Connect to Strava Data in JRuby

JRuby is a high-performance, stable, fully threaded Java implementation of the Ruby programming language. The CData JDBC Driver for Strava makes it easy to integrate connectivity to live Strava data in JRuby. This article shows how to create a simple JRuby app that connects to Strava data, executes a query, and displays the results.

Configure a JDBC Connection to Strava Data

Before creating the app, note the installation location for the JAR file for the JDBC Driver (typically C:\Program Files\CData\CData JDBC Driver for Strava\lib).

JRuby natively supports JDBC, so you can easily connect to Strava and execute SQL queries. Initialize the JDBC connection with the getConnection function of the java.sql.DriverManager class.

To authenticate to Strava, and connect to your own data or to allow other users to connect to their data, you can use the OAuth standard.

Using OAuth Authentication

You must create a custom OAuth application to connect to Strava. To create a custom OAuth application:

1. Log into the Strava API Settings page
2. Create a new application or select an existing application
3. Set the "Authorization Callback Domain" to your callback URL domain (e.g. localhost)
4. Note down the Client ID and Client Secret

After setting the following connection properties, you are ready to connect:

• AuthScheme: Set this to OAuth.
• InitiateOAuth: Set this to GETANDREFRESH. You can use InitiateOAuth to manage the process to obtain the OAuthAccessToken.
• OAuthClientId: Set this to the Client ID from your Strava API application.
• OAuthClientSecret: Set this to the Client Secret from your Strava API application.
• CallbackURL: Set this to the redirect URI matching your application's callback domain.

Example connection string:

Profile=C:\profiles\Strava.apip;AuthScheme=OAuth;InitiateOAuth=GETANDREFRESH;OAuthClientId=your_client_id;OAuthClientSecret=your_client_secret;CallbackURL=http://localhost:33333;

Built-in Connection String Designer

For assistance in constructing the JDBC URL, use the connection string designer built into the Strava JDBC Driver. Either double-click the JAR file or execute the jar file from the command-line.

java -jar cdata.jdbc.api.jar

Fill in the connection properties and copy the connection string to the clipboard.

Below is a typical JDBC connection string for Strava:

jdbc:api:Profile=C:\profiles\Strava.apip;AuthScheme=OAuth;InitiateOAuth=GETANDREFRESH;OAuthClientId=your_client_id;OAuthClientSecret=your_client_secret;CallbackURL=http://localhost:33333;

Create a JRuby App with Connectivity to Strava Data

Create a new Ruby file (for example: APISelect.rb) and open it in a text editor. Copy the following code into your file:

require 'java'
require 'rubygems'
require 'C:/Program Files/CData/CData JDBC Driver for Strava 2018/lib/cdata.jdbc.api.jar'

url = "jdbc:api:Profile=C:\profiles\Strava.apip;AuthScheme=OAuth;InitiateOAuth=GETANDREFRESH;OAuthClientId=your_client_id;OAuthClientSecret=your_client_secret;CallbackURL=http://localhost:33333;"
conn = java.sql.DriverManager.getConnection(url)
stmt = conn.createStatement
rs = stmt.executeQuery("SELECT ,  FROM Athlete")
while (rs.next) do
  puts rs.getString(1) + ' ' + rs.getString(2)
end

With the file completed, you are ready to display your Strava data with JRuby. To do so, simply run your file from the command line:

jruby -S APISelect.rb

Writing SQL-92 queries to Strava allows you to quickly and easily incorporate Strava data into your own JRuby applications. Download a free trial today!