useful, interesting\ninformation.<\/p>\n\n<p>As an example to illustrate the flood problem, consider this ride up <span class='nobr'>a single<\/span> road to the top of\n<span class='nobr'>a mountain<\/span> in Hawaii. <span class='nobr'>It yields<\/span> <span class='nobr'>a staggering<\/span> 62\nsegments:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss1.png\" width=\"600\" height=\"1433\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss1\"\/>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>In this case, Strava at first displays only 28 segments, but clicking on the <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Show 34 hidden efforts<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>\nbutton highlighted at the bottom of the list indeed brings up 34 additional segments:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss2.png\" width=\"600\" height=\"1052\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss2\"\/>\n<\/div>\n\n<p style='color:#888; font-size:75%; padding-left:25%; padding-right:15%'>This is <span class='nobr'>a fake,<\/span>\ncomputer-generated ride created for the purposes of this blog post, and as such, the times and speeds are meaningless. It's a\n<span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>private<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> activity on Strava under <span class='nobr'>a test<\/span>\naccount so that the fake data does not pollute real Strava data.<\/p>\n\n<p style='margin-top:30px' >The climb represented here is 34km (21mi) long, so I'm sure that there are interesting sub-sections\nthat deserve specific segments, but 62 seems <span class='nobr'>a bit<\/span> excessive, so it brings up some questions:<\/p>\n\n\n<ul>\n  <li>Why are there 62 segments for one climb?<\/li>\n  <li>Why are some of them hidden by default, but others are not? What does <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>hidden<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> mean?<\/li>\n  <li>Which segments are good and make sense?<\/li>\n  <li>Why do four segments have the same name (<span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Haleakala Highway Climb<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>), and how am <span class='nobr'>I supposed<\/span> to know which ones to pay attention to?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p>There's a wide variety in quality among all those segments, so perhaps most importantly this brings up the question <span\nclass='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><i>How, as <span class='nobr'>a member<\/span> of the Strava community, can <span class='nobr'>I\nhelp<\/span> raise the quality of segments we all see?<\/i><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span><\/p>\n\n<p>This last question is the whole reason I've written this tutorial, to help members of the community raise the quality for\neveryone. Strava provides only <span class='nobr'>a few<\/span> tools to allow users to rate segments, and though these tools are\npoorly designed and mostly ineffectual, perhaps if enough folks use them we'll see more high-quality segments and less bad\nones.<\/p>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\">\n p.h2716 { margin-top: 40px; font-weight: bold; font-size:110% }\n li.sh2716 { margin-top: 30px }\n<\/style>\n\n<p class='h2716' id='hidden'><a href='#hidden'>What Are <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Hidden<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> Segments?<\/a><\/p>\n\n<p>Strava generally hides some segments, with <span class='nobr'>a stated<\/span> goal of reducing clutter. Sadly, <span\nclass='nobr'>I think<\/span> that Strava policies actually encourage the popularity of poorly-constructed segments (more on this <a\nhref='#unfortunate-reality'>later<\/a>), so it behooves the Strava rider to look through all the segments to sort out the good\nfrom the bad, at least if it's an area that you ride often. As we'll see in <span class='nobr'>a bit,<\/span> you can manually hide bad or uninteresting\nsegments, and manually <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>unhide<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> good segments: going forward, these choices are carried through your entire Strava experience\n(both on the web site and phone app), so the up-front work to choose segments pays off over the long run.<\/p>\n\n<p>Users of the Strava website who notice the <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>show hidden efforts<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>\nbutton have the option to see all segments, as we did above. <span class='nobr'>The Strava<\/span> phone apps, though, give no\nindication about hidden segments, and since these apps are how the majority of Strava users interact with Strava, most users have\nno idea that hidden segments even exist. If you're <span class='nobr'>a phone<\/span>-app user, you have to visit the Strava\nwebsite to play along with this post. <span class='nobr'>It's worth<\/span> the effort, though, because improvements you make via\nthe web site are reflected when you visit via the app.<\/p>\n\n<p class='h2716' id='why'><a href='#why'>Why Would <span class='nobr'>I Want<\/span> to Hide or Unhide Specific Segments?<\/a><\/p>\n\n<p>The obvious answer is that you want to see only high-quality segments that are interesting and meaningful to you, but there are\ncommunity-wide benefits as well, which <a href='#rating'>we'll certainly cover later<\/a>. <span class='nobr'>But before<\/span> we\nlook at that, and at <a href='#qualities'>the factors<\/a> that go into making <span class='nobr'>a\nsegment<\/span> <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>good<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> or <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>bad<span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> in the first place, let's first look at the mechanics of manually hiding and unhiding segments....<\/p>\n\n<p class='h2716' id='hiding-manually'><a href='#hiding-manually'>Hiding Segments Manually<\/a><\/p>\n\n<p>Strava automatically hides or shows some segments. With the phone app you have no indication that some segments are hidden, nor\ncontrol over the segments you see. <span class='nobr'>On the website<\/span>, however, they let you explicitly override their choice and hide or unhide\nsegments as you like. <span class='nobr'>You need to<\/span> do this only one time per segment, because once you explicitly tell\nStrava to hide or unhide <span class='nobr'>a segment,<\/span> your choice is remembered throughout your entire Strava universe,\nboth on the web site and in the Strava phone apps.<\/p>\n\n<p>Hiding a segment is simple: when you mouse over <span class='nobr'>a segment<\/span> in the list of activity efforts, a <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Hide<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> button appears, as\nillustrated here:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss3.png\" width=\"550\" height=\"133\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss3\"\/>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>Clicking the <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Hide<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> button, of course, sends the segment to the\nlist of hidden segments, and tells Strava that from now on when viewing any activity from anybody, you'd prefer not to see that\nsegment. This preference is carried over to the phone-app view, so if you're <span class='nobr'>a Strava<\/span> phone user, you\ncan occasionally visit the web site to clean clutter for your phone-app view.<\/p>\n\n<p>If you hide a segment that you rode multiple times in the same activity (such as if you rode loops or repeats), clicking the\n<span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Hide<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> button actually removes only the one row from this list, but\nwhen you reload the activity (just do <span class='nobr'>a refresh<\/span> it in your browser), all the efforts on that segment\nwill then be properly hidden.<\/p>\n\n<p>Note that if you actually click on the segment row, Strava opens up the segment list and inserts <span class='nobr'>a\nmini<\/span> summary of the clicked-on segment, with <span class='nobr'>a little<\/span> map and info about your effort on it. <span\nclass='nobr'>In this case<\/span> there is no <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Hide<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> button, so click\nagain on the segment row to close up the summary and reveal the <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Hide<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> button.<\/p>\n\n<p class='h2716' id='unhide'><a href='#unhide'>Unhiding Segments Manually<\/a><\/p>\n\n<p>Unhiding a segment is comparable to hiding one:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss4.png\" width=\"550\" height=\"208\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss4\"\/>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>When you unhide a segment, it immediately returns to the unhidden segments at the end of list, rather than\nin the proper chronological place in the list. Just reload the page, and it'll show in its proper position.<\/p>\n\n<p id='refresh'><span class='nobr'>A newly<\/span>-unhid segment that deserves an achievement badge (<span class='nobr'>a\nbadge<\/span> for <span class='nobr'>a PR,<\/span> KOM, <span class='nobr'>QOM, or the<\/span> like) won't get one, because Strava\ncomputes and assigns the badges only to visible segments, and only when the activity is first loaded, or when you explicitly ask\nfor the badges to be recomputed.<\/p>\n\n<p>If you're working with your most recent activity and have just hid or unhid segments, you can have Strava recompute the badges\nby clicking on the <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>wrench<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> icon and choosing <span\nclass='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Refresh Activity Achievements<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss26.png\" width=\"690\" height=\"399\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss26\"\/>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>You'll have to reload the page to actually see the new badges.<\/p>\n\n<p id='warning'><span style='color:red'>Warning<\/span>: due to how Strava has implemented <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Refresh\nActivity Achievements<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>, <span class='nobr'>I don't<\/span> recommend using it with anything but your\nmost-recent activity. You'd <i>think<\/i> that when <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Refresh Activity Achievements<span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> is done on an old activity, Strava would consider only efforts up to the point of that activity so that,\nfor example, what was <span class='nobr'>a PR<\/span> or <span class='nobr'>a KOM<\/span> <i>at the time<\/i> remains <span\nclass='nobr'>a PR<\/span> or <span class='nobr'>a KOM<\/span> for the effort. But no, they consider subsequent efforts as well,\nmeaning that you'll lose <span class='nobr'>a badge<\/span> for what had been <span class='nobr'>a KOM<\/span>\/QOM\/PR at the time if\nit was bested any time later.<\/p>\n\n<p>I imagine that Strava has taken this approach because it's likely <i>substantially<\/i> less resource-intensive, so I understand\nit, but it's still a bummer.