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

[Prairie Dog]

I was finally able to get out for a ride as the conditions drastically changed overnight and it was actually a balmy -11C by the time I left the house. It’ll be short lived as the mercury is, once again, expected to plummet albeit not to the levels that we experienced over the past week. Several days of -40C temps led to a number of provincial alerts cautioning Albertans to be wary of rolling outages. Fortunately, none of those warnings came to fruition and we made it through the worst of it. I worry a bit about what’s to come as it appears our grid is showing clear signs of fragility.

It snowed lightly overnight and it continues to come down. The trails were instantly transformed into a pristine landscape of billowy white goodness. It was such a relief to be out of the house even on such a dull overcast day.

 

[jason.flood]

Following my Pentlands adventure on 6th Jan I felt emboldened to attempt a longer ride on Sunday 14th to test endurance (me & the battery)

My hope was to ride from Crail, in the East Neuk of Fife, back to Leith. I’d taken the train to Leuchars the evening before and hoofed the 26km to Crail in 60/60 sport mode which was a lot of fun and felt like the road had been somewhat flattened.

I’m still getting to grips with planning on Komoot and don’t quite have the “feel” of how the fitness level and bike type settings relate to the real world for me on the Vado SL.

Planning ride times vary a lot for the route. Average and “good shape” fitness are subjective but fairly linear in nature. Given how much e-bikes and individual assistance settings can vary, I’m wondering what Komoot’s formula is here?

Here below my planning options:

Touring 88km (77km tarmac)	Analog	E-bike
Average	6h25	5h37
Good shape	5h21	4h43

Road 84km (81km tarmac)	Analog	E-bike
Average	4h12	3h42
Good shape	3h39	3h09

Given the road and touring routes only differ by 4km, (in total & proportion on tarmac) I was even more surprised by the variation.

I guess touring assumes taking things at a more steady pace and carrying more weight.

I hoped to end up with a ride time between 3h09 and 5h37.

I set off at 14.36 (sunset around 16.10) having chosen the “touring” route. However, since I know the roads well in the area, I defied Koomots attempts to guide me inland and stuck to the more scenic coastal road for the first 15km.

A fairly bitter wind was blowing from the NW and I could really feel the drag using eco 35/35 assistance.

After less than one hour in the saddle I was already wondering if I or my battery would last the distance. I pedalled on, knowing that from Kirkcaldy, there are train stations every 5-10km all the way back to Edinburgh

By the time I got to Burntisland (~55km) it was completely dark but the sky was beautifully clear. It was -1C and given the conditions some of the other folk round here have been riding of late, I felt no right to be thinking it’s a bit chilly. For the next 8km the tarmac roads gave way to some amazing single track on the Fife Coastal path where the railway and path hug the same narrow strip of land right on the waters edge. Views across the Forth estuary to Edinburgh and the Bridges are lovely on the train and my first time being on the coastal path did not disappoint- even if it was dark.

On arrival in Dalgety Bay (~65km) I felt the rapid onset of complete energy depletion and dehydration. I had definitely not carried enough water and fuel. I’d figured there would be many opportunities to refuel on route. However, on that dark Sunday evening nothing “invited” me to stop and I was feeling fine so kept going.

Fortunately Dalgety Bay Tesco came to my rescue with a chicken pasta salad, banana and 2L water. No coffee though. . That would require a few extra km to the BP petrol station. I swear that coffee was the best I’ve ever had.

Fuelled & hydrated, I was ready for the 27km homestretch, including the Forth Road Bridge. - I did afford myself the luxury or switching from eco to sport assistance for the last 25% of the ride’s km’s

If I’m honest, I secretly thought I’d complete the ride faster than I did. The wind certainly had an impact, but my fitness for 4h plus rides needs work. Note to self - carry more food and water next time.

Total consumption averaged at 3.2WH/km which feels ok, but average speed was quite low. Total journey including stops 5h39 - only 2min different from the average e-bike touring route prediction but I suspect there is some coincidence here. Total riding time 4h23.

Kirkcaldy Prom 40mins after sunset

Looking over the estuary towards Edinburgh

And the ever faithful Forth Bridge, as seen from the north side of the Forth Road Bridge.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Total riding time 4h23.

Jason, before I actually read your full report, I only looked at the initial Komoot estimates of the distance to be ridden, did a quick calculation based on my experience, and decided: "It would take this guy 4 h 24 minutes net to complete a 88 km ride". My time estimate was correct but you rode for 93 km with a noticeable elevation gain! Kudos to you!

