I try to be a wayfinder and get frustrated with the apps that exist. A lot of the non-highway routes aren’t suggested as thoroughfares. Some are seasonal or require permits. It’s tough to plan short or long trips without crazy research. Facebook is unfortunately where I end up. At the end of the day, I’ve hiked my bike miles out of more shitty pits than I’d like.
Would you pay for someone to do that route planning work for you?
I actually love doing the route planning, but have a real job and don’t have time. If there’s like a way to pay the bills doing it, I’d like to try. FWIW, I have an IT degree I don’t use at my job.
by smoothest_brain_bro
5 Comments
Have you looked at the Ride with GPS app? With all due respect, it sounds like their app is what you are referring to.
I think you’d struggle to do more than make a side gig out of it, but FWIW I’d absolutely pay for someone do to route planning, or rather a large pack of routes that have been thoughtfully planned and tested.
The amount of times I’ve come across impassable/overgrown terrain on routes that I found online, with a full write up, photos and good reviews is annoying.
I’ve actually swapped from a gravel bike to a HT because so many “gravel” routes I found were full of rocks the size of baby’s heads or straight up death trap mud pits. However now I’ve moved further out to the countryside my new enemy is stiles and kissing gates, plus trails completely torn up by dirt bikes with ruts so deep my pedals catch on either side.
Between Ride With GPS and Bikepacking.com I don’t see a market for paying for route planning. Maybe different based on locales? But here in the lower 48 of the USA there seems to be good beta if you need it or ‘adventure’ that you know you’re getting yourself into.
I would, if it was reasonably priced and there was some qualified expertise behind it. I am a person who likes a plan but get very overwhelmed with the details of trying to create one. Route planning is my least favorite part of bike trips.
Nop, I love that part as well. Also planning doesn’t mean I’d like to avoid unknown stuff. It just means a rough guide, but part of the experience is to adapt to whatever comes up.