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

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Meanwhile in Warsaw. +1°C. (Photo taken from the Southern Bridge at 12:36 CET).
 
Just ridden the beach , not too much damage, but the wind force is insane.
I couldnt turn the fatbike without being blown over.
The wind was blowing down the beach, 20mph no peddling in a zipped up jacket.
Into the wind, full power, third gear, max I could get was 7mph.
I rode up the dune and was hit by a shotblast, it felt like my face was being burned off, I truly thought I was going to bleed.

Absolutely awesome.
 
Just ridden the beach , not too much damage, but the wind force is insane.
I couldnt turn the fatbike without being blown over.
The wind was blowing down the beach, 20mph no peddling in a zipped up jacket.
Into the wind, full power, third gear, max I could get was 7mph.
I rode up the dune and was hit by a shotblast, it felt like my face was being burned off, I truly thought I was going to bleed.

Absolutely awesome.
The messages responding to that weather report I showed are hilarious. Everyone in Ireland reporting on rampaging sheds & in particular the crowd favourite; trampolines on the loose!!
 
The messages responding to that weather report I showed are hilarious. Everyone in Ireland reporting on rampaging sheds & in particular the crowd favourite; trampolines on the loose!!

These severe weather events can have traumatizing but seldom-discussed effects on wildlife.


Imagine the heartache when they return for a much-needed distraction from their tooth-and-claw existence, and their beloved trampoline's just vanished.
;^}
 
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I'll never forgot "Oh my god trampoline" 😄

Funny how many people all over the world blurt out their own language's version of "Oh, my god!" in situations like this. True limbic speech — just comes out with no conscious thought involved.

But why tell god? Doesn't god already know about the trampoline? And whose bright idea was it to whip up a trampoline-snatching windstorm in the first place?

Addendum
I think "Really, dude??" would be a lot more appropriate.
 
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A Specialized Warsaw Lecture (unexpected!)

The plan was to take my big Vado, two batteries, and circumnavigate the left bank Warsaw. You certainly know that feeling when you roll your perfectly prepared e-bike out of the apartment/garage and then you notice your wheel is flat... Good to own two well maintained e-bikes! So I repacked my pannier (different spares for different e-bikes) and after 20 minutes I could ride my Vado SL! (It was an exceptionally cold day...)

As I rode towards South Warsaw, I thought to myself I could drop in Specialized Warsaw and buy a good inner tube.

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I totally missed that event on Facebook! "Take care of your bike in winter". A friendly salesman invited me to join the lecture.

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Following the reform of the Specialized sales network in Poland, only two LBS (both brand owned) remained in Warsaw. Specialized Warsaw and Specialized Warsaw Soho were told to work as a team, share the personnel, resources, gear, and organize events. The lecturer came from the Soho LBS to the Wilanów/Powsin one, where I arrived at 11:00.

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The professional and comprehensive lecture involved:

  • Removing and replacing the rear wheel
  • Maintaining the cassette. Serviceable vs. non-serviceable cassettes as well as the freehub body were talked on. I learned the hubs in my 2021 Vado SL were made by Formula.
  • Tubeless vs tubed wheels. Replacing the tyre.
  • Brake pad replacement.
  • Chain maintenance.
I was impressed when Paweł completely "disarmed" his tubeless wheel under controlled conditions, so the sealant would not make a mess. He also showed how you can "shoot in" the tubeless tyre bead onto the rim without a compressor! (The trick: remove the valve core; use a big upright bike pump).

The lecture took me too much time. I started pedalling hard as I got hungry!

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On the Southern Bridge of Warsaw. The Vistula has not recovered from the summer drought yet. The "Jerzy's Isles" (I call these in the memory of my deceased friend Jerzy) have become pretty big. You can even see sandy shoals making the river shallow and non-navigable!

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I took this shot in the last moment, taking a great care not to drop my smartphone into the river!

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At 13:30, I arrived in "Fregata", a 1960 restaurant bar that is famous of its traditional Polish cuisine. Here, a potato pancake filled with beef and topped with sour cream. Fun-fact: This totally Polish dish used to be named "Hungarian Pancake" despite the fact it is completely unknown in Hungary :D The owners of Fregata must have eventually realized that and now the meal is called "Highwayman Pancake" :)

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In the Warsaw Midtown. I make a difference between the City and the Midtown. The City is where we have all those sky-scrapers, while the Midtown looks older and nicer. Here, the Memorial for Free Speech. This street (Mysia) hosted the "Office for Control of the Press and Events", or simply speaking censorship under the Communism.


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To me, the memorial looks like a ski-jumping ramp :) A 2021 photo with @Brix and Jerzy.

