It’s finally here. JUSTRIDE is officially live.
We’ve been working incredibly hard since earlier this year to get to this point, and it’s difficult to put into words just how exciting it feels to know that riders can now download JUSTRIDE, take it out on the road and start using something that, not all that long ago, existed mostly as ideas, sketches and very long conversations.
Getting here has taken a little longer than we originally hoped. But rather than rushing something out because we’d set ourselves a date, we kept working. We tested, changed things, added features, listened to feedback and kept asking ourselves whether we were genuinely happy with the experience we were putting into riders’ hands.
Today, we are.
Although JUSTRIDE itself is new, the experience behind it goes back much further.
Co-founder Andrew Richardson has spent more than 20 years working across the motorcycle industry, technology and rider safety. During that time, he’s helped develop motorcycle safety technology, worked alongside emergency services and organisations around the world, and seen first-hand how the right technology can make a real difference to riders.
When that chapter of his career came to an end last year, it gave him the opportunity to think about what he would do differently if he were starting again.
“I had an opportunity to look at everything I’d learned and ask myself a very simple question: ‘If I could start again, what would I build for motorcyclists today?’ The answer became JUSTRIDE.”
But the idea wasn’t to solve one particular problem. From the beginning, the ambition was much bigger: to create something that reflected the way people actually ride.
That meant thinking about the whole experience. Finding somewhere new to go. Planning a trip. Navigating both on and off the tarmac. Riding with mates without everyone having to stick together constantly. And having technology working quietly in the background if something goes wrong.
Andrew has built JUSTRIDE alongside his son and business partner, Tom Richardson, Co-founder and CMO. While Andrew brought decades of experience in motorcycle technology and rider safety, Tom approached the product from the perspective of how riders would actually interact with it.
For Tom, seeing those early ideas turn into something riders can now use has been one of the most rewarding parts of the journey.
“Seeing JUSTRIDE in the hands of riders across the UK and beyond is genuinely surreal. So many of its features and UX began as ideas I was sketching out and refining from a rider’s point of view, thinking about how every part of the app could feel simpler, safer and more useful on the road.”
And there’s something pretty special about the fact that they’ve been able to build it together as father and son.
JUSTRIDE has never been about creating technology for technology’s sake. If a feature doesn’t make riding easier, more enjoyable, more connected or safer, there’s little point in adding it.
It’s also why feedback from riders has been such an important part of getting to launch day. Our team has spent countless hours using the app, breaking things, changing things and heading back out to test them again. We’ve also had other riders getting their hands on JUSTRIDE before launch and telling us what worked, what didn’t and what they’d like to see next.
The app you’re downloading today has already been shaped by that feedback. And we don’t want that to stop now that we’ve launched.
But before we get ahead of ourselves, what can you actually do with JUSTRIDE?
Sometimes you know exactly where you want to ride. Other times, you just want someone to give you a good excuse to get the bike out.
The Explore tab helps you find new places to ride through Official Routes and routes shared by Verified Accounts, complete with photos and filters to help you find something that suits the kind of ride you’re looking for.
Once you’ve found somewhere worth exploring, JUSTRIDE can help you get there too, with navigation designed around riders and support for CarPlay and Android Auto.
Group rides are brilliant. Trying to keep six motorcycles permanently glued together isn’t.
With Group Navigation, everyone can share the same route while still riding at their own pace. The live group map lets you see where your mates are, so if the group gets spread out after a junction, through traffic or simply because everyone rides a little differently, you don’t immediately have to start worrying about where they’ve gone.
The idea is simple: you’re still riding together, without feeling like you have to ride in formation.
Safety has been part of JUSTRIDE from the very beginning, rather than something added afterwards.
Crash Detection and Emergency SOS have been designed to provide another layer of support when a ride doesn’t go to plan, while Satellite Device Pairing can help riders stay connected when their adventures take them further afield.
Hopefully, they’re features you’ll rarely need. But knowing they’re there can make a big difference.
Getting JUSTRIDE live is a huge milestone for us, but nobody on the team sees today as the finish line. As Andrew puts it: “We have an incredibly ambitious technology roadmap ahead of us, and JUSTRIDE will continue to evolve long after launch. But the principle behind everything we build will remain incredibly simple: use technology to help people get more from motorcycling, bring riders together and help them come home safely.”
There are already plenty of ideas about where JUSTRIDE goes next. But just as importantly, we want the riders using it to help shape that future.
So download JUSTRIDE, set it up, take it on your next ride and see what you think. Try the features, discover somewhere new, get a few mates together and put Group Navigation through its paces.
Then tell us about it. Tell us what you love, what you think could be better and what you’d like to see us build next.
We’ve spent a lot of time looking forward to the day we could finally say this:
JUSTRIDE is live.
Now it’s time for you to go ride.
