2023 - Our Rides in Words, Photos, Maps and Videos

[JGcycle]

Finally it out on the, bike, still a bit rough from a full on viral infection, it went from cough to aches to sneezing to headaches and finally full vomiting.
Everyone had it.
Mutant covid if you ask me and they are reporting it turning into gastro flu.
I haven't had the boosters, actually not eligible for free shots unless I kicked up a fuss.

Storm Pia, missed the strongest winds, but even at 35mph and laden with sand it's pretty hard to ride in.

Computer mouse just packed in, so here's a short vid ..it doesn't look that bad, but trust me, I thought I was Lawrence of Arabia in a sandstorm.
Ignore the thumbnail, I was messing with clickbait AI pictures.

Wow, that was a pretty wild ride.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Finally it out on the, bike, still a bit rough from a full on viral infection, it went from cough to aches to sneezing to headaches and finally full vomiting.
Everyone had it.
Mutant covid if you ask me and they are reporting it turning into gastro flu.
I haven't had the boosters, actually not eligible for free shots unless I kicked up a fuss.

Storm Pia, missed the strongest winds, but even at 35mph and laden with sand it's pretty hard to ride in.

Computer mouse just packed in, so here's a short vid ..it doesn't look that bad, but trust me, I thought I was Lawrence of Arabia in a sandstorm.
Ignore the thumbnail, I was messing with clickbait AI pictures.

Spectacular!

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

Finally it out on the, bike, still a bit rough from a full on viral infection, it went from cough to aches to sneezing to headaches and finally full vomiting.
Everyone had it.
Mutant covid if you ask me and they are reporting it turning into gastro flu.
I haven't had the boosters, actually not eligible for free shots unless I kicked up a fuss.

Storm Pia, missed the strongest winds, but even at 35mph and laden with sand it's pretty hard to ride in.

Computer mouse just packed in, so here's a short vid ..it doesn't look that bad, but trust me, I thought I was Lawrence of Arabia in a sandstorm.
Ignore the thumbnail, I was messing with clickbait AI pictures.

Keep those dune vids coming. What a beautiful place!

Riding in blowing sand is no fun. But it was fun to see how the wind navigates the dunes, thanks to those pesky little tracers.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

E-Biking, Walking and Cycling in London, UK
20th & 21st of December 2023

I can only speak of London (not of the entire Britain) but you will only find these bicycle types in the capital city of the United Kingdom:

• Road bikes: A typical sight is a man pedalling a road bike with a rucksack on his back...
• Lightweight flat handlebar bicycles: For those who cannot ride the drop-handlebars, and by many women
• E-Bikes: The cheapest and the most powerful you can get Mostly ridden by delivery couriers (but not only!)
• Rental/Hire/Share e-bikes and traditional bicycles: Cruiser type, with the front basket. Very popular!

Let me just start with: there is no more practical means of transportation in London than a bike/e-bike. Driving is painful: Clean Transport Zones, Congestion (Limited Speed) Zones, troublesome parking... Buses are very slow; you cannot get everywhere with the Tube. Cycling is inexpensive, fast, and... safe (more on that later).

As the day & night rhythm of @Brix and I is totally different, my London Girl let me spend some mornings alone, so I could explore London myself. Of course, I took that opportunity

Morning of 20th December 2023: From Mercure London Bridge hotel (unique postal code: SE1 0JA) to Waterloo Railway Station, then Waterloo Bridge and back via the Blackfriars Bridge.
Top: Your typical London hire e-bike
Centre: Waterloo Railway Station
Bottom: Burger King's interpretation of Hash Browns

How do you rent an e-bike in London? It is either a Lime/Uber, or a Human Forest (Forest or River e-bike), or a Santander e-bike. If you already use the Uber app, renting the Lime/Uber e-bike is the most straightforward. All public share e-bikes are:

• Well maintained (the tyres are inflated, and the brakes do work)
• Adjusting the saddle height is extremely simple (different types of comprehensive seat-post locks are used). E-bikes are typically limited to the rider's size up to Medium (beware!)
• Very heavy and badly maneuverable
• Your role as of the rider is rotating the cranks to ride: Calling it "pedalling" would be a joke as the motor power totally replaces you as a cyclist. No throttle is available though; no adjustable power levels either; no gears. You just rotate the cranks and the thing rides, taking you up to 15.5 mph if you only rotate the cranks stronger

I hated the thing and felt unsafe. After the Wednesday's e-bike ride, I dreamed of riding a traditional bicycle!

