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

Stefan Mikes said:
Demo riding a Turbo Levo SL tomorrow :)
I'm fed up with heavy e-bikes. Wondering whether the LSL will carry me through a sandy climb? Given its mountain gearing 30-50T, it sounds doable!
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Been seriously thinking about adding a lighter FS mtb to the fleet. Many of the singletracks that I wish to ride don’t allow e-mtbs. Go figure. :rolleyes:

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Not much experience with loose sand unless you ride a fat bike. I don’t think deep knobby treads will aid much in traction but likely lower tire pressure will count the most.
 
Some of these non powered bikes sure look like fun, don’t they? I was at my LBS picking up my Creo with it’s new shoes - Pathfinder Pros, set up tubeless, 700x38 - and saw a new stock arrival, some hot damn flavor of carbon Diverge, beautiful white bike with a 40 tooth chainring, 11-50 12 speed cassette, and electronic AXS shifting. Stunning, but just a teeny bit expensive!

Oh, and by the way, go for it, of course! Life’s short.
 
Over recent times it seems to me that an increasing number of major posts in this thread have little direct relevance to "2023 - Our Rides in Words, Photos, Maps and Videos" and would be best suited other existing threads of greater relevance.

Then again, maybe it doesn't matter?

Cheers
 
Saratoga Dave said:
Some of these non powered bikes sure look like fun, don’t they? I was at my LBS picking up my Creo with it’s new shoes - Pathfinder Pros, set up tubeless, 700x38 - and saw a new stock arrival, some hot damn flavor of carbon Diverge, beautiful white bike with a 40 tooth chainring, 11-50 12 speed cassette, and electronic AXS shifting. Stunning, but just a teeny bit expensive!

Oh, and by the way, go for it, of course! Life’s short.
Click to expand...
Without a doubt, my go to bike for daily rides is the Supersix Evo. It’s built purely for the road and fits like a glove. While the Creo has its place in the lineup, it’s not a bike that can rival the speed, agility and handling of the C-dale.

Enjoy those Pathfinders, Dave. I'll likely replace my Riddlers with them when the time comes.
 
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peterh_nz said:
Over recent times it seems to me that an increasing number of major posts in this thread have little direct relevance to "2023 - Our Rides in Words, Photos, Maps and Videos" and would be best suited other existing threads of greater relevance.

Then again, maybe it doesn't matter?

Cheers
Click to expand...
I find that many of the forum posts here tend to digress to some degree but most always shift back to the intended theme of the thread.

With that being said, it was nice to be back on local roads today. There’s a lot to be said about familiarity and a keen awareness one develops when riding on home turf. Love to explore new places but having to deal with the unpleasant and sometimes dangerous task of riding on heavily trafficked roads is something I do not look forward to. I’ll definitely be selecting our routes more diligently in the future.

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Now if they could just finish with the road repairs that seem to be taking forever, our rides would be so much more…complete.

GH012409 - frame at 0m50s.jpg
 
Prairie Dog said:
I find that many of the forum posts here tend to digress to some degree but most always shift back to the intended theme of the thread.

With that being said, it was nice to be back on local roads today. There’s a lot to be said about familiarity and a keen awareness one develops when riding on home turf. Love to explore new places but having to deal with the unpleasant and sometimes dangerous task of riding on heavily trafficked roads is something I do not look forward to. I’ll definitely be selecting our routes more diligently in the future.

View attachment 162250
View attachment 162248

Now if they could just finish with the road repairs that seem to be taking forever, our rides would be so much more…complete.

View attachment 162249
Click to expand...
On topic!
 
peterh_nz said:
Over recent times it seems to me that an increasing number of major posts in this thread have little direct relevance to "2023 - Our Rides in Words, Photos, Maps and Videos" and would be best suited other existing threads of greater relevance.

Then again, maybe it doesn't matter?

Cheers
Click to expand...
You could contribute yourself a little, Peter, couldn't you :)
 
Sadly, the recent brutal temps - 97°f (36°c) yesterday and 99°f (37°c) the day before and before that and before that ad nausum - have kept me off the bike and inside anywhere there is AC.

