Adventure Cycling Maps SUCK!

And you are somewhat of an idiot.

The maps are indeed on paper but you can spill coffe or most anything
slese on them and it wipes riught off so I really doubt that you evevn
have them.

They are meticulously researched for the best routes for cyclists to
take. the next time you ride cross country wihich is proibably rather
unlikely. just use any old road map you happen to have. or just a road
atlas. that will be real easy to read as you are riding.

NYC XYZ said:

They're printed on plain paper! And they're so small, and packed with
somewhat superfluous info (who the hell cares about restaurants along
the way, really).

1) All paper is not created equal. The paper we wrote notes on in a
previous career was constructed so that it became 'oatmeal' when
exposed to liquid - good for its purpose. The paper that Adventure
Cycling uses for the maps is waterproof. Not plain paper ...
waterproof paper.

2) Some of us do like to stop at restaurants, at least on occasions.
The maps are not just for the oatmeal and gruel crowd.

Quoted message said:

Just disappointed. They should be laminated, at the least, or printed
on sturdier paper -- this is for touring, after all! Also, they really
should be bigger -- perhaps better as a spiral-bound book?

And if they are bigger or spiral bound into a book how would you fit
them into your handlebar map holder?

Quoted message said:

And more
comprehensive -- I find googlemaps more useful!

And how useful is Google Maps from the handlebar of your bike?

- rick

Rick said:

....
And how useful is Google Maps from the handlebar of your bike?

One must carry a laptop on tour so one can read and post to the Usenet
cycling groups while at rest stops. 😉

--
Tom Sherman - Behind the Cheddar Curtain

"NYC XYZ" <[email hidden]> wrote in
news:[email hidden]:

Quoted message said:

They're printed on plain paper! And they're so small, and packed
with somewhat superfluous info (who the hell cares about
restaurants along the way, really).

Just disappointed. They should be laminated, at the least, or
printed on sturdier paper -- this is for touring, after all!
Also, they really should be bigger -- perhaps better as a
spiral-bound book? And more comprehensive -- I find googlemaps
more useful!

Adventure Cycling Maps are fabulous and essential. Wouldn't leave home
without one. Opinion based on more than 4000 miles of fully-loaded
self contained touring the last 18 months.

You?

--jerry

"Johnny Sunset aka Tom Sherman" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Rick said:

....
And how useful is Google Maps from the handlebar of your bike?

One must carry a laptop on tour so one can read and post to the Usenet
cycling groups while at rest stops. 😉

I've often fantasized about a dream bike with handlebar mounted notebook pc
with cell/satellite connections.

"recycled-one" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Johnny Sunset aka Tom Sherman" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Rick said:

....
And how useful is Google Maps from the handlebar of your bike?

One must carry a laptop on tour so one can read and post to the Usenet
cycling groups while at rest stops. 😉

I've often fantasized about a dream bike with handlebar mounted notebook
pc with cell/satellite connections.

Sounds more like a nightmare to me -- in which the next thing is that I have
to start answering urgent emails from the office while doing a solo century
through Lancaster County!

RichC (who does carry a cell phone on rides, but it's turned OFF!)

"Rich Clark" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"recycled-one" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Johnny Sunset aka Tom Sherman" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Rick wrote:
> ....
> And how useful is Google Maps from the handlebar of your bike?

One must carry a laptop on tour so one can read and post to the Usenet
cycling groups while at rest stops. 😉

I've often fantasized about a dream bike with handlebar mounted notebook
pc with cell/satellite connections.

Sounds more like a nightmare to me -- in which the next thing is that I
have to start answering urgent emails from the office while doing a solo
century through Lancaster County!

That isn't a concern for me, but I can see how it might be a negative for
those with employers demanding all-the-time access. OTOH wouldn't it be cool
to be able to cycle when you are on the clock and doing your job?

Ideally the device would be between a notebook computer and a
Blackberry/Trio in size with some sort of dual thumb controls. It goes
without saying that it would have to be weather and shock resistant.

Just wondering ??? Can one purchase the Adventure Tour maps on a CD Rom?
With so many carrying laptops on tour these days, the maps are rather
superfluous. I know, I know ,,, would not be able to get the map out during
the day. And, I don't think I would carry a printer. But, if I was to
carry a laptop and with the CD Rom .. just a thought.

Thing about laptops, you can use them for so much. Emails, look stuff up
,,, but best of all.. Watch movies in your tent at night. I love this.

=========
"NYC XYZ" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

They're printed on plain paper! And they're so small, and packed with
somewhat superfluous info (who the hell cares about restaurants along
the way, really).

Just disappointed. They should be laminated, at the least, or printed
on sturdier paper -- this is for touring, after all! Also, they really
should be bigger -- perhaps better as a spiral-bound book? And more
comprehensive -- I find googlemaps more useful!

recycled-one said:

Quoted message said:

One must carry a laptop on tour so one can read and post to the
Usenet cycling groups while at rest stops. 😉

I've often fantasized about a dream bike with handlebar mounted
notebook pc with cell/satellite connections.

