Shave to Save: Haircuts for a cure

The Garmin family loves to help out the community... even if that means having a bald head for a few weeks! This morning, one of our Engineering team leaders shaved his head to honor and support those touched by cancer during the American Cancer Society's inspiring Shave to Save event. The shavees were joined by friends and family, while a local meteorologist was on hand to host the event. Rick and other community members helped to raise more than $120,000 through this unique and exciting fundraiser. Way to go, Rick!

 

Wrench ‘n’ Win Contest: The Grand Prize Has Arrived!

Greetings Garmin Garage fans! We’re right in the middle of the Wrench ‘n’ Win Contest and we’ve been flooded with so many great entries, we may have to make more room in the Garmin Garage! If you haven’t already entered, now’s the time to do so. Because in addition to our prizes for our weekly finalists, we’ll also be awarding one lucky grand prize winner with a brand new nüvi 205! This portable GPS device is one of the newest navigators in our extremely popular nüvi line-up and we can’t wait to give it away to the winning entry! So keep those sketches coming and be sure to let your family and friends know about the Wrench ‘n’ Win Contest! And remember – we pick the finalists but you pick the winner! We can’t wait to see what arrives next.   

Roger's Runway: SVT Pathways

The big feature of any synthetic system is the 3D terrain and the highway in the sky (HITS), and the new Synthetic Vision Technology (SVT) for the G1000 is no different. The 3D terrain and the SVT’s version of the HITS, called Pathways, bring a new level of confidence to the cockpit. The Pathway boxes (which are 700 feet wide by 200 feet tall) offer course guidance for all phases of flight from en route legs, approach procedures, and finally arrival and departure procedures. One of the really nice features is that each of these legs is colored coded based on the navigation source - just like the HSI changes colors. So if the navigation source is GPS then the Pathway boxes are colored magenta. If the source is a VOR or localizer then the Pathway box is green. White Pathway boxes represent legs of the flight that are not activated yet. The Pathways also provide descent information for programmed legs, like approaches. If you have an ILS or a LPV approach loaded into you flight plan then the Pathways will actually gradually move down representing the glide slope. As long as you fly through the boxes, then the Pathway will guide you to your destination.

Forerunner 405: Perfect for Mother's Day - or Win One for Yourself

With its release at the Boston Marathon and arrival at running stores, the Forerunner 405 has raced to the top of wish lists everywhere. And today only (May 7), you can win a free Forerunner 405 from Women's Health magazine. Click here for details and to enter the Women's Health contest.

And with Mother's Day coming up this weekend, Shape magazine says the Forerunner 405 is the perfect gift for active moms. "Speedy moms who still sign up for marathons, races or triathlons, one after the next, can better track their mileage, times and trails with the Garmin Forerunner 405," explains Shape's gift guide. "Near buildings or under trees, no matter where she strides, this gadget will track your mom's distance, elevation, calories burned, pace, and more." Click here for Shape's complete Mothers Day Gift Guide.

Get Reckless, Win A Garmin

Many of us here at Garmin HQ are fans of Reckless Kelly, an Austin, Texas-based rock and roll band with a rootsy twang.  On June 24, they'll release Bulletproof, their 7th album, which is chock-full of hard-charging anthems and heartfelt, down-on-your luck ballads.

You can pre-order the album today, and we strongly encourage you to do so.  Not only is it great music, but if you purchase the album, you stand to win a Garmin nüvi 760!  What's not to like?

'Giddy Up for Wishes' saddles up with Garmin

So often we update our blog readers on GPS-guided travels by foot, in the car, on a boat or in a plane. Recently however, Garmin has been along for a different kind of ride - as we've been apart of one woman's 'Giddy Up for Wishes' journey across Canada on horseback. On March 30, Martha Birkett left Ottawa on horseback for a 2200-mile journey along the Trans-Canada Highway to Calgary, Alberta with a goal of raising money and awareness for The Children's Wish Foundation. Along with her for the ride are a few of Garmin's most popular devices. Martha checked in with us yesterday, and says the nüvi allows her to pinpoint things so easily. "I'm able to realistically plan for stops and day rides. Not all overnight stops are on the highway, so by putting in addresses and/or intersections, we aren't having any trouble locating them," she said.

With five weeks of riding behind her and eight more to go, Martha and her team have also been communicating with a pair of Garmin Rinos. "The driver is able to warn me of any traffic that I should be made aware of that is coming up from be hind me as well as contacting me if I have any media calls that need to be taken immediately. The front driver will also radio back to the back driver if there is any concern ahead, i.e. wildlife on the road, as I often don't see this because my horses are traveling directly behind the trailers."

Wrench ‘n’ Win: Week Two Finalists

Another week has passed for the Garmin Garage Wrench ‘n’ Win Contest and another round of great entries can now be viewed on the finalist page. Congratulations to the Week Two finalists. The submissions continue to amaze us and we’re sure the voting is going to get tougher and tougher each week. Of course, we pick the finalists but you get to pick the winner. So keep the great ideas coming. We’ve got some great prizes in store for all of our finalists and for the winner, too. And if you’ve already entered, be sure to let your friends and family know, too. A little competition is always fun, right?

Richmond plays home state to Sadler and No. 19

It's home sweet home for Elliott Sadler this weekend. The Sprint Cup Series heads to the Richmond International Raceway for the Crown Royal 400 where Elliott and the No. 19 Stanley Tools Dodge will take on the 0.75 mile oval track Sunday at 7 p.m.  A Virginia native, Elliott has had one top-10 finish in his 18 Richmond starts, which came in the spring 2005 when he placed seventh. After spending 75% of last week's 'Dega race in the top-15, Elliott and the No. 19 Garmin/Best Buy team finished 29th after being involved in the multi-car accident on the final lap of the event. This weekend, Elliott will jump into the same car used at Phoenix just weeks ago, and says they're hoping to show everyone what they can do with it at Richmond.

Elliott agrees that this weekend will be more intense being in his home state, and says, "I used to sit in those very same stands when I was a kid with my family members. A lot of my crew guys are from Virgina, too, so it means a little more to all of us when we race at Richmond."