CAMWEST Rides

CAMWEST members are putting together a series of self-guided routes on the Ride With GPS (RWGPS) platform, which, together with the RWGPS app running on your mobile device, provides riders with a voice-guided GPS experience tailored to cycling.

Each route contains:

• A brief description of the route, including start and finish location(s) and anticipated riding conditions. Our aim is to supply you with enough information to help you select an appropriate ride for you or your family's level of fitness, confidence and ability.
• Cues (Directions) that are read out as you ride.
• A POI (Points of Interest) map overlay, with facilities such as water bubblers, restrooms, food/coffee outlets, nearby railway stations or ferry terminals in case you need to terminate the ride prematurely, and in some cases, genuine points of interest!

These routes may appeal to riders who:

• May be unfamiliar with the area, and want to enjoy a ride without having to worry about the navigation side of things;
• May be nervous of getting lost if riding by themselves;
• Want to ride on a different day or at a different time to when the group rides are being held;
• Feel uncomfortable riding with a group.

RWGPS is both web and app based, with data exchanged between the two platforms. RWGPS has several subscription options, from a free individual 'starter' account, to the individual 'Basic' and 'Premium' paid accounts and a club member account. Unfortunately access to the voice navigation function is not available on the free 'starter' account. However there are several ways that access can be obtained:

• Take out your own individual subscription to RWGPS. (Note that these prices are in US Dollars).
• Find a group that has a RWGPS club membership, and ask them about joining and accessing voice navigated routes.
• Join CAMWEST. Our members have access to this functionality through our RWGPS Club account at no additional cost. Joining CAMWEST costs less than 20% of the price of an individual Basic RWGPS subscription.

Process for accessing the routes if you join CAMWEST:

• Follow the 'CAMWEST Membership' link below. Membership costs $10 per year for individuals.
• Once we accept and process your membership request, we'll send you a link to join the CAMWEST RWGPS Club Account. See 'Join the RWGPS Club account' section below.

The following table is a guide to what the line colours on the CAMWEST Ride With GPS maps are trying to indicate. Please note:

• Some of these definitions are subjective;
• Definitions may be varied when riding in rural or semi-rural areas;
• The colouring scheme is particular to CAMWEST rides. Other riding groups may use a different colouring scheme.

The following text is an edited version of a Bicycle NSW article:

Although ideally you shouldn't need to look at your device after comencing a ride, there are circumstances (like going 'off-course' and trying to navigate back to the route, or checking the map POI overlay for the nearest water bubbler, restroom, or food/drink outlet) where it may be beneficial to be able to easily check the device's screen. As noted above, legally you can only check the screen after you have stopped.

CAMWEST does not recommend using traditional earphones while cycling, as they may impact on the rider's ability to know of and respond quickly to events happening around them. In spite of being legal, for the same reason we would discourage listening to anything but direction cues while riding.

We believe the safest way to use your mobile device while cycling is to use a purpose-built mount or pouch, with the device's audio coming from either its internal speaker, a separate Bluetooth speaker, or via bone-conducting headphones.

Mounts and pouches come in different shapes and forms. Some offer protection from the rain; some are 'universal' fit, while others have adaptors that are specific for certain popular phone models. Although not the cheapest, the Quadlock system is popular and widely available. It has adaptors available for a number of popular devices, or an adhesive mount that can be directly attached to other devices (case material dependent).

Note that a waterproof pouch, while offering some protection from precipitation, also potentially impacts the volume and clarity of voice-guidance instructions reaching the listener, as well as negatively impacting air circulation around the device. We're aware of one higher-end phone suffering overheating issues while being used in an enclosed pouch on a day with temperatures in the mid 30's.

Bluetooth audio devices:

JBL Clip 3

One option that we've trialled is using the JBL Clip 3 waterproof Bluetooth speaker. We purchased the speaker for under A$50, and tried both attaching it to the bike handlebar stem with cable ties (preferably the reusable type), and hanging it from the top rear loop of a hydration backpack. Both options are usable, and may also be good if you'd rather carry your mobile device in a bag or pocket.

Please be aware that most modern Bluetooth audio devices employ a ‘snooze’ mode where they go into a low power state if they haven’t received any audio signals for the last 6 seconds or so. When in this state, the first second or so of any subsequent audio is missed while the Bluetooth device ‘wakes up’. To get around this issue, there are several apps available that generate inaudible 'pulses' to the Bluetooth audio device to keep it awake. One which we've used successfully on an android device is the ' Bluetooth Keep Active' app. We found setting the ‘Time Delay’ to 0.1 minutes worked well. Just be aware that by using these apps you are over-riding your Bluetooth audio device’s power-saving feature. Please remember to disable the 'Keep Active' function when you've finished your ride.

