Garmin Rally Power Meter Pedals: Track Stats, Swap From Road to Mountain
One power meter to rule all your pedal-powered pursuits, the Garmin Rally targets ease of use and versatility with swappable pedal power meters that suit road, gravel, and mountain.
Garmin’s new Rally pedals track a rider’s total power, cadence, left-right balance, power phase, and more on every ride. That’s because the pedal spindle switches from road to mountain to gravel with a conversion kit. So you can buy one power meter and use it for more than one bike.
Key to the Rally’s design is a new spindle that lets riders swap pedal platforms. Swapping the meter is as easy as swapping pedals. The new spindle also has an improved sleep current that Garmin claims will last for 120 hours of riding.
Garmin Rally: Really a Gamechanger
The ability to swap one power meter between road, mountain, and gravel — in a pedal with robust battery life — could change where and how riders train. Until now, the other options were either a road pedal-compatible power meter embedded into a crank or an external sensor.
Crank meters are drivetrain-specific and a distinct length, so tough to swap for several reasons. And external sensors don’t come close in accuracy or metrics tracked. By putting a reliable power meter in a pedal on a platform that can be swapped, cyclists can use the same power meter on several bikes.
Garmin said it went above and beyond to fully vet the new Rally.
“We had more than 125 beta road, gravel, mountain bike, cyclocross, fat bike, and bikepacking riders,” said Stephanie Schultz, Garmin international media relations specialist.
“They completed 6,000 rides over 110,000 hours and 125,000 miles, which is five times around the world. They tested the Rally through every temperature and extreme condition from mud to rain, water, ice and snow, and temperatures of 0-105 degrees Fahrenheit. And one rider did a 430-mile, 47-hour single ride.”
Garmin Rally Pedal Power Meter
Extensive testing and swap-ability will help riders perform. But expect to pay for the access to data. The Rally, which comes in single- and dual-sensing pedal options, ranges from $650 (single) to $1,200 (dual).
A dual-sensing pedal option gives riders left- and right-specific data. Opting for a dual-sensing pedal also lets you track time spent seated versus standing so you can gauge the effectiveness of your position, and where you apply power to the pedal, to ensure proper cleat position.
But if you’re not interested in getting that molecular and just want a general read on your watts, the single option will work great. And if you eventually get more into tracking your numbers, you can upgrade from single to dual for $550-600. Spindle conversion kits, which let you swap from road pedals to mountain pedals and back, cost $200-250.
“We know cyclists are out there training to improve their performance every day, and we have created a power meter that they can depend on to help them achieve their goals,” said Dan Bartel, Garmin vice president of worldwide sales.
“These Rally pedals have undergone rigorous testing to ensure we are not only providing cyclists with a superior pedal design but with a power meter that riders can rely on to take their training to the next level.”
Garmin Rally RS, RK, XC Pedals
There are three models in the new Rally line to accommodate different cleats and riding styles:
- Shimano SPD-SL Cleats: Rally RS100 and Rally RS200 for road cyclists
- LOOK Cycle KEO Cleats: Rally RK100 and Rally RK200 for road cyclists
- Shimano SPD Cleats: Rally XC100 and Rally XC200 for off-road cyclists
With the introduction of the Rally series, Garmin’s Vector pedals will be discontinued.
“Power is essential in helping cyclists understand their overall fitness and performance. With the Rally family of power meters, we’re able to bring power to on- or off-road riding across more terrain than ever before — and even indoors or out,” said Kenny Carlson, Garmin senior product manager.
According to Garmin, riders can get the most from their training by pairing the Rally power meters with compatible Garmin Edge cycling computers and the Garmin Connect app to upload data and update software. The Rally power meters are also compatible with the Tacx Training app, Zwift, TrainerRoad, BLE devices, and ANT+ devices.
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