2024 - Our Rides in Words, Photos, Maps and Videos

[Stefan Mikes]

50/28 as I was using level 4 assist lol

You must be insane!

 

[Prairie Dog]

Hit the trails last night on another group ride. Above average temps made for some rather soggy riding by the time I arrived at the scheduled rendezvous. On the upside, it appeared that, for the most part, the forest trails fared rather well under the cover of trees. As we were limited to riding singletrack, it was basically play follow the leader the entire way. A solid dozen showed up including a couple of riders who were taking advantage of testing complimentary demo bikes provided by the LBS. Nice to see the ladies out too.

Temps are forecast to drop to -15C after the weekend along with more snowfall which suits me just fine. Laundry day today after last night’s ride.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Come on!
And you would think it were February, the coldest month in Poland...

On an unassisted workout right now.

 

[Prairie Dog]

Come on!
And you would think it were February, the coldest month in Poland...

On an unassisted workout right now.

Ahh…cue the grass. Thanks, Stefan. Lawns here will still be dormant under snow cover and there likely won’t be any signs of greening up well into April. We are far from out of the woods yet. Spring officially arrives in less than a month but it would be premature to put away the winter apparel. However, we’ve had much less snow cover this past winter so I expect that we may be in for a treat compared to the same time period last year. I’m hoping to shoot for late March when I can swap studs for knobbies and hit the road for the first ride of the season.

There was still plenty of snow on the trails last April but at least the roads were clear.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

At The Girls: An Acoustic Workout

It was more acoustic than you might think! Read on!

If I want to complete the Sudovia Gravel (an electrically assisted race in a dramatically hilly area and with assistance restrictions) and Mazovia Gravel (traditional pedal bike race) this year, I need to be working out hard right now. I made a promise to myself that any recreational or short shopping ride I do on my Vado SL would be done with the motor OFF. (Of course the system must be on for lighting and keeping the e-bike meters running). So I rode southwards this late morning, and never touched the "+" button! (It is vital that I both build my leg muscles and lose some 10 kg of my body weight!)

I was already tired after 12 km into the ride. The reason was a strong wind I had to counter. Against all odds, I promised to myself not to worry about the indicated average speed. I knew I had been in the beginning of my "sporty" journey that will take several months! (It was 9-10 C, and I would not complain if not the wind).

I'm so proud of the cockpit of my Vado SL! I set off for the ride light, only a small back-pack with a spare inner tube and minimal tools, and the water bottle.

Even if I know my greater neighbourhood pretty well, I cannot know every place by heart, so I use GPS navigation. The satnav brought me to that bike path that was designed as a shortcut for cyclists only in the area of not many roads. But the entry to the path was broken by rainwater! (Oh well, I am a gravel cyclist...)

After 21 km, I reached "At The Girls" restaurant.

I was positively shocked there. As The Girls brew excellent coffee, and assorted cakes are delicious there, the restaurant mostly serves the "hipster food", which is not for me. This time, I could order just Pork Chop with potato, stewed cabbage and a hipster salad For a European restaurant, the portion was big, and I had to ask to pack the salad for take-out!

Why do I said the ride was "acoustic". Unfortunately, some squeaking has developed at the right of the crank area. I eliminated the pedals as the cause. It could be the chain/chainring (I have some theory behind it), or it could be worn motor bearing! Anyway, the squeaking added some insult to the injury, and the ride was not only tiresome but also unpleasant!

There were very few cyclists met en route. While I was riding a familiar narrow bike path in Strzeniówka, I could see a cyclist riding from the opposite side. I focused on not crashing into him but he said "Hey Stefan!" I stopped.

That is something magical to meet your cycling mate en route! I know Maciek from our gravel group rides. He lives by Black Grouse Ponds in Warsaw's "Old Italy", and I am fond of him! On the largest group ride I ever attended (save the last year's Race), he was standing in the queue for an hour At The Girls so we both could get our food and drink! (I cannot stand for too a long time). Well, Maciek rode off to see my neighbourhood and I pedalled home.