It's been done -- 23 years ago, in fact.

See http://microship.com/bike/winnebiko/across.html, part of a site that
describes the adventures of Steve Roberts, bike nomad extraordinaire. In
1983 he hit the road on a recumbent loaded with with, among other things, a
Radio Shack Model 100 laptop and a radio link to Compuserve. (Though
usually he had to depend on phone links to upload/download his email.) The
bike's loaded weight varied from 135 to 195 lbs (ouch!!) during the 10,000
miles he rode it.

Within a few years he evolved his bike to include several computers, a
packet-radio networking connection, a specialized chording keyboard on the
handlebars that allowed him to write while riding, motion-sensing security
system and Votrax speech synthesizer ("Please do not touch me!" :-) and
lots more. The guy was nuts. It's pretty amazing reading.

Gary

Thomas Wentworth said:

Just wondering ??? Can one purchase the Adventure Tour maps on a CD Rom?
With so many carrying laptops on tour these days, the maps are rather
superfluous. I know, I know ,,, would not be able to get the map out during
the day. And, I don't think I would carry a printer. But, if I was to
carry a laptop and with the CD Rom .. just a thought.

On a related topic, you can download files with the GPS coordinates for
way points. I'd have to ask, though, do you want to spend time futzing
with mapping software to import those files, or do you want to spend
time riding your bike?

Quoted message said:

Thing about laptops, you can use them for so much. Emails, look stuff up
,,, but best of all.. Watch movies in your tent at night. I love this.

Email from your tent? There're too many gaps in cell coverage on major
interstates for me to expect to get a signal out where I'd be camping.
IME, a laptop is good for less than two years before you need a new
battery. And personally, I'd rather have the map than start the
computer, find where to turn (or where to go back to), then hibernate,
while hoping the battery is going to last.

Quoted message said:

=========
"NYC XYZ" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

They're printed on plain paper! And they're so small, and packed with
somewhat superfluous info (who the hell cares about restaurants along
the way, really).

Just disappointed. They should be laminated, at the least, or printed
on sturdier paper -- this is for touring, after all! Also, they really
should be bigger -- perhaps better as a spiral-bound book? And more
comprehensive -- I find googlemaps more useful!

You really want to triple the weight and double the volume of maps for a
long tour by getting them laminated, take them down to Kinko's...

Pat

"Gary Fritz" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

recycled-one said:

Quoted message said:

One must carry a laptop on tour so one can read and post to the
Usenet cycling groups while at rest stops. 😉

I've often fantasized about a dream bike with handlebar mounted
notebook pc with cell/satellite connections.

It's been done -- 23 years ago, in fact.

I think I have heard of him. It would have been in the 1980's - the Phil
Donahue Show. It featured a guy as you describe with a rather state of the
art get up, totally quaint by today's standards of course.

Quoted message said:

See http://microship.com/bike/winnebiko/across.html, part of a site that
describes the adventures of Steve Roberts, bike nomad extraordinaire. In
1983 he hit the road on a recumbent loaded with with, among other things,
a
Radio Shack Model 100 laptop and a radio link to Compuserve. (Though
usually he had to depend on phone links to upload/download his email.)
The
bike's loaded weight varied from 135 to 195 lbs (ouch!!) during the 10,000
miles he rode it.

Within a few years he evolved his bike to include several computers, a
packet-radio networking connection, a specialized chording keyboard on the
handlebars that allowed him to write while riding, motion-sensing security
system and Votrax speech synthesizer ("Please do not touch me!" :-) and
lots more. The guy was nuts. It's pretty amazing reading.

Gary

I have a rather different take. The maps are fine; it's the routes I didn't
especially like. IMHO, their routes take too many secondary roads that, on
the whole, are rougher, hillier, more bereft of services, and with a greater
incidence of aggressive dogs, than the US highways I prefer. That's a big
price to pay to get reduced traffic, and I'm far from convinced it's any
safer, because the US highways usually have at least partially paved
shoulders. My "ideal" route is a US highway running rather near an
Interstate. The I road gets the thru traffic, the US highway is still a
good road, the width of the right of way and amount of traffic deters dogs,
and the motels and other services at the I-exits are readily accessible.

"NYC XYZ" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

They're printed on plain paper! And they're so small, and packed with
somewhat superfluous info (who the hell cares about restaurants along
the way, really).

Just disappointed. They should be laminated, at the least, or printed
on sturdier paper -- this is for touring, after all! Also, they really
should be bigger -- perhaps better as a spiral-bound book? And more
comprehensive -- I find googlemaps more useful!

Kristian M Zoerhoff said:

[massive list of groups trimmed]

[Pertinent x-posting restored.]

Quoted message said:

Um, tourists looking to eat?

What's wrong with asking around once you're there? Sure saves on
having to amend things everytime some joint moves or closes.

