I’m not much of a techie type of guy, I dont have a need for all the latest gadgets (mainly because I hate figuring them out) but here are my thoughts on two technologies.

GPS- A good friend sent me a Garmin Forerunner 305 because he knows about my passion for running and biking. I haven’t used it as much as I would like because of all the snow on the ground outside, but I love this piece of technology. Being into technical analysis like I am, I love the displays of data you can get from the GPS information. The chart below just scratches the surface of the data available. When I skied yesterday I wore the Garmin and started it at the top of each run. What I found out was that for the time you ski, only about 40% of the time is actually spent skiing, the rest is time on the lift, lift lines (non-existent yesterday) and short breaks. I know that is geeky and not very interesting, but of more interest is how it has changed my skiing. I used to turn… Now it seems I just want to see how fast I can go! I spent most of my time yesterday in a tuck trying to see how fast I could go (54.5 mph was my top yesterday). I think I can do a little over 60 mph but I need fresh wax, less wind and maybe bigger balls! It’s scary going that fast.

The other technology I was thinking about yesterday is cell phones. I hate cell phones! They frustrate the hell out of me. Sure they’re convenient (when they work) but it seems like they don’t have this technology really figured out yet, with all the dropped calls, missed messages, etc. I recently “upgraded” my phone to the slim and stylish Motorola Razr and that phone sucks! If you are in the market for a new cell phone find something else. I simply cannot get reception in the mountains, this was never a problem with my other cheapo freebie phone. When you are jonesing for quotes wondering if your stocks are holding up, it is maddening not to be able to call in for a quote while you are enjoying a day of skiing and not thinking about the markets!