I get sent bits of feedback like this fairly often, and normally I just say thanks and get on with the day. This time I wanted to actually share it, barely touched beyond fixing a stray typo. Two riders, both real, both using Holloway properly this year, telling me what's actually stuck with them. I'm posting it because I believe in this community and what we're building, and because there's a decent chance you're in the exact same boat as one of these two right now. No pun intended, though half of you reading this already know exactly what a BOAT actually is.
Mark: a Himalayan 411, a GasGas 250 enduro, and about three rides a month
Mark only gets out two or three times a month, so anything that wastes his time is worse than useless to him. He splits his riding between a Royal Enfield Himalayan 411 for the bigger days and a GasGas 250 enduro when he wants something more technical, and what he cares about most is the bit between two lanes, not the bit on them.
"I can ride a lane, quickly look at the map and get navved to the next one on the fly. It's just WAY quicker than anything else I've used, and when you get limited time out on the bike, that makes all the difference. I'm not stood there faffing about working out where to go, I'm already riding. Plus I can create a GPX loop and share it with my mates via WhatsApp before we even set off. It's just little things like that which really make it invaluable to me. And it's only twenty quid for the year! That is insane value for what you're getting. I love it."
— Mark, rides a Royal Enfield Himalayan 411 and a GasGas 250 enduro
That's not an accident, it's basically the whole point of the app. Open a lane's detail card, tap Navigate to start, and go, rather than pulling over to re-plan from scratch every time. And the loop he shares with his mates over WhatsApp is a real GPX loop he's already planned in the app, not a screenshot or a rough guess at a route. Here's how that route-building and sharing actually works, if you fancy trying it before your next ride.
Tom: a KTM 690 Enduro R, and a bike that lives in the van
Tom's problem is a different one. He's often away for work for weeks at a stretch, and the 690 travels with him in the van. That means he's regularly dropping into somewhere he has zero local knowledge of, with no time to spend an evening cross-referencing a paper map before he can ride.
"Having a quick map to see what is around is amazing. I'm often working away for weeks at a time so the bike is in my van, I'll open it up and hit the road knowing I'll find lanes quickly. I'm still a member of the TRF, but Holloway is just super useful to have on my handlebars. It's so easy to go past a lot of these lanes otherwise, you'd never know they were there. I also like how responsive Mat at Holloway is to feedback, adding features or changes based on what we ask for, he comes back to me quickly. Just a really nice bloke, and he really wants to keep lanes open for all."
— Tom, rides a KTM 690 Enduro R
I love that Tom's kept his TRF membership going alongside Holloway, that's genuinely the whole point. TRF membership funds the access work that decides whether a lane's still legally open in ten years, Holloway just makes it quick to actually find and ride the ones that are. And the bit about me being responsive isn't some customer service policy, it's just that right now it's still me reading every message that comes in, and I'd rather fix or build the thing someone's asked for than let it sit in a list.
Why I wanted to share this
A few things stuck out reading these back. Neither of them mentioned a long feature list, they talked about speed and a couple of small things that saved them real time and hassle, which is exactly what matters when your riding time is limited, whether that's three rides a month or three weeks between them. Holloway sitting alongside TRF membership rather than replacing it is exactly how I want it to work, and it's good to see that landing with someone rather than just being a line in the app somewhere. And honestly, the size of this thing right now, one person, means a message like these can actually change what gets built next, which won't stay true forever, so I'm making the most of it while it does.
If you've got a story of your own about using Holloway, good or bad, I'd genuinely rather hear it than not. Drop me an email at hollowayapp@gmail.com.