Stefan Mikes
Gravel e-biker
- Region
- Europe
- City
- Mazovia, PL
A Polish Wedding
Exceptionally, no ride photos but there will be a good reason for that explained later
On the Valentine's Day 2020, my nephew (formally: first cousin once removed german) Michał married a beautiful Edyta. I realised that I (aged 58) became the oldest male member of the larger family on our fathers side. My aunt Teresa (82) is the oldest female family member. A video and a few photos will follow.
The reason for posting that is I need to ride out in the morning for a longer e-bike ride to burn all the calories I absorbed during the wedding
I intend to go to a place related to a person any of you heard of. I promise a story and photos!
Poles love weddings. They like it posh regardless of their financial status (many take bank credits to be able to have a nice wedding). Typical waiting time to get a party at a wedding hall is as many as two years! Winters are less busy. This specific wedding took place in Villa Julianna near Warsaw. The hall was good, the food delicious and the band excellent. The party was so fine I have even been dancing!
The groom is the one wearing the white tuxedo. The wedding was full of my cousins but also of friends of the newly wed. If you spot any handsome young man in the video, he must be of the Mikulskis
The newly wed: Michał & Edyta Mikulski
My brother Jacek with his wife.
"May the Force be with you!" A new and fashionable vodka by the name of Biały Bocian (The White Stork). For me all premium vodkas taste the same.
The small cap of the White Stork is very difficult to unscrew when the bottle is served on ice. The trick is to put the cap between the teeth and bite it a little. Then the cap unlocks
Exceptionally, no ride photos but there will be a good reason for that explained later
On the Valentine's Day 2020, my nephew (formally: first cousin once removed german) Michał married a beautiful Edyta. I realised that I (aged 58) became the oldest male member of the larger family on our fathers side. My aunt Teresa (82) is the oldest female family member. A video and a few photos will follow.
The reason for posting that is I need to ride out in the morning for a longer e-bike ride to burn all the calories I absorbed during the wedding
I intend to go to a place related to a person any of you heard of. I promise a story and photos!Poles love weddings. They like it posh regardless of their financial status (many take bank credits to be able to have a nice wedding). Typical waiting time to get a party at a wedding hall is as many as two years! Winters are less busy. This specific wedding took place in Villa Julianna near Warsaw. The hall was good, the food delicious and the band excellent. The party was so fine I have even been dancing!
The groom is the one wearing the white tuxedo. The wedding was full of my cousins but also of friends of the newly wed. If you spot any handsome young man in the video, he must be of the Mikulskis
The newly wed: Michał & Edyta Mikulski
My brother Jacek with his wife.
"May the Force be with you!"
A new and fashionable vodka by the name of Biały Bocian (The White Stork). For me all premium vodkas taste the same.The small cap of the White Stork is very difficult to unscrew when the bottle is served on ice. The trick is to put the cap between the teeth and bite it a little. Then the cap unlocks
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Alaskan
Well-Known Member
I took this shot last month on Rte 1 Big Sur south of Monterey. You are right I know of no other places that look like this
David Roy
Well-Known Member
After a dreary week with rain and near 40ºF temps the sun finally showed in its full glory today. But it was 22º. Well I now have all this cold weather riding gear so I decided to test the limits. I stayed close to home and only did 12 miles with an average speed of 15mph and a top speed of 30mph. I’m happy to report that I stayed warm. Dressing in all the layers and wearing the helmet and goggles does make me feel like I’m wearing a spacesuit. I’m so looking forward to shirtsleeves riding again but this will do for now.
For a study in contrasts we leave for 5 days at a Caribbean beach resort with our grandkids tomorrow. Lots of water sports but no biking.
The snow is only on the roadsides. The roads are dry.
For a study in contrasts we leave for 5 days at a Caribbean beach resort with our grandkids tomorrow. Lots of water sports but no biking.
The snow is only on the roadsides. The roads are dry.
Stefan Mikes
Gravel e-biker
- Region
- Europe
- City
- Mazovia, PL
Fantastic, @David Roy! Winter comes to Poland too. It will be interesting to ride out tomorrow.
Threw the bike in the truck, well not really. I had to take off the cover, move the sandbags around as we are still in winter and it might snow again, and install the rack. That took a while. Then my demon dog and I drove up to the end of the pavement and rode. It is a road that takes you through ranching country. Technically, we were on Colville Tribal land, but on a county road. Anyway it is a good place to ride in Spring and Fall. In the Spring there is enough water around that no dog water has to be carried. It was a busy road today. 4 vehicles went by.
This is my hauling set up. I also put tiedowns on the bike and it stays put.
For some reason, I always stop to admire this rock. Dunno why. Later on, I'll have to go see the balancing rock, which isn't very far away.
