Mannheim powers through Part II

Did the app used by Mannheim to encourage cyclists and maybe non cyclists to cycle to work function. In our case definitely yes. Unfortunately we were away on walking trips for much of early September, but we definitely put in some hours on the bikes to get us out of Finland when we got back.

Mannheim powers through

I have been rude about Mannheim in the past and its relationship to cyclists, but some thing that has impressed me is the "Mannheim gibt Kette" app (https://www.mannheim-gibt-kette.de), part of a programme to encourage people to cycle to work. Just about every national cycling club and health insurance organisation has a programme of this type, offering the chance of winning small prizes for cycling to work. The Mannheim app for the inhabitants of MA and the employees of the city council sums the distance cycled each day and propels one on a virtual journey along the Iron Curtain Trail from Kirkenes, Norway to Carevo, Bulgaria, offering tourist and geographical information and photographs of the areas covered. There are chances underway to answer questions to double one's daily kilometres for five days. The app is well designed. It is written by "GEVIO - Gesundheit und Prävention", 67256 Weisenheim, Germany (http://www.gevio.com/softwareloesungen/business-bike-contest/). A company that offers packages of measures to improve employees' health. Unfortunately the information on the web is in German but an email to the company's contact address: support@gevio.com will bring information in English.

We have cheated, although we live just over the border in the small Hesse town of Viernheim and no longer work, we joined the game just to see how it functions. In our case we are largely not replacing car journeys by bike journeys, but trips by public transport and on foot. If we win anything we will come clean and send the gift back. The main prize is a trip to Amsterdam. Whether we will achieve the twenty days cycling necessary to be entered in the lottery for the big prize is debatable anyway.
Does it work? Yes! Since we have joined we have tried to cycle about 18 or 19km through the local woods on every day we can. Other teams have finished and we are still virtually cycling through the Finnish woods and actually cycling in Viernheim. Will we make Latvia before the cutoff date? We will do our very best.

Cinema for the ears on Bavarian cycle routes

We came across an excellent idea at the tourist exhibition in Stuttgart. A regional tourist organisation in Bavaria has set up a series of points on some cycle routes where visitors can tune into an iPod type broadcast on local features (www.bayerisch-schwaben.de/lauschtour). Visitors use an app on their own mobile/cell phone or on a hired iPod to listen to a short documentary on, e.g. the meteor collision that formed the giant crater around Nördlingen, N of Augsburg. Unfortunately these broadcasts are only in German and in dialect at that. They are not much use to non German speakers. This idea could however be adopted in the UK in the Lake District, for example, with talks on Beatrix Potter, Wordsworth, Thirlmere and Arthur Ransome.

Where do I find a bike on a city bicycle hire system

Finding where there are bikes to be picked up on a city bike system with many stations can be difficult. Fortunately someone has written an iPhone App to help you. The good news is it is free. It shows where which stations have how many bikes and if you tell the system which are your nearest or most used stations the phone will automatically display the information when you get close to favourite stations. The app can be used perhaps but not worldwide but in over 80 cities in Europe, in the USA and Canada. Check out http://www.bicyclette-app.com/en/ for more information.

Movelo App

movelo is the largest European provider of electric bicycles in tourist regions with 2,500 electric bikes, 400 rental stations in 40 regions in Germany, Austria, Italy and Spain ... There is more information on http://www.movelo.com/de/elektrofahrrad/, in German but translations are available.
In addition, there is a new movelo app for the iPhone and google phones. This holiday guide  has all the answers during a tour with an electric bicycle in a movelo - region. The information displayed is always up to date and tailored directly to your location even outside of Germany and also works well in Austria and Italy. For example, you can find where to borrow movelo pedelecs or download information on the battery charging stations and/or replacement batteries. In addition, this app includes a route planner, so you can always easily plan your desired route and have the Itinerary in mind. Also the nearest  battery exchange station is displayed constantly.

Cycling in Denmark

Since its capital city, Copenhagen, is rated as one the best, if not the best city in the world to cycle, Denmark is obviously a good place for cycle touring. We were very pleased to discover a new route planning website for the country: cyclistic.dk on a recent visit to Copenhagen.

Cycling information from a motor club?

It is still surprising to realise how mainstream cycling is in Germany. Our local brewery is giving away a cycling map with every crate of beer sold in August. What surprised me most of all, the ADAC the German equivalent of the AA or the AAA announced recently that it is selling an iPhone app through the Apple App Store that can be used to find and follow over 1500 cycle tours in Germany.