Thursday 21st of December 2023.
Top: A view from Waterloo Bridge
Centre: Lyceum Theatre in Wellington Street (Covent Garden area)
Bottom: A backyard called a "central street" in Bloomsbury

I really wanted to ride a traditional bicycle on Thursday. Installed and set-up the Cycle Hire (Santander & Transport for London) app, then went to the nearest bicycle docking station. Alas! The British seem to be a funny nation that does things overly complicated When you decided to hire a bike, you are getting a five-digit code consisting of only 1s, 2s, and 3s. You need to punch the code on the docking station terminal. What light would you expect when done? GREEN. What is displayed after punching the code in? ORANGE I could not understand it, gave up and rented a Lime/Uber e-bike for the first leg of the trip.

I reached the Bury Place in Bloomsbury without issues; Komoot app brought me to a suitable hire bike parking area! Then, it took me some time to locate my destination...

CycleFit, a bike store, The Fire Station, 14 West Central Street. It is located in a former fire-station! How nice!

In the CycleFit store.

I loved chatting with the competent Black salesman! He confirmed the British loved road bikes, explained the store specialty was bike-fitting (actually, a gentleman was being measured for bike-fitting down in the cellar), and we talked a lot about the cycling. Besides, the Specialized Dealer's Locator is basically wrong: the store was expected to carry Specialized products but the fact was you could only buy some Specialized saddles there but would need to order a bike online to be delivered to the showroom. No Specialized bike/e-bike on the floor. The only e-bike available was a GoCycle, which tells me more about the London e-biking that you might believe!

Left: Bloomsbury Tavern, New Oxford Street. Right: The inlet of Montmouth Street near to Shaftesbury Avenue.

The London's West End I was visiting is a gorgeous area. Because of crowds, it makes little sense to cycle there. So I went for a walk.

Enjoying hot chocolate with whipped cream at Hotel Chocolate, the cocoa specialist store in Montmouth Street.

I turned into Neal's Yard, a highly acclaimed tourist attraction...

Top & Centre: Seven Dials.
Bottom: Leicester Square.

The Seven Dials is the most unique thing I could spot in London! It is an intersection of as many as seven streets! Of course, I got lost Found a stall where I could buy a little gift for Brix and engaged in a conversation with the seller: 'Where are we, actually? What is the place-name?' -- I demanded -- 'It is near to Cambridge Circus. Where are you heading to?' -- she asked -- 'I'd like to get to the Covent Garden...' to which she pointed to the direction of Seven Dials I came from, haha! Eventually, I decided to walk to Leicester Square, which in my opinion is the most beautiful of the London squares (in the warm season of course!) And I could find a Santander bike docking station at last!

I set up the saddle height, entered a new "123" code, and yanked out the bicycle immediately! At the ORANGE indicator! Then, I used my knowledge of London to ride without any navigation! I was pedalling over Strand, Aldwych (an unusual half-circle street), passed the Royal Court of Justice, the Dragon (marking the border of the City of London), then towards St. Paul's Cathedral...

Now, I can locate the place. It was in Fleet Street heading to St. Paul's Cathedral. Notice the left-hand traffic!

It was so easy! I could recollect the order of London bridges. As soon as I passed the Cannon Street Station, I turned to the right to cross London Bridge, pass the Borough Market (I am so familiar with!), and turn right to find myself in Southwark Street heading to the hotel.