I didn't like the fact the e-bike lighting and system took as much as 8% of the main battery charge in 2 h 35 minutes! I will need to disconnect the lights for the Sudovia Gravel race!

Regarding the squeaking, I really wanted to take the big Vado and pedal to CentrumRowerowe.pl in Warsaw to buy some items that would eliminate possible reasons of the e-bike noise. However, the parts I really needed were not available in the physical store, so I gave up the idea of more riding for the day. Perhaps it was reasonable as my legs were very tired!

My weighted average leg power was 98 W for the ride, meaning I was inputting significantly more into the cranks than usually!

 

[BlackHand]

Nice job Stefan!

Squeaks and creaks are really annoying! I have a recurring creak in my right pedal/crank from 2 years ago when I had a severe pedal strike on a curb while avoiding a car that decided to turn left right into my path. Usually cleaning and lubing the chainring and chain takes care of it, but sometimes I have to pull the crank and clean/lube behind it to get rid of the creaking.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Nice job Stefan!

Squeaks and creaks are really annoying! I have a recurring creak in my right pedal/crank from 2 years ago when I had a severe pedal strike on a curb while avoiding a car that decided to turn left right into my path. Usually cleaning and lubing the chainring and chain takes care of it, but sometimes I have to pull the crank and clean/lube behind it to get rid of the creaking.

Thank you for sharing your experiences BlackHand!

I'm going to clean the chainring and heavily lube the chain in the morning. Then I think I will take a 50+ km ride for a lunch in Warsaw, unassisted. I will look deeper into the issue together with my brother after I'm back from my business trip in Puławy. He might remove and lube the crank. If it turns the issue is motor related, there are repair kits for the SL 1.1 motor, so Jacek will have something to do for several days

If the latter happens, I intend to ask him to remove the PearTune speed derestrictor! The dongle (if used) generates many system errors; I also grew up so much I am happy with the 25 km/h restriction... especially as my unassisted ride today ended up at the average speed of 16.5 km/h (10 mph) Any assistance is better than no assistance!

 

[Chargeride]

At The Girls: An Acoustic Workout

It was more acoustic than you might think! Read on!

If I want to complete the Sudovia Gravel (an electrically assisted race in a dramatically hilly area and with assistance restrictions) and Mazovia Gravel (traditional pedal bike race) this year, I need to be working out hard right now. I made a promise to myself that any recreational or short shopping ride I do on my Vado SL would be done with the motor OFF. (Of course the system must be on for lighting and keeping the e-bike meters running). So I rode southwards this late morning, and never touched the "+" button! (It is vital that I both build my leg muscles and lose some 10 kg of my body weight!)

View attachment 171689
I was already tired after 12 km into the ride. The reason was a strong wind I had to counter. Against all odds, I promised to myself not to worry about the indicated average speed. I knew I had been in the beginning of my "sporty" journey that will take several months! (It was 9-10 C, and I would not complain if not the wind).

View attachment 171690
I'm so proud of the cockpit of my Vado SL! I set off for the ride light, only a small back-pack with a spare inner tube and minimal tools, and the water bottle.

View attachment 171691
Even if I know my greater neighbourhood pretty well, I cannot know every place by heart, so I use GPS navigation. The satnav brought me to that bike path that was designed as a shortcut for cyclists only in the area of not many roads. But the entry to the path was broken by rainwater! (Oh well, I am a gravel cyclist...)

View attachment 171692
After 21 km, I reached "At The Girls" restaurant.

View attachment 171693
View attachment 171694

I was positively shocked there. As The Girls brew excellent coffee, and assorted cakes are delicious there, the restaurant mostly serves the "hipster food", which is not for me. This time, I could order just Pork Chop with potato, stewed cabbage and a hipster salad For a European restaurant, the portion was big, and I had to ask to pack the salad for take-out!

