Stop and ask directions
 

Does anyone use a GPS navigation system to help get you to games on time? Can anyone recommend a decent unit with real-time traffic? Don't want to show up to the game to late :p

I'm bored tonight.

www.ohsaa.org gives me the school address

www.mapquest.com gives me directions.

How 'bout just planning ahead?

Yup. And failing that, I get myself close and then stop at a gas station or fast food joint and ask them how to get to the middle school. :D I know where all the high schools are. :)
Seriously, since starting here this year, I've found mapquest to be a Godsend. I don't need GPS, but a good mapquest printout is like sliced bread.

Consumer Reports just evaluated them -- in the issu prioor to the current one, I think. I don't think "finding schools" was one of the tests. ;)

I have a Garmin Nuvi 350. I travel around the country for my job and it's small enough to fit in the front pocket of my briefcase and charges via a car or home power outlet.

I haven't printed a map since I bought it, although occasionally it won't find the school by name in the built-in "phone book" so I have to get the address of the school from the Internet.

I have a Garmin 340 with the add on FM traffic receiver. I didn't get it for officiating - in my job I travel the better part of 3 states and use it when I'm traveling. That said, I have used it fairly consistently both to find the best route to schools whose location I'm not familiar with (most recently this afternoon) and to get enroute traffic in general. It has a very extensive built in location database that includes schools. In the unlikely event a school isn't in the database (only happened to me once) you simply input the street address as the destination.

In my experience it does a much better job than Mapquest, which sometimes will give you pretty convoluted directions. Another plus is that if you have to detour enroute it automatically recalculates the directions in real time as well as providing a real time ETA.

I personally prefer Garmin, because I have used their aviation products for years, but there are other good units out there - for example, I have a friend that has one of the Tom Tom units and is very pleased with it. I've also heard good things about Magellan.

Best suggestion I can make is to hit one of the big box electronics stores (Best Buy, Circuit City, etc.) and check out the various units they have on display.

Arbiter
 

Our local IAABO board using the Arbiter program to assign games. The Arbiter can also be used, through Mapquest, to get directions to the site.

I use Mapquest (thru the Arbiter) but I have a GPS unit on the way so I can do detours or directions from non-household starting points. I'm not completely sure, but I think if you want real time traffic services through the GPS unit you'll have to pay a monthly fee.

Newport must not be that big. ;)

Peace

It can be. . .but I've had a couple of issues with mapquest. Sometimes it will forego the quickest route to give you a route based on major highways. A couple of times, it's been dead wrong. Once I was going to a movie with my wife and I used mapquest to locate the theater (in the Denver area). I followed the directions exactly, and it put me in a little residential neighborhood in a cul-de-sac nowhere near the theater. I was ready to knock on somebody's door and ask if Highlander: Endgame was playing in their basement.

It's not hard for an association website to be setup to link directly to maps. In fact, mine has links to 4 different ones to fit any specific user's preferences: Mapquest, Yahoo, Google, and Infospace. I've often used Google's maps to switch to satellite/arial view to see what is not on the map....parking, gym location on the property.

Looks like I may need to add maps.live.com. It has taken Google's idea and increased the detail and added the ability to switch to 5 different angles on the arial view. With it, you can see a LOT!

Gps - Yes
 

Gave my wife a Garmin 330 for Christmas and she has let me use it a few times. It works great, but many times I know a quicker or more convenient route. The best thing about it is if you miss a turn or go the wrong way, it will recalulate and get you back on track. I've been doing the same schools for 8-9 years now so I pretty much know where they are.

All of our schools are listed with links: www.accd.edu/taso
- click on Find A School and you get a Yahoo map
I've been burned too many times by Mapquest sending me someplace completely wrong, but maps.google.com has been much better - I'll have to check out maps.live.com!

I've had problems with Mapquest, too. One time it sent me through a residential street that diddn't go clear through! When I finally got to that school, I also discovered that had that residential street gone through, I would have been routed through a back entrance to the school grounds which is generally locked.

Another time, Mapquest had the spelling of a school wrong, and couldn't find it for me. I always use Google Maps, and don't bother with printed directions. Just print out the map, and use my well-developed old-lady intuition and reasoning.

Ciac
 

In Connecticut, our high school sports governing body, the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Association (CIAC) has directions to its member schools on their web site.

So do you print the directions or don't ya? :p

ASK FOR DIRECTIONS??!!?? :eek:

I bet you don't use duct tape, either. ;)

For my team, we bought a USB GPS chip and installed it to my laptop used for team stats to get to our various locations. And it's used with a map software built in, but also could be used with the Google Earth software. I'll reply later with what it's called exactly

Slightly off topic but.....one of the schools I work every year is located near a "gentleman's club". Last season I was at a stoplight near the building on my way home after a V game. 2 young ladies in a car next to me signaled to unroll my window. I did and they asked for directions to the aforementioned club so they could go audition. I, as luck would have it, knew how to get there from the school and gave them directions so they could audition. One of these days I need to go see if they got hired. :)

I sometimes use Mapquest on Yahoo! but the time is always way off.

Highly Recommend TomTom
 

I have had a TomTom Go 300 for about 3 years. I bought it to find the various schools, etc. I just replaced it with a TomTom One.

First and foremost, the mapping sites are great so long as traffic and construction are never a problem. The first time you run into a problem and have to detour from your planned route, you love having the device in the car.

Second, it is really nice to be able to have a constantly updated time of arrival. If you are ever running late and need to call a partner, it is great.

Third, if you get to a site early and want to get something to eat or a cup of coffee, finding something close by is easy.

I have heard OK things about Garmin products, but the TomTom is easy to use, has a great touch screen display, and has worked perfectly for finding all of the schools and fields that I officiate at.

Juulie, let me guess. Since you were unfamiliar with the terrain, you were over here on the west side. ;)

You did not offer them a ride? You cad!