Pedals & Pathways: Fatbike Poker Run, Survey & Results, More RAGBRAI, G-BRANH, anyone?

Navigating Manchester’s Urban Paths

“A bicycle is the garden gate that leads to the open road.”  — Albert Einstein

Few wiser men than he. In this edition, let’s talk about:

• North Country Fatbike Poker Run
• Ongoing Survey & Results So Far
• More RAGBRAI
• G-BRANH, anyone?
• Pointz & Pointz-plus mobile apps

North Country Fatbike Poker Run

Many of you will know what a poker run is, but a few won’t. It’s an outdoor competition of sorts, where the participants all cover a specified distance or range, making specific stops, but it’s not really a race. It’s not about the time nor the earliest finisher. Instead, at each designated stop you pick up a playing card (or a token that can be exchanged for a playing card at the end). Then, when everyone is done, you see who has the best poker hand. Fun, right? So even the least physically fit and slowest rider of the bunch can still win. YES!

North Country Tricycle holds one of these events annually around Valentine’s day. And this year, in honor of what would have been Chris Huyler’s 45th birthday (12/30/24), they’re proud to rechristen the event as the Chris Huyler Fatbike Poker Run. Chris was a passionate advocate for the trails, a key part of the cycling community, and a friend who brought joy to everyone he met. Chris died last November during a hike when he suffered a significant fall in icy terrain.

You can spend the weekend of February 14-16 riding at Bethlehem Trails Association, Franconia Area NEMBA and PRKR MTN Trails. Register at trycyclenh.com – $40 for adults. Socks included!

Ride to designated points along the three trail networks mentioned and collect poker chips to trade for cards at the end. Then on Sunday afternoon, join the crew at Iron Furnace Brewing, trade in your chips for playing cards, and compare hands. Prizes also given for non-traditional hands. Don’t worry, you don’t need to know how to play poker. This event is for everyone!

And, if you need to borrow a bike, they are available free at the Bethlehem Gear Library! Proceeds support winter trail grooming and maintenance for the three participating trail networks.

Ongoing Survey & Results So Far

Our survey continues, we still want to hear from you! Tell us your thoughts and opinions on bike parking in our city. Take the survey at this link.

And please share the survey with all your friends! The more, the better!

As of this writing, we’ve received 34 responses and they break down as follows. Most respondents are from Manchester, with a few from surrounding towns. 79% are in favor of additional bike parking. Two thirds cycle once a week or more.

More RAGBRAI

Because you can never have too much. Below are a couple of videos, both created by the indomitable Ryan Duzer. First, a short video (a little over 5 minutes) that makes a great intro. Then, a longer video (about 55 minutes) that’s a great summary of last year’s ride and contains many very touching moments.

Thus Is RAGBRAI:

RAGBRAI 2024 – The Best of Humanity:

G-BRANH, anyone?

Last column after gazing at many enchanting photos of RAGBRAI I got a little fanciful and tossed out the idea of a Great Bike Ride Across New Hampshire. Those Iowa cornfields sure are pretty but New Hampshire has plenty of gorgeous countryside too, right? So what do you say? Can we make this happen? A week long ride across New Hampshire? Maybe, say, Pittsburgh to Peterborough to Portsmouth? Mountains to the sea? Lobster at the finish? Hit me up if you want to talk more about it. Email at this address. Or jump into ongoing discussion on Reddit at this link.

Pointz & Pointz-plus mobile apps

A friend recently recommended this app to me so I’m trying it out. It looks promising, but has significant limitations on the free version. Meanwhile, the paid version is a little expensive. That’s always a tough balance to strike.

Info from Pointz’ website:

“Pointz is a safety-focused mapping app that helps people on bikes, scooters, and other micromobility vehicles find better ways around cities. Crowdsourcing is used to improve the map and reflect real-time conditions. Pointz pre-rates roads on a 1-to-5 bike friendliness scale based on complex sets of attributes from available datasets. Then riders can submit rating updates and add additional information to the map like bike lane obstructions, dangerous intersections, and more.”

“Routes are customizable: Depending on travel needs, riders can choose between a safer, balanced, or faster option. There is also the ability to toggle off hills. Turn-by-turn audio instructions and a smooth, easy-to-understand mapping interface further improve accessibility.”

Those claims sound great, but I’m not sure yet how realistic they are. Also, both Apple Maps and Google Maps have some cycling-specific features and abilities (example below). Is the Pointz App better? Is it sufficiently better to be worth the paid cost? For me the jury is still out.

Let Businesses Know You Didn’t Come By Car

If you’re at a shop or restaurant and you did NOT get there by car, let them know. Even better, if you biked there and parked your bike at a rack nearby, let them know that too. And still better, if you biked there and WOULD LIKE a bike rack, ask about it. Too many folks have the mistaken impression that everyone travels only by car, and that’s all that matters. Many people use cars, but not everyone, and certainly not all the time. Everyone’s preferences and abilities differ, and our streets should accommodate all users safely.

And remember, you don’t have to be obnoxious about it. Simple comments to the staff like these examples are great:

“I love this restaurant. And I really love that I can ride my bike here and park at that rack right outside.”

“I love your coffee shop. And I would love it even more if I could ride my bike here and park at a rack right outside.”

“You guys have a great bakery. My friends and I would shop here even more if there were a bike rack nearby.”

Call for Input

We very much want to hear from you! Do you have any questions or concerns? What topics would you like us to cover? Send your feedback our way and we’ll get on it! We want to ensure this column meets your needs.

Stay safe and warm and have fun out there!