I could not fail noticing your high leg power! For comparison, my adjusted rider's power is only some 88 W! No wonder you did the long winter ride on only 93% battery. Two percent more, and you would lose the assistance! (Did you notice the assistance degradation below 10% battery charge?)

Komoot ride time estimates are useless because Komoot does not know what e-bike you are riding and what your own performance is. The "road bike" estimates assume you are riding a racing bike, which is not the case. Ignore Komoot estimates!

 

[RabH]

Amazing route Jason but not one I would be taking at 14.36 I much prefer riding in daylight though and only on roads! The East Neuk of Fife is just incredible, I have ridden it many times

This one was in June 2023!

 

[jason.flood]

Jason, before I actually read your full report, I only looked at the initial Komoot estimates of the distance to be ridden, did a quick calculation based on my experience, and decided: "It would take this guy 4 h 24 minutes net to complete a 88 km ride". My time estimate was correct but you rode for 93 km with a noticeable elevation gain! Kudos to you!

I could not fail noticing your high leg power! For comparison, my adjusted rider's power is only some 88 W! No wonder you did the long winter ride on only 93% battery. Two percent more, and you would lose the assistance! (Did you notice the assistance degradation below 10% battery charge?)

Komoot ride time estimates are useless because Komoot does not know what e-bike you are riding and what your own performance is. The "road bike" estimates assume you are riding a racing bike, which is not the case. Ignore Komoot estimates!

Thanks for you mr analysis Stefan. So what is the secret to estimating ride time? I certainly feel that having assistance means I always end up topping out at 26km/h when the motor cuts out at 25km/h. Climbs are a bit slower but descents even this out a bit.
With hindsight I wonder, if I had done the whole ride in sport mode, maybe I wouldn’t have had to recover for and hour when my energy levels depleted.

I had the RE battery connected and started at 150%. At the the finish the display showed 57%. And when I removed the RE the display showed the internal battery only was at 34%. By deduction I think that would that mean RE was left holding 23% of the 320WH reference which would be 73.6WH (or 46% of the RE’s 160WH capacity)

I definitely felt like the bike was in sport mode for that last 25% of the ride although much of it was downhill and I was running on adrenaline too knowing that I had all but made it.

My main worry in my last 15km was that my phone battery was down to 4% and I thought I might loose all the ride stats if the phone decided to shut down mid ride.

I suppose over time I should see a pattern emerging from my Komoot rides. Really it would make sense to use one’s historical data to estimate future rides.

 

[Chargeride]

16mph for 10 hours.
Holy saddle sores.

 

[jason.flood]

Amazing route Jason but not one I would be taking at 14.36 I much prefer riding in daylight though and only on roads! The East Neuk of Fife is just incredible, I have ridden it many times

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This one was in June 2023!

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Oh my Word Rab. How on earth do you cope with distances like that. Over 9 hours in the saddle!! And How does the bike battery cope with such a long ride?

 

[jason.flood]

16mph for 10 hours.
Holy saddle sores.

My sentiments exactly.

 

[jason.flood]

Amazing route Jason but not one I would be taking at 14.36 I much prefer riding in daylight though and only on roads! The East Neuk of Fife is just incredible, I have ridden it many times

View attachment 169845

This one was in June 2023!

View attachment 169846

I’ve just been googling VAM from your ride stats Rab. Is this something that I should be monitoring to help estimate how long a given ride my take me?

 

[jason.flood]

I’ve just been googling VAM from your ride stats Rab. Is this something that I should be monitoring to help estimate how long a given ride my take me?

oh yes. I completely agree with you regarding my time of departure. My partner left for work at just after 2pm so we had some time together before I set off. I look forward to doing the route again when I can enjoy the views more.

 

[jason.flood]

I was finally able to get out for a ride as the conditions drastically changed overnight and it was actually a balmy -11C by the time I left the house. It’ll be short lived as the mercury is, once again, expected to plummet albeit not to the levels that we experienced over the past week. Several days of -40C temps led to a number of provincial alerts cautioning Albertans to be wary of rolling outages. Fortunately, none of those warnings came to fruition and we made it through the worst of it. I worry a bit about what’s to come as it appears our grid is showing clear signs of fragility.

It snowed lightly overnight and it continues to come down. The trails were instantly transformed into a pristine landscape of billowy white goodness. It was such a relief to be out of the house even on such a dull overcast day.