<\/p>\n\n<p class='h2716' id='rating'><a href='#rating'>How To Promote <span class='nobr'>a Good<\/span> Segment in the Community<\/a><\/p>\n\n<p>When a new segment is created, it is either hidden for everyone or visible for everyone. If it's the first segment in an area,\nit'll likely be visible to everyone right away, but if it seems to be <span class='nobr'>a repeat<\/span> of something already\nthere, it'll be hidden from everyone, and will stay hidden until folks manually look for it and unhide it.<\/p>\n\n<p>If enough folks eventually do unhide <span class='nobr'>a segment,<\/span> it has the chance to be promoted by Strava to not\nbeing hidden by default. Also, the more users that <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>star<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> <span\nclass='nobr'>a segment<\/span> (mark it as <span class='nobr'>a personal<\/span> favorite), the more likely that the segment will\nbecome unhidden by default.<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss19.png\" width=\"600\" height=\"164\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss19\"\/>\n<div style='padding-top:10px;font-weight:bold'><span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Staring<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> <span class='nobr'>a favorite<\/span> segment improves its ranking\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"&amp;#8220; Staring &amp;#8221; a favorite segment improves its ranking\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p id='unfortunate-reality'>This approach may sound nice on paper, but in the real world it's pretty bad. <span\nclass='nobr'>The only reason<\/span> to create <span class='nobr'>a segment<\/span> that covers the same stretch of road as one\nalready there is because the one already there sucks for some reason or another. (Again, we'll go over <a\nhref='#bad'>characteristics that make <span class='nobr'>a segment<\/span> suck<\/a> later.)<\/p>\n\n<p>Consider these segments for the same steep climb in Kyoto; one segment isn't particularly good, but it's entrenched\nbecause it was created long ago; the other segment is one that <span class='nobr'>I created<\/span> earlier today:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight' id='tale-of-two-segments'>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss20.png\" width=\"690\" height=\"257\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss20\"\/>\n<div style='padding-top:10px;font-weight:bold'>Tale of Two Segments\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Tale of Two Segments\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>The <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/12764346'>segment <span class='nobr'>I made<\/span><\/a> is better in every respect than <a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/2711837'>the original<\/a>, except that the better one will be hidden from every Strava user\nthat doesn't go looking for it and unhide it.<\/p>\n\n<p>(It'll remain hidden by default until &mdash; if it ever happens &mdash; enough folks unhide it and Strava decides to\npromotes the better segment to <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>unhidden<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> by default.)<\/p>\n\n<p class='h2716' id='downsides'><a href='#downsides'>Downsides to Manually Hiding or Unhiding Segments<\/a><\/p>\n\n<p>The only negative side effect that <span class='nobr'>I have<\/span> run into of clearing out crappy segments and promoting good\nsegments relates to friends who have not done this. They still see their own view of segments, which usually means that they see\nStrava's default list of (often bad) segments. This also means that they'll see achievements (PRs and the like) for segments\nyou've hidden, and they'll not see achievements for segments that you had unhidden.<\/p>\n\n<p>This can sometimes create confusion, such as when they compliment you on <span class='nobr'>a PR<\/span> for such-and-such <span\nclass='nobr'>a climb,<\/span> when you know you didn't PR that climb. <span class='nobr'>It turns<\/span> out, for example, that\nthey're looking at <span class='nobr'>a poorly<\/span>-designed segment that you had hidden because if includes the common place to\nrest <i>after<\/i> the end of the climb, so your post-climb rest is included in the total effort time. That makes the segment\nmeaningless, so you hid it, but they don't know that, and because today you happened to not pause as long as you did on earlier\nattempts, you made a <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>PR<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> on that segment.<\/p>\n\n<p>Or it works the other way as well... you did PR the climb, and this is reflected in the high-quality segment that you unhid,\nbut the low-quality segment that includes the post-climb rest shows <span class='nobr'>a much<\/span> longer, non-PR time.<\/p>\n\n<p>It also impacts the achievement badges that you see on others' rides. <span class='nobr'>An acquaintance<\/span> recently did hill repeats, and when <span class='nobr'>I view<\/span> his\nactivity <span class='nobr'>I see<\/span> no badges, so it appears as if he wasn't even fast enough on any of them for a <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>3rd-best personal effort<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> badge:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/659195384'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss27.png\" width=\"500\" height=\"335\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss27\"\/><\/a>\n<div style='padding-top:10px;font-weight:bold'>Too Slow For an Achievement Badge?\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Too Slow For an Achievement Badge?\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>The thing is, his first 3:16 effort on <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Mochikoshi Pass West<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> was <span class='nobr'>a PR<\/span> (by 28 seconds!), and his second effort, just two\nseconds slower, should have earned a <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>2nd-best personal effort<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> badge. <span class='nobr'>The badges<\/span> are missing because these\nsuper-high-quality segments (<a\nhref='#branding'>with ugly names<\/a>) are, like for everyone who doesn't manually unhide them, hidden from him, so Strava\ndoesn't bother computing the badges. Heck, even if he had gotten <span class='nobr'>a KOM,<\/span> it wouldn't have been highlighted.<\/p>\n\n<p>So this adds one more reason to the list of why <span class='nobr'>a segment<\/span> effort has no achievement badge:<\/p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><p>You've ridden the segment at least four times, and this time isn't among the top three.<\/p><\/li>\n<li><p>\nIt's your first time to ride <span class='nobr'>a segment,<\/span> and you didn't place in the all-time top 10 for your gender.\n<\/p><\/li>\n<li><p>The segment was hidden for the rider when achievements were computed (when the activity was uploaded, or when <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><a href='#refresh'>Refresh Activity Achievements<\/a><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> was invoked).<\/p><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p>I think only the first is valid reason to not show an achievement.<\/p>\n\n<p>As an aside about that second reason, <span class='nobr'>I wish<\/span> Strava would give you a <span\nclass='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>first time!<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> badge when you first ride <span class='nobr'>a road,<\/span>\nboth to celebrate your expanding world and to communicate that fact to friends. <span class='nobr'>As it is<\/span> now, <span\nclass='nobr'>a ride<\/span> in <span class='nobr'>a new<\/span> area creates an activity without achievement badges, making it look\nlike it was just <span class='nobr'>a slow,<\/span> boring outing not worthy of <span class='nobr'>a closer<\/span> look, when in\nreality you might have been really killing it, but just on <span class='nobr'>a road<\/span> you'd not ridden before. Sigh, if only\n<span class='nobr'>I were<\/span> King of Strava, <span class='nobr'>I'd fix all<\/span> these problems.<\/p>\n\n\n<p>Anyway these <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>downside<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> problems should subside over time, as you\nenlighten your friends and they, too, clear out bad segments and promote good ones.<\/p>\n\n\n<p class='h2716' id='qualities'><a href='#qualities'>Okay, <span class='nobr'>So What Makes<\/span> <span class='nobr'>a Segment<\/span> Good or Bad?<\/a><\/p>\n\n<p>This can be a loaded question because personal preference can play <span class='nobr'>a large<\/span> part in some of these\nconsiderations, but <span class='nobr'>a bad<\/span> segment in my eyes suffers from one or more of the following:<\/p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><span class='nobr'>A stupid<\/span> or sloppy starting point<\/li>\n<li><span class='nobr'>A stupid<\/span> or sloppy ending point<\/li>\n<li>Bad road tracking<\/li>\n<li>Incorrect summary data, particularly slope and elevation data<\/li>\n<li><span class='nobr'>A stupid<\/span> or selfish name<\/li>\n<li><span class='nobr'>An unremarkable<\/span> or inconsequential segment of road<\/li>\n<li><span class='nobr'>A section<\/span> of road inappropriate for Strava's matching algorithms<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p>We'll soon spend the rest of this article looking at examples of each of these, but first, in order to judge the first\nthree items we need to know how to inspect <span class='nobr'>a segment's<\/span> course on <span class='nobr'>a map,<\/span> so\nlet's look at that...<\/p>\n\n<p class='h2716' id='map'><a href='#map'>Inspecting <span class='nobr'>a Segment<\/span> on the Map<\/a><\/p>\n\n<p>Several ways listed above on how to judge <span class='nobr'>a segment<\/span> involve looking at it on <span class='nobr'>a\nmap,<\/span> and with Strava there are two different <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>segment route<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>\nviews, and they're both important: one is how <i>your particular route<\/i> matched to <span class='nobr'>a segment<\/span> this\ntime, and the other is the original rider's route used as the basis for the segment (and so it's used as the basis to which all\nactivities either match or don't match, and if they do, how they match).<\/p>\n\n<p>It's important to understand the difference between these two, and how to inspect each.<\/p>\n\n<p>Here's a bird's-eye view of our test activity, showing <span class='nobr'>a sequence<\/span> of events:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss9.png\" width=\"690\" height=\"983\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss9\"\/>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>Clicking on the row for a segment opens up <span class='nobr'>a lot<\/span> of detail about the segment, including <span\nclass='nobr'>a mini<\/span> map and leaderboards on the right. (Which leaderboards show up is <span class='nobr'>a\npreference<\/span> item that you can configure in your Strava account settings.)<\/p>\n\n<p>At the same time that the segment detail opens up, the main interactive map at the top of the activity focuses on the segment.\nBoth maps show <i>your activity<\/i>, with sections of your track that match the segment presented in blue.<\/p>\n\n<p>The other map view for a segment is seen on the segment's home page. Clicking on the <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>View full\nleaderboard<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> button (item #3 in the screenshot) brings you to the segment's home page, and the route\nshown on the map <i>there<\/i> is the <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>master route<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> for the segment.