(Sorta off topic but not entirely because my ebike is in the pics)

Anyway....we took a trip to Maryland on Wednesday and picked up something (other than a bike) that was electric:
Screenshot_20230907_000817.jpg

Extremely long story short- because it began 4/2019 with a preorder on the Rivian, the first electric truck to be made/sold in the US. On August 30th I had a chance to try one for a test drive at the Rivian service center in Maryland. It was 99° that day. Not even halfway through the test drive it was total love for both hubby and myself. So much so that I wanted my truck NOW. I ditched my "6 more months to wait" 400 mile range preorder to buy instead a 320 mile range in the same configuration that was available from Rivian's online "store" of cancelled preorders.

Purchase was 100% online which was gloriously uncomplicated with none of the typical American car dealership BS. No sooner did I click the "purchase" tab than the webpage showed 1-6 weeks for delivery. A few minutes later an email came through from Rivian that the truck would be at their Maryland service center in 6 days. YES!

6 days later (in temps topping 104°f (40°c)) we drove the old Ford diesel truck to Maryland (as a trade-in), and came home with this gorgeous new electric truck. We are now an all electric vehicle and electric bike family.

A number of posts back (sometime in January or February?) I shared that I had painted my raffle won Gazelle in Rivian Blue to match my pre--order which I didn't expect until December of this year (latest update pushed delivery to the 1st Quarter 2024). So here's the obligatory bike pic of the matching Rivian and the Gazelle together.

20230908_160412~2.jpg

The truck is faster than most sports cars (0-60 in 3.2 seconds with a G force of 1.44), quad motors (one on each wheel) and a dream to drive. Loaded to the gills with technology, the most intriguing being that it doesn't "turn off" like a legacy vehicle, but instead "goes to sleep" like your computer/tablet/phone so that it's always instantly ready for you. It even "kneels" for those of us who are a bit height disadvantaged to get in and out of the truck. Brilliant!

The hitch bar on the bike rack we used with the Ford truck is just a tad too short for the Rivian - the bike sits too close to the tailgate - so tomorrow, when we expect a forecast of mere 85°f, we'll head to a local metal fabrication shop to see about ordering a new longer receiver for the bike rack. I want to use this Gazelle and the truck for all the upcoming Fall season charity bike rides. The Rappahannock Rough Ride is this coming weekend (about 45 miles south in Rappahannock County), and the 70 mile Gravel Grinder in my area is the following weekend.

That's all for now...except to say we finally broke our severe drought with a line of rain storms yesterday and overnight, and incidentally have one racing through right now. The local gravel roads will be a lot nicer for riding now that the rains have eliminated the dusty conditions.

My neighbor called this morning to arrange a ride for tomorrow midmorning. We are expecting lovely cool Fall weather. I'll write all about it in my next post.
20230908_160443.jpg
 
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Yesterday, we went to one of our favourite places to ride, Grafham Water Reservoir and cycled round it three times.
IMG_2151.jpeg


Again, the weather blistering hot for the UK in September with it being 27oC (80.6oF) when we started and 33oC (89.6oF) when we finished.

This will be our last ride for a week or so as my Step-son is over from Poland with a mate visiting us. We’ve got a hectic week planned out.

DG…
 
The Paul & Pawel Ride
(Specialized Turbo Levo SL Comp Demo Ride)

Around 9:30 am on Saturday, I managed to gather three other people at Specialized Warsaw.

1694323963820.png

My dear friend Makenzen had her knee badly damaged in a recumbent bike accident. She is told by the doctor to ride bikes, as cycling does not involve lateral knee movement and my friend needs a lot of workout in addition to surgery and rehabilitation! She tried a Como, and that was her first real attempt to get into the e-bike world!

1694324210328.png

My friends admiring an S-Works Levo :) Pawel (left) is a prolific graphic artist and a marathon runner. Paul (right) has been (inter alia) a competing gravel cyclist until a surgery; he has to recover and regain his strength now. (Both are a tad younger than I am).

1694324379228.png

Pawel has got wildly interested in a purchase of a Specialized Diverge Comp Carbon gravel bike. The bike is as lightweight as I could keep it lifted for many minutes, and still be smiling!

Levo SL Comp Rental
I heard from Pawel the rental of a Specialized bike/e-bike was very expensive nowadays. What a surprise! The friendly salesman told me he could not charge me for a day if I only wanted to use the Levo SL for less than five hours, and he charged me just a hundred! (A hundred zloty is what you pay for three pieces of cheesecake and three cups of coffee in an expensive restaurant...)

