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Kickstand - Motorcycle Trip Planning

There are so many motorcycle ride apps out there. Some lean into the route navigation, others on the social side of sharing the routes. Not many of them lean into the planning of the trip. Sure you could share a Google Maps url to your buddies. What if there was another way?

Introducing Kickstand

I'd like to introduce you to a side project I've been working on for a few months, aptly named Kickstand. It is a ride planning site, allowing you to plan that trip for your crew, select the key waypoints you'd like to visit, add some notes, then share that link with the crew. They can get an overview on where you're going, how long it will take, and decide if they need to fill up before, or stop for that latte and croissant on the way.

Philosophy

I wanted the app to be simple - do one thing, and do it well. It turns out figuring out what that one thing is can be a challenge. Thanks to my buddy Claude Code, we've been able to iterate the app a few times. I come up with an idea, we build the app, I use it myself, and find the tension. We go back, do it again, and see where it lands.

The Ride I did

You'll need a Kickstand account to upload and manage your own rides — sign in with a Google account and you're ready to go.

After months of going back and forth, we finally landed on the GPS Exchange Format. A GPX file is essentially a list of GPS waypoints recorded in an XML format. Your Garmin or other GPS device may even be able to record a GPX file natively. So when you go out and do that trip, you can record the GPX file, and upload it. Once uploaded, you can share it with the world. You may have found that cool trail that you think others might enjoy. Share it!

When you upload your GPX file, you have the option to tweak a few things, like:

  • Define a privacy zone (like your home and a radius) so if you did start recording around your home, that data is not publically shared.
  • You can define waypoints (coffee shops, servos, etc) that your crew might want to know about, or perhaps that cool lookout on the mountain that you think is important.
  • It also has a "stationary detection" component. If the app detects in the GPX file that you may have stood still for a while, it will allow you to turn the stationary point into a waypoint.
  • We also have a "fill the gap" feature. If the GPS was stuck for a while, and the app detects a direct straight line for many kilometers, it will assume your app may got stuck, and will allow you the option to fill the gap.

Once you're happy with the file, you can publish it and make it available to everyone on the site. Other riders can browse published routes and discover trails they might not have known about. Share the link with your crew and they get a map overview — waypoints, notes, and a rough idea of the distance and time — without needing an account themselves. You also have the option to download the GPX file, import it into OsmAnd, and start riding that with your friends.

The Ride I want to take

You have the option to create a GPX file. When planning that ride, you can choose where you want to start from, where you're stopping, and where you want to go. Every stop can have a note, and the app will use the Open Street Map data to fill in the navigation gaps.

Now of course you don't have to follow its navigation - Kickstand is not a navigation tool. It is a planning tool. It does that by the sharing of GPX file.

Where to from here?

I am starting to use Kickstand myself to plan routes. When me and my friends start to plan those trips, I try to use Kickstand and see where the gaps are. You're welcome to give it a try at Kickstand and give me feedback via Mastodon.