This morning, I went for a bike ride around Champ de Mars in Paris. It was a ride of about 4km and the scenery was lovely. I saw the Eiffel Tower up close (I think I even rode under it), some Parisian pups, lots of tourists, and fit looking people running through the park. I saw all this today*, I did…
* OK, so the tracking information in the first two pics, along with the Google watermarks, show that I wasn’t really in Paris this morning. I was in sunny Sydney, sweating it out on my exercise bike, which features a clever black box designed to trick the exerciser into thinking they’re having fun.
This little iFit device links my stationary bike to the ‘live feed’ Google map of the route I am riding, so I can watch the images on my ipad as they update (along with the incline/resistance on the bike) to simulate my progress on a ride on this actual track. Oui oui.
As a gadget geek, I am quite taken with this new toy – I have already ridden through a park in Spain and Central Park is on the schedule too. Of course, looking at photos on an iPad as I pedal doesn’t take away from the pain and discomfort, and it’s not even close to being there in real life (or IRL as the gamers say). And there’s no incentive in the form of a fresh baguette or pain au chocolat at the end of the ride.
But it’s definitely better than staring at this…
Au revoir!
everydaysparks 
I’m not even a gadget geek and I think this is a great idea! Much better than staring at the wall or watching tv. I’m guessing they do something similar for treadmills to simulate runs.
Yep, they sure do! And they have a whole range of programs for riding / running through different places to keep it interesting. Or you can map out your normal home track on Google maps & it will simulate that for you too. I’m a big fan!
Very cool…thanks for introducing me to it.
Now THAT is one cool app!