1694327436926.png

Ready steady go!

A spectacular crash!

We had to ride mostly pavement (and some gravel) to get to the woods. At some place in Konstancin-Jeziorna, Pawel abruptly stopped in front of me, and I had to pull brake levers hard. The Levo SL brakes are sharp like a razor, and also the suspension fork deeply sagged. I experienced the most classic Over-The-Bars!

1694327636832.png

'I'm totally fine, guys! When I flew over the bars, I instantly realised what was happening. While flying, I rotated my body as to fall onto my back! I was as agile as a panther!' :D Trust me: No harm to me or to the e-bike! (A symbolic road rash on my elbow, just symbolic!)

The Ride Experience
I hated the Levo SL on the pavement. Because of the e-bike geometry and of a smallish 30T chainring, I could not ride it any fast on road. While off-road, the worse the terrain was becoming the better. I could impress my buddies by climbing up a small hill in deep sand! I also loved riding through any potholes or other trail imperfections to make sure the Levo SL was goddam good suspended and the tyres were maintaining the traction at all times. It was a pleasure to be able to lift the e-bike and carry it over a fallen tree trunk for two times!

1694328294780.png

Having fun at the White Giraffe, a high-end restaurant in Chylice-Pólko.

1694328374175.png

Pawel has such funny photographic ideas! Hahaha! :D

1694328421759.png

The dessert was more expensive than my Levo SL rental!

1694328473482.png

Not Australia but that train was still extremely slow and very long!

1694328535320.png

My facial expression says it all: "No, no, no!"

The Verdict
If you do 100% mountain technical singletrack and are a strong person, Levo SL is the e-bike for you. Not suitable for pavement rides at all. Honestly, I would feel far better if I had my Vado SL ("gravelized") on the same route!

No Map
Just reporting I rode for 100.5 km on last Saturday, and am setting off for another ride now!
 
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Readytoride said:
Sadly, the recent brutal temps - 97°f (36°c) yesterday and 99°f (37°c) the day before and before that and before that ad nausum - have kept me off the bike and inside anywhere there is AC.

(Sorta off topic but not entirely because my ebike is in the pics)

Anyway....we took a trip to Maryland on Wednesday and picked up something (other than a bike) that was electric:
View attachment 162258
Extremely long story short- because it began 4/2019 with a preorder on the Rivian, the first electric truck to be made/sold in the US. On August 30th I had a chance to try one for a test drive at the Rivian service center in Maryland. It was 99° that day. Not even halfway through the test drive it was total love for both hubby and myself. So much so that I wanted my truck NOW. I ditched my "6 more months to wait" 400 mile range preorder to buy instead a 320 mile range in the same configuration that was available from Rivian's online "store" of cancelled preorders.

Purchase was 100% online which was gloriously uncomplicated with none of the typical American car dealership BS. No sooner did I click the "purchase" tab than the webpage showed 1-6 weeks for delivery. A few minutes later an email came through from Rivian that the truck would be at their Maryland service center in 6 days. YES!

6 days later (in temps topping 104°f (40°c)) we drove the old Ford diesel truck to Maryland (as a trade-in), and came home with this gorgeous new electric truck. We are now an all electric vehicle and electric bike family.

A number of posts back (sometime in January or February?) I shared that I had painted my raffle won Gazelle in Rivian Blue to match my pre--order which I didn't expect until December of this year (latest update pushed delivery to the 1st Quarter 2024). So here's the obligatory bike pic of the matching Rivian and the Gazelle together.

View attachment 162259
The truck is faster than most sports cars (0-60 in 3.2 seconds with a G force of 1.44), quad motors (one on each wheel) and a dream to drive. Loaded to the gills with technology, the most intriguing being that it doesn't "turn off" like a legacy vehicle, but instead "goes to sleep" like your computer/tablet/phone so that it's always instantly ready for you. It even "kneels" for those of us who are a bit height disadvantaged to get in and out of the truck. Brilliant!