Why do I said the ride was "acoustic". Unfortunately, some squeaking has developed at the right of the crank area. I eliminated the pedals as the cause. It could be the chain/chainring (I have some theory behind it), or it could be worn motor bearing! Anyway, the squeaking added some insult to the injury, and the ride was not only tiresome but also unpleasant!

There were very few cyclists met en route. While I was riding a familiar narrow bike path in Strzeniówka, I could see a cyclist riding from the opposite side. I focused on not crashing into him but he said "Hey Stefan!" I stopped.

View attachment 171696
That is something magical to meet your cycling mate en route! I know Maciek from our gravel group rides. He lives by Black Grouse Ponds in Warsaw's "Old Italy", and I am fond of him! On the largest group ride I ever attended (save the last year's Race), he was standing in the queue for an hour At The Girls so we both could get our food and drink! (I cannot stand for too a long time). Well, Maciek rode off to see my neighbourhood and I pedalled home.

View attachment 171697
I didn't like the fact the e-bike lighting and system took as much as 8% of the main battery charge in 2 h 35 minutes! I will need to disconnect the lights for the Sudovia Gravel race!

Regarding the squeaking, I really wanted to take the big Vado and pedal to CentrumRowerowe.pl in Warsaw to buy some items that would eliminate possible reasons of the e-bike noise. However, the parts I really needed were not available in the physical store, so I gave up the idea of more riding for the day. Perhaps it was reasonable as my legs were very tired!

View attachment 171698
My weighted average leg power was 98 W for the ride, meaning I was inputting significantly more into the cranks than usually!

Chance meeting with friends, great food and a minor problem (hopefully) to fix.

Perfect day out

 

[BlackHand]

Not much to riding this week, but I did pass 10k miles on the Haibike earlier this week. Yesterday I needed to clear my head and get my blood going, so I went up and over Phinney Ridge on the way home instead of along it like usual.

Went up the steepest graded street in Seattle: 1 block that has never been paved, has a gravel double track and a neighborhood p-patch on the 28% grade that maxes at 32.1% according to RWGPS.

Last time I tried it I failed to shift into my biggest cog before bogging down No prob this time in the 42t as long as I kept to the edge of the gravel.

My bike is looking forward to some TLC, it's due for a full drivetrain replacement but I wanted to hold out past 10k and until spring is fully here. So maybe another month or so of sloppy shifting.

 

[jason.flood]

Why do I said the ride was "acoustic". Unfortunately, some squeaking has developed at the right of the crank area. I eliminated the pedals as the cause. It could be the chain/chainring (I have some theory behind it), or it could be worn motor bearing!

I forgot to mention last week on my ride that I also noticed some squeaking coming from below on my Vado 5.0 SL. For me it sounded like the noise you would get from a rubber soled shoe when it twists on a smooth wet surface or perhaps a wet tire turning on the sort of painted concrete floors in underground parkings. I’m wondering if it could be some kind of rubber seal around the motor bottom bracket

 

[Rás Cnoic]

I forgot to mention last week on my ride that I also noticed some squeaking coming from below on my Vado 5.0 SL. For me it sounded like the noise you would get from a rubber soled shoe when it twists on a smooth wet surface or perhaps a wet tire turning on the sort of painted concrete floors in underground parkings. I’m wondering if it could be some kind of rubber seal around the motor bottom bracket

it could be the rubber cover of the future shock rubbing on the frame as the handlebars rotate. Easy to put a dab of grease or oil on the groove in the toptube where it meets the head tube. Or it could be something totally different. The joy of squeaks, clicks and creaks, finding the source can drive you mad. But I just watched a youtube review of the creo where the reviewer actually used some grease off a pizza slice he had in his pocket to stop his future shock cover from squeaking!

 

[BlackHand]

Great, something else to add to my emergency repair kit - can I at least use thin crust?

 

[Rás Cnoic]

Great, something else to add to my emergency repair kit - can I at least use thin crust?

Here's the 'park tools pizza slice greaser' @ around 4.43 mins in. Seems to do the trick!