The Santander bike (a cruiser good for riders up to the size L) with a 3-gear IGH, successfully parked with the GREEN indicator

You might ask how I could fare with the left-hand traffic? It was very simple. Extend your arm that is closer to your heart and with hand with which most of people do not write. Name it the right arm/right hand. Now, pull over into that direction. Where are you riding to? To the right So simple it is!

London certainly has a number of proper bike paths. However, I was only riding either bike lanes or just with traffic. No worry! The drivers are careful, cultural, and understanding. Just do not ride in the bus-stop bay!

London is a wonderful cycling city. And it is warm! (The temperature was -- as Americans do say -- in 50s F).

Dec 21st 2023 total trip.

The London West End walking.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

@Chargeride: In my opinion, the UK is the most famous of the European "nanny states"

I took an opportunity to rent a Lime/Uber e-scooter, too. I was using the Lime/Uber app that I had successfully used in Poland, Germany, or Finland, no question asked, only pay for the use. Now, what do we get in the UK?

• Start the app and select the e-scooter by a QR-code
• "Please identify yourself with your ID". So you take your ID out and scan it. The app is vigorously processing your ID to find your birth-date.
• "We need to check if you are you". You are taking three "prison selfies" of yourself. The app says: "It's indeed you!". Now, you are hoping you could ride the e-scooter but no...
• "We will take a quiz of your understanding of the road code"
  • "What do you do before you start the ride?" -- you need to press the brake lever and the throttle at the same time;
  • "What do you think of wearing a helmet?" -- Always, always, always!
  • "Where can you ride an e-scooter?" -- On bike paths, bike lanes, or with traffic
  • "Where can you park an e-scooter?" -- In the dedicated parking zones only
  • Next 6 questions to come

I treat it as a mistrust (you are certainly underage, mister!) combined with the belief you deserve some education

Not that I criticise it. It is as good as White Stilton cheese stuffed with apricots (the apricots being totally unnecessary!)

Cheers, mate!

 

[Chargeride]

What can we do, a nation of lawyers and shopkeepers.
We have an inert police force, but a batallion of lawyers to frighten us into compliance.
If we stray from the rules, people don't quote the law, they say.
You might get sued.

 

[Chargeride]

E-Biking, Walking and Cycling in London, UK
20th & 21st of December 2023

I can only speak of London (not of the entire Britain) but you will only find these bicycle types in the capital city of the United Kingdom:

• Road bikes: A typical sight is a man pedalling a road bike with a rucksack on his back...
• Lightweight flat handlebar bicycles: For those who cannot ride the drop-handlebars, and by many women
• E-Bikes: The cheapest and the most powerful you can get Mostly ridden by delivery couriers (but not only!)
• Rental/Hire/Share e-bikes and traditional bicycles: Cruiser type, with the front basket. Very popular!

Let me just start with: there is no more practical means of transportation in London than a bike/e-bike. Driving is painful: Clean Transport Zones, Congestion (Limited Speed) Zones, troublesome parking... Buses are very slow; you cannot get everywhere with the Tube. Cycling is inexpensive, fast, and... safe (more on that later).

As the day & night rhythm of @Brix and I is totally different, my London Girl let me spend some mornings alone, so I could explore London myself. Of course, I took that opportunity

View attachment 168410
Morning of 20th December 2023: From Mercure London Bridge hotel (unique postal code: SE1 0JA) to Waterloo Railway Station, then Waterloo Bridge and back via the Blackfriars Bridge.
Top: Your typical London hire e-bike
Centre: Waterloo Railway Station
Bottom: Burger King's interpretation of Hash Browns

How do you rent an e-bike in London? It is either a Lime/Uber, or a Human Forest (Forest or River e-bike), or a Santander e-bike. If you already use the Uber app, renting the Lime/Uber e-bike is the most straightforward. All public share e-bikes are:

• Well maintained (the tyres are inflated, and the brakes do work)
• Adjusting the saddle height is extremely simple (different types of comprehensive seat-post locks are used). E-bikes are typically limited to the rider's size up to Medium (beware!)
• Very heavy and badly maneuverable
• Your role as of the rider is rotating the cranks to ride: Calling it "pedalling" would be a joke as the motor power totally replaces you as a cyclist. No throttle is available though; no adjustable power levels either; no gears. You just rotate the cranks and the thing rides, taking you up to 15.5 mph if you only rotate the cranks stronger

I hated the thing and felt unsafe. After the Wednesday's e-bike ride, I dreamed of riding a traditional bicycle!

