2025 - Our Rides in Words, Photos, Maps and Videos

[McApple]

A couple of pics from the turn around point of today's 20km ride:

View attachment 199415View attachment 199416

The tree behind your bike in that last pic looks near pornographic.

 

[Base]

Different scenery this week
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[Stefan Mikes]

Greetings from a city on River Rhine!

I saw the river back in 1990, it must have not changed since Cologne, Germany.

A lot of Mett (tartar steak) this time A waiter:
– You have already had beer then Schnapps and now are asking for white wine? How come?
– Ich bin Polnisch...
– Ah, dobrze!
I won his heart!

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

Greetings from a city on River Rhine!

View attachment 199420
I saw the river back in 1990, it must have not changed since Cologne, Germany.

A lot of Mett (tartar steak) this time A waiter:
– You have already had beer then Schnapps and now are asking for white wine? How come?
– Ich bin Polnisch...
– Ah, dobrze!
I won his heart!

Spent a beautiful day in Cologne on a Rhine River cruise. The city's a diamond in the rough of a highly industrialized and very busy lower Rhine.

Spent all day exploring the city and surroundings on a rented bike while the missus listened to hours of the usual church-and-castle crap on a tour bus with not a second of dead air from the guide.

Boy, did I win that round!

Must've cruised the wonderful MUP along the river half a dozen times. An endless stream of cargo and work boats of all sizes paraded by the waterfront — which only made it better for this lover of all boats. Many of the work boats bristled with deck equipment designed for tasks I couldn't even guess.

 

[Art Deco]

Its my birthday today, and the 25th Anniversary of 9/11.
Kinda been overshadowed

You might be a memorable character @Chargeride , but I don't think a birthday overshadows the 9/11 anniversary quite yet. Happy Birthday , anyway.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

You might be a memorable character @Chargeride , but I don't think a birthday overshadows the 9/11 anniversary quite yet. Happy Birthday , anyway.

I understood his birthday was overshadowed by the anniversary.

 

[Rás Cnoic]

Must've cruised the wonderful MUP along the river half a dozen times. An endless stream of cargo and work boats of all sizes paraded by the waterfront — which only made it better for this lover of all boats. Many of the work boats bristled with deck equipment designed for tasks I couldn't even guess.

I love watching boats. The best bike/boats combo I ever had was cycling in Amsterdam. Swooping along the bike roads through the city and straight under the central train station via the amazing bike tunnel and out onto the banks of the river with boats of every size. Then straight on to one of the many (free) walk or bike ferries and across the vast river enjoying all the river traffic and then off the ferry and on to more bike roads that snake out throughout the whole country. The joined up transport thinking of bikes, trains, ferries just blew my mind and really made me mourn that more places haven't had such foresight. It is improving (Paris!) but still at a snails pace in a lot of countries where blindly the car is king.

 

[Chargeride]

I understood his birthday was overshadowed by the anniversary.

Actually I was referring to the shooting overshadowing the 9/11 anniversary, at my age opening a mars bar trumps a birthday.

 

[Art Deco]

I understood his birthday was overshadowed by the anniversary.

It was a joke, Stephen . Obviously not a good one.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Back At Home

This time, I could only see River Rhine from a 20-yo Embraer 170 STD. The original plane broke in Warsaw so the airline dug one of their first acquisitions (LOT was the launch customer for Embraer on 17 March 2004). At least the replacement plane worked!

 

[Chargeride]

I hear Poland is getting a bit air sireny.
I'd stick to a train myself

 

[Stefan Mikes]

I'd stick to a train myself

Are you aware Deutsche Bahn (German Rail) does not function? All the stories I'd heard came true!

 

[Chargeride]

Completely knackered, this trail is two minutes of terrifying descent and an Everest style ascent..rinse repeat

 

[Chargeride]

Aaand now its dead, wont turn on, no lights, rolled back to van, will try Bris spare battery.
Im not that sold on these specialized bikes, I just dont trust the thing.

 

[JGcycle]

A few pics from the turn around point of this morning's 24km ride:

 

[Chargeride]

Fixed, it was the power cable from the motor, I'll put a new one on.
Thats such piss poor engineering, pulling the power cable out of the charge point twists the cable though 60 degrees in the space of a few inches.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Fixed, it was the power cable from the motor, I'll put a new one on.
Thats such piss poor engineering, pulling the power cable out of the charge point twists the cable though 60 degrees in the space of a few inches.

I just need to mention you bought a used Levo. Any idea what the original owner did to her?
Or, it is your mistrust that makes her break. The e-bike knows you hate and cannot handle her gracefully. What would you expect?
You haven't even tried talking to her via Specialized App!
How come my Specialized e-bikes do love me?
Does Brian's Levo break often?

 

[Chargeride]

Well yes, but Im just in a bad mood.
I googled it to find several people replacing that power lead, for a nearly 8 grand bike the stress put on that lead in normal operation isnt the work of top engineering, it smacks of 'that'll do'.
The Haibike is a more polished machine.
If I ,and boy I have, fitted a power lead with multiple small wires like that I would be thinking, 'bit of a bodge', just be careful with it.

Luckily most people are.

Its a 100 quid to replace by the way.

 

[Rás Cnoic]

Well yes, but Im just in a bad mood.
I googled it to find several people replacing that power lead, for a nearly 8 grand bike the stress put on that lead in normal operation isnt the work of top engineering, it smacks of 'that'll do'.
The Haibike is a more polished machine.
If I ,and boy I have, fitted a power lead with multiple small wires like that I would be thinking, 'bit of a bodge', just be careful with it.

Luckily most people are.

Its a 100 quid to replace by the way.

Yep. If I was in the market for a nice n sexy emtb (I'm not) and if I had the cash to spare (I don't) Think i'd be getting this rather gorgeous Haibike:

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Great Lakes Gravel Race This Week!

The routes for Great Lakes Gravel race have been announced.

Green: Sprint/Bosch e-Sprint, 93 km/500 m. Navy blue: Classic, 165 km/870 m. Red: Ultra, 478 km/3,090 m.

The races will be ridden in the sub-region of Masuria (our Lakeland or Great Lakes), or the part of former East Prussia. I have already raced in the sub-regions of Sudovia, Varmia and Masuria, and rode in the region of Podlachia. An area interesting of its geopolitics, isn't it My race will be held on the coming Saturday. It is now called Bosch E-SPRINT as Bosch E-Bike is a titular sponsor for this format. Fortunately, you don't need to ride a Bosch E-Bike to participate

There will be five contestant e-bikers on the ride, of who I know two people, have talked to the female competitor on Strava but have no idea what the fifth competitor is. My bets are on Bartosz riding a lightweight Fazua TREK e-bike or the female Agnieszka who is a very strong traditional rider but she would be "downgraded" by her Winora general purpose full power e-bike.

I'm internally torn what e-bike to choose. My Vado SL guarantees the fifth place for me My chances would be equalized by riding my Vado 6.0 but I could be disqualified for the wrong e-bike type (S-Pedelec)...