Nav systems for cars are coming out fast and furious. There’s even a few for motorcycles. But we bicyclists are still using “just GPS” so far as I know. This was driven home to me today when I read a review of Garmin’s Edge 305. It’s basically a cycling version of my Forerunner, a GPS for runners. The Edge tracks speed, distance, cadence, and allows you to chase a virtual partner, etc. It’s a bike computer on steriods, says the reviewer. Indeed.
Now, I know there are issues of weight and storage for maps for things attached to bikes. But I also know cyclists get lost! We miss turns and those cue sheets are not the best for backtracking. We carry maps, ok, sometimes we carry maps, but those tend to be dated and may not be detailed enough to keep us on those backroads we love. Some of us carry cheap GPSs (think of an Etrex) and plot our route after we get home, but that’s not too helpful in the navigation department. Is there demand for such a device? Or will we be lashing our phones to our handlebars for navigation aid? Perhaps these devices will need to come with the bike like early in-car systems to get the word out?
I asked the bike nav question of TomTom when they announced how their devices would be used at the Pan Mass Challenge last year (and this year too as I understand it). There wasn’t such a device then. Garmin continues to offer devices for athletes to track effort, etc. but none with navigation tools.