\n<span class='nobr'>It's the route<\/span> used by the user who created the segment, and has the master starting and ending\npoints.<\/p>\n\n<p>Okay, so now that we know how to inspect <span class='nobr'>a segment's<\/span> route, let's look at how to judge its quality...<\/p>\n\n<p class='h2716' id='bad'><a href='#bad'>Qualities of <span class='nobr'>a Bad<\/span> Segment....<\/a><\/p>\n\n<p>The remainder of this article goes over characteristics that make <span class='nobr'>a segment<\/span> bad....<\/p>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\">\ndiv.sh2716 { margin-top: 60px; border-top: solid 1px #888 }\n<\/style>\n\n<div style='border-top:none' class='sh2716' id='sloppy-start'><p><a href='#sloppy-start'><b>Undesirable Trait #1: Sloppy Starting Point<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n\n<p>This is perhaps the most common thing that makes <span class='nobr'>a segment<\/span> bad... <span class='nobr'>a\npoorly<\/span>-thought-out starting point.<\/p>\n\n<p>Consider this simple example from above:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss5.png\" width=\"400\" height=\"301\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss5\"\/>\n<div style='padding-top:10px;font-weight:bold'>Segment starts at the intersection\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Segment starts at the intersection\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>At first glance the starting point right at the intersection perhaps looks reasonable, but there are two problems with this.<\/p>\n\n<p>The first problem is that if you stop at the intersection prior to starting the climb &mdash; such as to wait for friends to\ncatch up before the turn, or simply to prepare for the epic climb you're about to embark upon &mdash; this segment's start point\nat the interesection <i>includes that stopped time in your overall effort<\/i>, making the segment completely meaningless.<\/p>\n\n<p>This is enough to render the segment junk in my book, without even needing to look at anything else. <span class='nobr'>I would<\/span> absolutely hide\nthis segment.<\/p>\n\n<p>For the second problem, let's look at that intersection in real life, via Google's wonderful Streetview:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<a href='https:\/\/www.google.com\/maps\/@20.7689659,-156.3060148,3a,75y,132.59h,75.11t\/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s_s7j8Glzjp4h2X4BJmKvKQ!2e0!7i13312!8i6656'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss6.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"331\"\nid=\"istrava_ss6\"\/><\/a>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>This view is from the north looking south. We've got the north-south road running along the right edge of the screen, with\nCrater Road (the big climb) starting off to the left. <\/p>\n\n<p>I've marked about where the segment begins and the path it then embarks upon. Clearly, the person who made this segment\n<a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/44189031'>had ridden down the road from the north<\/a>, from behind the camera's view in\nthe screenshot above. That's fine, but what about folks who approach the road from the south, from the upper right in the screenshot above?<\/p>\n\n<p>Here's the view when approaching from the other side:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<a href='https:\/\/www.google.com\/maps\/@20.768631,-156.3059771,3a,75y,6.52h,73.44t\/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sD34VwLH3P8_XxpT93PB1cg!2e0!7i13312!8i6656'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss7.jpg\" width=\"550\" height=\"301\"\nid=\"istrava_ss7\"\/><\/a>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p>These folks will naturally peel off to the right, rather than continue north and take the sharp turn meant for the opposite\ndirection. <span class='nobr'>Do we want<\/span> this segment to match these folks' ride? If so, will it? <span class='nobr'>If it will<\/span>, from where?<\/p>\n\n<p>The first question (<span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>do we want it to match people riding from the south?<span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>) is for the person who created the segment, but with <span class='nobr'>a name<\/span> like <span\nclass='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><i>Bottom of Crater Rd. to 1st Cattle Guard<\/i><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> it's safe to assume they\ndidn't <i>intend<\/i> to exclude these folks.<\/p>\n\n<p>Whether it actually will or won't match someone's ride is up to how accurate their GPS units are, and the details of Strava's\nmatching algorithms. <span class='nobr'>I'd think<\/span> that it generally would match, but from exactly where? <span\nclass='nobr'>Can you trust<\/span> an effort time when you don't even know what it covers?<\/p>\n\n<p>Rather than have to wonder about these questions, it's smarter to have the segment start slightly after the intersection, both\nto accept folks riding in from either direction, and to avoid including such <span class='nobr'>a natural<\/span> stopping point\nwithin the segment. Here's <span class='nobr'>a segment<\/span> with <span class='nobr'>a starting<\/span> point that avoids these\nproblems:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss8.png\" width=\"330\" height=\"193\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss8\"\/>\n<div style='padding-top:10px;font-weight:bold'>Smarter starting point\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Smarter starting point\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>I would unhide this segment, and hide the first.<\/p>\n\n<p>There are many, many examples of this around the Stravaverse. <span class='nobr'>I ran into<\/span> <span class='nobr'>a funny<\/span> one while working on this article, <span class='nobr'>a segment<\/span>\nin the Netherlands named <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/652865'>Tienboerenweg<\/a><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> with <span class='nobr'>a horrible<\/span> starting point on\nthe wrong side of what looks to be <span class='nobr'>a big<\/span> intersection:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/652865'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss28.png\" width=\"500\" height=\"235\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss28\"\/><\/a>\n<div style='padding-top:10px;font-weight:bold'>Horrible Starting Point\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Horrible Starting Point\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>So what's funny is that a year later, someone created a <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/1477600'>Tienboerenweg (fixed)<\/a><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> segment. With <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>fixed<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> in the title, you'd think, you know, that the problem was fixed, but no, it's just as bad as the first:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/1477600'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss29.png\" width=\"500\" height=\"235\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss29\"\/><\/a>\n<div style='padding-top:10px;font-weight:bold'><span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Fixed<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> Starting Point??\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"&amp;#8220; Fixed &amp;#8221; Starting Point??\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>Sigh. If I rode in the area, I would hide both.<\/p>\n\n\n<p style='margin-top:50px'>Another kind of unfortunate starting point is one that doesn't make sense to the specifics of the road\nor the climb, though this can certainly be <span class='nobr'>a matter<\/span> of personal preference.<\/p>\n\n<p id='odd-starting-point'>An example from an area I'm familiar with in Kyoto is <a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/2172226'><span class='nobr'>a segment<\/span><\/a> that begins this way:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss22.png\" width=\"500\" height=\"350\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss22\"\/>\n<div style='padding-top:10px;font-weight:bold'>Odd starting point\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Odd starting point\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>If you're familiar with the area, the choice of this starting point is puzzling, to say the least. The east-west road it starts\non is essentially flat, with nothing particular at all at the place the segment starts. <span class='nobr'>As the road<\/span>\ncontinues and turns north, there are natural places to stop and join up with others (<a\nhref='\/blog\/2016-06-27\/2708#i09445'>like this<\/a>), and then the road starts to slowly climb as you leave city.\nAfter <span class='nobr'>a short<\/span> bit you pass the last buildings and enter the forest where the climb starts in earnest, so I'd think <span class='nobr'>a segment<\/span> for\nthis climb should start about there, where the blue <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><span style='color:#00dfff'><b>\uff38\n<\/b><\/span><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> is.<\/p>\n\n<p>There could well be some common benefit to this starting point that I'm just not seeing,\nbut as it is it simply makes no sense to me at all. (Lots about this segment makes no sense to me,\nas <a href='#unremarkable-road'>we'll see later<\/a>.)<\/p>\n\n<p id='local-considerations'><a href='#local-considerations'><b>Local Considerations for <span class='nobr'>a Good<\/span> Starting Point<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n\n<p style='margin-top:30px'>Sometimes it's <span class='nobr'>a balance<\/span> among conflicting goals. For example, the pair of segments featured in <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><a\nhref='#tale-of-two-segments'>Tale of Two Segments<\/a><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> above have slightly different starting points:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss21.png\" width=\"690\" height=\"287\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss21\"\/>\n<div style='padding-top:10px;font-weight:bold'>Slight change in starting point\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Slight change in starting point\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>I chose to start this segment about 280m (about 0.17mi) farther in than the original, just after <span class='nobr'>a\n90<\/span>\u00b0 bend in the road that seems to me to be <span class='nobr'>a natural<\/span> starting point for the climb. More\nimportantly is that the slightly later start allows the segment to match folks riding to the climb via the road coming in from the\nnortheast (riding in on the blue-dotted road in the screenshot above).<\/p>\n\n<p>At the moment, <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/12764346'>my carefully-crafted segment<\/a> matches 585 rides, while <a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/2711837'>the original<\/a> matches only 413. Some of that difference is certainly due to the\naccurate road tracking in my new segment, but I'm sure most comes from including folks who took the north-eastern approach.<\/p>\n\n<p>A possible detriment to my segment is that in skipping that initial bit of road, <span class='nobr'>I lopped<\/span> 20m (66')\nof elevation. <span class='nobr'>How intrinsic<\/span> that little bit is to the climb's overall character is <span class='nobr'>a\nmatter<\/span> of personal opinion. Overall it's <span class='nobr'>a brutal<\/span> climb with some sections above 20%, so the bit\nomitted at the start doesn't seem particularly material to me, but YMMV.