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I wish we had proper snow like that here. How much range do you loose by going out in -11C Prairie Dog?

 

[Chargeride]

I'm going to have to make the call
He's wearing something under that kilt.

 

[Prairie Dog]

I wish we had proper snow like that here. How much range do you loose by going out in -11C Prairie Dog?

Yes, the snow is wonderful, extremely cold conditions like we faced over the past week are not. Range is something I’m not too concerned about during winter as most of my rides don’t involve long distances on local trails just laps. It is, however, a fantastic way to extend my riding throughout the cold season and allows me to stay active and fit for the remainder of the year. @RabH is the guy we see who sets the benchmark for distance and elevation gains.

 

[RabH]

Oh my Word Rab. How on earth do you cope with distances like that. Over 9 hours in the saddle!! And How does the bike battery cope with such a long ride?

I have been riding for well over 50 years and I'm well used to long rides, I have 3 batteries so 150+ miles can be done comfortably! I did do pretty much the same ride back in 2018 when my bike was brand new with a single battery, I picked the perfect day to ride with a tailwind and no assist all the way to St Andrews and used eco mode all the way back home! I wouldn't worry about things like VAM, just get out and ride your bike and enjoy it. I use panniers to carry my extra batteries, this is from Elie in the East Nuke of Fife from 2022!

 

[jason.flood]

I have been riding for well over 50 years and I'm well used to long rides, I have 3 batteries so 150+ miles can be done comfortably! I did do pretty much the same ride back in 2018 when my bike was brand new with a single battery, I picked the perfect day to ride with a tailwind and no assist all the way to St Andrews and used eco mode all the way back home! I wouldn't worry about things like VAM, just get out and ride your bike and enjoy it. I use panniers to carry my extra batteries, this is from Elie in the East Nuke of Fife from 2022!

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Well it certainly gives me something to aspire to Rab. Fair play to you. I’m feeling pretty happy that after my longest ride in decades my back seems ok. I was having some back pain in the first couple of weeks of owning the bike but I think my body is adjusting to the new geometry. Looking forward to getting more longer rides under my belt

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Thanks for you mr analysis Stefan. So what is the secret to estimating ride time? I certainly feel that having assistance means I always end up topping out at 26km/h when the motor cuts out at 25km/h. Climbs are a bit slower but descents even this out a bit.

It is difficult to achieve the average speed of, say, 25 km/h unless you are consistently riding above 30. My experience is riding a 25 km/h (restricted) Vado SL with a reasonable assistance so the ride is nicely fast results in average speed of around 20-22 km/h. Assuming 20 km/h average speed for 88 km makes 2 h 24 min. Now, you were riding undulated terrain, had a low assistance for 3/4 of your ride but your legs are really strong, so you made the 21.8 km/h which is a very nice outcome as for a Euro restricted Vado SL. (To ride as fast as you did -- in a more flat terrain but with my bad legs -- requires around 55/55% SL assistance).

I had the RE battery connected and started at 150%. At the the finish the display showed 57%. And when I removed the RE the display showed the internal battery only was at 34%. By deduction I think that would that mean RE was left holding 23% of the 320WH reference which would be 73.6WH (or 46% of the RE’s 160WH capacity)

Your reasoning is totally correct. My Wahoo ELEMNT shows the level of both SL batteries individually, so I do need to guess!

My main worry in my last 15km was that my phone battery was down to 4% and I thought I might loose all the ride stats if the phone decided to shut down mid ride.

That's why I use the Wahoo (the Wahoo battery holds for 17 hours). When I was using a smartphone before, I was carrying a power-bank with me. It is worthy to note all newer Wahoo ELEMNT, Garmin Edge or Hammerhead Karoo2 are compatible with Specialized e-bikes but only Wahoo can recognize the presence of the Range Extender. That's why I have used Wahoo ELEMNT computers (three different models) as the primary display of my Vado SL since September 2021. Besides, Wahoo computers are water-resistant and can be operated in any gloves.

 

[jason.flood]

It is difficult to achieve the average speed of, say, 25 km/h unless you are consistently riding above 30. My experience is riding a 25 km/h (restricted) Vado SL with a reasonable assistance so the ride is nicely fast results in average speed of around 20-22 km/h. Assuming 20 km/h average speed for 88 km makes 2 h 24 min. Now, you were riding undulated terrain, had a low assistance for 3/4 of your ride but your legs are really strong, so you made the 21.8 km/h which is a very nice outcome as for a Euro restricted Vado SL. (To ride as fast as you did -- in a more flat terrain but with my bad legs -- requires around 55/55% SL assistance).

