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Messages - Rixtoy

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1
I am starting the Pacific Coast tour on August 22nd.

Thanks to all the info above and the continuing questions about the border, I decided to ship my bike to the Trek dealer in Bellingham and they will re-assemble it for me. They want it a week before I need it, but with all the volatility in airline flights right now, I took the less anxious option of just shipping it to the shop, flying into Bellingham, Ubering to the Trek shop (5 miles) and then riding to a hotel near the border (20 miles from the Trek shop) and beginning the tour the next morning.

Takes a lot of worries off my plate as long as my Alaska Airlines flight still holds together from Dallas to Bellingham.

2
Hello,

As far as I understand the ACA GPX route data consists of a breadcrumb trail only that you can follow on a phone app or device. A GPX "route" is really a misnomer as I don't know of anyone who has actually implemented this functionality.

There is one phone app that can TBT navigate a suitably formatted GPX file and that is Locus Pro Classic. Unfortunately, the ACA data is not currently formatted to provide this functionality. Tracks (routes) created on Plotaroute.com will generate a Locus compatible TBT GPX file.

I am also working with an app developer to create a direct interface for routes created in RwGPS to import them directly into Locus with no file manipulation involved. Once imported into Locus the routes are TBT navigable.

As far as functionality as with any computer it can only be as good as the provided data. Garbage in = Bonus Miles!

Let me know if you want more info on Locus and/or the RwGPS converter.

Thanks,
Steve

Thanks for the information, Steve.

3
General Discussion / Re: Neck, arms and hands fatigue?
« on: June 02, 2021, 11:25:44 pm »
When I first started riding longer distances (30-80 miles) my hands would get numb around the 25-30 miles mark.
After reading a bit on it, there is a belief that too much constant pressure on the two nerves in your hand - the ulna and median nerves - will cause your hand to get numb.

Someone recommended a glove with built up pads in the palm which leave a "channel" for those nerves and relieves that pressure to a large extent. I went with the Pearl Izumi Elite Gel glove and it REALLY helped the level of numbness I would experience.

(If you look at this glove on the Pearl Izumi website you can zoom in on the front of the glove and see the pads and the channels it provides . . .)

I recommend you give that a try, along with the bike fitting. Just the gloves with pads helped me immensely.

Good luck.

4
I use the GPS Routes primarily (assuming the route not using bike paths, divided highways, etc. which throws off the GPS) but always verify with the maps.  I also familiarize myself with the maps that morning so I sort of know what to expect, i.e. I make a turn in Town X then go 18 miles before turning onto Road Y. 

I prefer Routes over tracks as, at least with my device (64s I think), I get a beep to notify me of an upcoming turn whereas the Tracks are silent.  This is my personal preference.  Others have the opposite preference.  Tracks are only my preference when using a lot of bike paths since my device's routing can not handle paths.

That said, as ACA says, do not rely ONLY on the GPS Routes. While not certain, I think some of the newer routes do not offer GPS Routes, only GPS Tracks.  For instance, on the PPP route, I have had to create Routes based on using the Tracks as no Route waypoints are included, only Service waypoints.

Speaking of which, I have found the Services data to earn a grade C at best.  They are frequently off by a block or more, missing key info, hard to search on outside the immediate area, and are not kept up to date. Why they don't keep the data up to date and give more info than the maps can, I do not understand.

In summary, both are good provided you know the pluses and minuses of each format and use them accordingly.

Hope you have a great ride, John

Why am I not surprised you are the one to give a thoughtful, factual and useful answer, John?
Much appreciated, as always and the dots are starting to connect a bit for me (er, breadcrumbs . . .).

Thanks, as always . . .

Rick

5
GPS & Digital Data Discussion / ACA GPX data and turn by turn . . .
« on: May 31, 2021, 06:43:20 pm »
So,
I have the Pacific Coast ACA hard maps for an upcoming tour and felt like it made sense to get the GPX files for my Garmin Edge Explore.
So, I did.
THEN I got looking at all the caveats on routes versus tracks versus too many waypoints for Garmin versus blah, blah, blah.
Ice cream headache #1.

Saw this caveat from ACA and wonder if it is just to cover their a** if someone has a problem:
"Do not rely on turn-by-turn instructions. While they work most of the time, they give false confidence of their reliability. There are many areas where the device does not calculate the route correctly. This will vary depending on device, base map and apps. We highly recommend you simply follow the track line on your screen to avoid incorrect turn prompts."

Simple question -
What have people found to be the useful extent of the ACA GPX files on tour?
 - Reference back up to hard maps?
 - Primary navigation tool with hard maps as back-ups?
 - Turn by turn DOES work well with Edge Explore device?
 - Don't risk turn by turn usage?

I am sure I will be able to navigate fine - just wondering about the usefulness of the gPX files.

Thanks.

Rick


6
Routes / Re: California Campgrounds open?
« on: May 12, 2021, 05:13:27 pm »
I did the CA coast last October and even though some campground were officially closed (from Covid and the raging wildfires), I was able to stay at all my planned places as a biker. One closed campground I was the only one there except for the host, the camp host said I could stay and didn't even have to pay - still had a shower to!

Just what I wanted to hear . . .
As always, flexibility is key, but worst case I can throw down behind a church or something, eh?

Now, about those climbs . . .

7
Routes / Re: California Campgrounds open?
« on: May 11, 2021, 05:02:04 pm »
I did that and it is marked "Not Available" as are others.
My question is does anyone know how long that may be in effect?

