Executive Summary
A GPX file is the foundation of route planning for many motorcyclists, but it can also be a source of frustration. You plan a ride with beautiful curves, export a file, and along the way, your navigation system suddenly sends you over a highway, a closed pass, or a completely different route. This almost never happens due to "bad luck," but rather due to a mismatch between file type, map material, and navigation settings. This article clearly explains what a track is, what a route is, what waypoints and shaping points do, and why recalculating so often causes deviations. You'll learn when to use a track, when a route is actually useful, and how to prevent different systems from reinterpreting your plan. We'll also cover the main pitfalls of exporting, importing, and sharing with others, including situations with Garmin, TomTom, and smartphone navigation. The goal is to plan what you want to ride at home and get what you expect on the road, without hassle and without having to improvise on the go. The article concludes with a clear FAQ section that answers frequently asked questions concisely and clearly, so riders can immediately find the most important insights.
Table of contents
- Why GPX often goes wrong in practice
- The Basics: What's Actually in a GPX File
- Track vs. Route: The Difference That Makes Everything
- Waypoints, via points en shaping points
- Recalculate: why your navigation 'improves' your plan
- Map differences: the same road does not exist everywhere
- Route preferences that secretly change everything
- Practical scenarios: how strange detours arise
- When do you choose track and when route?
- Export and share without hassle
- Importing to Garmin, TomTom and smartphone: what to check beforehand
- Troubleshooting: if your route deviates or points are missing
- The reliable workflow for motorcyclists
- Conclusion
- FAQ
Why GPX often goes wrong in practice
It feels like a GPX file is a kind of digital road map: you draw a line, and it follows it. In reality, a GPX file is primarily a container that can hold different types of information. And that's precisely where things go wrong. One app exports a track, another a route. One navigation system interprets points as hard stops, another as soft cues. And some systems recalculate by default as soon as you deviate from the plan, even if you don't want them to.
Furthermore, route planning is often optimistic. Many drivers plan with one map layer and drive with another. On paper, that's "both Europe," but in practice, road classifications, closures, and access regulations can differ. Your route will be correct in the planner, but your navigation system will see a different reality and try to solve it.
The frustration usually boils down to one feeling: you're losing control. You thought you'd planned a line of curves, and you end up with a functional A-to-B route. That's precisely the difference between track-thinking and route-thinking. Once you understand that, you can make GPX very reliable.
The Basics: What's Actually in a GPX File
GPX is a file format that can store geographic data. In practice, you'll mainly encounter three things:
A waypoint is a single location, such as a hotel, a viewpoint, or a gas station. It's a point on the map.
A track is a series of consecutive points that together form a line. Think of a breadcrumb trail that shows you exactly where the route goes.
A route is a set of waypoints that is converted into a drivable route by a navigation system based on map material and settings.
Important: A GPX file can contain one or more of these components. As a result, a file may appear the same in your email or downloads folder, but display completely differently in your browser.
A second important point is that planners often export "nice" data that fits their own system. As soon as you move it to another system, you get differences in interpretation. Therefore, your file type isn't a detail, but the core of reliability.
Track vs. Route: The Difference That Makes Everything
A track is the most predictable. A track is a predetermined line. Your navigation doesn't have to decide which way to go, because the line is the intention. In many systems, you can follow a track as a colored line on the map. Sometimes the system also provides directions, but the track itself remains the reference.
A route is more flexible, but therefore also riskier. A route essentially says: go from point A to point B via a series of points, and calculate the paths between them. This calculation is based on map data and settings. If your map or settings differ from those of the planner, you'll get a different route.
For motorcyclists this is the most important practical consequence:
- Track is ideal if you want to ride exactly what you planned, especially in twisty terrain, mountain passes and small roads.
- Route is useful if you want to be able to take dynamic detours, or if you consciously want flexibility along the way, but then you have to use your settings and points wisely.
If you often experience “my navigation is directing me differently,” you are almost always driving a route that is recalculated, while you should actually have followed a track.
Waypoints, via points en shaping points
Within routes, not every point is the same. Many navigation systems distinguish between hard and soft points.
Via points are hard points. Your navigation system wants you to pass them, and if you miss them, it will send you back until you finally "reach" the point. That's the classic reason a group ride suddenly becomes annoying: someone misses a via point, and the navigation system tries to direct everyone back.