View attachment 168411
Thursday 21st of December 2023.
Top: A view from Waterloo Bridge
Centre: Lyceum Theatre in Wellington Street (Covent Garden area)
Bottom: A backyard called a "central street" in Bloomsbury

I really wanted to ride a traditional bicycle on Thursday. Installed and set-up the Cycle Hire (Santander & Transport for London) app, then went to the nearest bicycle docking station. Alas! The British seem to be a funny nation that does things overly complicated When you decided to hire a bike, you are getting a five-digit code consisting of only 1s, 2s, and 3s. You need to punch the code on the docking station terminal. What light would you expect when done? GREEN. What is displayed after punching the code in? ORANGE I could not understand it, gave up and rented a Lime/Uber e-bike for the first leg of the trip.

I reached the Bury Place in Bloomsbury without issues; Komoot app brought me to a suitable hire bike parking area! Then, it took me some time to locate my destination...

View attachment 168412
CycleFit, a bike store, The Fire Station, 14 West Central Street. It is located in a former fire-station! How nice!

View attachment 168413
In the CycleFit store.

I loved chatting with the competent Black salesman! He confirmed the British loved road bikes, explained the store specialty was bike-fitting (actually, a gentleman was being measured for bike-fitting down in the cellar), and we talked a lot about the cycling. Besides, the Specialized Dealer's Locator is basically wrong: the store was expected to carry Specialized products but the fact was you could only buy some Specialized saddles there but would need to order a bike online to be delivered to the showroom. No Specialized bike/e-bike on the floor. The only e-bike available was a GoCycle, which tells me more about the London e-biking that you might believe!

View attachment 168414
Left: Bloomsbury Tavern, New Oxford Street. Right: The inlet of Montmouth Street near to Shaftesbury Avenue.

The London's West End I was visiting is a gorgeous area. Because of crowds, it makes little sense to cycle there. So I went for a walk.

View attachment 168415
Enjoying hot chocolate with whipped cream at Hotel Chocolate, the cocoa specialist store in Montmouth Street.

View attachment 168416
I turned into Neal's Yard, a highly acclaimed tourist attraction...

View attachment 168417
Top & Centre: Seven Dials.
Bottom: Leicester Square.

The Seven Dials is the most unique thing I could spot in London! It is an intersection of as many as seven streets! Of course, I got lost Found a stall where I could buy a little gift for Brix and engaged in a conversation with the seller: 'Where are we, actually? What is the place-name?' -- I demanded -- 'It is near to Cambridge Circus. Where are you heading to?' -- she asked -- 'I'd like to get to the Covent Garden...' to which she pointed to the direction of Seven Dials I came from, haha! Eventually, I decided to walk to Leicester Square, which in my opinion is the most beautiful of the London squares (in the warm season of course!) And I could find a Santander bike docking station at last!

I set up the saddle height, entered a new "123" code, and yanked out the bicycle immediately! At the ORANGE indicator! Then, I used my knowledge of London to ride without any navigation! I was pedalling over Strand, Aldwych (an unusual half-circle street), passed the Royal Court of Justice, the Dragon (marking the border of the City of London), then towards St. Paul's Cathedral...

View attachment 168418
Now, I can locate the place. It was in Fleet Street heading to St. Paul's Cathedral. Notice the left-hand traffic!

It was so easy! I could recollect the order of London bridges. As soon as I passed the Cannon Street Station, I turned to the right to cross London Bridge, pass the Borough Market (I am so familiar with!), and turn right to find myself in Southwark Street heading to the hotel.

