The Cycling Grid Game Wout van Aert Actually Uses
Tile hunting turns ride data into a map game. Here's how it works, why pros use it, and the one catch that can pull you off your training plan.
Tile hunting turns your ride data into a map-based collection game. You ride through a grid square—usually about 1.5 km × 1.5 km—and it gets logged as "claimed." Platforms like Statshunters and Squadrats sync with Strava or Garmin, track which tiles you've hit, and show you what's left. The result: a visual record of everywhere you've ridden, plus a low-stakes reason to explore roads you'd normally skip.
It started in the mid-2010s with VeloViewer and caught on because it scratches two itches at once. First, it solves the "where should I ride today?" problem—just look at your map and fill a gap. Second, it gives you a completionist hit without requiring a PR or a podium. Even pros like Wout van Aert and Tiesj Benoot mess around with it between race blocks, which tells you it's sticky enough to survive the novelty phase.
Here's the catch: tile hunting rewards mileage and exploration, not quality. You can rack up tiles on flat gravel connectors or highway shoulders and feel productive, even if the riding itself is forgettable. If you're training with a specific goal—intervals, climbing volume, race prep—tile hunting can pull you off-plan. It's a navigation tool, not a training plan. Treat it like a weekend side quest, not your primary structure.
Getting started is dead simple. Sign up for Statshunters or Squadrats, link your Strava or Garmin account, and let it import your ride history. You'll immediately see a density map around home and thin threads wherever you've done long rides or trips. From there, you can aim for the biggest contiguous square, the largest total cluster, or just pick a direction you've never ridden. Browser extensions let you overlay the tile grid on Strava, Komoot, or Garmin route planners, so you can see exactly which roads matter before you leave.
I haven't put serious miles into optimizing tile routes yet, but the mechanic that matters is this: it changes how you think about dead-end roads and out-and-backs. Suddenly, that 3 km spur to nowhere has value if it adds a row to your grid. Whether that's motivating or just a way to gamify junk miles depends on what you need right now. If you're bored with your usual loops or traveling somewhere new, it's a low-friction way to make the ride feel like it counts for something beyond the power file.