8
Routes / California Campgrounds open?
« on: May 11, 2021, 02:57:39 pm »
I am rough mapping daily segments on the ACA Pacific Coast Tour to get an idea of daily mileages, climbs and lodging options.
Planning on riding 7 days and then taking a day off - campgrounds on riding days - motels on off days.
It has gone pretty well through Oregon, but I am finding many of the hiker/biker sites in California North of San Francisco for a few hundred miles appear to be closed (COVID).

Does anyone know, in general, if the California campgrounds might be open later this summer into fall? The dates I have been looking at are starting in Vancouver last of august and into the last half of September in NoCal and finishing in SanDiego the 2nd week of October. Maybe I am just starting too late.

Thoughts? Can't do it with $200+ coastline motels every night.


9
Routes / Re: Too old to solo the Southern Tier? . . .
« on: May 03, 2021, 04:33:15 pm »
Hey, no problem. Glad i could help! I also have added a very ultralight Gossamer gear Foam Pad 1/4" to my cot. I have cut the pad down to my short size. It weighs about .3 lbs (172 grams). It is only needed for the chillier nights, below 45 degrees. I am a side-sleeper also and it helps to insulate my side in the sleeping bag that compresses when I lie on the cot.  My buddy and I completed our self-contained  ride from his place in Fort Davis to Austin, a little over 500 miles for the trip. Our longest day on the trip was an 89 miler, with limited services in between. At 74 years old, he is still an animal on the climbs. We had one night on the trip get down to 34 degrees. The pad definitely made a difference. I did better this year, coming into the ride in a little better riding shape.  We took our time, took breaks as needed, and had very enjoyable ride. That is the key to doing long trips self-contained. Keep the ride enjoyable. I have one more section yet to do to complete my entire Southern Tier, Safford, Arizona to Fort Davis. We're hoping to do that in March next year. We'll both be another year older, but also another year wiser! Then it's time to start either the Atlantic Coast or Northern Tier.

Hey, Thanks.
I like the 1/4"' pad idea, although it is hard enough to get up in the morning - this might set me back another hour. But, as you point out - no one is keeping score.

10
Routes / Re: Too old to solo the Southern Tier? . . .
« on: May 03, 2021, 12:18:15 pm »
One adaptation we have made to our camping & sleeping on the ground is that we now use Helinox cots. They are very comfortable & gets us off the ground. Not flimsy, very sturdy and only weigh about 1.5 pounds more than our blow-up air mattresses.
If I may take license to be a tad off of the thesis of the original post ....
I want to thank you ZiZohn for your heads up on the value of the Helinox.

Perfect timing-
I also purchased a Helinox cot based on the above post and just completed a four day tour.
It is AWESOME!
Gets me 6" off the ground, VERY comfortable side sleeping and after one night fussing with an inflatable mattress as well, I tried it without the air mattress and it was a huge improvement for me (YMMV).
Now I am saving the weight of an air mattress as well. That reduces the net additional weight of the cot to roughly 20 oz.

11
Routes / Re: Too old to solo the Southern Tier? . . .
« on: May 02, 2021, 09:40:11 pm »
Case in point -
Today I completed a 4 day group tour in Oklahoma hosted by the inimitable Tailwinds John,  and a couple did the full tour, complete with some "Noteworthy" climbs - (John will have to explain that . . .) who are 80 years old. A beautiful couple in spirit as well as looks and they were SUCH an inspiration to me.

Thanks, John for an incredible 4 days.

12
Routes / Re: Too old to solo the Southern Tier? . . .
« on: April 12, 2021, 02:33:20 pm »
I rode the southern tier in my 70s solo so maybe you can do it too:)
Linda Gould, female

Well, Linda -
I would say that is the ultimate reply.

Thank you so much!

Rick

13
General Discussion / Re: carrying a firearm on a tour
« on: March 28, 2021, 11:19:40 pm »
Worst bicycle fatality EVER . . .

Only related to this post because of the gun linkage, but this happened on Friday in Wichita-
Eyewitnesses say a man on a bike had the right of way in a crosswalk with a crossing signal for him being green.
A woman was irritated because she had to wait to turn through the crosswalk, so she hit him with her van - THEN GOT OUT OF THE VAN, SHOT HIM IN THE HEAD AND DROVE OFF. Witnesses followed her and radioed police , who stopped and arrested her. she DID NOT KNOW THE MAN.

"WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Authorities say a bicyclist is dead after a woman struck him with her van as he crossed a Wichita street and then apparently shot him.

 Charity Charmon Blackmon, 31,  was booked into jail Friday night on suspicion of first-degree murder, driving with a suspended license, unsafe turning or stopping and failure to give proper signal.

Wichita police chief Gordon Ramsay said the victim was either riding or walking his bicycle when he was hit Friday afternoon. Ramsay said the initial reports were that the suspect got out to shoot the man after the crash.

Ramsay said police would know definitively if he was shot after an autopsy. The man’s name wasn’t immediately released."


Horrible . . .






14
This is the answer a member of this forum turned me onto and I love it.
- Best 2 1/2 pounds I carry
- Gets me 6" off the ground and I side sleep comfortably (with a torn rotator cuff)
- Pricey , but worth every dollar

Helinox lite camping cot:
- breaks down into a stuff sack which is very packable . . .

15
Routes / Re: Big landslide on PCH near Big Sur
« on: March 07, 2021, 10:55:32 am »
If you haven't seen the news release, CALTRANS has decided to bridge the washout gap at Ratt Creek by filling in the wash away rather than constructing a bridge.

Work commenced MAR 1st and will continue until completion, estimated to be early summer. Cost of $13M.

Good news for those interested in the Pacific Coast in the late summer/fall.

Bad news for the local PCH residents who bemoan the non-stop traffic and have taken advantage of the closure to sit in the middle of the highway at sunset with a picnic basket and bottle of wine.  8)

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