View attachment 168419
The Santander bike (a cruiser good for riders up to the size L) with a 3-gear IGH, successfully parked with the GREEN indicator

You might ask how could I fare with the left-hand traffic? It was very simple. Extend your arm that is closer to your heart and with hand with which most of people do not write. Name it the right arm/right hand. Now, pull over into that direction. Where are you riding to? To the right So simple it is!

London certainly has a number of proper bike paths. However, I was only riding either bike lanes or just with traffic. No worry! The drivers are careful, cultural, and understanding. Just do not ride in the bus-stop bay!

London is a wonderful cycling city. And it is warm! (The temperature was -- as Americans do say -- in 50s F).

View attachment 168420
Dec 21st 2023 total trip.

View attachment 168421
The London West End walking.

You have far more knowledge of London than me, the next time I go I will need a polish ebiker as a guide.
I hear that the legal rental scooters have a basic AI that allows them to be aware that you are riding pavement/sidewalk or the road.
I think it's the number of feet you run over.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

I hear that the legal rental scooters have a basic AI that allows them to be aware that you are riding pavement/sidewalk or the road.

It could be true! Or at least highly probable. Rental e-scooters are geofenced and you won't be able to leave them whenever you wish for sure. It is as true for London as for Helsinki. It has not happened in Poland yet though (you only cannot park an e-scooter off limits here).

 

[Mulezen]

Happy Holidays

I am still recuperating from my leg injury in early November. I’ve been riding short distances on high(ish) power. No more pain…but paranoia that such a trivial thing (Torn abductor) could be so serious. The accompanying anemia hasn’t helped but the main problem now seems to be that my good leg is doing most of the work. The weather has cooperated here in central Virginia though that won’t last…so I guess I’ll be forced to drive to Florida.
While bedridden my computer gave up the ghost so I’m behind in the cycling adventures of the able bodies.

 

[DaveMatthews]

View attachment 168500

Happy Holidays

I am still recuperating from my leg injury in early November. I’ve been riding short distances on high(ish) power. No more pain…but paranoia that such a trivial thing (Torn abductor) could be so serious. The accompanying anemia hasn’t helped but the main problem now seems to be that my good leg is doing most of the work. The weather has cooperated here in central Virginia though that won’t last…so I guess I’ll be forced to drive to Florida.
While bedridden my computer gave up the ghost so I’m behind in the cycling adventures of the able bodies.

Good to hear you are recovering! Merry Christmas, and hope to see you back to regular soon!

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

View attachment 168500

Happy Holidays

I am still recuperating from my leg injury in early November. I’ve been riding short distances on high(ish) power. No more pain…but paranoia that such a trivial thing (Torn abductor) could be so serious. The accompanying anemia hasn’t helped but the main problem now seems to be that my good leg is doing most of the work. The weather has cooperated here in central Virginia though that won’t last…so I guess I’ll be forced to drive to Florida.
While bedridden my computer gave up the ghost so I’m behind in the cycling adventures of the able bodies.

Hope your riding's back to normal soon! My left knee's having one of its spells, and ability to up the assist is the only reason I've been able to keep riding on it.

Thank the cycling gods every day for a torque-sensing ebike with a progressive throttle to keep my knee out of high-torque/low-cadence situations!

 

[Twin Valley]

Almost a perfect winter afternoon for a pre-Christmas dinner bike ride around our home acres - slight breeze and lots of sunshine warming up to above freezing temps - the mountains off to the west were another story today according to my brother who was hiking in the Crowsnest Pass area and said it was difficult to even stand never mind hike in the gale force west winds - season greetings to our e-biking forum!

 

[Stefan Mikes]

My Xmas '23 Rides

The Storm Zoltan (known as Storm Pia in the British Isles) has recently ravaged North Europe including West Poland; for us in Mazovia the strong wind could (fortunately) only be described as "the Zoltan's belch", meaning strong but not damaging westerly wind. As I am fixated to pass the 11,000 km e-biking/cycling mark this year, and given a sunny weather with the high of +9 C, I decided to spend my Christmas this year in the saddle.

