TomTom itineries

[thescrapman]

My co-driver has produced Itineries for the TomTom series.

Attached, and use at your peril.. :-)

They have teh Servern bridge re-route included.

Cheers

Colin

[Nick B.]

Very clever - leading everybody astray securing all the pies for yourself.   What a cunning plan.....  8)

Cheers
Nick

[Richard B]

I think Tom Tom's etc should be banned as not in the 'spirit of the event'. Discuss.

[Deleted User]

The only good point is that if you've got one at least you can let the passenger sleep..personally i'd agree that it goes against the spirit of the event but in todays ever more  safety minded world they're not a bad thing to have as back up

[tiggrr1]

But are you using a sat nav Richard?

Personaly I think you need one,  if only to help avoid being unlucky with speed camera locations ;)

You know the revenue raisers not the genuine safety cameras out side schools/accident blackspots etc.

[Caroline]

Just drive legally and where's the problem? I don't get tickets for quite a good reason... And I don't care if that means you think I drive like an old woman!

[tiggrr1]

Caroline wrote:

Just drive legally and where's the problem? I don't get tickets for quite a good reason... And I don't care if that means you think I drive like an old woman!

:) I'm not brave enough to call you an old woman  :)

:) I'm not even brave enough to think it either  :)

[mikeyb]

Apart from the charitable side of course, the point of the event is to nurse a Triumph from A to B successfuly, hence the original name RBRR.   I don't see what sat nav or maps etc have to do with it, other that pre-defining that route from A to B!

[Richard B]

tiggrr1 wrote:

But are you using a sat nav Richard?

Nope.

AA roadmap, and Tim's little blue book. Half the fun is in manualy plotting the route.

[neilnaz]

It's funny I have never liked Sat Navs. The idea of pre-programming a route or following the route chsoen via a box of tricks and having no concept of where you are going doesn't appeal. I have no issues with others using them. Each to their own and all that. I imagine that they are a very useful device if you are a delivery driver or sales rep needing to go to various locations - makes life easier.

I drive to enjoy the experience and the scenery and part of that is deceiding which way to go. You learn as you go and familiarise yourself as you go learning new raods and areas as you travel far and wide. That will not happen with a Sat Nav even if you program the device with your chosen scenic route rather than the fastest or shortest route between A and B.

I overheard a conversation at the weekend. A chap was saying that since he had his Sat Nav installed he found his way from A to B with no problem at all but he was never able to tell where he was as he trusted everything to his Sat Nav and couldn't possibly say where he was and how long he would be before arriving until interrogating his Tom Tom. I reckon that is what would neturally happen if you trust your Sat Nav. You would blindly follow instructions and never be sentient.

Philistine I know. I do have a Road Angel though so I knwow where the tax points are!

[Deleted User]

Richard_B wrote:

I think Tom Tom's etc should be banned as not in the 'spirit of the event'. Discuss.

Sat Nav's are modern day maps! Loads better! take a map as well!

Taking part is the sprit of the event!

[cook1e]

Before the 2006 RBRR I had never used a Sat Nav or had any intention of buying one.

However having spent 48 hours with Jason's Tom Tom in the GT6 last time I was totally sold on them and went out and bought one shortly afterwards. This was helped by the entertainment value admitedly as Jason had the voice of Yoda programmed in, ie "at the rondabout the 2nd exit you must take"  ;D. To be honest we followed the road book more than the Sat Nav for actual navigation but it was useful a couple of times when we had some confusion finding the control points in Oswestry and Dartmoor.

The thing that impressed me most though was having in effect a head up disply at night when driving on fast A roads, you could tell instantly whether or not the road ahead was going to be straight past the range of the headlights which was great for planning overtaking.

The other important thing was being notified of the speeding cameras. Yes I know the RBRR is not a race and we should be sticking to the speed limits, however on unfamiliar roads late at night with no traffic it's all too easy to get caught out. The last thing anyone wants is to get a ticket and licence points (or potentially several tickets and a ban  :'( ) it really would really spoil the weekend so a Sat Nav programmed up with an alarm for the speeding cameras to me is almost a necesity or at least it's an insurance policy.

[thescrapman]

Caroline wrote:

Just drive legally and where's the problem? I don't get tickets for quite a good reason... And I don't care if that means you think I drive like an old woman!