Thanks so much for sharing your reasoning. It makes perfect sense that on the 25km/h restricted bike that ave speed is going to be bit lower than that and a bit lower still in hillier terrain.

As I get more familiar with what I can do and battery range on eco I’ll experiment with other settings more

Your reasoning is totally correct. My Wahoo ELEMNT shows the level of both SL batteries individually, so I do need to guess!

Now this is very interesting. I don’t even think specialized’s app does that. Maybe it will be a future update. I would also like the Spapp to “remember” the last charge state of the battery when the bike is turned off so I do t have to keep turning it on to check if I should be recharging if it has been a few days.

That's why I use the Wahoo (the Wahoo battery holds for 17 hours). When I was using a smartphone before, I was carrying a power-bank with me. It is worthy to note all newer Wahoo ELEMNT, Garmin Edge or Hammerhead Karoo2 are compatible with Specialized e-bikes but only Wahoo can recognize the presence of the Range Extender. That's why I have used Wahoo ELEMNT computers (three different models) as the primary display of my Vado SL since September 2021. Besides, Wahoo computers are water-resistant and can be operated in any gloves.

This is also really useful info. I am interested in buying a gps head unit but thought I would see how well I can get on with my iPhone alone. At my work there seems to be a mix of Garmin and Wahoo users but I have been none the wiser with which too choose. It was probably going to be a Garmin since our company has as partner program that gets us a fair discount on some models. However I think I will consider Wahoo too - especially as you are indicating they can be operated in any gloves.


One of the things I found amazingly useful when using my iPhone though was that after I had activated Komoot and “Spapp” for the journey I was able to lock the screen the use Siri to open either app using my voice, in order to check the map or view stats. I could then re-lock the screen with my voice to keep battery consumption down. While the screen was locked I would rely on the spoken navigation guidance from the app. It doesn’t work flawlessly by being able to not remove my hands from the bars was quite handy.

 

[RabH]

After 8 days off the bike I managed to grab an opportunity to get out today, I woke to a couple of inches of snow and thought my chances were little to none! I looked at the forecast and it was showing rain/sleet/snow until around midday and only a 10% chance of precipitation from 1pm onwards, but the wind was going to pick up with gusts close to 38mph! I usually err on the side of caution if the winds are more than 35mph but I was desperate to get out...

The wind was from the SW so I had a look at the sky and it was looking promising so I set off at 12.40pm and headed NE to enjoy the strong tailwind, I had to stick to the main roads though as the back roads were treacherous! The first 7 miles or so were uphill but with that strong tailwind it didn't feel like it, I reached the top of the climb past Salsburgh and then had about 14 miles of downhill and flattish roads! I flew down the descent into Harthill at 42.3mph, that was such a blast! Once I reached Whitburn the traffic was building and I had no chance of using the cycle paths so I just had to put up with the constant passes for a few miles, thankfully I didn't have any incidents and arrived in Bathgate and continued NE through Dechmont and into Uphall where I turned north towards Threemiletown!

I now had crosswinds to contend with for close to 3 miles but I managed to miss the worst of the gusts and didn't have any scary moments, then I turned west into the strong headwind and had to crank the assist up to level 3! I love the power level 3 provides, it made that headwind a breeze! I was now heading for Linlithgow and I was going to continue on the main road to Falkirk but I decided to turn off at Linlithgow bridge and use the back road to Maddiston, knowing it would be all uphill so my speed would be low on the slippery back road!

I just remembered about an incident when I was passing through Linlithgow, I was coming up to a set of traffic signals which were at red and there was a 7.5 ton truck stopped at the lights! There is a very narrow cycle lane most of the way through Linlithgow and I could have gone alongside the truck at the lights but there is a supermarket on the left and I was worried the truck might turn into the supermarket even though he wasn't showing any indication of doing so! A Transit van pulled up behind me and the driver moved alongside and was almost over the white line, he rolled his window down and told me there was a cycle lane there! I said I know but I wasn't going up the inside of the truck in case he decided to turn left and flatten me under his wheels...he then said he wasn't indicating left and I said I have been riding for over 50 years and know what's safe and what isn't and bid him farewell...

