POLL: What services are most important to you on a map?

[staehpj1]

Pete,
I am thinking of the more "established" Farmers Markets, i.e. the one's that are held every saturday April thru Sept at X location.  Granted, these are usually in medium to larger towns (which I tend to avoid if possible).

I think I actually have managed to hit one of those because it was on the map, but it seems that I am likely to go by them the wrong days if at all.

That said, I LOVE the roadside stands but as you noted, hard to research of course. Again, where does one  draw the line.

They do range from big and well established to little and impromptu.  I recall one outside Riggins ID that I think mught have been on the AC map (not sure).  It was great!  lots of variety of fruits and stuff like venison and elk jerky.  In a way the location was unfortunate though.  We wound up buying and hauling extra produce over Whitebird Hill.  We wanted to have Idaho potatoes while we were there so we bought some.  I can't imagine a much stupider purchase than potatoes to haul over a tough climb like that in scorching heat.

[John Nettles]

We wound up buying and hauling extra produce over Whitebird Hill.  We wanted to have Idaho potatoes while we were there so we bought some.  I can't imagine a much stupider purchase than potatoes to haul over a tough climb like that in scorching heat.

I got a chuckle out of that. I was touring in Louisiana with a few buddies years ago.  In a lot of places, a piece of paper is basically hillier than Louisiana except for bridges.  After a long hot day, we stopped for groceries and I thought a watermelon sounded great to eat in camp so I bought a cold 10# melon and promptly hit the "hilly area" of Louisiana it seemed.  They weren't big hills but with that extra 10#, they became noticeable and the others of course were making fun of me until I threatened not to share it with them. 

[John Nettles]

Westinghouse, I think you may have meant to post your last post in the "Stealth Camping? Sleep Site!" thread.

[mattdwyerva]

John,

Thanks for all the time and effort you put into maps.  I am amazed at your persistent energy, and grateful for all the terrific maps. 
 
Matt

[John Nettles]

Matt, just to clarify, I  am not associated with ACA other than being a regular member like you.  However, I have created routes for probably 20 years that are usually short routes, i.e. 15-100 miles, that connect to other short routes. Think about the little spider web lines in a cracked car windshield.  I get on average about 2-3 requests a week for route assistance but only help maybe 3 out of 10 because they think I do printed maps like ACA when I mainly just do GPS routes and written cue sheets. Anyway, ACA should get the credit for making great maps.  Tailwinds, John

[mattdwyerva]

Anyway, ACA should get the credit for making great maps.  Tailwinds, John

Good to keep that straight, thanks

[donald.stewart.92]

I would like to see a separate box with just campsites/lodging. I want to be able to calculate my daily mileage by this.
  I have the Delmarva map and quickly locating campsites in the mixed boxes is time consuming. On the left side of the campsite/ lodging should be the milepost and then the distance off the route.
  ACA has a huge space dedicated to the history/geography that should be on a separate page. When I cut up the map I should have map on one side and have separate boxes labeled for lodging,services, emergency, etc on the other side. Quick and easy scan to find what you need.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[John Nettles]

I too like an easy way to calculate the distance between X & Y.  I typically do a "Services Summary" which is basically a mileage sheet showing the leg miles, total miles (for that route), and the services offered at that leg.  If you start the day mid-route, you still have to do a little math but not bad.  I personally am not a history buff usually so I don't include much history unless REALLY pertinent to the route. I figure Google can do a much better job than me with stuff like that.

Tailwinds, John

[John Nettles]

About a month from now, this poll will close (if I can figure out how to close it  ).  Anyway, if you have not already done so, feel free to give your point of view.  Tailwinds, John

[Westinghouse]

What the data confirm is what any long distance cyclist knows.  In sum, the main considerations are food (Wal Mart, grocery stores, dollar stores, restaurants)  and shelter (camp grounds, motels, warm showers, stealth sleep sites, etc.).  You already have clothing.  All the other things are much lower on the list of priorities. Sure, bike shops for repairs and parts, but in all my worldwide touring, I used bicycle shops hardly ever at all. So it comes down to the basics---food, clothing and shelter.

[John Nettles]

I tend to agree, but when creating a map with services, my thinking is that perhaps people may want the lesser used services (laundromat, showers, etc.) vs. the more readily available.  Again, the only reason is it takes a LOT of time to input all the services so I am just trying to trim the list somewhat. 

[Westinghouse]

The feeling of cleanliness is an  advantage.  A clean body and clean clothes feels good. The longest I went without any shower or bath was about two weeks.  The one thing about long distance touring that always bugged me was too many days between showers.  With a black card membership at planet fitness, one can shower at any of however many locations. Hostels in Europe used to be very reasonably priced in the old days. The way they charge money now, they must think every back-packer won the lottery.

When I bicycle toured in Europe, the great attractions were not on my list of priorities. I had already traveled by train extensively long-term going from historical sites to sites, cathedrals, museums, great art exhibits, Waterloo, many many others, Rome, the Vatican, Derry in Ulster, northern Ireland. If a person wants to visit such attractions, I say Do It, but it would take forever to cover all those far-flung entities on a bicycle. For me, touring was an exploration of rural and city life at a speed more in tempo with the natural rhythms of life. Therefore, your category of visiting historical sites would not get a vote from me. If I happened to come across such a place, sure it is fine to check it out.

[Westinghouse]

"I'll again make the plug for emphasizing cyclist-friendly accomodations.  As an example some motels on popular bike routes will have work stands, floor pumps, some tools, and even a bike washing station.  Also, not all hotels/motels have guest laundry.  And some hotels/motels won't permit your bike to be securely stored in your room.  Collecting that information in any kind of complete form is going to be hard (although it could be crowdsourced) but would be immensely valuable for trip planning.
Also harder to do but important is point out walkable/bikeable compact towns because they are easier for travelers without automobiles to navigate. "

Getting that information on a map would be difficult, and the facts are easily changed. Motels change their policies. It could be said with much less trouble.  Just mention in a prominent way on the map that some motels are not bicycle friendly and others are.  Call the motels before your arrivals. Ask them about having bicycles inside the room.

[davidbonn]

I agree it would be hopeless if only one person were trying to maintain this information.

However, if the process were crowdsourced I think you could get pretty good results.  I imagine an app where anyone could drop POIs on the map and there could be a web page or comment thread attached to any POI.  You could be somehow notified of POIs near you or ahead of you on your planned route.  Once the framework is up and running and in use Garmin and Hammerhead and RideWithGPS and others could tie into it which would be pretty seamless.

There aren't any substantial technological barriers to building this, and bluntly for someone with the expertise it would be much less work than collecting and organizing all of the data in the first place.

On a similar note, I have observed that the most valuable beta you can get on a tour is from people traveling your route in the opposite direction. 

[Westinghouse]

Some touring bikes are, by my economy, extremely expensive. Locking it to a railing outside is not what you want. I knew a man. He was cycling at random around the US. He stayed one night in a motel. In the morning his bicycle was gone. Small town, so it made the news.  Some people pitched in and got him a new bike. If you are going the distance, over the long haul, you want to keep your bike in sight when out, or in a secure area. That is where taking a bike inside the room becomes an issue. It is the only issue I know.  And when I think about it, I do not recall any motel anywhere making issues about a bicycle inside the room.