When you’re out on the bike you need fuelling. Trendy sports bars pay the magazines well to advertise their particular snacks with added science, but you can make your own for a fraction of the price.

They’re fun to make (OK, it helps if you’ve got kids to join in) and really incredibly easy.

These days your first experience of using any sort of cycling computer, particularly with a navigation or mapping aspect, is likely to be a smartphone app.

There are loads of iPhone and Android apps aimed at cyclists, runners and walkers. Some of them are much better than others, but in terms of their suitability for the task, they all have one fundamental flaw – the hardware they run on. Smartphones with zillions of apps are incredible devices, but sometimes you still need something which is designed specifically for the job.

On March 25th 2012, a rather large number of cyclists will set off from Crewe on the Cheshire Cat. The longest variation of the route is 100 miles, and I’ll be among that particular band of nutters.

I’ve got a soft spot for gadgets. Rather than pretend that they fulfil some purely utilitarian purpose, thus making daily life more manageable, more productive, less hassle, or whatever, I’m going to settle for the pure hedonistic joy of inquisitiveness, and marvelling at the outcome. We are an astounding species, and gadget technology constantly reminds me of this wonderful fact.

I’ve been volunteered to lead a route this week and here is my proposal.
There is some stunning scenery along this route, and some hefty bits of climbing too. Bring a banana, or something.

In an earlier post comparing OS Discoverer maps to open source OSM maps, I highlighted a crucial factor which may influence the decision to adopt one or other – the usefulness of various zoom levels, particularly noting the detrimental effect of zooming in too much, beyond a particular point. To show this in greater detail than my previous post, here are some screenshots, taken from the Garmin edge 800, showing every available zoom level.