But that is because your local "partnerships" probably have a more enlightened view.

You probably don't have roads where the limit changes 17 times in 13 miles, blink once, miss a limit change and you're caught. And don't think you would miss one, you only need a lorry coming the other way, or in front of you and it's missed.

Most of us keep within the limits most of the time, but it is the times when you fail to spot a change in limit, that the chances of getting caught increase dramatically, as it is the sublte changes that are exploited. A9 nr Stirling anyone???

And I don't know what sort of Partnerships work elsewhere in the country, so having lost a speed limit spotter, I will have a Sat Nav, for my safety, and so the co-driver gets some sleep.

1 unfortunate side effect of my OD maladies, is that I have gone from a speedo that is spot on, to one that reads about 50% to 75% over. My Sat Nav will also be my speedo as I will be overtaken by even the Atlast if I stick to what t says I am doing...  :-/

The roadbook will be marked off as we go along and will be our main source of information.

Cheers

Colin

[Tim Bancroft]

Amazingly a few crews in the past have not brought a map with them, managed to complete the event without one.

BTW Nigel Abdullah is the man who devises the route, credit where it is due.

[Deleted User]

I haven't even transfered the route to a map yet ..may not ,but will have map in the car ...we will have a sat nav in but will prob only use it as a speedo as the one in the herald has a habit of dying

[Jason]

We never had a map first time I did it, don't need one with the road book being so good. A little preparation always help so you know what to head for if you take a wrong turn so take a look at your map first :-)

That said we will have sputnik nav with us and the road book and maybe even a map light!

[tiggrr1]

Jason wrote:

That said we will have sputnik nav with us and the road book and maybe even a map light!

Check, We've got all of those and a map to go with the maplight too :P

[Jason]

The maplight's only to use when the headlights fail, OK when the two candles in jam jars burn out.

[James]

I've done with and one without - can't say it makes much difference really.

What I do remember from doing it non-GPS was being woken up (when I was almost asleep) by my co-driver asking me for directions...! Now that was very annoying!

[heraldmanblue]

sat navs should be banned, not just from this event but from society, as they make you lazy and stops people from learning to use maps i will never own a sat nav never i say,

[Jason]

Maps should be banned, horrible untidy things, with the crumpling and the folding. I think people should be made to learn to navigate by the stars and a sexton. Maps make you lazy.

[Alex]

I think lazy people should be horse whipped.....oops wrong forum!

[ferny]

I agree with what Niel and Richard have said. However I can think of three good things about them;

1- They let me know exactly what road I'm on at the time. Not all roads have signs so if you're going to someones house for the first time and you're not sure which road you're on you can look at the sat nav. Also stops you from parking outside number #523 when you want #2! And if the worst happens you can pin-point your location for people.

2- They warn you of speed cameras. You shouldn't be speeding but some are placed behind trees just at the end of duel carrage ways waiting for someone to come through at 70mph. They help keep you aware of your speed.

3- My speedo is shagged.

[Deleted User]

On this event, a sat nav is an aid to planning the route while using a map prior to the RBRR.

If you sit at the Plough and punch in Blythe Services, be prepared to be taken well off the route up the M1 or round the motorway towards Cambridge after Royston.

Comparing the suggested sat nav route with the map long before you head off for the start will save time and grief later.

Programme your sat nav with waypoints, small villages, strategically placed along the route to ensure that your sat nav keeps you on the right course.

Also programme your waypoints like this to make sure that they come up on the correct order on your sat nav menu:

000  Plough
010  Arrington (waypoint)
020  Blythe  (control)
etc.

(Arrington is a small village north of Royston that prevents you from being diverted to the motorway near Cambridge.)

By numbering the controls and waypoints in tens, you can add additional waypoints and petrol stations you may need in the intervening numbers.

However, not much can beat a good map when you get into difficulty and your sat nav suggests turning off down the dirt road to your left.

It can take a bit of time to do this successfully but it will help at two in the morning when your eyes won't open enough to focus on a map when you have no idea where you are.

Jim.

[ferny]

Got to add too;
In my car when pressing on you can't hear the sat-nav. Especially when you've got the radio set so you can hear it clearly over the car noises. I've got a squeak at the back now which my passenger complained about. The radio soon cured it.


Must pack some headache tablets...