Shaping points are soft points. They define the route, but are not intended as mandatory stops. If you miss a shaping point, the route can continue without being sent back, depending on the system.
Waypoints are often points of interest (POIs), such as a stopover or hotel. Some systems treat waypoints as via points when used in a route. This results in additional notifications, and your route becomes unnecessarily restrictive.
In practice, this means that when using a route, you want as few hard points as possible and enough shaping points to guide the line. You only use hard points where you really want to force them to pass, for example, a lunch stop or a meeting point.
Recalculate: why your navigation 'improves' your plan
Recalculation is meant to be helpful. You deviate, and the system thinks: I'll bring you back to the plan. Only on motorcycle rides is deviation often intentional. You stop for coffee, you visit a viewpoint, you have to navigate a road closure, or you spontaneously choose a side road. If recalculation is enabled, your navigation system will make decisions that can ruin your trip.
This is especially problematic with routes. A track can't really be recalculated because it's not a calculated route choice; it's a line. But a route is a calculation, so recalculating means the navigation system creates a new route based on its own preferences. And if those preferences are slightly different than you intended, you'll get a highway, major roads, or the shortest route.
A second problem is that recalculation often happens invisibly. You only notice your route has changed later. This makes it frustrating, because you can't undo it without reloading.
The key rule: if you're driving a carefully planned route, you usually want to recalculate out of, or at least under, strict control. If you want flexibility, recalculation can be useful, but understanding your system's actions is essential.
Map differences: the same road does not exist everywhere
Many drivers underestimate map differences. Even if two systems show "Europe," they can use different map suppliers, map versions, or road classifications. A small example: a road might be listed as a normal road in your planner, but in your navigation system as restricted access or seasonally closed. In that case, the system will detour you.
There are also differences in how small roads are evaluated. One map layer might consider a road as excellent asphalt, while another might consider it a local road with low priority. If you prefer "faster," it might turn out to be winding in one system, while in another, it might become a larger road.
That's why it's important to realize: a route is never an absolute truth. It's an agreement between your points and your map. If someone else imports that route using other maps, it's essentially a new calculation.
Tracks have this problem much less. A track remains a line, regardless of the map. You can still encounter closures, but the track itself doesn't change. So you maintain control over the intended line.
Route preferences that secretly change everything
Even with the same map, a route can turn out differently due to settings. A few typical preferences that can completely change routes:
Shortest versus fastest. Shortest can guide you through villages and small roads, sometimes fun, sometimes slow and annoying. Fastest draws you to larger roads.
Avoid highways. This sounds logical for motorcyclists, but be aware that some systems may still choose larger provincial roads as a compromise, while you might actually prefer smaller, curvy roads.
Avoid toll roads. In countries with high tolls, this setting can significantly lengthen your route or send you through awkward sections. Sometimes that's fine, sometimes it's not what you intended.
Avoid unpaved roads. This is important, but it can also mean your planner will see a road as paved and your navigation system will see it as unpaved. This will result in unexpected detours.
Winding route or exciting route. Some systems have options that provide extra steering on curves. This can work, but it also makes route outcomes less predictable if someone else doesn't have that setting.
When you share routes with others, this is why everyone often sees a "slightly different route." It's not the person's fault, it's a result of settings.
Practical scenarios: how strange detours arise
Scenario one: You plan a curvy route with few points and export it as a route. Your navigation system shows "fastest route." The system recalculates between your points and chooses larger roads. Your route suddenly becomes functional instead of fun.
Scenario two: You plan a route with many fixed points because you think that will fix it. One rider misses a point in a village due to a road narrowing. The navigation system wants to go back and keeps doing so, causing the rider to go in circles or split up the group.
Scenario three: You're planning a pass route in spring. On the day itself, a pass is closed due to weather or a seasonal closure. A route with recalculation enabled automatically redirects you, but chooses a boring valley road. A track shows you the route, but you have to choose a detour yourself. Which one is better depends on your goals, but you have to make a conscious choice.
Scenario four: You're creating a route on your desktop using a planner that uses different maps than your phone. You import it, and the system says "route adjusted." This isn't a bug; it's the system trying to fit your route onto its map.
When do you choose track and when route?
If you want one simple decision rule: choose track when precision is important, choose route when flexibility is important.
Track is ideal for cornering, passing, and routes where you want to ride exactly as planned. Track is also often more peaceful for group rides, because everyone sees the same line. Even if someone deviates, you can get back to the line without the system obsessively rerouting you to missed points.