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The Warsaw-West train/coach station undergoes never-ending reconstruction. Now, someone "wise" decided to reconstruct the road system nearby. That disaster forced me to find a new route around...
 
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Funny how many people all over the world blurt out their own language's version of "Oh, my god!" in situations like this. True limbic speech — just comes out with no conscious thought involved.

But why tell god? Doesn't god already know about the trampoline? And whose bright idea was it to whip up a trampoline-snatching windstorm in the first place?
Maybe HE was on break...
 
Funny how many people all over the world blurt out their own language's version of "Oh, my god!" in situations like this. True limbic speech — just comes out with no conscious thought involved.

But why tell god? Doesn't god already know about the trampoline? And whose bright idea was it to whip up a trampoline-snatching windstorm in the first place?
I do it continuosly, I try not to, but its impossible, carved into my brain as you say.
It sits above all articulation like a default.
 
Thats the first time I was beaten, must be getting old, everytime I stopped to mess with the gopro I got blown over.
I tried to take the battery off the bike and the key would only got a cm into the lock , had to break the wd40 out.
 
Warsaw: The City & North Midtown

As I was sipping Winter Tea at a service station 15.6 km into my Vado 6.0 ride, I thought of you, guys :) 'Why should I make yet another boring trip just to compete @fooferdoggie on the weekly distance?* How about Warsaw Five Dials?' I rerouted my ride plan and rode right to the Warsaw City Centre :)

The brand new city
Left-bank Warsaw is less than 79 years old. Following the Warsaw Uprising 1944, the German and Russian (yes!) Nazis turned the city into a desert of rubble with very few structures still standing as burnt out ruins. It might seem unbelievable now but almost everything you'll find on the left bank of the Vistula was rebuilt, reconstructed, newly built or redesigned. The terrible homicide and damage to the property cannot be justified. However, the side effect to that apocalypse was leaving a huge space for new construction even to this day! Yes, you can still find a few, very few historical places in Warsaw. (The right bank Warsaw was left mostly intact during the war but that's another story).

The fact: In 1945 nobody believed Warsaw could be restored, and Łódź was planned to become the new capital city. Only the persistence of Warsawers who returned to the city made the plan of the reconstruction!

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City of Warsaw, 1955. The newly built PKiN.

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Warsaw 1945.

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Warsaw Ghetto, 1945.



The City
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The central west part of Warsaw is now teeming with new sky-scrapers. It was possible because that part of the City was either not really reconstructed or was rebuilt badly post WW2. See a building in the right hand photo at the left. It is one of very few pre-war buildings left. The Conservator said to the investors: 'Never demolish this one!' so the front wall has been kept. No idea how to preserve that gem and make it look nice, though. Also see a block of flats at the right, decidedly from the 1960s.

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Varso Tower. Even if it does not look so, it is the highest building in the European Union, with the height to the roof of 230 m (755 ft) and with the total height of 310 m (1,017 ft).

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Left: Golden 44, or the most expensive apartment house of Warsaw.
Centre: A high tower as seen from the junction of Świętokrzyska (Holy Cross St) and Emilia Plater St.
Right: The Palace of Culture and Science (PKiN, pronounce: Peking). The second highest building of Warsaw. Height to the roof 187.68 m (615.7 ft), total height 237 m (777 ft).


Whenever you are in Warsaw, I recommend taking the lift to the 30th floor of PKiN. Viewing all the high towers around is a great experience, especially discovering the true height of the Varso :) (The city view platform in Varso is expected to be finished in 2025). Once, I took my Romanian friend to the 30th floor. He looks around and says: 'Where's the TV tower?' I looked at him, and after a long silence I replied: 'Bro, you are INSIDE the TV tower!' :)

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Once the principal artery of Warsaw, Marszałkowska (Marshal St) is now far more peaceful because of many alternate roads built in the last 18 years. The street is historical, and it got its name from Crown Grand Marshal Franciszek Bieliński who had his palace at the junction of Royal and Marshal Streets in 17/18th c. Three shopping malls are the East Wall, and the white building at the right is a newly constructed Museum of Modern Art.

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The Warsaw North Midtown: Plac Pięciu Rogów (Five Dials). Our popular President of Warsaw Mr. Rafał Trzaskowski envies London its achievements! The Five Dials is obviously a direct response to London's Seven Dials! :D He halted the traffic and made a pedestrian/bike zone here, which was a brave act.


