Last week, we were lucky enough to fish the Gulf of Mexio off the coast of Galveston, Texas again. Since our last tripto the Gulf with pro angler Bill Platt, Garmin has rolled out some impressive new equipment, and it was time to see the new gear in action!

Equipped with the latest in marine electronics — including the new GPSMAP 7212 and 6212 — we headed out to find fish. With calm seas ahead of us and a trio of Yamaha 350′s behind us, Captain Bill lead us to one of his spots 50 or so miles offshore…

With the help of the GSD 22sounder’s powerful 1kW transducer, we were pleased to see this abundance of what turned out to be mostly red snapper. Having the ability to view separate, big images of your sonar and charts is helpful; once we located the fish, Bill – a pro on the kingfish circuit – used the plotter zoomed way in to figure out his drift for the ideal spot. And these new machines are fast – we’re talking blazing speed that delivered ultra-smooth panning and zooming with near real-time refresh rates!

 

We worked the area for several hours (as seen from our tracklog above), and pulled in tons of red snapper – many in the 20-pound class. Just like the last time we visited the Gulf, snapper season was closed, so back in the water they went. But hey – at least we have the pictures to prove it!

It’s the opening day of Sun ‘n Fun, and we have lots of great announcements to share. Here’s a quick overview of some of them. Plus, there are numerous new rebates to take advantage of. If you’re in Lakeland, Florida, having fun in the sun, be sure to come visit us at Hangar D.

• Bundled database pricing for the GPSMAP® 495/496 and GPSMAP 695/696
  will save customers up to 50 percent annually on database updates and
  will be available beginning the week of Sun ‘n Fun 2010. Other product
  database bundles are expected to be available in the future.
• New SVX™ synthetic vision upgrade for the G300 and G3X™, the
  avionic platforms for Cessna’s Skycatcher and other experimental and
  light sport aircraft, respectively. SVX™ will be included with newly
  purchased G300 and G3X systems, and will be available as a
  complimentary download for those who are already flying with these
  glass cockpit suites. It will be available beginning the week of Sun ‘n
  Fun 2010.
• Pilot My-Cast℠ by Garmin is now available in the Android market for
  smartphones running on the Android™ platform. Pilot My-Cast by Garmin
  is a premium mobile phone aviation weather, flight planning and flight
  filing application exclusively for customers in the U.S. and Canada. It
  is also available on popular phone models such as BlackBerry, iPhone,
  and Windows Mobile.

Recently a mix of 30 mariners, dealers and GPS enthusiasts joined the Chicago Store for an exclusive introduction of the GPSMAP 6000/7000 and 700 series. With the devices on display, guests had plenty of time for interaction and in-depth questioning, and Garmin marine guru Tony, impressed attendees with a live presentation of G Motion on the GPSMAP 7212.

One attendee, Michael, sent in the following note of thanks:
“Just a short note to say once again how much I appreciate your time and efforts, along with all the other good people at Garmin who participated in Tuesday evening’s event. Tony’s talk was both informative and very helpful.”

Now that the weather is warming up and the crowds returning to Michigan Avenue, the Chicago Store proudly distinguished itself as the place to be this marine season! As long as the marine windows are on display at the Garmin Store, enjoy a 10.25% discount on all marine products. Save on chartplotters and portable plotters with the BlueChart g2 Vision rebate and GPSMAP 620/640 rebate. Put the savings towards a HD Radar or VHF radio, which are also on display at the store. Don’t forget that with every purchase, we offer a one-hour GPS Academy session where product experts will instruct you on the complete capabilities of your device and prepare you for the season ahead.

Fully stocked for marine season, the Chicago Store is also ready to ship any product anywhere in the US.  Visit or call the store to place your phone order and don’t miss the season’s exclusive discounts!  

The Garmin-Asus M10 continues to make its way around the globe. Most recently, it became available in India. This all-in-one smartphone is powered by the latest version of Windows Mobile 6.5.3, and it keeps you connected with your business and personal contacts, email, calendar and IM, in addition to featuring preloaded Garmin navigation. Because we recognize that location is something you do every day, navigation functions are linked to frequently used applications so that you can navigate directly from the calendar, contacts, email, internet, and messaging. Watch CNET‘s review for a firsthand look and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter for regular Garmin-Asus updates.

Pilots who own an iPhone or iPod Touch are rejoicing now that Pilot My-Cast by Garmin is available in the App Store. Pilot My-Cast for the iPhone and iPod Touch has been available for a few months, but today we launched a new video that shows it in action — from customized flight plans and weather reports to flight filing. Pilot My-Cast for the iPhone and iPod Touch is available in the App Store for a monthly fee of $9.99, or an annual subscription of $99.99. And if you don’t have an iPhone or iPod Touch, Pilot My-Cast is also available for countless other phones including BlackBerry and Windows Mobile devices.

As Jake and I both near the “heavy load” weeks of marathon training, we occasionally trade stories of training trials and tribulations. Once in awhile there’s a triumph, but sometimes the good stories are as simple as “I made it 12 miles before my knee totally locked up” or “I logged a 50-mile week and only had to ice my foot twice a day!” While I can’t figure out how to make our fitness devices solve some of our woes, I at least use the comments section in Garmin Connect to note how I’m feeling during or after a particular workout. And since history bears repeating, going back and reviewing such notes helps me avoid some pitfalls like overtraining injuries.

My nemesis of late has been the weather. Late last summer, when I was training for a fall marathon and doing 4 a.m. “beat the heat” runs, I had a realization that sent chills up my spine: if I do qualify for Boston, training is going to be … let’s just say somewhere between mind-numbing and insane. And that was before I knew we were in for one of the snowiest, coldest, stinkiest winters on record. I will say such challenges have made me resourceful and maybe even a little more efficient. When my midweek run calls for 12 miles on a Tuesday, I shift into high-gear once I leave work. By the time I’ve picked up kids, delivered them home and changed clothes, I’m way past “warm up” stage and I’m motivated to get out the door and on with the workout.

Earlier this week, Jake told me he needed to log 18 miles on the treadmill. I thought to myself “I’d rather lick the mud from my trail shoes than do 18 on the treadmill.” But I didn’t tell Jake, because I thought he might hold me to one or the other. I didn’t doubt Jake had the fortitude to pull this off — he’s been known to hammer out 21 miles on that lonely race to nowhere. And this time he had a MacGyver-esque solution plan that called for 1 laptop, a couple of speakers, a trashcan and an inspiring movie. His get-up even provided entertainment for folks working out nearby in our TV-free fitness room. Got a boredom-buster or other fix that’s helped you survive setbacks or other insanities of training? We want to hear your comments.