Route is ideal if you want to be able to actively take detours with turn-by-turn instructions, and if you accept that the system can make decisions along the way. Route can also be useful in cities or on connecting roads where you simply want to get from A to B efficiently.
Many experienced riders combine: a track for the fun part and a route for the logistics. This gives you control where needed and convenience where possible.
Export and share without hassle
Exporting is where most mistakes occur, because that's where you decide what you're actually sharing.
The first question is: are you exporting a track or a route? If your goal is for someone to drive the exact same route, export a track. If your goal is for someone to receive guidance and directions, export a route, but make sure your point logic is correct.
The second question is: how many points are there? A track with an extremely high number of points can be cumbersome or simplified on some systems. A route with too many points can lead to unnecessary notifications or strange recalculations if the system handles points differently. The balance is: enough to capture the intended purpose, not so many that the system starts "optimizing."
The third question is: are there any unintended stops? Sometimes a planner exports POIs as waypoints. This can cause navigation to repeatedly notify you that you've "reached your destination" or force you to pass places you don't need to.
A good sharing routine is to always check after exporting: does the file open as expected, do you see a line that is correct, and is it clear what the intention is?
Importing to Garmin, TomTom and smartphone: what to check beforehand
Importing the file itself is often simple, but the pitfalls lie in the settings and interpretation. The most important thing is to know what your system does with the file before you start driving.
Check whether the system treats the file as a track or a route. Some systems display both, but with a different name. If you're unsure what you're seeing, look at the behavior: if it displays a solid line without recalculating, it's probably a track. If it asks for route calculation and preferences, it's a route.
Check recalculation. If you want to follow a planned route exactly, you don't want navigation to silently recalculate your route along the way.
Check your route preferences. If you wanted curves and your system is set to the fastest setting, you'll get a different ride.
Check notifications and points. If you receive a lot of notifications about intermediate destinations when you start, chances are you have too many hard points.
If you do this in advance, you will avoid suddenly discovering on the first nice exit that your system had planned a different day than you.
Troubleshooting: if your route deviates or points are missing
If a GPX import doesn't work as expected, it's tempting to assume the file is "broken." In practice, it's almost always one of these causes: the wrong data type (track versus route), a silent recalculation, or a point set that your navigation interprets differently than your planner. It helps to approach troubleshooting as a quick, step-by-step diagnosis, so you don't end up fiddling around endlessly.
Start by asking yourself: do you see a solid line that matches your planned trip, or a route recalculated by your navigation system? If you see a solid line that follows your curves exactly, you probably have a track, and the file's content is likely correct. If you see a "calculated" route that uses different roads, it has been recalculated based on the map and settings.
The second step is to check recalculation. Many systems allow you to disable recalculation, but sometimes it's still enabled or set to a "smart" setting. The tricky part is that some systems recalculate during import to make the file fit. This could mean your route has already changed before you even started driving. If your navigation system displays a message like "Route changed," "Route recalculated," or "Recalculated based on map," this is a sign that you're no longer driving exactly as you planned at home.
The third step is the number and type of points. If you keep getting notifications along the way that you've reached a destination, or if your system keeps sending you back to a missed point, you either have too many hard points or your points have been imported as via points. This is especially problematic on group rides or on routes that pass through busy villages. One missed turn then turns into a long detour because the system "wants to reach that point first."
The fourth step is map variation. If you've created a route with certain roads and your navigation rejects them, your navigation system might classify that road differently. Consider a road that your planner considers paved, but your navigation system considers unpaved or has limited access. In that case, a track can still be useful because it shows you what you intended, but the practical reality is that you'll have to choose an alternative.
The fifth step is to compare in one location. Choose a clear segment of your consideration, for example, a 10-kilometer strip of curves, and compare it in your planner with what your navigation system shows. If it deviates there, you know it's an interpretation problem. If it's correct there but deviates later, it's probably a recalculation due to a missed point or a deviation along the way.
A key principle when troubleshooting is: fix it at home, not on the pass. If you notice your system isn't working reliably during a ride, temporarily switch to the most robust mode. For many riders, this means following a track as a line, without relying on recalculation. You then ride by the map and line, and you maintain control.
