Prairie Dog
Well-Known Member
- Region
- Canada
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- Red Deer
Red Deer to Lacombe Loop
Between knocking off items from my seasonal ‘to do’ list, training rides and trips out to the community garden plots, I’ve barely found time to check in on the latest happenings in the forums.
With an impending trip to the west coast planned later this summer, my better half and I have been focusing virtually all of our rides on brief acoustic outings with hope of maintaining our conditioning but today we decided to up the ante a bit and head further out on the Creos which were fully laden with gear. My two panniers and trunk bag tipped the scales around 15-20 kgs which I estimate will be close to what I hope will be the final weigh in for the trip.
I started the ride with the Creo’s internal battery level registering 68 % and the RE 90%. By the end of the ride, battery levels respectively for both were 44% and 60%. The last 10km I pushed the pace in turbo in an attempt to beat an impending thunderstorm just west of our location and also had to battle 55kph wind gusts as we closed in on home base.
We both were able to log many miles of road without the aid of PAS and the although there was a noticeable weight gain, the bikes were incredibly stable and thankfully power was on tap when needed.
The conditions were ideal as we set out east along Hwy 11. I stopped at the top of this climb to snap a quick pic.
My wife enjoys this stretch of asphalt called the Freedom Road. With the exception of locals, there are few vehicles on this road and the smooth pavement is nice to roll along. The only caveat concerns a farm property where the owners of the home allow their large dog to roam freely about and without hesitation it takes liberty at chasing down anyone who dares to walk/ride by. We were caught off guard the first time as the pitbull/rottie mix almost caught up to us. There was no fooling about this time around as we spotted Fido running out of the yard towards us. We gunned it and left the pooch in our dust. The short spike on the assist level graph at the 25km mark is where we made our mad dash. Dark ominous clouds can be seen in the distance and once we arrived in Lacombe, the skies opened up. We took shelter at local ice cream shop a la @Stefan Mikes and waited until the storm passed by.
We came across this solar project well on its way to becoming a permanent sight on the surrounding landscape. It occupies the parcel of land right next door to one of the largest petrochemical/polyethylene plants in the world.
This is one of the trains with its load that leaves the rail yards daily at the Joffre Nova poly complex which sees about 20,000 tank cars a year.
On the return leg, we made a brief pitstop at this farm which sported a bright red barn and ornamental JD implement at the front of the property.
Back at it again tomorrow weather permitting.
Between knocking off items from my seasonal ‘to do’ list, training rides and trips out to the community garden plots, I’ve barely found time to check in on the latest happenings in the forums.
With an impending trip to the west coast planned later this summer, my better half and I have been focusing virtually all of our rides on brief acoustic outings with hope of maintaining our conditioning but today we decided to up the ante a bit and head further out on the Creos which were fully laden with gear. My two panniers and trunk bag tipped the scales around 15-20 kgs which I estimate will be close to what I hope will be the final weigh in for the trip.
I started the ride with the Creo’s internal battery level registering 68 % and the RE 90%. By the end of the ride, battery levels respectively for both were 44% and 60%. The last 10km I pushed the pace in turbo in an attempt to beat an impending thunderstorm just west of our location and also had to battle 55kph wind gusts as we closed in on home base.
We both were able to log many miles of road without the aid of PAS and the although there was a noticeable weight gain, the bikes were incredibly stable and thankfully power was on tap when needed.
The conditions were ideal as we set out east along Hwy 11. I stopped at the top of this climb to snap a quick pic.
My wife enjoys this stretch of asphalt called the Freedom Road. With the exception of locals, there are few vehicles on this road and the smooth pavement is nice to roll along. The only caveat concerns a farm property where the owners of the home allow their large dog to roam freely about and without hesitation it takes liberty at chasing down anyone who dares to walk/ride by. We were caught off guard the first time as the pitbull/rottie mix almost caught up to us. There was no fooling about this time around as we spotted Fido running out of the yard towards us. We gunned it and left the pooch in our dust. The short spike on the assist level graph at the 25km mark is where we made our mad dash. Dark ominous clouds can be seen in the distance and once we arrived in Lacombe, the skies opened up. We took shelter at local ice cream shop a la @Stefan Mikes and waited until the storm passed by.
We came across this solar project well on its way to becoming a permanent sight on the surrounding landscape. It occupies the parcel of land right next door to one of the largest petrochemical/polyethylene plants in the world.
This is one of the trains with its load that leaves the rail yards daily at the Joffre Nova poly complex which sees about 20,000 tank cars a year.
On the return leg, we made a brief pitstop at this farm which sported a bright red barn and ornamental JD implement at the front of the property.
Back at it again tomorrow weather permitting.
Staying near to Toruń (a city on the Vistula originally established by the Teutonic Knights; the hometown of Copernicus) by Sunday and then returning to Warsaw by train.
Am on a Metric Century ride from Kutno to my place. Against massive headwind! 37 km left... I seem to be liking challenges!
