October 1, 2012

There were 5 posts published on October 1, 2012 (this is page 1 of 1).

Virtual treadmill run with Google Maps

I’ve started running again after going a long time avoiding it in favor of biking. Turns out I enjoy it more than I thought I did, though it’s certainly a lot more fun running with someone else.

For those times when I can’t run with someone else (for instance, when I’m stuck at home with the kids) it would be nice to jazz up the usually-dull running on the treadmill. Running while staring at a wall is pretty boring, you know.

Then I remembered how cool I’ve always thought it would be to build my own flight simulator. Why not apply this concept to the treadmill? What if I could connect a mouse or other control to my treadmill and use it to drive a moving Google Maps image on a screen in front of me?
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“Horse trails” letter to the editor

The N.C. GOP sent out mailers against candidate for state senate Sig Hutchinson in which they called Raleigh’s greenways “horse trails.” Well, being the chair of the Parks board, I don’t take kindly to that so I wrote a letter to the editor this morning. With any luck it will run tomorrow:

Contrary to what the N.C. GOP would have you believe, you won’t find any horses on Raleigh’s 80 miles of beautiful greenways. What you WILL find are citizens of all political stripes appreciating one of Raleigh’s more popular and unique amenities.

That’s why our citizens have consistently and enthusiastically supported the parks bonds, the same ones shepherded by Sig Hutchinson and other civic and business leaders. Our voters know these parks and greenways are a savvy investment in the health and well-being of our citizens (and future generations as well). These are benefits that even former city councilor Neal Hunt couldn’t say “neigh” to.

Mark Turner
Chair, Raleigh’s Parks, Recreation, and Greenway Advisory Board
Raleigh

(And with any luck, the N&O will fix my typos!)