 

[Stefan Mikes]

@BlackHand, @jason.flood, @Rás Cnoic: All indications in my case point to the drive side crank. The creaking only occurs when the right-hand pedal goes forward. (I replaced pedals yesterday!)

I will ask Jacek to inspect it on next weekend. As it is now, the noise kills all the pleasure from the ride!

 

[Rás Cnoic]

@BlackHand, @jason.flood, @Rás Cnoic: All indications in my case point to the drive side crank. The creaking only occurs when the right-hand pedal goes forward.

I will ask Jacek to inspect it on next weekend. As it is now, the noise kills all the pleasure from the ride!

The pizza remedy was for Jason and his squeaking bike. My bike has developed a really annoying click lately I'm trying to find the cause of. So annoying!

 

[Kayakguy]

No great photo opportunities today, but I was able to get out on the Champlain canal for a shortish ride. An actual snow event predicted for Saturday night, so I’m going to try and get out in the meantime if I can.

View attachment 169015

I don’t think I’ve ever taken a picture of the sign:

View attachment 169016

Thanks for the opportunity to rant. I'm reacting to your "snow event." Our newspapers and other sources of weather info are now fixated on these "events," and I doubt whether they can ever be weaned off them. So we have "rain events" and "snow events" and "wind events," and before long I expect we"ll have "event events." If this verbal tic had entered our language at the end of WWII, Hiroshima and Nagasaki would have suffered "atomic bomb events."

I tend to cling to old habits, and insist on saying "It rained," or "It's snowing," or "Somebody just dropped an A bomb on us." And of course these things don't just happen, but we "experience" them; so we now have "He's experiencing homelessness," instead of "He's homeless." I realize the language evolves in its own strange and irrational directions, and that my grousing will change nothing.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Unassisted and Assisted Warsaw Rides on Warm Sunday!

The sunshine was as glorious as it woke me up at 8 am! Combined with temps up to +14 C and unobstrusive SSE wind, the weather made crowds of cyclists emerge on this Sunday! I was no exception of course. I wore more lighweight clothes: no longjohns, no gloves, a Spring/Autumn jacket, a warm season helmet and no goggles (I kept a thin balaclava on my head though). My intention was to ride to Fregata unassisted both ways...

As a proper traditional cyclist, I let Komoot find a legit "bike touring" route for me. Off The Aleje, I stopped by the Tram Cemetery again. This time, the photos look sharper, and are really colourful!

Near to Zawisza Square. Now you can see how modern architects could wisely hide the notorious Palace of Culture & Science (PKiN, sometimes called Pekin like Beijing) from the west view of the City! The tall building on the right is the Varso Tower, or presumably the highest building in Poland if you count the spire. It is not the highest if you count the height to the roof though. (PKiN is still the highest building in Poland if measured to the roof).

Instead of riding in the Aleje, I decided to take a quite interesting Nowogrodzka Street in the City South. It is a very long street, and it is organized as one prioritizing bikes! You will find numerous "bike counter-lanes" there, meaning the cyclist can ride against the traffic in a one-way street.

As you certainly know, Warsaw was razed to the ground by German Nazi in 1944. The post-war reconstruction only affected a small number of historical houses of the City. There are many of such reconstructed buildings in the City South. I love the Telecommunication Post Office in Nowogrodzka (1934). At that time, it was the most Modernist building in the City. The signboard reads: "Long distance telephone. Telegraph. Radiotelegraph".

You are in the very centre of the City now. The street is Marszałkowska (Marshall Str). The buildings at the left are named The East Wall (shopping centres) and they originate from 1970s. A rather small glass round structure below the hightower in the centre is called The Rotunda (a bank). The Rotunda exploded (a gas leak) in 1979 and now it is nicely reconstructed. The huge building at the right was the first Western hotel of Warsaw called Forum, and it was built in 1974 (now it is Novotel).

There is a saying: "Busy like Marszałkowska during rush hours"

There it is! The PKiN (1955) is located in the very centre of Warsaw, and remains the tallest building of Poland. It is still well visible from easterly directions (so the Russians who built the Palace can be happy, haha!) Varso Tower is visible on the left, and The Rotunda is now clearly visible. Necessary to mention: If you have a chance to visit Warsaw, it is a must to take the lift to the 30th floor of the Palace and enjoy the city panorama!