The reliable workflow for motorcyclists
Reliability isn't achieved through a single setting, but through a consistent workflow. The goal is for you to understand exactly what you're sharing, what you're importing, and what your system will do with it. Below is an approach that prevents a lot of frustration in practice.
Start with a clear choice: are you going to drive for precision or flexibility today? For precision, the track is key. For flexibility, the route is key. That sounds simple, but many problems arise because riders use a route when they need a track, or vice versa.
If you want precision, create a ride in your planner and export it as a track. Then check that the track is visible as a solid line and that it actually follows your curves. If you're riding together, this is often the most relaxed option because everyone sees the same line. In this setting, it matters less what routing settings someone has, because a track doesn't need to be retranslated into roads.
If you want flexibility, use a route, but then you have to place points wisely. Use shaping points to guide the route and only use via points for places you really want to pass. Think of lunch, meeting points, fuel stops, or overnight stays. Anything that isn't mandatory shouldn't be a fixed point. This way, someone who misses a turn won't be immediately sent back to the end of the time limit.
Next comes the settings check. Make sure your routing preferences align with your intention. If you want a scenic route, the fastest route is rarely the right starting point. But even the shortest route can force you through inconvenient villages. The right choice depends on your goal. The point is to make a conscious choice and not rely on a standard that may have been established for car journeys.
Recalculating is the next option. If you've carefully planned your route in advance and want to stick to it, turn recalculation off or set it to a setting that doesn't silently give you a new day. If you want flexibility and want detours to be resolved automatically, recalculating can be useful, but accept that your route may change. Many drivers make this choice unconsciously, causing frustration.
This is followed by a short simulation. You don't have to drive your entire route on the couch, but zoom in on two or three critical segments. A mountain pass, a curvy area, a section where you absolutely don't want to end up on the highway. If your navigation system already chooses a different route than your planner, you know something's still amiss. Then you can fix it at home.
For group rides, there's an extra step: standardization. You don't have to have the same devices, but it helps enormously if everyone has the same basic agreements. For example: we ride a track as a base, we only use via points for actual stops, and everyone disables recalculation. This prevents one rider from trying to "fix" a route while another sees a different one. The goal of sharing is to ride together, not to debug together.
Finally, keep it simple. Many riders think more points mean more certainty. Often, it's the other way around. More points means a system is more likely to interpret it differently, especially if it treats points as via points. The best workflow is often: one track for the experience, plus separate waypoints for stops like coffee, fuel, and the finish. This gives you control without your navigation dictating your ride.
Conclusion
GPX only truly works when you stop thinking of every file as the same. The difference between a track and a route determines whether your ride remains stable or is recalculated along the way. Tracks offer predictability and control, especially on winding routes and in mountainous areas. Routes offer flexibility and turn-by-turn convenience, but require you to consciously choose points and settings. Waypoints, via points, and shaping points may seem small, but they determine whether your navigation moves smoothly or obsessively redirects. Map differences and route preferences complete the picture: the same plan can look different in two systems if you don't standardize it.
If you're looking for one practical advantage: choose a track more often if you want to ride a scenic motorcycle route precisely, and only use routes when you consciously need flexibility. Combine that with a quick check before departure, and you'll eliminate most of the frustration from GPX, so you can get back to what it's all about: riding.
FAQ
What is the main difference between a track and a route?
A track is a fixed line of points that you follow, a route is recalculated by your navigation based on the map and settings.
Why is my navigation suddenly sending me onto the highway while I was planning turns?
Because you are probably driving a route that has been recalculated with preferences such as fastest route or because recalculation is turned on.
What are via points and why are they annoying in groups?
Via points are hard points your navigation system wants to "reach." If someone misses a via point, the navigation system can keep sending you back, and the group will split up.
What are shaping points and when do I use them?
Shaping points guide the course of your route without being a mandatory stop. Use them to define the route without forcing behavior.
Can a GPX file contain both tracks and routes?
Yes, a GPX can contain multiple elements, including tracks, routes and waypoints, so importing may be different for each system.
Why does my navigation say the route has been adjusted when importing?
Because the system recalculates the route based on its own map data and routing settings.
What is the most reliable way to share a motorcycle route with others?
Share a track for the line to be driven and separate waypoints for stops, so that everyone sees the same route without recalculation.
Should recalculate on or off?
If you want to drive exactly as planned, turn it off. If you deliberately want flexibility with detours, you can turn it on, but your route may change.