In honor of some recent posts on route planning, I thought I'd start the thread. There's already a lot of opinion posted on paper maps, software, phones, apps, and websites. Even insurance companies have an opinion on how to plan your ride.
(Just to weigh in on part of the debate, in the pre-electronic era, I was known to wander with just a compass, but as a modern belt and suspenders guy, you'll find me in Colorado with (the same) compass, pages from the Rand McNally National Atlas, the Colorado Gazeteer, regional Butler maps, a phone, NAV V and solid state computer....)
Route planning was never high on my list when I was young and had a million other things to do. "Just let it happen," was the mantra and "Don't let it happen on the interstate," was the subtext.
Fast forward - too many roads not seen; some planning was in order to keep from riding the same roads from A to B. First Rand McNally, then DeLorme Atlas and Gazeteers, MAD and Butler maps, and online to Google, etc.
The last few years, I've mapped a bunch of routes for the NAV V on the Rever website. (That still doesn't mean I follow them once on the road...; I'm faithful to my wife, but curves of new blacktop and blow-your-mind scenery always seem to lead me astray.)
Like other companies, REVER's matured through the years. Two years ago, they integrated the Scorpio Ride GPS/security system from Aritronix (which I already had) to allow better tracking.
They also teamed with Butler Maps a few years ago, and for those of us who pay the "pro" premium, the REVER maps now carry a Butler overlay that includes some areas not yet on paper maps. Nothing like a day dedicated to riding every Butler Gold colored route between point A and B. (And yes, GG, the the efficiency on the bike goes up considerably compared to the interstate.)
Tonight I sat down to pick out a few routes for the upcoming trip to southern Colorado, when I realized that not only did REVER finish the BMW-specific .gpx download interface, but added the Twisty Road option for route finding. (See below.) Most importantly, I can now develop these routes on my phone, which in turns lays down the tracks in the Garmin.
Those who play with their Garmin's will note that the curvy road option appeared after a software update on the NAV V a few years ago, but I've always been disappointed with the definition of curves in their algorithm. There was a palpable reluctance to take the rider too far from the fastest path; the route always seemed to develop through compromise to a bunch of long sweepers on a high speed national highway. I don't know. Maybe Garmin didn't want the potential liability of dumping a bunch of Harley wannabe's into a dangerous environment that involved brakes and blind turns.
The video is only 70 seconds long, but gives a taste of how the routing works. (If you watch it, you'll catch the fact that REVER is headquartered in Eagle.... I don't plan to visit, though it might be interesting to check out the employee parking lot, well, assuming not everyone in IT works from home.)
(No music with the video, but somehow, Dwight Yoakam and company were in the background of my computer, working the tune Rapid City, South Dakota while I watched. Sometimes, life provides a little extra energy.)
(Just to weigh in on part of the debate, in the pre-electronic era, I was known to wander with just a compass, but as a modern belt and suspenders guy, you'll find me in Colorado with (the same) compass, pages from the Rand McNally National Atlas, the Colorado Gazeteer, regional Butler maps, a phone, NAV V and solid state computer....)
Route planning was never high on my list when I was young and had a million other things to do. "Just let it happen," was the mantra and "Don't let it happen on the interstate," was the subtext.
Fast forward - too many roads not seen; some planning was in order to keep from riding the same roads from A to B. First Rand McNally, then DeLorme Atlas and Gazeteers, MAD and Butler maps, and online to Google, etc.
The last few years, I've mapped a bunch of routes for the NAV V on the Rever website. (That still doesn't mean I follow them once on the road...; I'm faithful to my wife, but curves of new blacktop and blow-your-mind scenery always seem to lead me astray.)
Like other companies, REVER's matured through the years. Two years ago, they integrated the Scorpio Ride GPS/security system from Aritronix (which I already had) to allow better tracking.
They also teamed with Butler Maps a few years ago, and for those of us who pay the "pro" premium, the REVER maps now carry a Butler overlay that includes some areas not yet on paper maps. Nothing like a day dedicated to riding every Butler Gold colored route between point A and B. (And yes, GG, the the efficiency on the bike goes up considerably compared to the interstate.)
Tonight I sat down to pick out a few routes for the upcoming trip to southern Colorado, when I realized that not only did REVER finish the BMW-specific .gpx download interface, but added the Twisty Road option for route finding. (See below.) Most importantly, I can now develop these routes on my phone, which in turns lays down the tracks in the Garmin.
Those who play with their Garmin's will note that the curvy road option appeared after a software update on the NAV V a few years ago, but I've always been disappointed with the definition of curves in their algorithm. There was a palpable reluctance to take the rider too far from the fastest path; the route always seemed to develop through compromise to a bunch of long sweepers on a high speed national highway. I don't know. Maybe Garmin didn't want the potential liability of dumping a bunch of Harley wannabe's into a dangerous environment that involved brakes and blind turns.
The video is only 70 seconds long, but gives a taste of how the routing works. (If you watch it, you'll catch the fact that REVER is headquartered in Eagle.... I don't plan to visit, though it might be interesting to check out the employee parking lot, well, assuming not everyone in IT works from home.)
(No music with the video, but somehow, Dwight Yoakam and company were in the background of my computer, working the tune Rapid City, South Dakota while I watched. Sometimes, life provides a little extra energy.)
"A good man always knows his limitations...."