3
votes

Back between 2008 and 2010 I used a Garmin Edge 305 on my road and mountain bike. This was before Strava and overlays of routes on Google Maps so I would like to recover these rides and save them into my Strava.

The Garmin is long gone, and the computer I had the software installed on has been long since replaced. However, I do have a full backup of the hard drive. I was wondering what kind of files would the Garmin software have created, and where it saved those files. I do not recall the name of the software that was used. However, I do remember it being pretty crappy and laggy. This was most likely all done on a Windows XP or Windows Vista.

My questions are as follows:

1 - Did the Garmin save each route as a file?

2.1 - What type of file was it? Were they bundled in one big file?

2.2 - If so, what folder would I found that file?

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  • 1
    This says something about .tcx files. Perhaps try doing a search for those. If you used Garmin Training Center it probably used those files. Looks like Strava can support those files directly.
    – Kibbee
    Commented Jun 19, 2015 at 23:52
  • Yeah, it seems that tcx is the files that the software was saving. I'll take a look at it and report back.
    – Zlatty
    Commented Jun 20, 2015 at 17:58
  • 1
    I'm voting to close this question as off-topic because software is off topic for this stack. Please ask your question on softwarerecs.stackexchange.com and use the Cycling tag.
    – Criggie ♦
    Commented Mar 18, 2016 at 2:09

1 Answer 1

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2
votes

The Garmin Edge 205/305 Owner's Manual makes it clear that any data that was not saved using the Garmin Training Center Software would be overwritten when the device is full.

The Garmin Training Center Software was last updated Aug 25, 2011. The Windows version ran on XP, but it can still be downloaded by following the links. You'd have to test if it will work on a current OS (but see the next para).

Garmin has a page explaining Where is the history data for Training Center located? That page seems to suggest that the software works on Windows 7.

If the data you want is present on your backup as .TCX files, then you can just upload it to Strava:

Works for multiple .tcx, .fit or .gpx files 25MB or smaller. Choose up to 25 files.

If you can't see .TCX files then you'll have to dig deeper. From what I see the data can be stored in .TCD files, perhaps compressed a la zip. Install the Garmin Training Center Software and see if it can extract the data you need.

Good luck.

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  • Thans on the research. Once I'm back from my morning ride I'll make a search for .tcx files. Will update once I'm back.
    – Zlatty
    Commented Jun 20, 2015 at 17:57
  • I searched and searched, and could not find any .tcx files. I found a TrainingCenter folder with a few bin files, but I could not get them opened as a zip. Thanks your your research Andy.
    – Zlatty
    Commented Jun 21, 2015 at 16:01
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    You're welcome. As a last resort, I'd try downloading the software again to see what it can discover. Depends how much the data means to you.
    – andy256
    Commented Jun 21, 2015 at 21:22
  • On re-reading your comment, was there anything in \Documents and Settings\User Name\Application Data\Garmin\TrainingCenter\ or similar folder?
    – andy256
    Commented Jun 21, 2015 at 21:30

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