First, I pedalled my Roadrunner (Vado 6.0) in low assistance to the Płochocin train stop against the headwind, which unsurprisingly took long 22 minutes just to cover 6 km! After less than an hour spent in the train, I could start sailing with the "Zoltan's belch" home, which was a sheer pleasure. Riding in low assistance with a strong tailwind is actually similar to sailing! As you get at the speed when you stop hearing the wind, you actually are moving at the speed of the wind. Thus, I estimate the average wind speed to 27.5 km/h as that was the average speed I achieved myself pedalling at just 20% assistance!

I had only two stops on the 67 km trip. Here, re-hydrating in Bolimów at 9:49 a.m. I met a couple walking to the church, who greeted me with a merry: "Can you see your fellow cyclist taking a rest opposite of the square?" Yea, I could see a blinking tail-light at a distance but even didn't meet the guy! (Actually, there were hardly any cyclists riding on that day).

As I reached home and swapped the e-bike battery, I decided I wanted more. Set off for yet another ride at 13:00. To ride into a massive rainfall soon... The temperature instantly fell down to +5 C!

The Aleje ALL
One of the longest streets of Warsaw is just called "Aleje" (The Avenues). The Aleje is a short version of Aleje Jerozolimskie (Jerusalem Avenues). It is the shortest and fastest way to get to Central Warsaw from my neighbourhood, only you have to ride with traffic! Usually, cycling in the Aleje is too dangerous and impractical but that was a holiday with sparse traffic! So I took my chance and made it: I rode the whole Aleje both ways with traffic on that day!

The view of the City of Warsaw from Aleje 111 (the view from the west). The Palace of Culture and Science (PKiN), still the highest structure of Warsaw, and marking her very centre is controversial. Completed in 1955, and built by the Soviet Union, it is the biggest of all "Moscow skyscrapers" ever built. Now, the huge newly constructed Warsaw skyscrapers are located the way to hide the PKiN from the view! As you can see, totally successfully, as the Varso Tower in the picture has totally obscured the PKiN from the west!

In George Washington Roundabout, past the Poniatowski Bridge. The National Stadium was just behind me! Riding with traffic and propelled by tailwind, I covered 25 km in 1 h 00 min, using only 20% of the e-bike battery! Ya, but I had to pedal against the stronger and stronger headwind and to gain elevation on the way back! Switched to 60% assistance...

In the very centre of Warsaw. The notorius PKiN can be seen from the east, tightly surrounded by new skyscrapers of the City. (Before WWII, the area was as tightly packed with tenement houses as the living there was not nice, and architects were wondering what to do to let some fresh air into the city centre... Then the Germans razed the city down to the ground).

12 km from the George Washington's I had enough. My shoes and socks were soaked, and my bad foot felt as freezing out. I stopped at McDonald's in Aleje 228. Food was important but black tea was even importanter I could really warm up, and my clothes started drying... I could hear different opinions on the quality of McD in America but trust me: burgers in Polish McDs look and taste as advertised! Now, there was only 13 km more to go...

The Aleje ALL ride.

My all Xmas '23 rides. Greenish line: Riding to the train stop. Bluish: Łowicz -> home with tailwind. Reddish: The Aleje ride.

123.7 km for the day. Less than 140 km left to pass my yearly goal!

 

[Chargeride]

Omg why didn't we call it Zoltan!

I don't understand the weather, you would think here on England west coast we would be hit the worst, I guess Ireland protects us.

 

[RabH]

After 11 days of insane weather I finally caught a break, yesterday we had winds nudging 50mph and torrential rain (its coming back tomorrow) and it all froze overnight leaving ice rink conditions this morning! I went out for a walk and waited until after midday and decided to go for it, the back roads were totally ruled out but with it being a holiday the main roads were much quieter than usual! I picked the safest route I could think of and it worked out just perfect, probably the least climbing I have done all year... I headed east towards Armadale, passing the Hillend Loch so I just had to stop for some photos!