<\/p>\n\n<p>Along those lines, the original segment itself could have made <span class='nobr'>a bigger<\/span> climb by starting even\nfarther down the increasingly-gentle slope of land. <span class='nobr'>At some point<\/span> you back up enough that you've hit the\nocean and can't start any lower, and only then can this argument be truly put to rest.<\/p>\n\n<p>Going the other way, in looking at another great resource for segment design, <a\nhref='http:\/\/labs.strava.com\/heatmap\/#15\/135.64781\/34.95249\/blue\/bike'>Strava's Global Heat Map<\/a>, there is perhaps <span class='nobr'>a need<\/span> for <span class='nobr'>a\nmuch<\/span>-truncated starting point:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<a href='http:\/\/labs.strava.com\/heatmap\/#15\/135.64781\/34.95249\/blue\/bike'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss31.png\" width=\"600\" height=\"312\"\nid=\"istrava_ss31\"\/><\/a>\n<div style='padding-top:10px'><b>Strava's Global Heat Map<\/b>\n<br\/>for the area\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Strava's Global Heat Map for the area\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>The heatmap indicates a third approach, just south of the main approach, not serviced by either segment. <span class='nobr'>In\na ride<\/span> heatmap, the road glows more brightly the more times it's been ridden, so based on that this new southern approach\nseems to be only <span class='nobr'>a bit<\/span> less popular than the approach my update allowed for. Perhaps we should not\nexclude these folks, moving the starting point to the red <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><span style='color:red'>\u2605<\/span><span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> in the screenshot. <span class='nobr'>Or perhaps<\/span> the lead-up that would be cut out by such <span\nclass='nobr'>a change<\/span> is sufficiently important that we need <span class='nobr'>a totally<\/span> new segment, starting at\nthe yellow <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><span style='color:yellow'>\u2605<\/span><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> mark?<\/p>\n\n<p>It turns out that there's a conspicuous landmark just past the red <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><span\nstyle='color:red'>\u2605<\/span><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>, <span class='nobr'>a tiny<\/span> bridge where the road jinks sharply.\nWhen <span class='nobr'>I ride<\/span> across that bridge, <span class='nobr'>I feel a<\/span> sense of <span\nclass='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>okay, here we go!<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> impending doom... the climb is about to get real. So,\nwith such <span class='nobr'>a clear<\/span> demarcation point, perhaps it's <span class='nobr'>a good<\/span> place for <span\nclass='nobr'>a sub<\/span>-segment to start, so I <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/12821775'>made one<\/a>, and now I've\nstarted to rethink whether <i>this<\/i> should just be <i>the<\/i> main climb. Compared with the other one <span class='nobr'>I\nmade<\/span> this cuts off an 800m span that averages just 5%, which causes the overall average to rise from 8.3% to 8.9%, more\naccurately representing the pain of this climb.<\/p>\n\n<p>But now that I've created the segment, <span class='nobr'>I see that<\/span> it matches 582 rides, just three short of the first\nsegment <span class='nobr'>I made.<\/span> <span class='nobr'>I expected<\/span> more based on the heatmap, so <span class='nobr'>I\nguess<\/span> it's difficult to differentiate based upon brightness. <span class='nobr'>A single<\/span> ride is readily apparent in\nthe heatmap, as are highly-popular roads, but there's <span class='nobr'>a lot<\/span> of numerical variation in the in-between\nzones that are not apparent visually. <span class='nobr'>Or so it<\/span> seems. <span class='nobr'>It's a great<\/span> resource,\nbut I'm still learning how to read it.<\/p>\n\n<p>Choosing the <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>proper<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> start to <span\nclass='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>the<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> climb is not something done with <span class='nobr'>a map,<\/span> but\nby getting <span class='nobr'>a feel<\/span> on the ground and, often, by community consensus. Even then, rational minds can\ndisagree, and so perhaps there really is <span class='nobr'>a need<\/span> for two or three or more separate segments for this\nclimb. Time will tell.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div  class='sh2716' id='sloppy-end'><p><a href='#sloppy-end'><b>Undesirable Trait #2: Sloppy Ending Point<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n\n<p>A poorly-thought ending point has the same risks as <span class='nobr'>a poorly<\/span>-thought starting point,\nthough <span class='nobr'>a bad<\/span> ending point can be more insidious when <span class='nobr'>a track<\/span> ends at <span class='nobr'>a mountain<\/span> pass.\nHere's an example of <span class='nobr'>a horrible<\/span> segment from where <span class='nobr'>I ride<\/span> in Kyoto:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss10.png\" width=\"600\" height=\"236\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss10\"\/>\n<div style='padding-top:10px;font-weight:bold'>Poorly-created segment extends past the top of the climb\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Poorly-created segment extends past the top of the climb\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>The high point on this climb is the pass marked with <span class='nobr'>a yellow<\/span> <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><span\nstyle='color:yellow'><b>\uff38<\/b><\/span><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> in the screenshot above. <span class='nobr'>The road\non<\/span> either side is quite steep.<\/p>\n\n<p>Any reasonable segment for this climb should end at or perhaps just <span class='nobr'>a bit<\/span> before the yellow <span\nclass='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>X<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>, but this segment continues down the other side <span class='nobr'>a\nbit,<\/span> including an area just below the pass that's <span class='nobr'>a natural<\/span> rest area (it's the location of the\nlead photo of <a href='\/blog\/2015-06-29\/2593'>this blog post<\/a>).<\/p>\n\n<p>So, if you stop to rest at the natural spot after the climb, this segment includes the rest time. <span class='nobr'>It's a\nuseless<\/span> segment that <span class='nobr'>I certainly<\/span> hide. (It's also <span class='nobr'>a good<\/span> example of another bad segment\nquality... <span class='nobr'>a stupid<\/span> or selfish name; we'll see more on that <a href='#stupid-name'>later<\/a>.)<\/p>\n\n\n<p id='inappropriate-for-conditions' style='font-weight:bold'><a href='#inappropriate-for-conditions'>Inappropriate for Conditions<\/a><\/p>\n\n<p>Another kind of ending point has <span class='nobr'>a less<\/span>-obvious but more insidious problem... here's the end of <span\nclass='nobr'>a segment<\/span> in San Francisco that runs along <span class='nobr'>a bicycle<\/span> path for 3km (2mi), named <span\nclass='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/531794'>Great Hwy Sprint North<\/a><span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss30.png\" width=\"600\" height=\"322\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss30\"\/>\n<div style='padding-top:10px;font-weight:bold'>Dangerous\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Dangerous\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>It looks to end about a long car length before the side-to-side sidewalk at <span class='nobr'>a big<\/span> cross road. <span\nclass='nobr'>It's back enough<\/span> that those stopping at the sidewalk might not see their stopping time included in the\nsegment, so that perhaps won't be <span class='nobr'>a problem,<\/span> but geez, considering that those in the run for <span\nclass='nobr'>a KOM<\/span> need to average 60kph (36mph) over the whole segment, the stopping point doesn't seem to afford space to\nsafely slow down after the segment.<\/p>\n\n<p>If the segment were to end just before an intersection, <span class='nobr'>a green<\/span> light would allow the rider to end\nthe segment at full speed and continue through safely, but as it is, one is forced to slow down before the end, which sort of\ndefeats the point of <span class='nobr'>a sprint<\/span> segment.<\/p>\n\n<p>I would be dangerous to finish this segment at full speed, but <span class='nobr'>I wouldn't<\/span> call this <i>segment<\/i>\n<span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>dangerous<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>. A <i>cyclist<\/i> can be dangerous... <i>actions<\/i> can\nbe dangerous.... but we're each responsible for our own choices. This segment is merely <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>poorly\nconstructed<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>. <span class='nobr'>I would<\/span> hide it.<\/p>\n\n<p>If I were to make a replacement segment, <span class='nobr'>I'd have it<\/span> stop <span class='nobr'>a bit<\/span> earlier so\nthat one could safely cross the end of the segment at full steam. <span class='nobr'>I'd try to<\/span> find some real-world\nfeature to end the segment at so that the end spot would be easy to remember. Google's <a\nhref='https:\/\/goo.gl\/maps\/UrFvMsbvvzS2'>Streetview of this area<\/a> shows some posts at intervals along the path... <span\nclass='nobr'>I'd try to<\/span> have the segment end at one of them.<\/p>\n\n\n<\/div>\n<div class='sh2716' id='bad-track'><p><a href='#bad-track'><b>Undesirable Trait #3: Bad Road Tracking<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n\n<p>The track used by the person creating <span class='nobr'>a segment<\/span> becomes the <i>master template<\/i> for the segment\nagainst which all other rides through the area, past and future, are matched. <span class='nobr'>The closer<\/span> to reality\n<span class='nobr'>a master<\/span> track is, the better chance that it has to match others' rides properly.<\/p>\n\n<p>So how well do you think this segment will perform?<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/10277344'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss11.png\" width=\"600\" height=\"356\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss11\"\/><\/a>\n<div style='padding-top:10px; font-weight: bold'>Ridiculous master track\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Ridiculous master track\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>This is just ridiculous, and should have never been made into <span class='nobr'>a public<\/span> segment. Luckily it's\n<i>so<\/i> bad that it's only ever matched one other person's ride, so it's not polluting everyone's data, but still.<\/p>\n\n<p>The one other ride that it matched illustrates <span class='nobr'>a general<\/span> problem with bad tracking.\n<span class='nobr'>Due to the<\/span> crazy track, it matched the other guy's ride starting not at the base of the actual climb,\nbut well into the climb, giving him an artificially short time (and, as it turns out, the KOM) for the segment:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss12.png\" width=\"630\" height=\"324\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss12\"\/>\n<div style='padding-top:10px;font-weight:bold'>Bad match makes for an incorrectly-quick time\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Bad match makes for an incorrectly-quick time\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>If you think to investigate these details, and know how, you end up discounting this KOM and this entire stupid segment.