Quoted message said:

These are meant for touring, not for detailed
commuting-type usage or for side trips.

Really cuts down on their utility. Especially since "touring"
ordinarily involves "side trips" -- the charm of adventure is
discovery, but the point of a map is to take care of some of the
"logistics" of that.

Quoted message said:

Plain paper is probably to keep costs
down. Get a large zip-top bag or a map holder from REI, and they'll be
protected.

Oh come on, some one has the money to do a bicycle tour but doesn't
have money for a good quality map?

Quoted message said:

They're meant to map a single route, not an entire area in detail. And if
they're too big, they won't fit standard map holders. I can't imagine trying to
mount a spiral-bound notebook to my handlebars, though I'm sure /someone/ has
done it.

Sure you can -- it's only a few panels per map. Besides, just what
good are such small map panels, then, on a handle-bar mount??

Quoted message said:

Methinks your expectations were high. That's not generally a bad thing, but in
this case, they seem to be a bit higher than warranted.

I dunno..."adventure cycling" connotes "rugged" to me, not "plain
paper" or "small maps" or "pretty general info"....

Quoted message said:

--

__o Kristian Zoerhoff
_'\(,_ [email hidden]
(_)/ (_)

Do these maps have no competition, then? Absolutely none?? 'Cause God
forbid you actually have an adventure and wander off the itinerary!

Rick said:

1) All paper is not created equal. The paper we wrote notes on in a
previous career was constructed so that it became 'oatmeal' when
exposed to liquid - good for its purpose. The paper that Adventure
Cycling uses for the maps is waterproof. Not plain paper ...
waterproof paper.

Glad to hear this. Still too easily damaged. This ain't an auto-map
for use in a car, after all. We're talking adventure cycling!

Quoted message said:

2) Some of us do like to stop at restaurants, at least on occasions.
The maps are not just for the oatmeal and gruel crowd.

This information is easily available. Just clutters up the map, and
necessitates updating.

Quoted message said:

And if they are bigger or spiral bound into a book how would you fit
them into your handlebar map holder?

What I'd meant by "bigger" was the map panels. No reason to be so
small. Each panel could be the size of that handlebar map holder, and
spiral-bound for convenience when it comes to changing the panel.

Quoted message said:

And how useful is Google Maps from the handlebar of your bike?

I was referring to researching a route, typically done before the
expedition.

But why is everything done from the handlebar of the bike? And if they
are, how come those maps (i.e., map panels) are so friggin' small???

Quoted message said:

- rick

Jerry said:

Adventure Cycling Maps are fabulous and essential. Wouldn't leave home
without one. Opinion based on more than 4000 miles of fully-loaded
self contained touring the last 18 months.

They seem to be the only bike-specific maps around, so "essential"
isn't the big deal you're making it out to be.

However, given that, I guess I shouldn't be surprised that there's been
no "update" in terms on lamination, readability, etc. No competition,
no incentive to improve.

Quoted message said:

You?

What I've been saying all along.

Quoted message said:

--jerry

Ron Wallenfang said:

I have a rather different take. The maps are fine; it's the routes I didn't
especially like. IMHO, their routes take too many secondary roads that, on
the whole, are rougher, hillier, more bereft of services, and with a greater
incidence of aggressive dogs, than the US highways I prefer. That's a big
price to pay to get reduced traffic, and I'm far from convinced it's any
safer, because the US highways usually have at least partially paved
shoulders. My "ideal" route is a US highway running rather near an
Interstate. The I road gets the thru traffic, the US highway is still a
good road, the width of the right of way and amount of traffic deters dogs,
and the motels and other services at the I-exits are readily accessible.

Interesting!

Hmm...now I'm really curious...I wonder if there should be different
editions of these maps...rougher and hillier? Interesting.

In article <[email hidden]>,
[email hidden] says...

....

Quoted message said:

RichC (who does carry a cell phone on rides, but it's turned OFF!)

I leave mine on, but only stop to check who called after I'm at a safe
place to pull it out of my pocket. Then I only return calls from my
family...

--
Remove the ns_ from if replying by e-mail (but keep posts in the
newsgroups if possible).

NYC XYZ said:

Jerry said:

Adventure Cycling Maps are fabulous and essential. Wouldn't leave home
without one. Opinion based on more than 4000 miles of fully-loaded
self contained touring the last 18 months.

They seem to be the only bike-specific maps around, so "essential"
isn't the big deal you're making it out to be.

However, given that, I guess I shouldn't be surprised that there's been
no "update" in terms on lamination, readability, etc. No competition,
no incentive to improve.

Excellent. You've identified a new business. Can we count on fewer
troll posts from you while you're doing the business startup?

R

If I'm just trolling, then you're lunch, with all the IQ of ham.

RicodJour said:

Excellent. You've identified a new business. Can we count on fewer
troll posts from you while you're doing the business startup?

R