Strava has introduced a new activity feed that it says ‘makes it easier for athletes to see what’s going on in their athletic world’ – but which some might at first find confusingly non-chronological. The activity tracking site has also launched its ‘posts’ feature for all users.
The new blogging feature has been live for select athletes since May. Strava says that it will allow users to “share stories, post photos, ask questions, share useful tips and articles and engage with other athletes.”
In simple terms, it turns Strava into more of a sport-themed social network by allowing people to upload non-activity content to the activity feed.
The worth of the feature will no doubt be dictated by who you follow, how interesting they are, and how enthusiastic they are about posting (‘too enthusiastic’ of course being the greatest danger).
Video: Strava asks athletes to reject image-conscious social media via selfies
You may also have noticed that the activity feed itself has been tweaked. Rather than being purely chronological, as it was before, there is now an algorithm at work meaning it will push photos and group activities towards the top.
Many users have previously called for a series of filters to achieve something similar. They say that being able to exclude rides shorter than a certain distance, or which are tagged as being indoors or as a commute, would improve their experience of the site.
We’re not seeing anything along those lines at the moment and there’s no mention in the press release either, so as far as we can tell, you’re pretty much at the mercy of the algorithm.
Posts are available now to the entire Strava community, while the new feed will be fully available later this week (although we’re seeing it already).
“Strava is an active community of people who are passionate about their sports,” said James Quarles, Strava CEO. “We want to create more ways for the community to share their interests and expertise. Posts and the new feed make Strava the best place to tell a story about someone you met on the trails, ask a question about new gear or to seek kindred spirits to help achieve your goals.”
Update: A petition with the self-explanatory title Bring Back the Strava Chronological Feed! has already been launched.
It states: “Strava have recently changed the news feed to be algorithm based like facebook and instagram instead of chronological order. The new feed is a jumbled up mess with activities from days before taking preference over newer activities at the top of the feed. They received an overwhelming backlash on their blog, support page and social media but have chosen not to listen to their loyal users who have been uploading their activities for years.
“We want Strava to either bring back the chronological feed or at least give us the option to view the feed in chronological order.”
Strava has also set up a feedback form, if you’d like to have your say.