I reached the roundabout at the top of the climb where I turned for Maddiston and through a few villages before turning for Hallglen where it was time for some serious climbing up to Slamannan and then on to Limerigg, where I took the very exposed road to Caldercruix! The wind was insane here but thankfully a direct headwind, I'm sure it was more than 40mph on this exposed road and even used assist level 4 which I very seldom use! At least the climbing was all but over until I reached my home town, I'm really glad I decided to chance it and enjoyed the ride despite those winds and didn't encounter any precipitation at all!

I just noticed I'm only 154 miles away from reaching 30,000 miles, what a bike this has been and I hope it will continue to be as awesome as it has been so far! It will be 6 years old at the end of March and still rides like it was brand new! I would love to take it past 50,000 miles and beyond... No photos today as I was really pushed for time and having ridden this route countless times you have seen it all before! I was really surprised about the lack of snow, even the Ochil Hills were totally clear! The winds are due to continue right through to Wednesday so there will be no rides in the near future!

 

[Stefan Mikes]

The Windsor park ride,

@Chargeride: Incidentally, I have found I subscribed to your YT channel "Charge. Ride. Repeat." some time ago! Browsing the suggested videos, I was offered to watch yours! The video is very nice indeed, and I loved listening to your British English!

 

[DaveMatthews]

View attachment 169950

After 8 days off the bike I managed to grab an opportunity to get out today, I woke to a couple of inches of snow and thought my chances were little to none! I looked at the forecast and it was showing rain/sleet/snow until around midday and only a 10% chance of precipitation from 1pm onwards, but the wind was going to pick up with gusts close to 38mph! I usually err on the side of caution if the winds are more than 35mph but I was desperate to get out...

The wind was from the SW so I had a look at the sky and it was looking promising so I set off at 12.40pm and headed NE to enjoy the strong tailwind, I had to stick to the main roads though as the back roads were treacherous! The first 7 miles or so were uphill but with that strong tailwind it didn't feel like it, I reached the top of the climb past Salsburgh and then had about 14 miles of downhill and flattish roads! I flew down the descent into Harthill at 42.3mph, that was such a blast! Once I reached Whitburn the traffic was building and I had no chance of using the cycle paths so I just had to put up with the constant passes for a few miles, thankfully I didn't have any incidents and arrived in Bathgate and continued NE through Dechmont and into Uphall where I turned north towards Threemiletown!

I now had crosswinds to contend with for close to 3 miles but I managed to miss the worst of the gusts and didn't have any scary moments, then I turned west into the strong headwind and had to crank the assist up to level 3! I love the power level 3 provides, it made that headwind a breeze! I was now heading for Linlithgow and I was going to continue on the main road to Falkirk but I decided to turn off at Linlithgow bridge and use the back road to Maddiston, knowing it would be all uphill so my speed would be low on the slippery back road!

I just remembered about an incident when I was passing through Linlithgow, I was coming up to a set of traffic signals which were at red and there was a 7.5 ton truck stopped at the lights! There is a very narrow cycle lane most of the way through Linlithgow and I could have gone alongside the truck at the lights but there is a supermarket on the left and I was worried the truck might turn into the supermarket even though he wasn't showing any indication of doing so! A Transit van pulled up behind me and the driver moved alongside and was almost over the white line, he rolled his window down and told me there was a cycle lane there! I said I know but I wasn't going up the inside of the truck in case he decided to turn left and flatten me under his wheels...he then said he wasn't indicating left and I said I have been riding for over 50 years and know what's safe and what isn't and bid him farewell...

I reached the roundabout at the top of the climb where I turned for Maddiston and through a few villages before turning for Hallglen where it was time for some serious climbing up to Slamannan and then on to Limerigg, where I took the very exposed road to Caldercruix! The wind was insane here but thankfully a direct headwind, I'm sure it was more than 40mph on this exposed road and even used assist level 4 which I very seldom use! At least the climbing was all but over until I reached my home town, I'm really glad I decided to chance it and enjoyed the ride despite those winds and didn't encounter any precipitation at all!

I just noticed I'm only 154 miles away from reaching 30,000 miles, what a bike this has been and I hope it will continue to be as awesome as it has been so far! It will be 6 years old at the end of March and still rides like it was brand new! I would love to take it past 50,000 miles and beyond... No photos today as I was really pushed for time and having ridden this route countless times you have seen it all before! I was really surprised about the lack of snow, even the Ochil Hills were totally clear! The winds are due to continue right through to Wednesday so there will be no rides in the near future!

Phenomenal. That's one helluva bike, and congrats on the milestone!