Virtual sports: From the iBike Dash to the iPING by PING

Whether it’s golf, cycling, tennis, motorsports or virtually any other sport, there is a way you can play it without having to step out of your office. GQ.com.au takes a look at the options men have in the virtual sporting world.

Yes, this is a shameless plug, but last year I wrote a small article on the coolest virtual sporting experiences for GQ Magazine. It was an eye opener into how detailed virtual sports are getting. And it’s not just Wii Sports where you randomly swing like a five-year-old on red snakes and still manage to hit a shot like a pro.

Unsurprisingly, apps are providing just as good a virtual sporting experience as dedicated consoles. I tried out iBike Dash, and app for iPhone. Connect your iPhone to your indoor bike (that would be one without a rear wheel – don’t want to go flying through a wall now) and you can virtually pedal some of the most famous routes in the world.

Also a good contender was iPING by golfing experts PING. Another iPhone app, connect your iPING enhanced iPhone to your putter and it will give you coaching based on your swing. You don’t even have to leave your home to improve your short game.

Of course, there were the obvious things such as the PS3 Move and the racing wheels with cockpit skeletons. GQ has now posted the basics of the article online with their in-house shot images. It’s worth checking out if you have two-minutes and an urge to improve your golf game!

Web: GQ

Damian Francis

Damian Francis has previously edited Australian T3 and F1 Racing magazine and wrote for GQ Australia and Men’s Health. Unlike Nick and Trev, he has no kids, no mortgage and no wife, but lives happily on Sydney’s North Shore with his girlfriend.