Choosing the setup which works best for you may involve some trial and error!

Here are the steps for registering for the CAMWEST RWGPS Club Account and installing the App. If you already have the app installed, skip that step.

Registering for the CAMWEST RWGPS Account:

Note: This can be done on any device that has access to a web browser (including PCs).

1. Take out a CAMWEST membership. Once approved, you'll be sent a link to join the CAMWEST RWGPS account.
2. Click on the supplied link to join. (If you don't have a link, or experience issues, please Contact Us).
3. When prompted, enter the email address that you'll be using with the RWGPS app, and create a user name and password.
4. Click 'Create an account'. The account that is created will be called a 'Starter' account. While you have access to all the free RWGPS 'Starter' account functions, you will also have access to several of the features normally only available in the 'Basic' and 'Premium' paid plans, including the voice navigation feature.

Installing the App:

1. If you've completed the above steps, you'll be presented with a page with a link to both iOS and Android versions of the RWGPS app. If presently accessing from a mobile device and not already installed, go ahead and install the app. You can also install the app directly from the App or Play Stores.

Accessing the CAMWEST self-guided routes:

1. With the RWGPS app running, click the 'Log In' link on the Home screen. Note that you need to log in with the same email address as registered with the CAMWEST RWGPS account above. Unless you've separately paid for a subscription, you'll be logged in under a RWGPS 'Starter' account.
2. From the Home screen, click the 'More' button near the bottom right hand corner of the window.
3. Depending on which is displayed, click the 'Club' or 'Organisation' option. If you are a member of more than one Club or Organisation, select 'CAMWEST Bicycle User Group'.
4. Select 'Collections' then 'Recreational Rides with detailed cues'.
5. Select the appropriate route from the list.

Mobile Device Settings:

• Voice pronunciation accent and speed are functions of the mobile device. The settings can normally be found under:
  Settings > Accessibility
  (Note that the iOS version of the RWGPS app also has a voice speed adjustment setting).

RWGPS App Settings:

There are at least three places in the app where various settings can be accessed:

1. The Settings screen accessed from the home page:
   Home Screen > More > Settings
2. The Settings screen accessed while navigating a route:
   Tools > Settings
3. The map option icon, displayed near the bottom-left corner of the map, either while navigating a route or before you start.

Some of the options available in the two Settings screens above are the same, while others are exclusive to one screen or the other – just to confuse things!

Recommended App Settings:

1. The main option which is exclusive* to the Settings screen accessed via the Home Page is the ‘Use Metric Units’ box, which is unticked by default. To change this, go to the Home screen and select:
   More > Settings > Account Settings > Tick ‘Use Metric Units’ box
   (*Note: This setting can also be changed when logged into the RWGPS website, by clicking the grey RWGPS bike icon near the top right of the screen, and selecting Settings > Preferences and ticking 'Use metric units?').
2. Access the Navigation option from either of the above Settings screens. By default all settings are ticked. We Suggest you untick ‘Advance Cue Warnings’ and ‘Imminent Cue Warnings’.
3. Another option is to get periodic spoken alerts. As well as providing feedback about how the ride is going, the alerts also offer assurance that the phone/app are still working during those periods when there’s a long gap between real cues. You can set alerts based on time or distance, and also specify which parameters you wish to have read out. The steps below outline a fairly basic alert every km.
   
   To set/alter, access the Logging option from either of the above Settings screens, and scroll down to the Interval Alerts section.
   • Tick ‘Enabled’
   • Tick ‘Tone’
   • Click ‘Type’ to selected ‘Distance’.
   • Click ‘Interval Distance Spacing’ and select 1km.
   • Click ‘Announcement Content’, and select ‘Whole Ride’ under both ‘Distance’ and ‘Duration’.
4. When a map route is displayed (with or without navigating the route), click the ‘Map Options’ icon near the bottom left corner of the displayed map. Overlays and Map backgrounds can be selected here. We recommend:
   • Turning on the POI overlay (Displaying locations of water bubblers, restrooms, food stops, railway stations close to the route in case you need to bail etc);
   • Turning off Cues (which displays icons on the map for each cue);
   • Having the 'Heat Map' overlay displayed can be interesting if you want to see how many other RWGPS users have ridden sections of the route lately, but it can make street names and other map details blurry. Our preference is to normally disable this overlay.
   • Under ‘Map Type’, we prefer to use ‘OSM Cycle’.