<\/p>\n\n<p>I can guess how the segment got created. <span class='nobr'>The guy who<\/span> created the segment is really fast and has KOMs all around Kyoto. <span\nclass='nobr'>He hit this<\/span> climb hard, and if his GPS unit had tracked well, he would have been in the running for the KOM.\n<span class='nobr'>But his GPS<\/span> tracked so poorly that it didn't match <a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/10950985'>the segment for the climb<\/a>, so in order to see how fast he'd done, he created\n<span class='nobr'>a segment<\/span> from his ride with <span class='nobr'>a best<\/span> guess as to where the climb actually\nstarted and ended in his jumble of <span class='nobr'>a track.<\/span> <span class='nobr'>It's a fine<\/span> idea, if he'd kept the\nsegment private.<\/p>\n\n<p>Before we move on, for reference I'd like to show the segment <span class='nobr'>I made<\/span> for this climb, with the path hugging the\nleft side of the road that we drive on here in Japan:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/10950985'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss17.png\" width=\"600\" height=\"536\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss17\"\/><\/a>\n<div style='padding-top:10px;font-weight:bold'>Ridiculously-Correct Path\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Ridiculously-Correct Path\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>I go a bit beyond most Strava users... <span class='nobr'>I use road<\/span> and elevation data from the government to\ncomputer-generate highly-accurate segments like the one above. Sadly, because Strava's policies intended to promote good segments\n<a href='#unfortunate-reality'>are actually counter-productive in practice<\/a>, most users will never know this segment exists,\ninstead being shown <span class='nobr'>a variety<\/span> of less-accurate ones.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\n<div class='sh2716' id='bad-stats'><p><a href='#bad-stats'><b>Undesirable Trait #4: Bad Summary Statistics<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n\n<p>Each segment has summary data that includes the segment length, the vertical climb, and the\n<span class='nobr'>average gradient.<sup class='nobr' style='color:#666; font-size:80%'>(<a style='color:#666' href='#dorky-stats'>sort of<\/a>)<\/sup><\/span><\/p>\n\n<p>In the segment list seen after <span class='nobr'>a ride,<\/span> those three items are shown under the segment name. Here's an excerpt from\nthe long Hawaii climb seen at the start of this post:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss13.png\" width=\"400\" height=\"367\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss13\"\/>\n<div style='padding-top:10px;font-weight:bold'>Segment names with summary data underneath\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Segment names with summary data underneath\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>The six segments seen above all more or less cover the same stretch of road, with the minor differences in statistics stemming\npartially from where exactly each segment creator choose to start and end the segment, but even more, to the fact that each\nsegment is made from <span class='nobr'>a specific<\/span> ride's GPS track, and that the quality of GPS tracks can vary widely, especially with respect to\nelevation (which, <a href='\/blog\/2015-05-09\/2568'>as we know<\/a>, Strava has <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>issues<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> with to begin with).<\/p>\n\n<p>This long Hawaii climb is on a road that offers <span class='nobr'>a clear<\/span> view of the sky where GPS units tend to perform well, so there's little\nvariation among the segments seen above, but in the wider Strava universe, segment summary data can be <i>wildly<\/i> off. Let's\nlook at some examples from where <span class='nobr'>I ride<\/span> in Kyoto:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/2569637'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss14.png\" width=\"640\" height=\"412\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss14\"\/><\/a>\n<div style='padding-top:10px;font-weight:bold'>Crazy-wrong example #1: 3.8% grade showing as 25%\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Crazy-wrong example #1: 3.8% grade showing as 25%\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>Kyoto has some <a href='\/blog\/2015-05-25\/2579'>ridiculously-steep roads<\/a>,\nincluding some with sections that truly are at 25%, but this little segment at\nthe start of <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/10729052'>the northern ascent to Kyomi Pass<\/a>\nis not one of them. In reality, that section of the road rises at 3.8%.<\/p>\n\n<p>If you're familiar with the area you know that there are no 25% climbs around there, but if this kind of crazy-wrong data shows\nup in <span class='nobr'>a friend's<\/span> activity in an area you're not familiar with, it's instinctive to take it at face value:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss15.png\" width=\"450\" height=\"88\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss15\"\/>\n<br\/><b>Seductive<\/b>\n<br\/>but wrong\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Seductive but wrong\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>Because human nature is so strong to take this data at face value, <span class='nobr'>I think<\/span> it's important to get rid\nof incorrect segments like these. <span class='nobr'>I certainly<\/span> hide this segment.<\/p>\n\n<p id='grueling'>Here's an even worse example, <span class='nobr'>a flat<\/span> section of road (should be 0.0%) presented as <span\nclass='nobr'>a grueling<\/span> 24% climb:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/3501559'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss16.png\" width=\"630\" height=\"343\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss16\"\/><\/a>\n<div style='padding-top:10px;font-weight:bold'>Crazy-wrong example #2: 0.0% grade showing as 24%\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Crazy-wrong example #2: 0.0% grade showing as 24%\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>This short segment also goes through three major intersections with long traffic lights, making it inappropriate\non an entirely different level as well.<\/p>\n\n<p>Sadly, segments with this kind of wildly-incorrect stats abound. <span class='nobr'>Our only recourse<\/span> to make things better when we notice them is to hide them.<\/p>\n\n<p id='dorky-stats'><a href='#dorky-stats'><b><span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Correct<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> but Meaningless<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n\n<p>So, the average grade for a segment is correct if the source ride's GPS data is accurate, but Strava shows us that <span\nclass='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>correct<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> doesn't always mean <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>useful<span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>. Because of how Strava chooses to display things, the average grade is meaningful only if the segment is\nall uphill or all downhill. <span class='nobr'>If the ride<\/span> undulates or otherwise goes both up and down, the <span\nclass='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>average grade<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> number Strava presents is essentially meaningless from\n<span class='nobr'>a cyclist<\/span> point of view.<\/p>\n\n<p>Consider this segment that climbs at 9% up to the top of <span class='nobr'>a mountain<\/span> pass, and then much of the way\ndown the other side. <span class='nobr'>To do well<\/span> on this segment, you must have strength in both climbing and\ndescending:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/12508824'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss18.png\" width=\"550\" height=\"493\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss18\"\/><\/a>\n<div style='padding-top:10px;font-weight:bold'>Notice The Elevation Profile\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Notice The Elevation Profile\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>Strava displays an essentially-meaningless <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>1% average grade<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> for\nthis. They look at the difference between the starting and ending elevations, and divide that into the total distance. This is\n<span class='nobr'>a mathematically<\/span> valid way to compute something that <span class='nobr'>a mathematician<\/span> could call <span\nclass='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>average grade<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>, but that's about the best <span class='nobr'>I can<\/span>\nsay for it.<\/p>\n\n<p><span class='nobr'>As for usefulness<\/span>, it's <i>worse than nothing<\/i> when it comes to informing <span class='nobr'>a\ncyclist<\/span> about what to expect on the ride.<\/p>\n\n<p>The insidiousness is that when this <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>1%<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> shows up in <span\nclass='nobr'>a list<\/span> of segments, those not already familiar with the road will dismiss it as flat. This kind of data falls\ninto <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><b>Strava's core reason for existing<\/b><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>, so it boggles my mind\nthat they are satisfied with this as the status quo.<\/p>\n\n<p>A better solution is a matter of opinion, but <span class='nobr'>the most obvious<\/span> idea is to divide the total elevation\n<i>gain<\/i> (the aggregate of all climbs within the segment, as opposed to the simple difference between start and end) over the\ntotal distance. This would be much better for segments that are predominately climbs or descents, but it still fails to accurately\ndescribe the effort needed for mixed segments like our example above, for which this method would yield <span class='nobr'>a\npaltry<\/span> <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>3.5%<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>.<\/p>\n\n<p>For segments with a non-trivial mix of both ascent and descent, perhaps show the average gain for ascending road, along with\n<span class='nobr'>a parenthetical<\/span> note about the average loss for descending road. <span class='nobr'>In this case<\/span>\nit would be\n\n   <span class='nobr'><span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><b>5.8km @ 9%<\/b> (\uff0b8.4km @ -4%)<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>,<\/span>\nwhich much-more accurately describes the effort required for this segment.<\/p>\n\n<p>Strava doesn't do it this way perhaps because they disagree on its benefit, but more likely both because <a\nhref='\/blog\/2015-05-09\/2568'>Strava is challenged<\/a> when it comes to elevation calculations,\nand because they consistently show <span class='nobr'>a willingness<\/span> to abandon what should be one of their core competencies.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\n<div class='sh2716' id='stupid-name'><p><a href='#stupid-name'><b>Undesirable Trait #5: Stupid or Selfish Name<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n\n<p>When you create a segment in Strava, you have the option to keep it private to yourself, in which case the name matters only to\nyou. <span class='nobr'>But normal<\/span> public segments are a <i>shared resource<\/i> for all Strava uses, so unless you're\nselfish and inconsiderate, they should be created to be <span class='nobr'>a shared<\/span> benefit.