Veloviewer. Who is using it, and what do you get from it?
Discussion
Some Gump said:
Not been doing it recently because a) it's bloody horrible out there and b) going 50+ miles "to explore" during the current situation feels a bit like a pisstake.
That's the beauty of being somewhere where I've not ridden/run a lot - managing to keep it all within an hour or so! Would definitely agree that it's not a pursuit for lockdown if you've already done the shorter rides near your home-base.Due to the ice and snow of late haven't had much of a chance to explore around our new home as yet. The wheels are off the bike and it's firmly mounted to the Kickr and Kickr climb in the garage at the moment. Just shy of 350 miles with 23000 feet of climbing in January. It's been a struggle at times just to motivate myself to go into the freezing garage for a Zwift session never mind go out on the perilous roads and risk injury.
dirtbiker said:
It's gone a bit quiet on this front - people still playing? I follow Yellowjack on Strava so know that he's been up to his usual antics!
We're staying with the in-laws in Dumfries while nurseries are closed in Scotland so I've been trying to build a good cluster here while doing a 50-mile running challenge. Getting there slowly! Got me a gravel bike at the tail end of 2020 which is far better suited to exploring than my Specialized Tarmac with carbon wheels - albeit a bit slower.
"Usual antics" is a bit of a stretch! I haven't been out anywhere near as much as I usually do, and I've kept very local (for me at least) and mainly to my MTB this past few weeks. Today I did 20 miles on my road bike (puncture included) and it was my first road ride in a while.We're staying with the in-laws in Dumfries while nurseries are closed in Scotland so I've been trying to build a good cluster here while doing a 50-mile running challenge. Getting there slowly! Got me a gravel bike at the tail end of 2020 which is far better suited to exploring than my Specialized Tarmac with carbon wheels - albeit a bit slower.
My mood has been low lately, and the weather hasn't helped in that regard, but even if it were nicer out I'm not sure I'd be able to justify any tiling rides. The nearest unridden tiles are just too far away to get there and back in daylight, so I've been doing laps of Moors Valley Country Park, and riding there and back, or taking my old clunker up to the bakery (less than two miles from home) then taking the longer route back via the sea front. It's cycling, by definition at least, but just not what I enjoy. Now that I'm back on the road bike, though, I may try to fit in a longer trip if the weather is kind any time soon...
After a few weeks of staying at home (due to my manager catching COVID, so I voluntarily isolated...) and then the weather last weekend, meaning that all I did was a 1/2 hour midnight loop to hit the -5 temperatures before the snow fell!
Cabin fever was hitting, well, fever pitch, so on Saturday, I set out with the intention of an audacious 250 km tiling ride to Exeter.
Naturally, I got a puncture on the exposed, windswept edge of the Blackdown Hills. I fixed it, but by then I was freezing my a$$ off. I carried on to Honiton, which was the best train station, and headed home. Less public transport, more private carriage, so at least social distancing wasn't an issue.
Cabin fever was hitting, well, fever pitch, so on Saturday, I set out with the intention of an audacious 250 km tiling ride to Exeter.
Naturally, I got a puncture on the exposed, windswept edge of the Blackdown Hills. I fixed it, but by then I was freezing my a$$ off. I carried on to Honiton, which was the best train station, and headed home. Less public transport, more private carriage, so at least social distancing wasn't an issue.
First ride outside since late December. Weather looked a bit better today so took the bike off the turbo and got the wheels back on.
Route:
Map:
Stats:
VV score: 87.801 (Up from 86.819)
442 tiles (Up from 425 tiles), average of 2.347 (down from 2.373) mi per tile
Max square: 13x13 (No change)
Max cluster: 240 (No change)
Eddington Ride: 25 (Up from 23)
Route:
Map:
Stats:
VV score: 87.801 (Up from 86.819)
442 tiles (Up from 425 tiles), average of 2.347 (down from 2.373) mi per tile
Max square: 13x13 (No change)
Max cluster: 240 (No change)
Eddington Ride: 25 (Up from 23)
Little bit of a milestone today:
That's the far southeast corner of Dorset completely covered with tiles!
Still got the Poole Harbour lot, Purbeck, and the pesky b
d in the Lulworth ranges, which may require the "Yellowjack special" route.
Oh, and there's also the one on the Somerley estate, which at least used to be the start of the New Forest 100... but is otherwise private.
And then there's West Dorset. Distant and hilly af.
That's the far southeast corner of Dorset completely covered with tiles!
Still got the Poole Harbour lot, Purbeck, and the pesky b
d in the Lulworth ranges, which may require the "Yellowjack special" route.Oh, and there's also the one on the Somerley estate, which at least used to be the start of the New Forest 100... but is otherwise private.
And then there's West Dorset. Distant and hilly af.
There's some nice progress guys! Good to see folk hitting the roads.
Didnt have much time to get out so ended up doing a 2hour time trial ride to pick up a few tiles. Laying the ground work to expand the max square.
3021 (+6 from 3015 tiles),
Max square 22x22 View map
Max Cluster: 796 (only +5 from 791)
Didnt have much time to get out so ended up doing a 2hour time trial ride to pick up a few tiles. Laying the ground work to expand the max square.