Here are the other rocks. Not sure if the old glacier theory is still correct, or if they came via the Missoula Flood. Either way, they are here.
Obligatory bike photo.
It is still winter in the Mountains. Actually, it was a bit chilly and windy where I was riding. I ditched the helmet for my warm ski hat. I have sensitive ears and almost put on a headband for more ear warmth.
Mission complete! The Demon Dog is tired.
In case you are wondering, we were east of the Okanogan River in Warshington the State.
This is my hauling set up. I also put tiedowns on the bike and it stays put.
For some reason, I always stop to admire this rock. Dunno why. Later on, I'll have to go see the balancing rock, which isn't very far away.
Here are the other rocks. Not sure if the old glacier theory is still correct, or if they came via the Missoula Flood. Either way, they are here.
Obligatory bike photo.
It is still winter in the Mountains. Actually, it was a bit chilly and windy where I was riding. I ditched the helmet for my warm ski hat. I have sensitive ears and almost put on a headband for more ear warmth.
Mission complete! The Demon Dog is tired.
In case you are wondering, we were east of the Okanogan River in Warshington the State.
D
Deleted member 18083
Guest
A ride along quiet country roads …
The recent rains had done more than turn the grass green. It was long but the council had been out with their mowers (which is more than can be said for my efforts to bring our one hectare of 'lawn' under control). Earlier in the week many sections of the gravel roads had been washed out when customarily dry creeks turned, very briefly, into torrents. By week's end the council had repaired all.
After an hour or so I was almost back home but, ignoring both the temptation of fresh coffee and the imperative to mow the increasingly unkempt jungle, set off on another lap. My Ride with GPS record of this trip looks ridiculous!
View on Vimeo : Click to open in new screen
Bryces Road, Pine Mountain, Queensland
I had limited cycling time yesterday so I headed out on our local country roads which are a combination of sealed and gravel. There are hills aplenty but also stretches of gentler gradients (as in these photos).The recent rains had done more than turn the grass green. It was long but the council had been out with their mowers (which is more than can be said for my efforts to bring our one hectare of 'lawn' under control). Earlier in the week many sections of the gravel roads had been washed out when customarily dry creeks turned, very briefly, into torrents. By week's end the council had repaired all.
After an hour or so I was almost back home but, ignoring both the temptation of fresh coffee and the imperative to mow the increasingly unkempt jungle, set off on another lap. My Ride with GPS record of this trip looks ridiculous!
- The first photo was taken along a farm access road in Pine Mountain – there really are native pine trees but no sign of any 'mountain'.
- In the photo below the sealed road comes to an end. On the left are fields of lucerne being grown for winter fodder. The stripe running across it in the middle distance is the rail trail.
- Click to see a photo of that area taken eleven months ago.
Leschkes Road, Wanora, Queensland
View on Vimeo : Click to open in new screen
Click to view full-size video in new screen.
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Stefan Mikes
Gravel e-biker
- Region
- Europe
- City
- Mazovia, PL
So green, @David Berry! It must also be very warm, right? As I am ignorant about Australia: what temperatures do you typically expect in July/August?
FlatSix911
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Silicon Valley
A Polish Wedding Exceptionally, no ride photos but there will be a good reason for that explained later
On the Valentine's Day 2020, my nephew (formally: first cousin once removed german) Michał married a beautiful Edyta. I realised that I (aged 58) became the oldest male member of the larger family on our fathers side. My aunt Teresa (82) is the oldest female family member. A video and a few photos will follow. The reason for posting that is I need to ride out in the morning for a longer e-bike ride to burn all the calories I absorbed during the wedding
Poles love weddings. They like it posh regardless of their financial status (many take bank credits to be able to have a nice wedding). Typical waiting time to get a party at a wedding hall is as many as two years! Winters are less busy. This specific wedding took place in Villa Julianna near Warsaw. The hall was good, the food delicious and the band excellent. The party was so fine I have even been dancing!
The groom is the one wearing the white tuxedo. The wedding was full of my cousins but also of friends of the newly wed. If you spot any handsome young man in the video, he must be of the Mikulskis
View attachment 45657
The newly wed: Michał & Edyta Mikulski
View attachment 45658
My brother Jacek with his wife.
View attachment 45659
"May the Force be with you!"
View attachment 45661
The small cap of the White Stork is very difficult to unscrew when the bottle is served on ice. The trick is to put the cap between the teeth and bite it a little. Then the cap unlocks
Congratulations to the bride and groom!
FlatSix911
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Silicon Valley
One of my favorite places on Earth... the ride down to Nepenthe for lunch is breathtaking.