This is looking east towards Armadale and you can see the road into the loch covered in frost and ice below!

Looking west now and the loch was looking pretty calm due to the light winds and you can see how nice the weather was!

I had to limbo under the barrier to get the photos

I continued through Armadale and turned north on to the dual carriageway towards the Avon Gorge, a road I would normally avoid with traffic flying past at over 70mph but it was quiet today! I was nearing the gorge but didn't want to to use that road, preferring the main road to Linlithgow and I soon had the Ochil Hills in view!

The road is a bit twisty but its mainly downhill and it was well gritted so perfectly safe, I turned one of the corners to see a flooding ahead sign and hoped it wasn't too bad! Luckily there were a couple of cars coming in the opposite direction so I was able to gauge how deep it was, thankfully it was only about 10" deep so not enough to submerge the motor but enough to wet my feet I was close to Linlithgow now and had another nice view of the hills!

The sun was doing a good job of melting the ice but it still wasn't safe to use the back roads, I love this road anyway so I was having a blast!

I grabbed another couple of photos before arriving in Linlithgow!

I passed through the town which was a little busy but nowhere near as busy as it can be and I continued east towards Threemiletown where I turned south for Uphall! I have used this road quite a bit this year but almost always in the other direction, at the top of the climb the Forth bridges came into view!

Another view of the Ochil Hills over the Firth of Forth!

I now had a fast descent, well fast when dry but not today...the Pentland Hills can be seen in the backkground here!

The view to the west with Beecraigs Country Park way in the distance, no chance of taking this road today!

The sun was hidden behind some cloud here and I wasn't unhappy about that as it was extremely bright and very low!

Another couple of photos before heading down the descent!

I reached Uphall and turned west for home, passing through Dechmont where I joined the main road towards Bathgate! I usually take the cycle path here to avoid this road but it wasn't an option today as it was covered in sheet ice and I actually saw a lady almost fall but thankfully she managed to stay upright! From here I just stayed on the main road all the way to Holytown, around 20 miles with the first 14 all uphill followed by a nice downhill all the way to Holytown! I reached Holytown with 46 miles covered and I knew I had 4 miles to go so it worked out perfectly for my 50 miler! I finally passed last years total, hitting 5839 from 86 rides only! Last year I managed 5807 miles from exactly 100 rides so 14 less rides to beat the total!

It was so good to get out again, tomorrow the stormy weather will return once again...at least we got 1 nice day I may get one last ride on New Years Eve but time will tell...seasons greeting to everyone, I hope you all had a nice ChristmasI had my colonoscopy and endoscopy as a Christmas present It went well thankfully and the investigation found a polyp in my colon which was removed successfully, I will have to wait 8 weeks now for biopsy results but things are looking promising!

@Mulezen I'm glad you managed to get out on the bike again, wishing you the very best in your recovery from your leg injury!

 

[Stefan Mikes]

My Brother's Christmas Gift From Wife

Post the Xmas hassle, I paid a visit to my brother on Wednesday (Jacek was battling a cold during the holiday). We still have the remnants of Zoltan blowing (and my ride was mostly with the crosswind) but I had no issues riding my Roadrunner, and the day itself was sunny!

The gift Jacek has found under his family Christmas tree A Marin DSX 3, the most advanced of Marin's flat handlebar gravel bikes!

Not that the gift was a surprise for Jacek His wife works for a Marin distibutor nearby; Jacek started with demo rides of the Gestalt (drop bar handlebar gravel bike) and of DSX last Autumn to truly determine his needs, and he said he could not ride the drop bar bicycle (he's healthy but in his late 50's already). After the wife bought the DSX, it was delivered to my brother in a factory box per his clear request. Instead of assembling he bike, Jacek had completely disassembled it, wrapped the frame, then assembled his ride, learning how the parts were working (the SRAM drivetrain and flat-mount brakes were a novelty to him!) He installed speed and cadence sensors, lighting and whatnot as well. Then, the bike got gift-wrapped and only pulled out to be presented on the Xmas Eve (as the Dec 24th is the most sacred evening for us Poles) The bike has been never ridden and it won't be until the warm season. The only thing remaining to do it is replacing tyres, as Jacek says the stock tyres on that bicycle are a disgrace!