3021 (+6 from 3015 tiles),
Max square 22x22 View map
Max Cluster: 796 (only +5 from 791)
Hell yes! Back in the (tiling) game...
Knocked my VeloViewer score up to 98.700 today. Then some interloper nicked a KOM from me near my previous home, bumping it down to 98.699 again.
I rode through 75 tiles today, but only 2 of them were new ones. Both just north of Tolpuddle, one was a stiff test up a steep hill.
Current numbers look like this...
Explorer score: 3873 tiles (average of 8.551 miles per tile)
Max square: 28x28
Max Cluster: 2403
The ride on Strava... https://www.strava.com/activities/4919966652
Those two new tiles...
And how things stand right now...
5 mostly off-road tiles at the top left of my Max Square will take me to a 29x29 Square. That will be the limit of expansion north unless I move the square left or right. Left (west) looks more promising. But this riding from home malarkey will need to reduce if I'm to make any real progress. 71 miles to claim 2 tiles? As Covid restrictions ease, I think a few trips west in the car will be in order to make the most of available riding time. but hey? it's nice to be able to post some progress on the thread, even if it's just "baby steps" for now.
Knocked my VeloViewer score up to 98.700 today. Then some interloper nicked a KOM from me near my previous home, bumping it down to 98.699 again.
I rode through 75 tiles today, but only 2 of them were new ones. Both just north of Tolpuddle, one was a stiff test up a steep hill.
Current numbers look like this...
Explorer score: 3873 tiles (average of 8.551 miles per tile)
Max square: 28x28
Max Cluster: 2403
The ride on Strava... https://www.strava.com/activities/4919966652
Those two new tiles...
And how things stand right now...
5 mostly off-road tiles at the top left of my Max Square will take me to a 29x29 Square. That will be the limit of expansion north unless I move the square left or right. Left (west) looks more promising. But this riding from home malarkey will need to reduce if I'm to make any real progress. 71 miles to claim 2 tiles? As Covid restrictions ease, I think a few trips west in the car will be in order to make the most of available riding time. but hey? it's nice to be able to post some progress on the thread, even if it's just "baby steps" for now.
Good job! Impressive effort all-round!
I've nabbed a couple of elusive tiles near me which has taken my max square up to 10x10 but am finding it tough to carve out the time to do longer rides from home too. There are a couple I reckon I can get within an hour's ride but little one at home and pregnant wife preclude anything much more than that!
I've nabbed a couple of elusive tiles near me which has taken my max square up to 10x10 but am finding it tough to carve out the time to do longer rides from home too. There are a couple I reckon I can get within an hour's ride but little one at home and pregnant wife preclude anything much more than that!
dirtbiker said:
Good job! Impressive effort all-round!
I've nabbed a couple of elusive tiles near me which has taken my max square up to 10x10 but am finding it tough to carve out the time to do longer rides from home too. There are a couple I reckon I can get within an hour's ride but little one at home and pregnant wife preclude anything much more than that!
I can see how it'd be difficult to justify this silly tile-chasing nonsense with a young family at home. I would never have done this sort of thing back when my kids were small either. Fortunately my youngest is 23 years old now so I'm free of those "shackles" of parental responsibility. And with my wife working but me not, I tend to get quite a few opportunities to get full day rides in. The only issue I have is me, sabotaging my own rides by leaving it until later in the day to get started. I could easily have left home three or four hours earlier yesterday and perhaps done a 100+ miler. Which would have meant getting to a few more tiles too. But after "just checking PH" and "just checking the weather forecast" and "just having one more coffee" and "just putting one more load of laundry through the washing machine" those three extra hours have evaporated and it's all I can do to grab those two Tolpuddle tiles. As it was I was about 45 minutes late getting home, and I arrived just as my son was plating up the pasta and meatballs. I've nabbed a couple of elusive tiles near me which has taken my max square up to 10x10 but am finding it tough to carve out the time to do longer rides from home too. There are a couple I reckon I can get within an hour's ride but little one at home and pregnant wife preclude anything much more than that!
Part of the reason for being late home was an extended chat with a couple who were also out cycling. He was ex Royal Navy and we talked about where we'd come from and where we were headed. He was surprised I'd come from as "far away" as Bournemouth. He shook his head in disbelief when I explained 'VeloViewer tiling' to him. Although when I explained that my main reason for doing it was to pressure myself into exploring unridden parts of the countryside it seemed to make more sense to him.
yellowjack said:
Hell yes! Back in the (tiling) game...
Knocked my VeloViewer score up to 98.700 today. Then some interloper nicked a KOM from me near my previous home, bumping it down to 98.699 again.
I rode through 75 tiles today, but only 2 of them were new ones. Both just north of Tolpuddle, one was a stiff test up a steep hill.
Current numbers look like this...
Explorer score: 3873 tiles (average of 8.551 miles per tile)
Max square: 28x28
Max Cluster: 2403
The ride on Strava... https://www.strava.com/activities/4919966652
Those two new tiles...
And how things stand right now...