Nepenthe
Take in the views at the cliff-topping restaurant Nepenthe in California's Big Sur
www.visitcalifornia.com
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Stefan Mikes
Gravel e-biker
- Region
- Europe
- City
- Mazovia, PL
At the Frederic Chopin Birthplace
I felt guilty at the Friday's wedding having had so many delicious meals and drinking a little bit more of vodka than I'm used to (luckily with no after-effects) I felt I should punish myself with a longer ride to maintain my process of losing weight. In the morning, the weather appeared to be dreary, temps just above the freezing point, the wind strong, frosty, biting, unpleasant. Having learnt from the previous journey, I took no chances: Winter Wind & Cold Armour #1 on (including the e-socks), Lovelec e-bike with a spare battery, and a camera (that one is a heavy one...). The intended target: The Frederic Chopin Birthplace Museum in Żelazowa Wola (literally: Ironsville). The planned distance of 80 km (50 mi) scared me a little. So what? In case of failure, there still are trains
I didn't expect such a pleasant trip. Good clothing, flawless e-bike, a meal had on the return way enabled me to make my personal best: 91.2 km (56 2/3 mi) and I was back home just after the sunset. My electrically heated Glovii socks worked flawlessly and met the promise of heating the feet for 6 hours at the Level 2. The weather rewarded me with splendid sunshine on the return way.
A short rest after the 20th kilometre. The terrain was mostly tarmac (and mostly high quality one) and some unpaved roads. Here, one of very few gravel road on the route.
30th kilometre, the highway 92, the former Warsaw-Poznań principal road. It was replaced with the A2 freeway and later reconstructed for more local use. There is no bike ban on that segment but heavy traffic was discouraging. The sidewalk at the right-hand side, while not a bike lane, was rideable.
A Strictly No-Go Zone. My GPS bike navigation app told me to take a shortcut. I was not so naieve that time. Returned and found good tarmac roads leading to the very same way-point. That's some industrial area with complex internal roads so it added some 2 km extra to my ride as I lost my way there.
Apart from being a farming and industrial province, Mazovia sports many woods and forests. I lost the opportunity of taking a climatic photo of an old tractor that by-passed me at that very place.
An iconic view of Mazovian willows. Frederic Chopin is often portrayed under a willow.
47th kilometre. At the Frederic Chopin Birthplace Museum in Żelazowa Wola. Some funny stories! I wanted to do the sightseeing fast so I asked the security guard: "Will you let my expensive bike inside and take care while I'm out?" He looked solemnly at me and replied: -- It is not allowed... -- then he smiled and said: -- But there are exceptions. Yes, you may
I bought a ticked online and had it on my smartphone. Yet I bought a wrong (cheaper) ticked by mistake. Nobody has noticed that!
The home of the Chopin family back in 1810. The father of Chopin, Nicolas, was a Frenchman serving as a tutor to the Count Skarbek family. The Chopins left for Warsaw in the same year as the great pianist was born. They used to return to Żelazowa Wola for vacation. There is a nice audio in the park. Hidden speakers deliver spatial Chopin's piano music.
The birthplace of Frederic Chopin.
On the return way, at the border of the Warsaw West County. As you can see, strong winds ahead!
I decided I wouldn't like to bonk on that journey so wisely I had a meal at McDonald's in Błonie. 10 km to go. Actually it was 12 km as I needed to ride to a mall for cigarettes, too
5.57 p.m. My personal best.
The route stats. I was riding in higher PAS to make the trip in the chilling wind faster.
I felt guilty at the Friday's wedding having had so many delicious meals and drinking a little bit more of vodka than I'm used to (luckily with no after-effects)
I felt I should punish myself with a longer ride to maintain my process of losing weight. In the morning, the weather appeared to be dreary, temps just above the freezing point, the wind strong, frosty, biting, unpleasant. Having learnt from the previous journey, I took no chances: Winter Wind & Cold Armour #1 on (including the e-socks), Lovelec e-bike with a spare battery, and a camera (that one is a heavy one...). The intended target: The Frederic Chopin Birthplace Museum in Żelazowa Wola (literally: Ironsville). The planned distance of 80 km (50 mi) scared me a little. So what? In case of failure, there still are trains I didn't expect such a pleasant trip. Good clothing, flawless e-bike, a meal had on the return way enabled me to make my personal best: 91.2 km (56 2/3 mi) and I was back home just after the sunset. My electrically heated Glovii socks worked flawlessly and met the promise of heating the feet for 6 hours at the Level 2. The weather rewarded me with splendid sunshine on the return way.
A short rest after the 20th kilometre. The terrain was mostly tarmac (and mostly high quality one) and some unpaved roads. Here, one of very few gravel road on the route.
