Las Vegas Bicycling Community Website

Kudos to Google for including bicycling in their Google Maps technology!

Now, if bicyclists are looking for directions to travel safely on bikes, all they have to do is go to maps.google.com/biking.

The objective of Google’s new bicycling routing is “to include as much bike trail data as possible, provide efficient routes, allow riders to customize their trip, make use of bike lanes, calculate rider-friendly routes that avoid big hills and customize the look of the map for cycling to encourage folks to hop on their bikes.”

Does it meet this objective? I’d say yes and no.  Just a couple quick checks for me to ride my bike from my house to certain addresses in town and Google did lead me down some pretty sketchy roads.  This means that, as great as their technology is, they still need real human beings who know the roads or who are willing to ‘test’ out their directions to give them feedback.  That being said, they do have a feedback system that allows you to tell them if they routed you wrong, if a road is closed or other possibilities….so a human being is still better than a computer.  But I still can’t help but think it’s cool, right?  And I know with time, this will only get better.

Try it out.  Give it a spin.  Go to maps.google.com/biking and throw in some test addresses from your house.  See if you think it gives you the best directions.   Then, come back here and tell me what you think.

A few more facts about Google’s Biking Directions feature:

• You can have the route avoid hills! (I’m a hill glutton, so not sure I will use this feature.)

• The time estimate for the route is based on a complex set of variables accounting for the type of road, terrain and turns over the course of your ride.

• Google has also added information about bike trails, lanes and recommended roads directly onto the map. This can help you get a better sense of your route, or let you find trails nearby for a recreational ride.

• Thanks primarily to Google’s partnership with the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, they now have more than 12,000 miles of trails included in biking directions and outlined directly on the map.

I would like to say in closing, that this is a HUGE step forward for bicycling…and I commend Google for encouraging people to get onto their bikes.  We all love cycling and want to see it move forward, and this is a BIG step forward.  Thanks Google!

To learn more about Google’s Biking Directions, visit the Google’s Official Blog at:
http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2010/03/biking-directions-added-to-google-maps.html

Or read the Google Maps Blog post here:
http://google-latlong.blogspot.com/

I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who supports BikingLasVegas.com!  Both the members and the sponsors.  Today marked our 1 year anniversary of our most popular ride…the monthly cake ride.  Thanks to all who came out and braved the possible rain (which didn’t happen!)  Until next month’s cake ride.  :)

For anyone who loves to ride in Summerlin, this event is for you.The Tour de Summerlinshowcases the wonderful scenic west side of the Las Vegas Valley.  There are many beautiful roadways and LOTS of bike lanes to ride in.

There are a few distance options:  80 miles, 35 miles and a 10 mile fun ride.  This is a fully supported event, with support vehicles and aid stations all along the routes.

After the ride, you’ll go back to The Vistas Park in Summerlin where you’ll enjoy a nice lunch refreshments.

Saturday, April 24, 2010
Vistas Community Park
11311 Alta Drive
Las Vegas, Nevada 89138

REGISTRATION COSTS:
80 - Mile Ride Start 7:30 a.m. $50.00 through 4/12/10
35 - Mile Ride Start 8:30 a.m. $50.00 through 4/12/10
10 - Mile Ride Start 10:00 a.m. $35.00 through 4/12/10

For more information and to register for the ride, visit the Tour de Summerlin website at:
http://www.tourdesummerlin.com