Last year, I went on 181 mile bike ride, or maybe it was 187 miles, I don’t remember. When I finished I was pretty tired (understatement, I couldn’t stand up), and that point I don’t think I cared. Yes, I had totally bonked, which is the equivalent of hitting the wall when running a marathon, but on a bike. My butt was sore, my back was sore, and my legs felt like rubber. When I finally got off the bike, I fell over, and that was fine, as I was on the ground and I could just lay out flat. Not only was that ride an ass flattener during my ride, there were times when it was quite boring as well.
When riding long distances it’s important to keep your bike lightweight, and perhaps that’s why the iPod Nano is such a cool invention. Still, it seems to me that it would be even better if something could be integrated into the bicycle itself. Perhaps the handlebars could become an antenna for satellite radio, or the whole device could fit within the handlebars, an iPod bicycle so to speak, yes, I’m sure the engineers in the research department at Apple have already considered this, and perhaps have not pursued it due to the small number of units they could sell in the end.
Still, it’s not just about music either, as you get actually lonely out there by yourself on a solo long-distance bike ride. A hundred miles takes all day, for those who are brave enough to go further, it seems to take forever, and there is little if any human interaction. Human interaction is something that people need. Therefore perhaps a built-in iPod, or similar system could have a series of different types of audio companionship channels or features, such as;
College Lectures
TV News Segments
Motivational Songs
Random Conversations in Public
Background Ambience from a Coffee Shop
After all, how many times can you listen to your favorite song? People need human interaction, or least simulated human interaction I believe. It seems that someone should invent such a device, not only so I can buy one, and use it, or even test the prototype model for the inventor or innovator, but because I think it is a viable invention, and that it would sell quite well at bike shops across the country.
Indeed if you have any interest in anything like this, I would certainly like to speak with you, and hopefully you might e-mail so I can explain exactly how to help these long-distance bike riders with such a cool new tool for their cycling efforts. Please consider all this and think on it.