New Daily Tour Maps

[slomove]

Since hotels are selected, the daily routes are also fixed. Please see attached map snippets. The roads for the day are highlighted in yellow. The maps are not very detailed but hopefully will allow you to follow with your preferred map or mapping software. Please let me know if you don't recognize a segment.

Gert


P.S.: For the folks who drove up to Thunderhill Raceway last August on some of the roads planned for the first day: No, I am not doing "Old Leesville Grade" again :)

[Elv15]

Gert, I'm sure I speak for the group of us (not to mention my sump and suspension), but I'm happy to be skipping that particular road!

The route looks spectacular!

[Elv15]

Howdy Gert,

Do these maps still reflect the current route?

Cheers,

Tom

[slomove]

Hi Tom, there were no changes.

I was planning to publish the map as Garmin Mapsource file if that is on any use for you.

Gert

[Elv15]

Gert,

Thanks! I thought I remembered some kind route change...

BTW, I have been thinking of getting some kind of GPS device (I really have no idea which kind - suggestions welcome).

Oh and is there a plan to do a routebook? I'd be happy to help out with this if you are going to do one.

Cheers,

Tom

[slomove]

Tom, I was planning to extract a very basic tour book from the map file, i.e. a turn by turn route description with hotel addresses etc.

If you would be willing to enhance this with other route relevant information (e.g what we are going to see and POI) that would be great.

If you want to buy a GPS gadget I recommend a Garmin device. They are somewhat on the pricey side but I have had several in the past and know they are rugged and work well. Obviously they have an advantage if you want to make use of my route file. If you buy another brand you would have to re-create the whole route.

Unfortunately (and not understandably) the new "Nuvi" generation from Garmin as well as the lower end "Street Pilots" can only operate stand alone and not upload routes from the PC. Great devices but for such a tour useless.

That leaves:
- Quest models (work very well, moderate map memory, can be used for hiking, low cost but pretty tiny screen).
Pretty cheap here
- The higher end Street Pilot models (look very nice but very expensive >$1000)
- The biker "ZUMO" devices that Stan got (see another thread). Not exactly cheap and a little bulkier than the Quest but great functionality (including MP3 stuff and other gadgets) and a good screen. Like the Quest also waterproof.

Gert

[soareyes]

Tom, as Gert said I have the Garmin Zumo 550. I have had it a few months now and I am very happy with it. The only negative compared to my Quest 2 is that the Zumo is larger so it won't slip into your pocket easily when you leave the car. I put it in my backpack along with the steering wheel. Of course the advantage to being bigger is that the screen is much larger and easier to see.

Another big advantage, at least to me, is that the unit will play MP3s. I bought a set of Shure EC4 "in ear" buds that seal into your ear with the soft memory foam like the standard earplugs we all use. I used this system for the first time on our Memorial Day blat and really enjoyed being able to listen to music on the long boring sections through the desert on the way home. The spoken directions from the gps voice are also much easier to hear than through the external speaker. I'm not going to do it, but you can also purchase a seperate XM satellite radio antenna and subscription, and listen to XM while you drive!

The Nuvi's are nice too, but as Gert said you can't upload routes that you have done using Mapsource software on your PC, which is a definite deal breaker for what we want to do.

Stan

[squarefour]

i picked up a nearly-new Garmin StreetPilot 3 on ebay for $200 with all cables and NA maps, and there are quite a few for around that price.

It seems to have everything the newer ones have (color, turn-by-turn routing, voice, uploads) except it has a smaller, no-touch, screen.

I am interested in getting the Mapsource file, since it will take me a while to learn how to upload it:)

[slomove]

Wow, that is a darn good price.

I will email the map file tonight to all tourers. There might still be one or the other very minor change but in general it is pretty much final.

Gert