Google keeps adding data to its maps to make them more detailed.
That's good news for bicyclists who want to find bike trail routes in their cities that might take them near their destinations.
As I found from tracing some bike trails in the Seattle area, some are labeled and some aren't. Some are mislabeled. Some vanish from sight in places then reappear later. But it's a start, and the information on the Google maps is only as good as the sources.
At its Google Lat Long blog, the company tells about some of the improvements and says “…cyclists will now find many more trails and paths to explore. Soon we even plan on providing you with biking directions to take advantage of this new data …
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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2009/10/13/google-maps-adding-bike-trails-directions-are-next/
Mark Junge wants to prove that he can go on bike tours too, even though he's a daily supplemental oxygen user.
Junge, a retired historian, photographer and writer from Wyoming, is leaving New York City this week for a 816-mile bike tour to Charleston, South Carolina. He expects the bike ride to take about two weeks.
The bike traveler suffers from blood clots in the lungs, a Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease that makes it difficult for him to breath. Instead becoming inactive because of the disorder, however, Junge gets on his bike to motivate others with the condition to go out and live a full life ….
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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2009/10/13/man-attempts-800-mile-bike-tour-on-supplemental-oxygen/
Washington state bicycle advocates are pushing for a law to make it illegal for a motorist to seriously injure or kill a vulnerable roadway user — such as a bike rider — in a crash caused by ordinary negligence.
All too often, motorists receive mere traffic tickets and don't even have to appear in court when their inattentive driving results in a bicyclist's or pedestrian's death.
The Cascade Bicycle Club, among others, is sponsoring a Traffic Justice Summit from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at Seattle City Hall's Bertha Knight Landes Room to discuss changing the law.
Bike riders, pedestrians, and motorcyclists can be the most vulnerable when a motorist commits a simple traffic violation.
When a car driver changes lanes into another car or makes a left turn in front of an oncoming vehicle, for instance, a couple of crumpled fenders is usually the worst result. Put a bicyclist into that equation, however, and a death or serious injury results….
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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2009/10/12/seeking-justice-for-bike-riders-in-washington-state/
Lance Armstrong isn't the only bicyclist who can bring out the fans to raise money for cancer.
Actor Patrick Dempsey of the TV series “Grey's Anatomy” sponsored the Dempsey Challenge charity bike ride in Lewiston, Maine, last weekend, near his hometown of Buckfield. The event raised nearly $1 million.
After his mother was treated for ovarian cancer at the Central Maine Medical Center, the actor founded the Patrick Dempsey Center for Cancer Hope and Healing in Lewiston. The center provides free support, education and wellness services to cancer patients and caregivers.
Dempsey said he needed to raise operating funds for the center, so he chose the bicycle as a vehicle for his event. Isn't it great to see celebrities raising money for worthwhile causes from the seat of a bicycle? …..
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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2009/10/11/dempsey-challenge-bike-ride-raises-money-for-cancer/
Hill-climbing specialists from across the state of Florida are descending on Lake County this weekend for the Mount Dora Bicycle Festival.
This is the 35th anniversary of the bike gathering, which features entertainment beginning Friday night and 11 supported bike rides of 25 to 100 miles throughout the weekend.
But the real mountain goats among the 500 participants will no doubt be saving themselves for Sunday's “Assault on Sugarloaf Mountain.”
At 310 feet of elevation, Sugarloaf is one of the highest peaks in the state of Florida. Those strong enough to make it to the summit will enjoy views of Lake Apopka and other area features …
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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2009/10/10/cyclists-prepare-for-assault-on-sugarloaf-mountain-bike-advocacy-in-central-florida/
Santa Rosa seems to be one of the few cities in California to know, for sure, that it's going to be a host city on the 2010 Tour of California bike race.
The city's Chamber of Commerce chief confirmed to the Santa Rosa Press-Democrat that the bike race would return to Santa Rosa for the fifth time in a row.
Meanwhile, organizers are still putting together the list of other host cities for the 8-stage tour. The race better be a doozy, because it's going up against the Giro d'Italia. The Tour announced earlier …
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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2009/10/10/santa-rosa-to-host-tour-of-california-stage-again-in-2010/
An updated edition of “Major Taylor, The Fastest Bicycle Rider in the World” by Andrew Ritchie may start a discussion of who is America's greatest cyclist.
Although this summer's book by John Wilcockson calls Lance Armstrong “The World's Greatest Champion,” you can make the argument that Marshall “Major” Taylor should hold that title, at least during his time.
Armstrong survived cancer to go on to win 7 Tours de France, but Taylor also became a champion in spite of huge obstacles.
As an African-American setting records in cycling at the turn of the century, Major Taylor faced incredible discrimination and hardships. He rose above that to become world renown in one of the bigggest sports on Earth at the time. …
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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2009/10/09/new-biography-examines-life-of-bike-racer-major-taylor/
Why do cyclists spend $5,000 on a bike? Do you think it's absurd?
“Well, there's only one answer. There's only one word. And that's performance.”
This video has been hanging around on YouTube since August, but I just ran across it a couple of days ago.
“It's all about performance. That's the name of …
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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2009/10/09/its-all-about-performance/
Not-in-my-backyard naysayers often allege that proposed bicycle trails will ruin the quality of life in their neighborhoods and destroy property values.
But it seems that the opposite is the case in follow-up studies or polls of neighbors.
For instance, the Ithaca (NY) Journal reports that 81% of residents who live next to that city's three main trails say the bike and hike trails improved or greatly improved their neighborhoods. Only 7% of the survey's respondents believe the trails made their neighborhoods worse.
In fact, many neighbors found the trails such an improvement that they use them regularly ….
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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2009/10/08/poll-says-bike-and-hike-trails-improve-neighborhoods/
A scenic auto tour through Washington, Idaho and British Columbia is seeing new life as a 280-mile bicycle touring route.
The International Selkirk Loop links the small towns and recreation spots at the foot of the Selkirk Mountains. Because the route follows river and lake valleys, the grades are gentle to moderate with only a few steep climbs.
The newly published “A Cyclist's Guide to the International Selkirk Loop” includes 52 route and elevation maps divided into 50 to 70-mile sections. In addition to the 280-mile main loop, the bike tour maps include six side trips encompassing another 450 miles of riding …
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Permanent link to this article: https://www.bikingbis.com/2009/10/07/bike-tour-maps-published-for-northwests-selkirk-loop/
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