5 mostly off-road tiles at the top left of my Max Square will take me to a 29x29 Square. That will be the limit of expansion north unless I move the square left or right. Left (west) looks more promising. But this riding from home malarkey will need to reduce if I'm to make any real progress. 71 miles to claim 2 tiles? As Covid restrictions ease, I think a few trips west in the car will be in order to make the most of available riding time. but hey? it's nice to be able to post some progress on the thread, even if it's just "baby steps" for now.
I figure I'm going to be expanding into the New Forest at some point.Knocked my VeloViewer score up to 98.700 today. Then some interloper nicked a KOM from me near my previous home, bumping it down to 98.699 again.
I rode through 75 tiles today, but only 2 of them were new ones. Both just north of Tolpuddle, one was a stiff test up a steep hill.
Current numbers look like this...
Explorer score: 3873 tiles (average of 8.551 miles per tile)
Max square: 28x28
Max Cluster: 2403
The ride on Strava... https://www.strava.com/activities/4919966652
Those two new tiles...
And how things stand right now...
5 mostly off-road tiles at the top left of my Max Square will take me to a 29x29 Square. That will be the limit of expansion north unless I move the square left or right. Left (west) looks more promising. But this riding from home malarkey will need to reduce if I'm to make any real progress. 71 miles to claim 2 tiles? As Covid restrictions ease, I think a few trips west in the car will be in order to make the most of available riding time. but hey? it's nice to be able to post some progress on the thread, even if it's just "baby steps" for now.
I already have a plan for getting my max cluster onto the Isle of Wight, but it does involve taking a swim from Norton Beach. Fortunately, that's considered swimmable, so it's just really a question of finding a point of reference, because I don't have any waterproof GPS gizmos...
Solocle said:
I figure I'm going to be expanding into the New Forest at some point.
I already have a plan for getting my max cluster onto the Isle of Wight, but it does involve taking a swim from Norton Beach. Fortunately, that's considered swimmable, so it's just really a question of finding a point of reference, because I don't have any waterproof GPS gizmos...
Looking at your doodle, if the green 'X' is your target tile, just by swimming out 200 metres into that tile, then turning east for 50 metres before swimming back, if you left from just to the west of the line between those tiles you could also bag the one directly to it's east. If that makes sense. Then you would have a line across to the tile at Bouldnor which appears to have a PROW in it even if the sea front is private...I already have a plan for getting my max cluster onto the Isle of Wight, but it does involve taking a swim from Norton Beach. Fortunately, that's considered swimmable, so it's just really a question of finding a point of reference, because I don't have any waterproof GPS gizmos...
...although I'm not such a strong swimmer so I might not be too confident about swimming even 400 to 500 metres in the Solent.
Something like this...
...added to that (I noticed after playing in MS Paint) getting the Totland tile (bottom left) by road would also turn the Hurst Castle tile blue.
To be honest I hadn't thought about taking a swim there. Options I'd mused over were the possibility of an open boat ferry from Keyhaven to Yarmouth (summer only, if, indeed, it still runs at all) and keeping the Garmin running. Or possibly rent a SUP or kayak/canoe on the Isle Of Wight side if there's someone running such a business in that part of the island. But so long as the currents aren't too prohibitive, a 500 metre (or so) swim doesn't sound too outrageous...
yellowjack said:
Looking at your doodle, if the green 'X' is your target tile, just by swimming out 200 metres into that tile, then turning east for 50 metres before swimming back, if you left from just to the west of the line between those tiles you could also bag the one directly to it's east. If that makes sense. Then you would have a line across to the tile at Bouldnor which appears to have a PROW in it even if the sea front is private...
...although I'm not such a strong swimmer so I might not be too confident about swimming even 400 to 500 metres in the Solent.
Something like this...
...added to that (I noticed after playing in MS Paint) getting the Totland tile (bottom left) by road would also turn the Hurst Castle tile blue.
To be honest I hadn't thought about taking a swim there. Options I'd mused over were the possibility of an open boat ferry from Keyhaven to Yarmouth (summer only, if, indeed, it still runs at all) and keeping the Garmin running. Or possibly rent a SUP or kayak/canoe on the Isle Of Wight side if there's someone running such a business in that part of the island. But so long as the currents aren't too prohibitive, a 500 metre (or so) swim doesn't sound too outrageous...
Tbh I hadn't thought of being maximalist with the water tiles......although I'm not such a strong swimmer so I might not be too confident about swimming even 400 to 500 metres in the Solent.
Something like this...
...added to that (I noticed after playing in MS Paint) getting the Totland tile (bottom left) by road would also turn the Hurst Castle tile blue.
To be honest I hadn't thought about taking a swim there. Options I'd mused over were the possibility of an open boat ferry from Keyhaven to Yarmouth (summer only, if, indeed, it still runs at all) and keeping the Garmin running. Or possibly rent a SUP or kayak/canoe on the Isle Of Wight side if there's someone running such a business in that part of the island. But so long as the currents aren't too prohibitive, a 500 metre (or so) swim doesn't sound too outrageous...
I suppose one of the downsides of Veloviewer, though, will be officially becoming a triathlete...
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