That way, my brother has become a true gravel cyclist to start in ultramarathons next year

Happy brethren

I completed the ride after the dark, as I had to also ride to a specific pharmacy in my town to buy a monthly load of my medications (oh, we senior people...) Now, it is just 68 km left to complete my yearly distance goal!

Compare the distance of my ride (one way) to the general size of Warsaw.

Driving to, in, or around Warsaw has always been slow and boring because of heavy traffic (even if the road infrastructure has greatly improved over the last, say, 16 years). A 70 km traditional bicycle ride felt about the longest for me in the past. How has that changed since I started riding e-bikes! Now, a ride to Jacek and back seems a routine (and not far) ride for me! Viva e-bikes!

 

[Prairie Dog]

Flu like symptoms (non Covid) had me down during much of the holiday season (much to my chagrin) and so I was unable to get out for a ride until yesterday when I regained most of my strength back. With such mild weather that we’ve recently been facing, I wasn’t going to miss an opportunity to hit the trails even if it was just for a brief outing.

I figured that a good start to my morning would involve a couple of laps at a local rink. I did my best to stay out of the penalty box but did incur a number of icing calls on my shift.

Then it was time to test the ice quality at the Bower Ponds which is usually well maintained by our city crews. They were, in fact, just re-flooding the ice as I gingerly made my way onto the slick surface.

Next, I headed north and rode the Pines Singletrack where conditions were decent though a bit more snow along some root exposed sections would have proven ideal.

I felt good as I headed home through Kin Kanyon just in time for lunch. Well worth the effort despite the chiding that I got from my better half. I wouldn’t be denied, however, as I enjoyed the brisk 23 km ride for what it was worth.

 

[Prairie Dog]

Later that evening, I was encouraged once again to sneak out into darkness and take in the light show at City Hall Park as well as a lap around my own hood.

 

[Chargeride]

We had the most incredible sudden and completely un predicted thunder storm last night, we went outside to try to work out what the strange throbbing, droning noise was when a flash not unlike an exploding star lit the sky from horizon to horizon in a blinding white and steady arc, it lasted for 2 seconds uninterrupted and I swear I though we had been nuked, it was quickly followed by flashes on the horizon bouncing across the entire area, this went on for a good few minutes and then police sirens started.
It was quite terrifying.

quickly died down and didn't repeat, woke in the morning to find the nearby city of Manchester had been hit by a suspected tornado, damaging a hundred houses, some quite severely

Quite an event for the UK.

The government have called an emergency meeting!!

 

[DaveMatthews]

Flu like symptoms (non Covid) had me down during much of the holiday season (much to my chagrin) and so I was unable to get out for a ride until yesterday when I regained most of my strength back. With such mild weather that we’ve recently been facing, I wasn’t going to miss an opportunity to hit the trails even if it was just for a brief outing.

I figured that a good start to my morning would involve a couple of laps at a local rink. I did my best to stay out of the penalty box but did incur a number of icing calls on my shift.

View attachment 168658

Then it was time to test the ice quality at the Bower Ponds which is usually well maintained by our city crews. They were, in fact, just re-flooding the ice as I gingerly made my way onto the slick surface.

View attachment 168659
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View attachment 168661
View attachment 168662

Next, I headed north and rode the Pines Singletrack where conditions were decent though a bit more snow along some root exposed sections would have proven ideal.

View attachment 168663
View attachment 168665
View attachment 168664
View attachment 168666

I felt good as I headed home through Kin Kanyon just in time for lunch. Well worth the effort despite the chiding that I got from my better half. I wouldn’t be denied, however, as I enjoyed the brisk 23 km ride for what it was worth.

View attachment 168667

Good to hear you're feeling better!