<\/p>\n\n<p>A name like that seen above, <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><i>Steves Oh Gosh not this little turd of <span class='nobr'>a\nhill<\/span> again.<\/i><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>, is <span class='nobr'>a remarkably<\/span> meaningless name. <span\nclass='nobr'>The guy who<\/span> created it (<span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Steve<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>, one supposes)\ncouldn't even be bothered to punctuate properly.<\/p>\n\n<p>Another example from Kyoto, probably from the same guy, is this even more-meaningless name: <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/3900227'>Steve's Monkey T Sprint KYOTO<\/a><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>. <span\nclass='nobr'>The name tells<\/span> us that it's <span class='nobr'>a sprint<\/span> of some sort somewhere in Kyoto, but otherwise\nnothing. <span class='nobr'>I'm sure the<\/span> name is an inside joke of some sort, so it'd be <span class='nobr'>a great<\/span>\nname for <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Steve<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> to have as <span class='nobr'>a private<\/span>\nsegment, but there's no meaning for others. <span class='nobr'>I hide it<\/span>.<\/p>\n\n<p>There are a bunch of rides around Kyoto with names that start with <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Steve<span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>, so perhaps he attempted to create a <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>brand<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>\nof segments that all share <span class='nobr'>a certain<\/span> something? <span class='nobr'>I don't<\/span> know, but all <span class='nobr'>I came<\/span>\nacross shared <span class='nobr'>a stunning<\/span> lack of quality, so <span class='nobr'>I quickly<\/span> learned to hide them any time <span\nclass='nobr'>I came<\/span> across them.<\/p>\n\n<p>Unfortunately, there are no end to stupid, meaningless segment names on Strava. <span class='nobr'>A quick<\/span> perusal\nyields such gems as:<\/p>\n\n<ul>\n<li><a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/5578117'>Sprint for your life!<\/a><\/li>\n\n<li><a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/2708631'>Dog Eat Dog<\/a><\/li>\n\n<li><a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/857814'>stupid<\/a><\/li>\n\n<li><a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/7114702'>too good to delete-<\/a><\/li>\n\n<li><a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/12279651'>\u2764\ufe0fChase me Chase me\u2764\ufe0f<\/a><\/li>\n\n<li><a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/12484776'>Thank God<\/a><\/li>\n\n<li><a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/10778857'>annoying hill<\/a><\/li>\n\n<li><a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/1223331'>Better Version<\/a><\/li>\n\n<li><a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/12684718'>happy<\/a><\/li>\n\n<li><a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/9961220'>Tailwind? Nah! just your wishful thinking<\/a><\/li>\n\n<li><a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/2382205'>mydailyroutine-fixed<\/a><\/li>\n\n<li><a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/11009796'>Xyzzy<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p>Seriously? These are just moronic.<\/p>\n\n<p>Some names are neither stupid nor selfish, but unfortunately lacking nevertheless. <span class='nobr'>If you can<\/span> approach <span class='nobr'>a mountain<\/span> pass from both sides, <span class='nobr'>a name<\/span> like <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Bigmountain Pass Climb<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>\ndoesn't tell you which of the two sides it refers to.<\/p>\n\n<p>I think segment names should have logical, boring names that <i>actually describe the segment<\/i>,\nletting the nature of the ride itself lend fun and excitement instead of trying to force it via <span class='nobr'>a <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>witty<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span><\/span> name.<\/p>\n\n<p>So, that's how I name segments that <span class='nobr'>I create.<\/span> For example, there's <span class='nobr'>a\nmountain<\/span> pass in Kyoto named <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Ebumi Pass<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>, and if you approach\nit from the west, you'll find segment <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/10831463'>Ebumi\nWest<\/a><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>, and if you then go down the other side, <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/10827859'>Ebumi East Descent<\/a><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>.<\/p>\n\n<p>If you then turn around to retrace your steps, you'll traverse <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/10783003'>Ebumi East<\/a><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> and then <span\nclass='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/10728160'>Ebumi West Descent<\/a><span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>.<\/p>\n\n<p>Boring, yes, but also clear, understandable, and unambiguous in the local context.<\/p>\n\n<p>Actually, those are just the English parts of the names, which actually also include <span class='nobr'>a Japanese<\/span>\nversion as well. This part of the global shared resource &mdash; road segments &mdash; is in Japan, so if one has the linguistic\nability, it's only considerate to include <span class='nobr'>a Japanese<\/span> version in the name.<\/p>\n\n<p>So, my <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Ebumi East<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> segment becomes <span\nclass='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><span class='nobr'>\u6c5f\u6587\u6771<\/span> \/ Ebumi East<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>, which is <span class='nobr'>a bit<\/span> noisy,\nbut still reasonable, and useful for both Japanese and English-speaking foreigners alike. English is the <i><a\nhref='https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Lingua_franca'>lingua franca<\/a><\/i> among non-Japanese speakers in Japan, so an English\nversion of the name has wide utility.<\/p>\n\n<p id='branding' style='font-weight:bold'>\n  <a href='#branding'>Segment <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Branding<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span><\/a>\n<\/p>\n\n<p>I sometimes see groups of segments with <span class='nobr'>a commonness<\/span> to the names that implies <span class='nobr'>a\nkind<\/span> of <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>branding<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>, such as the <span\nclass='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Steve<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> segments seen earlier. <span class='nobr'>I think<\/span> for the\nmost part this is merely ego and selfishness, but <span class='nobr'>I do<\/span> see one rationale for branding: to advertise\n<span class='nobr'>a certain<\/span> level of quality. After <span class='nobr'>a few<\/span> paragraphs I'll explain how <span class='nobr'>I utilize<\/span> segment-name branding this\nway, but first <span class='nobr'>a bit<\/span> of background on why this comes about...<\/p>\n\n<p>When creating a segment on Strava, you have only one way to communicate to others everything you want to say about the segment:\nthe title. <span class='nobr'>It'd be nice<\/span> if Strava added a <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>description<span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> field, <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Author\/Creator<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> field, <span\nclass='nobr'>a name<\/span>-in-another-language field, and such, but they don't. This is really unfortunate because there are <span\nclass='nobr'>a lot<\/span> of things you might want to tell others when creating <span class='nobr'>a segment,<\/span> not the least\nof which is why <i>this<\/i> segment is better than whatever segment it's trying to replace. <span class='nobr'>So if it<\/span>'s\nimportant enough, you have to communicate it in the title.<\/p>\n\n<p>Searching Strava for segment titles with <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/search?utf8=%E2%9C%93&amp;keywords=fixed&amp;filter_type=cycling&amp;min-cat=0&amp;max-cat=5&amp;terrain=all'>fixed<\/a><span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> in them shows plenty. (<span class='nobr'>I looked<\/span> at <a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/1477600'>one<\/a>, and found it to be just as bad as <a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/652865'>the original<\/a> in that it starts just before <span class='nobr'>a big<\/span>\nintersection instead of just after, going to show that you just can't blindly trust <span class='nobr'>a segment<\/span> just\nbecause it has <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>fixed<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> in the title.)<\/p>\n\n<p id='surveyed'><span class='nobr'>I sometimes<\/span> go through <a href='\/blog\/2016-12-28\/2762#gsi'>quite <span class='nobr'>a bit<\/span> of work to create super-accurate\nsegments<\/a> in Japan, applying my computer-science geekiness to computer generate silky-smooth segments from highly-detailed road\nand elevation data from the Government of Japan. These segments go so far as to follow the left edge of the road (Japan drives on\nthe left side), and they have <span class='nobr'>an elevation<\/span> profile that's faithful to reality. <span class='nobr'>I\nwould<\/span> suppose I'm the only one in the world crazy enough to put this much work into it.<\/p>\n\n<p>Anyway, I'd like to communicate the accurate nature of these segments to other users, and the only way Strava allows for is in\nthe name, so I <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>brand<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> these segments by adding <span\nclass='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Surveyed<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> (in English and Japanese) to the end of the title.<\/p>\n\n<p>So now my <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Ebumi East<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> segment name becomes\n\n<span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/10783003' class='nobr'><span class='nobr'>\u6c5f\u6587\u6771<\/span> \/\nEbumi East <span class='nobr'>[\u8a08\u6e2c<\/span> \/Surveyed]<\/a><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>, which is an ugly mouthfull making <span\nclass='nobr'>a ride's<\/span> segment list look <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>busy<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>. <span\nclass='nobr'>I don't<\/span> like it, and <span class='nobr'>I can<\/span> imagine some folks might consider this in the <span\nclass='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>stupid name<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> basket, but <span class='nobr'>I can't<\/span> think of any\nother way to communicate the trustworthiness of the segment.