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

[Stefan Mikes]

Last evening, I collected the DT Swiss hub for the new Vado 6.0 wheel, and today a courier brought me the DT Swiss rim. To my surprise, both parts were made in Switzerland (I expected them made in the Polish factory).

With the rim across my chest.

The day was surprisingly warm and dry (I was lucky not to be caught by raining!) I mounted my Vado SL (with the hub in the pannier) and rode to the LBS with the rim across my chest! While I was riding, my thigh was hitting the rim as I was pedalling, making the ride dangerous! Eventually, I was keeping the rim with one hand and the other was holding the handlebar grip with the fingers resting on the brake lever I had to ride across the road four times, and I had to climb an overpass and descend from it! Don't try it yourselves!

The mechanic was positively surprised with the speed I managed ordering, buying and getting the wheel parts. He even did not ask for a deposit, and told me he perceived me as a regular and trusted customer. He promised using high quality advanced spokes for the wheel, and I hope to get the newly built wheel soon!

Meanwhile, the only e-bike remaining for my use is the Vado SL. Let's see what the weekend brings!

 

[ruffruff]

This is one of my favorite trails to ride. It's a 13.4 mile loop through a county park. They are working with the state to help repopulate trumpeter swans. They run a pump all winter so there is open water and the local swans congregate here. They see you coming and the all start trumpeting. It's awesome.

 

[ruffruff]

All that's left of a deer, and we have lots of snow yet!

 

[Stefan Mikes]

On A 130 Km Forest Ride Just To...

Eat DEM COOKIEZ

 

[tomjasz]

Jeebus, Jello. I've never seen as many jello dishes as seen here in the old Polish immigrant neighborhood. I find it curious. The powdered delight looks interesting. My grandmothers were poppy seed filling. The name escapes me.

Basilica of Saint Stanislaus Kostka - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

Leave a Vado SL in a plain brown wrapper at my door, or I'm sending this photo to your internist.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Turns out to be a Gran Fondo (130 km)

Because I had to buy cigarettes...

 

[PatriciaK]

FINALLY good enough weather (in NC), FINALLY recovered enough from knee sprain, FINALLY recovered enough from COVID-19, FINALLY back out on my Flow!





It's been WAY too long since my last ride, but, I'm back!

 

[Gionnirocket]

View attachment 150038
With the rim across my chest.

How about taking a bath and maybe buying a mirror.

 

[BlackHand]

FINALLY good enough weather (in NC), FINALLY recovered enough from knee sprain, FINALLY recovered enough from COVID-19, FINALLY back out on my Flow!

It's been WAY too long since my last ride, but, I'm back!

Great to see you back on the bike. Didn't realize you were still down in the Triad.

 

[PatriciaK]

Great to see you back on the bike. Didn't realize you were still down in the Triad.

We just recently returned - had been back in WA since mid-December...I think I rode my La Free ONCE, before all sorts of things went to hell in a handbasket since the beginning of the year .

 

[Prairie Dog]

As each day passes, the slow deterioration along the trails is becoming more evident. I’ll continue to ride on studded tires until the ground has thawed and the last shard of ice has melted. Fortunately, there is still plenty of snow under the shade of forest canopy and in along other areas where the sun don’t shine. I do feel somewhat bittersweet that our winter wonderland that we’ve been so accustomed to seeing over the past 5-6 months will eventually become a distant memory but I’m also looking forward to the summer months ahead as we prepare to hit the road once again with some epic trips planned including a ride out to the west coast.

Today’s 33 + km ride covered three separate trails including a short run along the Garden Heights single track. Morning temperature at the outset was -14 windchill perfect for a two-hour morning spin as the ground conditions start to get a bit softer with the afternoon sun.

