8 Great PM5 Features

We've said it before and we’ll say it again! Our Performance Monitor (PM5) truly is the brains behind the RowErg, SkiErg and BikeErg. It’s on every machine sold and is one of the things that sets us apart from the competition. The PM5 provides reliable, comparable data regardless of which machine you’re on or where you are in the world.

One of the great things about the PM5 is its inherent simplicity. The monitor will power up and provide data as soon as the flywheel starts spinning, so you don’t need to push a single button to get started. However, we’ve packed a lot of functionality into the PM5 and you can dive in to all the functions the monitor provides; the easy menu-driven operation lets you quickly access preset workouts, save favorite workouts, review past workout results and much more.

We've put together a short list of some of the lesser-known functions and features at your fingertips.

Drag Factor
Between each stroke or pull, the PM measures how much your flywheel is slowing down to determine how fast or slow your “conditions” are. This rate of deceleration is called the drag factor. On your next pull, the PM uses the drag factor to determine from the speed of the flywheel how much work you are doing. In this way, your true effort is calculated regardless of damper setting or changing conditions. This self-calibration is what allows us to compare scores from different ergs, making things like racing and the online world rankings possible. Finding the drag factor on your machine is simple.

Lifetime Meters
Did you know your PM5 has an odometer that keeps a record of how many meters you’ve accumulated? If you are a club or school, this feature tracks the total meters accumulated by all users over the lifetime of the erg.

LCD Contrast
Brighten or darken your LCD display to suit your location or your mood!

Battery Life
Easily check the remaining life of your batteries so you’re never caught without power. And did you know, when using a PM5 on the SkiErg or RowErg, the spinning flywheel provides power for the Performance Monitor, so there is less drain on the batteries while the machine is in use.

ReRow/ReSki/ReRide
Remember that great workout you did a couple weeks ago? The ReRow function (or ReSki and ReRide) on the PM makes it easy to do it again, with pacing from your earlier performance.

Viewing Workouts in Memory
The PM5 stores your workouts in memory, and it’s easy to go back and pull up your workout data. Choose how you want to see the workouts listed: List by Date or List by Type.

Standard List of Workouts
There are times when you’re just not feeling creative when it comes to your workout, so choose from five standard workouts and five customs workouts that are preprogrammed in the PM.

Undefined Rest
If you want to do intervals, but aren’t sure exactly how much rest you will need, consider using the Undefined Rest feature. This can be especially useful if your workout combines rowing, skiing or riding with other activities like body weight movements or weight training. The ‘rest’ time is not determined—instead, you’ll choose “Continue” when you are ready for the next interval.

For a full run-down of functions and features, visit How to Use Your PM5.