30th kilometre, the highway 92, the former Warsaw-Poznań principal road. It was replaced with the A2 freeway and later reconstructed for more local use. There is no bike ban on that segment but heavy traffic was discouraging. The sidewalk at the right-hand side, while not a bike lane, was rideable.
A Strictly No-Go Zone. My GPS bike navigation app told me to take a shortcut. I was not so naieve that time. Returned and found good tarmac roads leading to the very same way-point. That's some industrial area with complex internal roads so it added some 2 km extra to my ride as I lost my way there.
Apart from being a farming and industrial province, Mazovia sports many woods and forests. I lost the opportunity of taking a climatic photo of an old tractor that by-passed me at that very place.
An iconic view of Mazovian willows. Frederic Chopin is often portrayed under a willow.
47th kilometre. At the Frederic Chopin Birthplace Museum in Żelazowa Wola. Some funny stories! I wanted to do the sightseeing fast so I asked the security guard: "Will you let my expensive bike inside and take care while I'm out?" He looked solemnly at me and replied: -- It is not allowed... -- then he smiled and said: -- But there are exceptions. Yes, you may
I bought a ticked online and had it on my smartphone. Yet I bought a wrong (cheaper) ticked by mistake. Nobody has noticed that!
The home of the Chopin family back in 1810. The father of Chopin, Nicolas, was a Frenchman serving as a tutor to the Count Skarbek family. The Chopins left for Warsaw in the same year as the great pianist was born. They used to return to Żelazowa Wola for vacation. There is a nice audio in the park. Hidden speakers deliver spatial Chopin's piano music.
The birthplace of Frederic Chopin.
On the return way, at the border of the Warsaw West County. As you can see, strong winds ahead!
I decided I wouldn't like to bonk on that journey so wisely I had a meal at McDonald's in Błonie. 10 km to go. Actually it was 12 km as I needed to ride to a mall for cigarettes, too
5.57 p.m. My personal best.
The route stats. I was riding in higher PAS to make the trip in the chilling wind faster.
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FlatSix911
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Silicon Valley
Here are a few photos from my ride this afternoon... I discovered a small family-owned winery.
Stefan Mikes
Gravel e-biker
- Region
- Europe
- City
- Mazovia, PL
Was the wine any good? What's the location?
What's the location?
FlatSix911
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Silicon Valley
Was the wine any good?
The Fremont Older Preserve... part of the Midpeninsula Open Space District. Did a bit of wine tasting before heading home...
Fremont Older Preserve
Located on the urban fringe and extending towards Mt. Eden Road to the south and Stevens Creek County Park to the west, Fremont Older Preserve offers a variety of experiences to hikers, bicyclists, and equestrians.
Readytoride
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Virginia
@Stefan Mikes - thank you for the lovely story of your epic 56 mile ride, and for the photographs along the way. It was very entertaining!
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D
Deleted member 18083
Guest
Eleven Hundred Degrees …
Ipswich has a long history of coal mining and in this area there was once a double row of brick coke ovens. The stainless steel tubes represent the beehive shape of the ovens and the copper arches their brick roofs. Eleven Hundred Degrees refers to the temperature that had to be maintained during the period of transforming coal into coke.
Eleven Hundred Degrees by Paul Johnson & Gail Mason – Ipswich, QLD
I must admit to being remiss in not stopping to appreciate public art. I've passed this work many times but late this afternoon I stopped at its base to fill a water bottle. Next to the drinking fountain was a plaque explaining the work. Coking ovens!Ipswich has a long history of coal mining and in this area there was once a double row of brick coke ovens. The stainless steel tubes represent the beehive shape of the ovens and the copper arches their brick roofs. Eleven Hundred Degrees refers to the temperature that had to be maintained during the period of transforming coal into coke.
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RabH
Well-Known Member
@Stefan Mikes Congrats on your longest trip There are so many great stories and photos in this thread, its nice to have time to read them today! Yesterday we had heavy rain virtually all day and gusty winds, today looks so beautiful with blue skies and lovely dry roads but with a 35mph wind and 60mph gusts I'm not risking it...we seem to have constant storms in February
After having a very good January I was expecting things to go downhill and they certainly have...
Bring on Spring please or just turn the winds down a bit and I will be happy
There are so many great stories and photos in this thread, its nice to have time to read them today! Yesterday we had heavy rain virtually all day and gusty winds, today looks so beautiful with blue skies and lovely dry roads but with a 35mph wind and 60mph gusts I'm not risking it...we seem to have constant storms in FebruaryAfter having a very good January I was expecting things to go downhill and they certainly have...
Bring on Spring please or just turn the winds down a bit and I will be happy
FlatSix911
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Silicon Valley
Congrats on your new ride!
What is the white stuff in the background?.. you guys look like you have full ski gear!
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