A shot of the Bigfoot just before we climb the hill in the background. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my brief time on the Norco (which I fondly refer to as the ‘Wookie’) but will likely turn my attention to logging more time on the Levo once the singles become bare and dry. When it comes to winter trail riding, I must confess that nothing, in my mind, comes close to what this fat bike can accomplish. For a bigfoot, it’s fast and nimble on its own two feet wheels. I would have enjoyed a ride or two up in the mountains but with warmer days ahead, I’ll likely defer an outing until next season.

Completing the outer loop along the the Heritage Ranch Single.

This section of pathway towards the Pines trailhead was covered in a thick layer of ultra smooth ice. It’s treacherously deceptive as it could easily be mistaken for a very long stretch of melt water.

A serene moment chilling out along the Pines singletrack.

I’ve thought of myself as a tree hugger at times and, on this occasion, there was no doubt in my mind that I felt at one with the local poplars. Thankfully, no scraped or bruised elbows this time around….knock on wood.

Heading home for lunch, it’s obvious that the city crews do a superb job of clearing a layer of snow from the local pathways creating a smooth surface for walkers. I can’t say the same for our bike lanes which remain covered in ice and snow.

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

As each day passes, the slow deterioration along the trails is becoming more evident. I’ll continue to ride on studded tires until the ground has thawed and the last shard of ice has melted. Fortunately, there is still plenty of snow under the shade of forest canopy and in along other areas where the sun don’t shine. I do feel somewhat bittersweet that our winter wonderland that we’ve been so accustomed to seeing over the past 5-6 months will eventually become a distant memory but I’m also looking forward to the summer months ahead as we prepare to hit the road once again with some epic trips planned including a ride out to the west coast.

View attachment 150144

Today’s 33 + km ride covered three separate trails including a short run along the Garden Heights single track. Morning temperature at the outset was -14 windchill perfect for a two-hour morning spin as the ground conditions start to get a bit softer with the afternoon sun.

View attachment 150137

A shot of the Bigfoot just before we climb the hill in the background. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my brief time on the Norco (which I fondly refer to as the ‘Wookie’) but will likely turn my attention to logging more time on the Levo once the singles become bare and dry. When it comes to winter trail riding, I must confess that nothing, in my mind, comes close to what this fat bike can accomplish. For a bigfoot, it’s fast and nimble on its own two feet wheels. I would have enjoyed a ride or two up in the mountains but with warmer days ahead, I’ll likely defer an outing until next season.

View attachment 150136
View attachment 150142

Completing the outer loop along the the Heritage Ranch Single.

View attachment 150143

This section of pathway towards the Pines trailhead was covered in a thick layer of ultra smooth ice. It’s treacherously deceptive as it could easily be mistaken for a very long stretch of melt water.

View attachment 150139

A serene moment chilling out along the Pines singletrack.

View attachment 150138
I’ve thought of myself as a tree hugger at times and, on this occasion, there was no doubt in my mind that I felt at one with the local poplars. Thankfully, no scraped or bruised elbows this time around….knock on wood.

View attachment 150140

Heading home for lunch, it’s obvious that the city crews do a superb job of clearing a layer of snow from the local pathways creating a smooth surface for walkers. I can’t say the same for our bike lanes which remain covered in ice and snow.

View attachment 150141

I can see why you're gonna miss your winter wonderland. How long is your mud season? Bet you won't be missing that one.

 

[Prairie Dog]

I can see why you're gonna miss your winter wonderland. How long is your mud season? Bet you won't be missing that one.

It really depends on the weather conditions. I really hate riding in the muck and I really don’t fancy fenders though I realize that they are an absolute necessity if one wants to maintain any degree of dignity exiting the trails.

Here are a few images taken sometime around the first week of April last year while riding with a buddy on the local trails.

 

[PatriciaK]

Trying to get a streak going .

Took my neighbor, who bought the same bike as mine (newer model) back in November for HER first real ride. She fell when she first got the bike, then we left for the west coast and she never got back on it. Today did not go well for her . She was very tentative because of her earlier fall, and she forgot she has a throttle, so she fell after losing momentum on a hard packed gravel hill on the otherwise mostly paved trail. After a few minutes of recovery, she decided to go on, so we adjusted the ride to leave the gravel and ride on the road. Sunday morning, not much traffic, worked ok.