Please note that there are periodic updates to the app which may change some of the info presented below. If you notice inaccuracies, please let us know.

• The first cue in each of these CAMWEST routes is not specifically designed to be read out aloud, although that may happen depending on when you actually start navigation for the route. They're meant to be read by the rider, to ensure the route is started at the nominated location.
• There is no specific chime in the app to indicate that you are now following the intended route. In an attempt to mitigate this, CAMWEST routes will contain either a turn instruction or information cue within the first 100 metres of each route to provide audio confirmation that you are in fact following the intended route. This also serves as a test to ensure that your audio is working as intended.
• The routes contain POIs (Points of Interest) and photos. The location and details of these are not mentioned by default with the voice navigation prompts. Prompts have been manually added to draw your attention to some of the more important ones. As mentioned above, we recommend enabling the POI overlay so you have an idea of facilities around you.
• While actually navigating a route, there doesn't appear to be any readily accessible way of going back and looking at the ride description or photos. To get around this, we've started including some of the photos as clickable 'camera' icons on the POI overlay. Although fiddly, it's also possible to use your browser and check these out on the ride's webpage.

Some quirks to be aware of:

The behaviour of the RWGPS App Voice Guidance prompts is a little different from that of a traditional car-based navigation system. With a traditional navigation system:

• Cues are automated and basic;
• Cues are usually recalculated or adjusted if you miss a turn or take a different route to that originally selected.

With the RWGPS system:

• Cues can be customised by the person creating the route. Instead of just the basic 'Take next Left turn' or 'Turn left onto George St' , cues such as 'Turn left onto the shared path immediately after passing the statue of Captain Cook' can be created.
• Cues are not recalculated if you leave the designated route. Instead, an 'off-course' audio chime sounds once you're approximately 35 metres off-course, and there'll be a warning message on the screen that also tells you by what distance and in which direction you've deviated. The chime will continue to sound every 2 minutes or so whilst off-course, unless you manually silence it. There is now an audio chime to indicate that you are back (or close to) the correct route. When heading back to the correct course, please note:
  • The off-course screen indicator will disappear when you get within around 35 metres of the correct course - even though you're still ostensibly off-course;
  • Under some circumstances you may receive a voice cue (but noting that as you're now approaching that point from the opposite of the intended direction, the cue will announce to turn the opposite direction to what you are now required to make), and in other circumstances you won't receive any voice cues at all.

Other things to take note of:

1. Cues or Directions are often (but not always) read out a fair while before the turn/point is reached. While riding at around 15kmph, directions are often started around 70 metres before the turn. Unless the instruction is really long, it’s finished well before the turn, with no other prompts following.
2. The ‘end of route’ audio notification occurs around 70 metres before the route is supposed to finish.
3. There appears to be no way of testing the volume of the voice commands before starting the ride. If operating the phone on speaker, you may need to set the volume at or near maximum to compensate for traffic noise (depending on location).
4. When cues are geographically close to each other, the system can get confused and read out the wrong cue at times. At points where this issue has been identified, we've combined two changes of direction into one cue. For example: 'Veer right and follow the shared path into the culvert under the road. As you're coming out of the culvert on the other side, turn sharp left onto another shared path.'
5. As you need to be at least 35 metres off-course (as the crow flies) before the system alerts, it is possible to miss a road or creek crossing and follow on the opposite side to that intended, and still be considered 'on-course'. The missed turn or crossing may only become apparent later on when you receive a cue that doesn't make sense or the two courses diverge by enough to trigger the off-course alert.

Keeping these 'quirks' in mind, we hope you enjoy using our RWGPS self-guided routes.

Please Contact Us if you have some suggestions or feedback regarding the published Self-guided routes. We aim to make the system as user friendly as possible within the constraints of the RWGPS system.

CAMWEST group rides are free to all, although riders 16 years and under must be accompanied by an adult rider. Please choose a ride that is appropriate to your level of fitness and ability. If unsure, please ask us! Each rider should be equipped with:

• a well maintained bike;
• a correctly fitting bicycle helmet in good condition which complies with Australian Standards AS/NZS 2063:2008—Bicycle helmets;
• a water bottle or two filled with water;
• a spare tube;
• tyre levers;
• a pump;
• sunscreen;
• clothing appropriate for the expected weather conditions;
• snacks and/or money for any food or drink you wish to purchase;
• and of course a willing body!

You don't have to wear fancy Lycra shorts and tops, although regular riders often find them more comfortable. The tops are usually brightly coloured which assists with rider visibility when riding on the road. Most rides are arranged so there is access to water and toilets along the route.