In Fregata. This time, I chose Pork Meatball with boiled potatoes and cabbage stew (it is not Bigos, which is slow-cooked). For drinking, I took Polish Clear Borscht.

The Assisted Return Ride

I felt uneasy to climb onto the Warsaw Escarpment (the left-hand Vistula bank) on pedal power only. I decided to use very low assistance on the return ride just to feel securely! My choice was the Boost Factor of x0.54 (100 W of pedalling power would be rewarded with 54 W of assistance) with the cap of 72 W mechanical. That let me climb up to Charles de Gaulle Roundabout fairly easy (Wahoo told me the climb was 1.6% maximum... haha! but that was a long climb!) Then I rode to enter Nowogrodzka from the other end.

The gorgeous Square of Three Crosses after its total renovation. The place will be just marvellous in the Spring!

Nowogrodzka 12.

Nowogrodzka 25.
If you ever visit Warsaw, you must go to these two places, both in Nowogrodzka and both in short walking distance from the City Centre. These are the two best craft beer pubs in Warsaw. Jabeerwocky and Kufle i Kapsle (Steins & Bottlecaps). (Besides, Kufle i Kapsle have another location in Nowy Świat 27, a prestigious promenade of Warsaw, too).

A cycling mural by the Orange Building in the Aleje (Orange is the biggest telecom provider in Poland. Whatever I write to you goes through Orange Poland!)

The Moszna Smoke Stack (I live nearby it) as seen from The Aleje in Pruszków, 6.3 km in the straight line (you need to ride for 7-8 km to get there though).

Me returning via the City Centre.

52+ km.

How did those rides compare? Here's is how the e-bike ride was different to the one without the assistance. The electric ride was, compared to the pedal-only ride:

• Average speed: +2.3 km/h
• Kilocalories: -75
• Average Weighted Rider's Power: -7 W
• Faster by: 9 minutes.
• Experience: Far less effort.

Why should I ride an e-bike then? Well, think of meeting a 10% grade climb en route... (There was exactly ONE such a climb on my unassisted ride! I pushed TURBO button immediately!)

 

[Jeremy McCreary]

Great, something else to add to my emergency repair kit - can I at least use thin crust?

Maybe not. You always have your forehead with you, and forehead oil turns out to be an excellent lube — at least for light loads.

Only half-joking. I belong to an international community of spinning top makers, collectors, and performers. Some members are fanatical about endurance tops that stay up as long as possible when twirled by hand. Current world record holder, by an Italian topmaker:

At all but the lowest speeds, air resistance is the main reason tops slow down on hard surfaces. (Sound familiar?) But tip resistance counts, and the right tip lube can add a few minutes to a long spin.

After testing all kinds of lubes, the clear winner was... forehead oil!

 

[Kayakguy]

Maybe not. You always have your forehead with you, and forehead oil turns out to be an excellent lube — at least for light loads.

Only half-joking. I belong to an international community of spinning top makers, collectors, and performers. Some members are fanatical about endurance tops that stay up as long as possible when twirled by hand. Current world record holder, by an Italian topmaker:

At all but the lowest speeds, air resistance is the main reason tops slow down on hard surfaces. (Sound familiar?) But tip resistance counts, and the right tip lube can add a few minutes to a long spin.

After testing all kinds of lubes, the clear winner was... forehead oil!

Long ago, when I was fly fishing, the preferred lube for rod ferrules was nose oil

 

[jason.flood]

The pizza remedy was for Jason and his squeaking bike. My bike has developed a really annoying click lately I'm trying to find the cause of. So annoying!

Thank for the suggestion @Rás Cnoic
I will try a pinpoint where it is coming from next time I hear it. Was a bit windy the day I first heard it. Should hopefully be able to distinguish if it’s from headset or crank area.