Riding in the city, lots of stops are necessary at light signals and cross streets, and friend was sort of clunky, but doing ok, until, stopping at the light at the end of the Guilford Courthouse Battlefield Park, her vest caught the back of her seat while she tried to get off, and down she went again. Fortunately for the brand new bike, both falls were slow speed, so, while she got pretty banged up (and much swearing ensued, understandably), the bike just got a little scratch on the brake lever.

Got up and going again (we were well past the halfway point, so onward was the only possibility. Actually, my PM offered to ride home and get the car to transport friend and bike back, but she soldiered on... And then it started raining .

The rest of the ride was on sidewalk beside a busy street, and we made it home without any further mishaps other than getting wet. I had my waterproof windbreaker on, so was the driest of the three of us. Note to self: put your rain pants in your bike bag!!!

Oh, and my ride tracker paused itself and never started back up, so only recorded half the ride .

My PM says he's never riding with this friend again, and friend is most likely giving up and selling her bike. Anyone in the Piedmont Triad interested in a nearly brand new dark green 21 Espin Flow with less than 15 total miles on it ?

Half of the ride:



A little damp, but happy rider:

 

[RabH]

Another Sunday ride, love it when we get decent weather on a Sunday A cold NE wind around 20mph made it a chilly one and the first 33 miles were into the wind, the difference in temp when I turned west was like day and night! My plan was to head for Newbigging and turn on to the road to Dunsyre which I used recently but was forced to turn back as it was taking me back to Biggar which I had left earlier that day! I was so glad I did as the road is just awesome and so are the views, the Pentland and Tinto Hills were still covered in snow...what Spring?

My first battery was taking a beating with the wind and climbing so I dropped into the small ring and started spinning in eco mode, I ended up getting 38 miles from the battery despite it being down to 46% pretty quickly! The strange thing was it usually drops off a cliff when it reaches 20% but I got another 8 miles from it today, I think it was because I recently charged it to 100% and it balanced the cells out! A few miles along the new road from Dunsyre and the views were amazing!

I was now on the road to Biggar and spotted lots of young lambs in this field, they looked as if they were a few weeks old already! I'm sure they were wishing they had big coats like their parents, it was freezing!

I really enjoyed the road from Dunsyre to Biggar, its actually the busy main A702 but being a Sunday it wasn't too bad! The best part was I had the wind behind me and it was a gradual downhill and the road was super smooth I was now heading for Symington and passed over the River Clyde with a lovely view of the snow covered Tinto Hills!

The road then joins the main A73 which is also a great road to ride when the wind is behind you, its not very often I use this road in a westerly direction but it was the perfect day for it and the views were still amazing!

I passed the road which leads to the car park for the Tinto Hills and the car park looked pretty full, its a popular place on a Sunday! You can see some of the cars in this photo, I'm not a fan of the hills like my 2 brothers...cycling for me

Looking back along the A73, you won't see it like this on a week day...

The A73 leads to Hyndford Bridge where I would turn north up the big climb into Lanark and back into the wind, the River Clyde was flowing fast under the bridge!

I arrived in Lanark and stopped off at Lanark Loch for a couple of photos, it looks warm but believe me looks can be deceiving and I quickly departed

I passed through Lanark and stayed on the A73 all the way home, one last photo of the Clyde Valley below before I started the big climb up to Braidwood!

No issues all the way home and after washing the bike i had a lovely hot shower before falling asleep! Another fantastic ride and I was lucky to avoid any showers, I heard sleet was falling in some parts but I didn't even see a drop of itMy bike will be 5 years old on Friday and this was my 499th ride, I'm not sure if I will get number 500 this week as the weather isn't looking promising...time will tell!

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

My bike will be 5 years old on Friday and this was my 499th ride, I'm not sure if I will get number 500 this week as the weather isn't looking promising...time will tell!