<\/p>\n\n<p>I tried prefixing the title with <span class='nobr'>a symbol<\/span> that might communicate what <span class='nobr'>I\nwant,<\/span> such as <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>&#9874;<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>. This would create <span class='nobr'>a\nless<\/span>-cluttered name like <span class='nobr'><span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><b>&#9874; <span class='nobr'>\u6c5f\u6587\u6771<\/span> \/\nEbumi East<\/b><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>,<\/span> but <span class='nobr'>I had<\/span> to abandon the idea because\nStrava's Android app doesn't display this correctly.<\/p>\n\n<p>So, for the moment I'm stuck with the ugly-but-informative <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Surveyed<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> pattern.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n<div class='sh2716' id='unremarkable-road'><p><a href='#unremarkable-road'><b>Undesirable Trait #6: Unremarkable or Inconsequential\nLength of Road<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n\n<p>Some segments may be technically fine, but just make no sense in local context. <span class='nobr'>As an example<\/span>, let's\nrevisit the <a href='#odd-starting-point'>odd-starting point segment<\/a> seen earlier. Here's its elevation profile in the local\ncontext:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss23.png\" width=\"500\" height=\"418\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss23\"\/>\n<div style='padding-top:10px;font-weight:bold'>Very odd ending point\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Very odd ending point\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>We talked earlier about the slightly-odd starting point, but the ending point sits squarely in the <span\nclass='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>bizarre<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> category, just abruptly ending in the middle of the climb up to\n<span class='nobr'>a pass.<\/span> Having ridden these roads many times, <span class='nobr'>I just can<\/span>'t see the meaning of\n<span class='nobr'>a segment<\/span> that incorporates the climb up and down the one pass, then part way up to the next.<\/p>\n\n<p>To further boast the <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>totally clueless<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> nature of this segment, its\nname is <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><span class='nobr'>\u5e9c\u9053<\/span>31<span class='nobr'>\u53f7\u7dda<\/span> Climb full<span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>, which translates as <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Prefectural Route #31 Climb full<span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>. <span class='nobr'>The thing<\/span> is, this name is <span class='nobr'>a fail<\/span> on all fronts:\nIt's not anywhere close to the full length of Prefectural Route #31, and as <span class='nobr'>a bonus,<\/span> &frac14; of the\nsegment is on <span class='nobr'>a different<\/span> road entirely. <span class='nobr'>It's not a<\/span> full climb either, nor even really <span\nclass='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><span class='nobr'>a climb<\/span><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> at all since almost half is <span\nclass='nobr'>a descent.<\/span><\/p>\n\n<p>So why does this segment even exist? <span class='nobr'>I can think<\/span> of three reasons:<\/p>\n\n<ol><li>There are community benefits that I'm just not seeing.<\/li>\n    <li>The person who made it was sloppy and inept.<\/li>\n    <li>Unlikely, but perhaps <span class='nobr'>a person<\/span> didn't make it at all; perhaps it was automatically made by Strava.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n<p>That last possibility brings up the topic of auto-generated segments...<\/p>\n\n<b id='strava-generated'><a href='#strava-generated'>Strava-Generated Segments<\/a><\/b>\n\n<p>Back when Strava was young and there weren't many segments yet, in an effort to seed the pool, so to speak, their computer\nwould analyze an activity and automatically generate segments for climbs that didn't otherwise have segments yet. This hasn't been\ndone for <span class='nobr'>a couple<\/span> of years now, but those auto-created segments remain. <span class='nobr'>These auto-created segments<\/span>\nalways got <span class='nobr'>titled <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><i style='color:#666'>road name<\/i> Climb<span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n\n<p>These are easy to spot here in Japan because the <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><i>road name<\/i><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>\npart is in Japanese and <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Climb<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> is in English, for example <span\nclass='nobr'><span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><span class='nobr'>\u5e9c\u9053<\/span>31<span class='nobr'>\u53f7\u7dda<\/span> Climb<span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>, <span class='nobr'>a climb<\/span> on Prefectural <span class='nobr'>Route 31.<\/span><\/span> Going back to the start of this post, this is probably the\norigin of the four <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Haleakala Highway Climb<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> segments along random\nparts of the road.<\/p>\n\n<p>Because these automatic segments are based upon <span class='nobr'>a user's<\/span> GPS track, they're ultimately subject to the\naccuracy of the recording device's elevation data, which even today can be wildly inaccurate. When it works well you end up with\n<span class='nobr'>a nice<\/span> segment from the bottom of <span class='nobr'>a climb<\/span> to the top, but more often you get\nlittle tidbits in the middle of <span class='nobr'>a climb<\/span> where the user's elevation recording happened to fluctuate.<\/p>\n\n<p>For example, a few years ago some guy rode up <a href='\/blog\/2016-07-06\/2712#i09793'>this beautiful, smooth\nclimb<\/a>. <span class='nobr'>It's a proper<\/span> climb that just keeps going up, with no flat or downward sections, but as is\ncommon with GPS devices, his device recorded quite <span class='nobr'>a bit<\/span> of fluctuation during his ascent that simply\nwasn't there:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss24.png\" width=\"690\" height=\"260\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss24\"\/>\n<div style='padding-top:10px;font-weight:bold'>Bumpy Recording of <span class='nobr'>a Smooth<\/span> Ascent\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Bumpy Recording of a Smooth Ascent\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>Among the various bumps, Strava for some reason chose to make the marked part into <span class='nobr'>a segment,<\/span>\nwith (of course) a <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>... Climb<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> title:<\/p>\n\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/5619782'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss25.png\" width=\"600\" height=\"425\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss25\"\/><\/a>\n<div style='padding-top:10px'><b><span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Prefectural <span class='nobr'>Route 16<\/span> Climb<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span><\/b>\n<br\/>in reality only a mild 5.5%\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"&amp;#8220; Prefectural Route 16 Climb &amp;#8221; in reality only a mild 5.5%\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>So, these <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><i style='color:#666'>road name<\/i> Climb<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> segments are\noften junk. <span class='nobr'>I tend to<\/span> hide them.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n<div class='sh2716' id='promiscuous-matching'><p><a href='#promiscuous-matching'><b>Undesirable Trait #7: Inappropriate\nfor Strava's Matching Algorithms<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n\n<p>Sometimes a segment has all the hallmarks of quality, but just doesn't work well with Strava's track-matching algorithm. <span\nclass='nobr'>A simple<\/span> example is this climb on an old road now bypassed by <a\nhref='\/blog\/2016-01-04\/2662#tunnel'><span class='nobr'>a long,<\/span> dark tunnel<\/a> going almost directly\nunderneath:<\/p>\n\n<table width='95%' align='center' style='border:solid 1px #444;padding-top:30px;padding-bottom:20px;margin-bottom:40px'>\n<tr><td align='center' width='50%'>\n\n    <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/maps\/place\/@35.0313412,135.6616157,3a,75y,352.79h,92.9t\/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1snFnoMuHHufKI-lFF_Wgjug!2e0!6s%2F%2Fgeo1.ggpht.com%2Fcbk%3Fpanoid%3DnFnoMuHHufKI-lFF_Wgjug%26output%3Dthumbnail%26cb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile.gps%26thumb%3D2%26w%3D203%26h%3D100%26yaw%3D43.676414%26pitch%3D0!7i13312!8i6656!4m5!3m4!1s0x0:0x0!8m2!3d35.031742!4d135.661538\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss38.png\" width=\"308\" height=\"320\"\nid=\"istrava_ss38\"\/><\/a>\n    <div style='padding-top:10px'><b>Start of the climb<\/b>\n    <br\/>the climb rises at right, then crosses over the tunnel\n    <\/div>\n\n<\/td><td align='center' width='50%'>\n\n   <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/11146882'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss37.png\" width=\"320\" height=\"330\"\nid=\"istrava_ss37\"\/><\/a>\n   <div style='padding-top:10px'><b>Segment ends directly over tunnel<\/b>\n   <br\/><small class='subtle'>(confusingly, itself directly under <span class='nobr'>a parkway<\/span> overpass)<\/small>\n   <\/div>\n\n<\/td><\/tr><\/table>\n\n<p>The track for a rider going through the tunnel also appears to go through the start and end of this climb, so\nStrava can't tell the difference, so this segment gets matched:<\/p>\n\n<table width='95%' align='center' style='border:solid 1px #444;padding-top:30px;padding-bottom:20px;margin:40px auto'>\n<tr><td align='center' width='50%'>\n\n   <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/249326695#11136563992'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss41.png\" width=\"335\" height=\"420\"\nid=\"istrava_ss41\"\/><\/a>\n   <div style='padding-top:10px'><b>Improper Match<\/b>\n   <br\/>through the tunnel both ways\n   <\/div>\n\n<\/td><td align='center' width='50%'>\n\n\n    <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/461081134#11370044381'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss40.png\" width=\"335\" height=\"420\"\nid=\"istrava_ss40\"\/><\/a>\n    <div style='padding-top:10px'><b>Proper Match<\/b>\n    <br\/>north over the climb, south through the tunnel\n    <\/div>\n\n<\/td><\/tr><\/table>\n\n<p>That <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>proper match<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> effort is mine and is currently the fastest\ntime for the climb and should be the KOM, but it shows up as #15 on the leaderboard because those above were improperly-matched\nefforts. <span class='nobr'>Any number<\/span> of friends could easily beat my time of 1:25, but they'd have <span class='nobr'>a difficult<\/span> time\nbeating the currently-listed KOM of 31 seconds, unless they also went through the tunnel like that rider.<\/p>\n\n<p>(By the way, the temple noted at the bottom of the maps above is the same one seen on my blog\nin <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><a href='\/blog\/2015-07-04\/2594' class='pt'>That Kyoto Temple With the Many Whimsical Statues<\/a><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>; it's well\nworth <span class='nobr'>a visit<\/span> if you're riding by.)