Get as large-scale of a map as you can of your town and a writing implement. Bike a street, draw it in.
I started this in Santa Cruz last May, and by the end of that month had been to probably 99% of the streets west of the river. (More than the above picture, which was as of May 25th.) If you're like me, you'll get a compass and draw circles in half-mile increments from critical points. I could (and will) talk more about the theoretical underpinnings of the project because let's face it, it's in my nature, but it's still a fun way to figure out how your environment fits together, where the shortcuts are, and to know where the most random little corners of your world are--or at least as far as the road network can take you in pursuit of those goals.
I've got to get going on the east side once the rains cease.
3 comments:
this is awesome. I'm definitely doing this in the next town I move to. (My current town isn't very amenable to biking. sigh.)
Interesting corollary: I know Santa Cruz on this level better than Burlington.
Interesting practical application: when you're doing something semi-sketchy (riding in the left lane to anticipate a left turn at midnight) and are startled by a cop, when they for some reason don't immediately turn around and pull you over you can disappear into a twisty maze of residential streets and get home without resorting to the sorts of main thoroughfares they'd be looking for you on.
Not that I'd do such a thing, naturally.
right, of course not. =)
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