NY Times Cover – pretty cool

Well, not exactly the photo my friend Ben Olk had last year capturing him shaking then candidate Obama’s hand at a rally, but still pretty cool anyways.

First a plug for Ben: Ben has a great story of how he maneuvered himself within a handshake range at the Xcel Energy Center in St Paul last year – maybe his luck as Ben is President of another St Paul instituition, 100+ year old National Checking Company. National Checking makes those ubiquitous green “GuestChecks” (shown at left). Those are the pads that a waitperson writes on so that they can be more accurate and efficient. I’ve seen them at coffeeshops and recently at a Buffalo Wild Wings – I always make a point of complimenting the use of GuestChecks!

Now, on to the Hedberg Maps NY Times experience… a small photo, but still on page 1. On March 31 about an inch and a half square photo included the cover of our U.S. College and Unviersity Reference Map. The version shown was a custom print run for the Independent Educational Consultants Association (IECA). We’ve long been told by educational counselors and consultants that this map is one of the most used counseling tools, so I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that it showed up on the top of the stack of materials in the photo, but I was still thrilled.

The article focused on the financial end of the college search process. Frequently quoted was Diane Geller, current president of IECA. IECA members are a great way to go for a family to work through the daunting college search process. They have completed extensive training and are well versed in all aspects of the college search. We were fortunate that they chose to utilize our map with IECA branding and included a number of the benefits of working with one of their consultants.

New website look and new Custom Services section

It's not all the way there yet, but much of our website now reflects our new look and feel.

In particular, our new custom services section includes a selected list of clients and sample projects.

Look for new changes soon including activation of our email notification list, a new look in the web store, and new easy-to use introduction pages like those for CollegeMaps.com and the Youth Sports Atlas.

Minnehaha Media

For years, we've known of mapping people want, but that just didn't fit our established formats or distribution network. So, we've created a division dedicated to seriously great mapping - for free. Sort of. Including ads makes these maps free... but unlike many other free maps (where the creator took anything they could find and called it a map), Minnehaha Media starts with the premise that if you create a great map with great content, the map will be used over and over and actually benefit the sponsors.

The first map in the series is a handy trails distance map to Minneapolis. Ideal content for runners & bikers, this map is also perfect due to its pocket size.

Plus, we're searching out advertisers that we know are cool places to visit - the kinds of places we frequent and we know the map users will appreciate. To learn more visit MinnehahaMedia.com.

College Sports maps by division: NCAA and NAIA

Four maps now make up this series so far (the JCAA is coming sometime in the next few months).

NCAA Member Schools - Divisions I, II, and III, which we announced in January, includes every member school of the NCAA (including candidate and probationary members), shown by primary division membership and primary conference affiliation. Available in three sizes: 39.5 x 27.125", 60 x 42", and 84 x 58". Snapshot at right.

NCAA Division I Member Schools includes all institutions in transition into or out of Division I. Two sizes: 36 x 27" and 54 x 40.5".

I hope you're seeing a pattern here, because it continues for our NCAA Division II Member Schools map and our NCAA Division III Member Schools map and our NAIA Member Schools map. All available in two sizes roughly comparable to those for the Division I map.

One of the most interesting parts of working on these maps was researching the transitional teams—those moving from one division to another. There's a long process: several years of auditing and preparation, then several years of probationary membership. Then finally you are officially able to play in championships in your new division. But what I found curious is that while the NCAA does a great job of providing membership lists, almost no one including the schools themselves wants to publish on the web what the target date of finishing the probationary period is. We ended up calling the athletic offices of all the transitional teams to get the information, and put it on the map.

Baseball Travel Map (and Wall Map) 2009 edition released

We're happy to announce release of the 2009 edition (the 11th or 12th... I've lost count) of the Baseball Travel Map. The map locates all the professional baseball teams in the US and Canada and the northern part of Mexico, with an index with contact information on the back. The map also locates every baseball-themed attraction, large or small, with contact information. Spring Training included. Retail $8.95.

Whether you're actually planning a baseball road trip, or just dreaming of one, it's a great tool. It's also, truth be told, a lot of fun to explore without a trip in mind. And there's something new every year... who know this would be the year when two teams would be named after Canadian fur traders?

Want this information for your wall? Consider the Baseball Wall Map, also updated (actually even more updated... there have been some shifts in the independent leagues since the Baseball Travel Map went to the printers). No attractions on this map, but in the "square" version you also get mini-maps of each league.

Play ball!

New! NCAA Member Schools Map

Announcing the new NCAA Member Schools Map, featuring all member schools from Division I, Division II and Division III, shown with their primary conference and division affiliations.

The map is available in three sizes, laminated:

• 39.5 x 27.125", priced $75.00
• 60" x 42", priced $125
• 84" x 58", priced $295

To see samples of the map or order your copy, visit our web catalog.

For all our maps about college sports, see CollegeSportsMaps.com

Consider a custom-branded print run or single copy! Contact us for more information.

Welcome!

Welcome to Hedberg Maps' new blog! We've promised for years to create a newsletter, or an email newsletter, to let our friends know what we've been up to. We finally realized this was the ideal way to do it. Nat Case, our head of production, has been blogging on things carto-philosophical at at MapHead for almost two years, and he'll be the main manager of the blog, but expect to hear from other members of the team as we progress.