Everybody loves anniversaries and round numbers. So if I were in your shoes, I'd at least ride that bike around the block to get in #500 by Friday. Mum's the word!

 

[Prairie Dog]

Everybody loves anniversaries and round numbers. So if I were in your shoes, I'd at least ride that bike around the block to get in #500 by Friday. Mum's the word!

Knowing @RabH, he’ll likely cap off ride #500 with another metric century!

 

[RabH]

Everybody loves anniversaries and round numbers. So if I were in your shoes, I'd at least ride that bike around the block to get in #500 by Friday. Mum's the word!

Any opportunity will be taken!

Knowing @RabH, he’ll likely cap off ride #500 with another metric century!

For sure it won't be around the block...

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Exploring The KPN West

Our huge Kampinos National Park is divided into the East and West parts. The eastern part is close to Warsaw, so it is so well explored it is simply boring. To my surprise, I learned many of my Warsaw based cycling buddies have never ridden inside the KPN West, as it was too far away for them! I decided to plan and execute a perfect Route Plan for my Graveloza CC for last weekend. There were two rides:

• A 130 km (80 mi) Vado SL solo ride on Saturday. I totally surprised myself! Riding from home, returning home via the place I could buy my cigarettes! It was a very intensive albeit slow ride, using all the SL batteries I owned because of the terrain resistance, climbs, and headwind.
• A 74- km (46- mi) ride on Vado 6.0 with my brother Jacek from Leszno on Sunday. Jacek was the reviewer of the Route Plan, and he insisted on making several improvements to make the Plan manageable for gravel cyclists. The stupidity I made was only taking a single battery and relying on Smart Control. I could only ride slowly, and returned on only 9% of the battery!

As for the weather... We Poles say: "March Is A Melting Pot". Cold, warm. Sunshine, raining, a single thunder. Strong headwind. Oh, man.

One of a few unpleasant places on the trip. It is doable to do a technical climb onto the long sand dune (selecting a proper riding line behind the tree and negotiating tree roots) but most of gravel cyclists would simply carry their bikes there. The Kampinos Forest is formed of long west-east sand dunes with marshes between them.

At Zamczysko, Sunday. There was a burgh in 13th c. at the site.

At the Widymajer Homestead, The Forest Settlement Open-Air Museum on Saturday. Ironically, that museum is closed for Sundays! While most of the tourist frequent the KPN on Sundays! I was actually begged by the museum guide to get in and watch the inside of the house! (The mound between the houses is a former cellar, it is a shelter for bats and rare bugs now).

The 300 years old Insurgents Oak. The Russian were hanging young Polish insurgents on that very tree back in 1863. (You may understand why we Poles are not fond of Russia or Russians...)

A series of climbs, one after another. My Vado SL failed me there. I could climb the most steep ascent on the Vado 6.0 though.

At the picturesque narrow gauge railway stop in Wilcze Tułowskie. The train operates in the warm season only. (The paint was fresh!)

Equestrians on a rail trail I better not took. (Sand & mud, surface damaged by horse hoofs).

You could see the cakes I bought (and ate) "At Marta's" in one of the previous posts of mine. On Sunday, we had to find the safety of the store as we were caught by a heavy (although short lasting) rainfall there. (Did I tell you I was fond of cats?)

At the River Vistula in the Hollander Land. There should be a ferry crossing there (but that has never happened!)

9% ascent? A big deal indeed! (There is a long anti-flood embankment along Vistula, perhaps several hundred of km). The land along Vistula was colonized by Dutch Mennonite (and then German) settlers, collectively known as Hollanders in the olden days. That community and all their culture was destroyed as the outcome of WWII, sadly.

The exit of the beautiful Wilków Road.

A bridge over marshes.

Red: Saturday ride
Blue: Sunday ride
The final Route Plan has been corrected once more! I lost a mirror on a "too MTBish" segment!

My butt hurts!