The Next Web

Bikelogger: GPS tracking service for cyclists

By Ernst-Jan Pfauth
June 8, 2008
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Geeks like you and me need to work out, especially in the summer. We can’t spend the whole week behind our PC without developing symptoms like an ever growing belly, sun-frightened skin, and black pouches under our eyes. So I’m looking for ways to stay fit. I play ping-pong, hallway soccer, and basketball with my Next Web office buddies, but that’s more about the fun. No, I’d to like sport more seriously, like long-distance cycling. Yet, as a city boy, I have no idea where to go on my bike. German-based start-up Bikelogger is going to help me out. This GPS tracking service helps people find biking pals and saves all the tracks of the community by using the Google Maps API.

Bikelogger: GPS tracking service for cyclistsWho else than a bike fanatic like Bikelogging founder and CEO Manuel Kirchner can explain better what this service is about? In the opening post on the Bikelogger corporate blog he wrote:

The basic idea of bikelogger is to constantly upload the tracklog of your GPS system, so that friends and other bikers can watch your tracks, download interesting routes and find bike partners in your area.

Geo localization is the next big thing in social networking. It will make the whole experience a different – and more exciting – dimension. I’d love to go to a club and see which Facebook friends are there as well. So it’s not surprising that many developers are now working on the geo localization killer-app. Bikkelogger won’t be the one, but I’m sure Kirchner found himself a good niche within this trend. Cyclists are real sportsmen who in general tend to be crazy about their bike. So a useful application that also gives them the possibility to connect with other bicycle-minded folks will be a welcome attribution to their digital life.

Success won’t come for free though. The beta version of Bikelogger misses a sports-appeal as the design is plain boring. Also, cyclists would probably want to show off with their incredible tracks on Facebook and blogs. Hence the call for some more API magic. If Kirchner combines this with some serious community management, he might become a well-known name in the bicyclists scene.


  • Given that my bike was stolen last week, I've been thinking about GPS and bikes too. I'd love a little GPS bug that I could put on my bike (maybe hidden within the frame) and would phone home with its location every 24 hours or so.
  • Knut Hansen
    I like the idea of mashing up with your gps data from biking, hiking whatever into google maps. I am sorry, but your article sounds more like promo, because this kind of website is already there for a couple of years and many people are using it. It is called http://www.bikely.com
  • robbie van der blom
    There's better one's available like the mentioned bikely.com and motionbased.com
  • @Knut and @Robbie I've Googled with some GPS and biking keywords, coloudn't find them though. Thanks for the info!

    PS. Knut, Promos are in the upper right corner, have a look at them as you won't find them in the articles.
  • Ruben
    They don't lack a cute design, or social network integration or a badass api. Those might be useful when the service is actually used.

    What they do need is to explain what the service does, how it works, give me a (clear) call to action, make the registration process easy and then tell me how to actually use the service.

    And THEN, they could try to get some blog coverage. So far: crap :(( I'm off Googling how to create gpx files on my mobile, maybe I'll find a site that actually does help :)

    PS: EJ: wanna ride the Amstel with me, I'm a regular biker :)
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