The hitch bar on the bike rack we used with the Ford truck is just a tad too short for the Rivian - the bike sits too close to the tailgate - so tomorrow, when we expect a forecast of mere 85°f, we'll head to a local metal fabrication shop to see about ordering a new longer receiver for the bike rack. I want to use this Gazelle and the truck for all the upcoming Fall season charity bike rides. The Rappahannock Rough Ride is this coming weekend (about 45 miles south in Rappahannock County), and the 70 mile Gravel Grinder in my area is the following weekend.

That's all for now...except to say we finally broke our severe drought with a line of rain storms yesterday and overnight, and incidentally have one racing through right now. The local gravel roads will be a lot nicer for riding now that the rains have eliminated the dusty conditions.

My neighbor called this morning to arrange a ride for tomorrow midmorning. We are expecting lovely cool Fall weather. I'll write all about it in my next post.
View attachment 162260
Click to expand...
LOVE the bike…nice truck too
I came out of a grocery the other day to find a large Ford 250 Lightning next to my tiny Honda Ridgeline
 
Stefan Mikes said:
The Paul & Pawel Ride
(Specialized Turbo Levo SL Comp Demo Ride)

Around 9:30 am on Saturday, I managed to gather three other people at Specialized Warsaw.

View attachment 162317
My dear friend Makenzen had her knee badly damaged in a recumbent bike accident. She is told by the doctor to ride bikes, as cycling does not involve lateral knee movement and my friend needs a lot of workout in addition to surgery and rehabilitation! She tried a Como, and that was her first real attempt to get into the e-bike world!

View attachment 162318
My friends admiring an S-Works Levo :) Pawel (left) is a prolific graphic artist and a marathon runner. Paul (right) has been (inter alia) a competing gravel cyclist until a surgery; he has to recover and regain his strength now. (Both are a tad younger than I am).

View attachment 162319
Pawel has got wildly interested in a purchase of a Specialized Diverge Comp Carbon gravel bike. The bike is as lightweight as I could keep it lifted for many minutes, and still be smiling!

Levo SL Comp Rental
I heard from Pawel the rental of a Specialized bike/e-bike was very expensive nowadays. What a surprise! The friendly salesman told me he could not charge me for a day if I only wanted to use the Levo SL for less than five hours, and he charged me just a hundred! (A hundred zloty is what you pay for three pieces of cheesecake and three cups of coffee in an expensive restaurant...)

View attachment 162322
Ready steady go!

A spectacular crash!

We had to ride mostly pavement (and some gravel) to get to the woods. At some place in Konstancin-Jeziorna, Pawel abruptly stopped in front of me, and I had to pull brake levers hard. The Levo SL brakes are sharp like a razor, and also the suspension fork deeply sagged. I experienced the most classic Over-The-Bars!

View attachment 162323
'I'm totally fine, guys! When I flew over the bars, I instantly realised what was happening. While flying, I rotated my body as to fall onto my back! I was as agile as a panther!' :D Trust me: No harm to me or to the e-bike! (A symbolic road rash on my elbow, just symbolic!)

The Ride Experience
I hated the Levo SL on the pavement. Because of the e-bike geometry and of a smallish 30T chainring, I could not ride it any fast on road. While off-road, the worse the terrain was becoming the better. I could impress my buddies by climbing up a small hill in deep sand! I also loved riding through any potholes or other trail imperfections to make sure the Levo SL was goddam good suspended and the tyres were maintaining the traction at all times. It was a pleasure to be able to lift the e-bike and carry it over a fallen tree trunk for two times!

View attachment 162324
Having fun at the White Giraffe, a high-end restaurant in Chylice-Pólko.

View attachment 162325
Pawel has such funny photographic ideas! Hahaha! :D

View attachment 162326
The dessert was more expensive than my Levo SL rental!

View attachment 162327
Not Australia but that train was still extremely slow and very long!

View attachment 162328
My facial expression says it all: "No, no, no!"

The Verdict
If you do 100% mountain technical singletrack and are a strong person, Levo SL is the e-bike for you. Not suitable for pavement rides at all. Honestly, I would feel far better if I had my Vado SL ("gravelized") on the same route!

No Map
Just reporting I rode for 100.5 km on last Saturday, and am setting off for another ride now!
Click to expand...
Glad for your graceful dismount over the bars Stefan. In the words of Pee Wee Herman, “I meant to do that”.

Any ride that you can walk away from is a good one.

 
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