<\/p>\n\n<p>When two segments more or less overlap, it's difficult to blame Strava for not noticing the difference, but many mismatches are\nless obvious. Consider the <span class='nobr'>little climb<\/span> seen in this closeup of the heat-map screenshot seen in the\n<span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><a href='\/tmp\/strava.html#local-considerations'>local considerations<\/a><span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> section above:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<a href='http:\/\/labs.strava.com\/heatmap\/#15\/135.64077\/34.95397\/blue\/bike'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss32.png\" width=\"410\" height=\"229\"\nid=\"istrava_ss32\"\nstyle=\"border-color:#333\"\/><\/a>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>That little bit of road is the super-steep entrance to the temple seen on my blog seven years ago in <span\nclass='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><a class='pt' href='\/blog\/2009-04-12\/1184'><span class='nobr'>A Visit<\/span> to Western\nKyoto\u2019s Konzou Temple<\/a><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>, where <span class='nobr'>a younger<\/span> and fatter me visited with my\nson, via scooter. <span class='nobr'>I did visit<\/span> again last year <a href='\/blog\/2015-05-28\/2580#i2006'>via\nbicycle<\/a>, but <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/312712000'>my ride<\/a> didn't match <a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/12841485'><span class='nobr'>a segment<\/span> <span class='nobr'>I made<\/span><\/a> for the\n18%-average-grade driveway. Strava's <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Potential Segment Matches<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> page for the ride says:<\/p>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\">\nul#legend li span { font-size:70%; white-space: nowrap; }\n<\/style>\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss33.png\" width=\"500\" height=\"331\"\nid=\"istrava_ss33\"\/>\n<ul id='legend' style='list-style: outside none none; text-align:left; margin: 0 auto; width:15em'>\n<li><span style='background-color:gray'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/span> Your Activity <\/li>\n<li><span style='background-color:red'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/span> Selected Segment<\/li>\n<li><span style='background-color:green'>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/span> Partial Segment Match<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<div style='margin-top:15px'><span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><i>Your Activity seems to have deviated from the Segment at 42%.\n<br\/>We could not complete the match.<\/i><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; Your Activity &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; Selected Segment &amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; Partial Segment Match &amp;#8220; Your Activity seems to have deviated from the Segment at 42%. We could not complete the match. &amp;#8221;\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>I'm not sure what's going on here... my ride's cruddy track somehow matches the segment perfectly right up to the finish... but\nthen inexplicably continues matching for <span class='nobr'>a while.<\/span> Yet, Strava says it failed just before the halfway mark? <span class='nobr'>I'm left baffled.<\/span><\/p>\n\n<p>Worse, though, is that the <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/331888233'>next time <span class='nobr'>I rode<\/span> it<\/a>,\nit not only matched the climb segment on the way up as it should have, but also matched the <i>descent<\/i> as well:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss34.png\" width=\"690\" height=\"315\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss34\"\/>\n<div style='margin-top:5px'>The blue sections are the parts of the ride,\n<br\/>once each way, that matched the segment\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"The blue sections are the parts of the ride, once each way, that matched the segment\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>In looking at the rides for the top of the leader boards for <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/12841485'>the\nsegment<\/a>, it appears this problem is widespread.<\/p>\n\n<p>The segment just doesn't work well with how Strava matches... the start and end are too close to other parts of the segment,\nand to each other.<\/p>\n\n<p>It's a problem common to short segments with non-segment road nearby. <span class='nobr'>I first<\/span> noticed it with\n<a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/9559479'>this segment<\/a>, covered on my blog in\n<span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><a href='\/blog\/2015-05-25\/2579' class='pt'>Kyoto\u2019s <span class='nobr'>Nasty 21<\/span>% City-Bike Hill Climb<\/a><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>. <span class='nobr'>A rider<\/span> speeding by on <span class='nobr'>a flat<\/span> road nearby matched this steep climb, <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>earning<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> the KOM with <span class='nobr'>a time<\/span> of 11 seconds:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/407769022#9783462794'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss36.png\" width=\"650\" height=\"392\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss36\"\/><\/a>\n<div style='margin-top:5px'><b><span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Nasty<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> Example<\/b>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"&amp;#8220; Nasty &amp;#8221; Example\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>These kinds of false matches can absolutely destroy the leaderboards, leaving them meaningless. The <i>actual<\/i> KOM is <a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/587172789#14289392453'>this 24-second effort<\/a> by <span class='nobr'>a friend,<\/span> but it's listed as the 77th\noverall! (To figure that out, <span class='nobr'>I had to<\/span> inspect each ride on the leaderboard until <span class='nobr'>I found<\/span> one that matched properly; FWIW, my\npersonal best is <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/436057005#11370026066'>32 seconds<\/a>.)<\/p>\n\n<p>Another example shows a road too twisty at both the start and end for <span class='nobr'>a reliable<\/span> match of either.\nHere's the current KOM for <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/12039563'>that segment<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight'>\n<a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/557823302#13855888141'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/s\/strava-ss35.png\" width=\"450\" height=\"425\"\nclass=\"raw\"\nid=\"istrava_ss35\"\/><\/a>\n<div style='margin-top:5px'>the blue section is the part of the ride that matched the segment,\n<br\/>but the segment actually starts and ends at the two yellow <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><span style='color:yellow'>\u2605<\/span><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"the blue section is the part of the ride that matched the segment, but the segment actually starts and ends at the two yellow &amp;#8220; \u2605 &amp;#8221;\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p>This rider turned around two hairpins short of the full segment, but it was close enough for Strava's matching. Combined with\nthe late match at the start, his overall time is seriously truncated, <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>earning<span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> him the KOM.<\/p>\n\n<p>It's not the rider's fault that Strava doesn't match these correctly, and frankly, <span class='nobr'>I don't<\/span> blame\nStrava for it either. There's an <i>incredible<\/i> range of GPS quality levels, but many tracks, especially in mountainous areas,\nare all over the place, and Strava's algorithms work hard to match as reasonably as they can. <span class='nobr'>If the\nalgorithm<\/span> has to allow for <span class='nobr'>a track<\/span> error placing it 100 yards off the road, such <span\nclass='nobr'>a track<\/span> is indistinguishable from <span class='nobr'>a track<\/span> on <span class='nobr'>a different<\/span>\nroad that's actually within that distance. Trying to balance the various considerations involves <span class='nobr'>a level<\/span>\nof juggling well beyond my paygrade, but it seems that short segments, which are iffy to begin with (due to the aforementioned GPS\nquality levels), are where matching most often fails. <span class='nobr'>It seems<\/span> like <span class='nobr'>a smart<\/span>\nbalance to me.<\/p>\n\n<p>Overall, that Strava can do as well as they do, so quickly, with so many segments and activities every day, is only slightly\nshort of magic.<\/p>\n\n<p id='fix-mismatches'><a href='#fix-mismatches'><b>How Strava Can Fix This<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n\n<p>I do blame Strava, however, for not providing <span class='nobr'>a way<\/span> for <span class='nobr'>a rider<\/span> to manually\nremove <span class='nobr'>a segment<\/span> match from an activity. <span class='nobr'>I think<\/span> that keeping leaderboards\nclean falls into the <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>core competency<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> of their business, and in this\nrespect they fail. With the <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><a href='#istrava_ss36'>Nasty<\/a><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>\nexample above, <span class='nobr'>I learned<\/span> that <span class='nobr'>I simply<\/span> can't ride on that road that gets\nincorrectly matched if <span class='nobr'>I don't<\/span> want my own PR leaderboard to be forever polluted with false <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>PRs<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>. <span\nclass='nobr'>It's silly<\/span> to modify my real-world movements to satisfy my data-integrity geekiness, but <span class='nobr'>I\ndo.<\/span><\/p>\n\n<p>Not only do I wish Strava would let us remove an incorrectly-matched segment, but <span class='nobr'>I wish<\/span> they would let us flag\nincorrect matches in other riders' activities, to alert the less-savvy Strava user to the situation. These are among\nmy #1 wishlist items for Strava.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class='h2716' id='conclusion'><a href='#conclusion'>Conclusion<\/a><\/p>\n\n<p>So that's that. If you actually read this far, in the time it took to read you probably could have <a\nhref='http:\/\/www.everesting.cc\/the-rules\/'>Everested<\/a> your favorite climb. Hopefully, the time spent was worth it and together\nwe can make the Stravaverse better for all.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I enjoy reliving a bicycle ride by reviewing the statistics on Strava, seeing how well I did on certain stretches of road compared to how I've done before, or perhaps how I compare to my friends.<\/p> <p>In the Strava universe, sections of road are broken up into \"segments\", and if your ride traverses a segment, you'll get info about how you and others have done on it. If your ride transverses lots of segments, you'll get a lot of info.<\/p> <p>Segments can be created by any Strava user at any time, which on one hand is really great and flexible, [...]","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30,31,4],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2722"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2722"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2722\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2722"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2722"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2722"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}