Mr. Trzaskowski following London:
  • Five Dials (Seven Dials)
  • Spinka (Millenium Bridge)
  • Museum of Modern Arts (Tate Modern)
  • Hala Koszyki (Borough Market)
  • Varso Tower (The Shard)

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Krucza (Raven St), one of the exits of Five Dials.

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Chmielna (Hop Street), an elegant promenade of Warsaw. Top: facing the East Wall; notice the Hoppiness pub at the left. Bottom: Facing New World St.

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Hop Street in August 1981 (my own photo).

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More than meets the eye: the courtyards in North Midtown. If you take a risk of entering one of a few gates off Hop Street (or a single gate from Five Dials), you will find an exciting new world. Here, you can find many cafes, restaurants, pubs or bars. Here, a craft beer pub that belongs to the largest Polish craft brewer, PINTA.


If you happen to visit Warsaw, ask me :) I will give you locations of four premium craft beer pubs in North Midtown alone, four more in South Midtown... :)

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Exploring the courtyards: A Georgian restaurant, and a dive bar in the basement :)

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The most prominent promenade of Warsaw: Nowy Świat (New World St). It is closed for traffic on weekends and holidays. Forming the part of King's Road, it turns into Krakowskie Przedmieście (Cracow Suburb) and leads you all the way to the Old and New Town, by foot, shared e-scooter or bike/e-bike! And I can give you two more craft beer pub locations in the Old Town! :)

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In a courtyard off New World. A bear having its winter sleep! :)


Warsaw Vauxhall
There was a Warsawer with East Prussian/Huguenot roots, Mr. Fryderyk Cabrit, a rich banker living in the 18th c. He certainly visited London and fell in love with Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens. Upon his return to Warsaw, he bought a large property from Czapski family and made a huge garden a public park. To honour the London's invention, he gave his park a Polonised name...

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The man certainly spoke German but not English, so he thought the English letter 'V" read "F" :D (A modern Pole would write it "Woksol"). It was not the worst mistake though! A group of Russian officials visited the most modern London Vauxhall Station in 19th c. They were impressed, and thought "vauxhall" meant a 'railway station'. The Russian "vak-zaw" means any railway station to this day! :)

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At the turn of the century, there was a banking meltdown. Cabrit bankrupted and died soon. The huge property was overtaken by Przeździecki family, and sold in small pieces in 1844. The Foksal St and a small park behind the 19th c palace remained to this day. (The palace hosts the Polish Architect Association today).

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This palace hosts Frederic Chopin Society. National Chopin Institute and Chopin Music Academy neighbour the palace.

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Following a lunch in "Fregata" I made my return way south of the South Midtown. Here, the statue of King John III Sobieski, the victor at Vienna 1683, the man who broke the Ottoman Turkey dominance in Europe for good.

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The Palace-On-The-Water in Royal Baths. Royal Baths is yet another place to see in Warsaw but please come in the warm season! :)

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Wherever you want to get onto the Warsaw Escarpment (riding from the river) you need to climb. It is just a 5.2% climb, Agrykola (Agricola St). Looks easy to an e-biker :)

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A detailed map.

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Ride map. The bluish line shows the western city limits of Warsaw. Since I rode onto the bike path system, I could continue on bike paths as far as the National Stadium!

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*) Steve, I'd like to thank you very much! You have motivated me for long rides this Winter more than anybody else! ❤️
 
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Another nice day for a bike ride, only 4C with a chilly but light northerly wind! Yet another big climbing day which is the best way to keep warm at this time of year, I waited until 11.45am to head out as the morning was better for walking with a risk of ice around! I made my way out to Slamannan and on to Avonbridge where I joined the quiet back road up to Standburn and enjoyed the awesome twisty road out to Linlithgow, its mostly downhill so a lot of fun! I passed through Linlithgow which was quieter than I expected and stayed on the main road all the way to Threemiletown where I turned south towards Uphall! I then turned on to the back road towards Beecraigs Country Park and grabbed some photos along the way!

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I had a nice view of the bridges over the Forth and the Ochill Hills which were partially in sun and partially in shade!

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I even had dry roads for a nice change!

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I timed it nice for this photo of the Pentland Hills with a Ryanair 737 approaching Edinburgh Airport!

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I turned south again a short time later to head for the awesome Burnhouse road and down into Dechmont, one of my favourite roads and today I was descending it with a tailwind which doesn't happen very often!

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Its not all descents though as its very undulating!

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Another view of the Pentlands before plunging down into Dechmont!

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I then joined the cycle path that runs to Bathgate but decided to turn off the path and take the back road to Torphicen, almost 4 miles of climbing and into a headwind so I got quite a workout! Its similar to Burnhouse road at times!

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The Campsie Hills came into view way in the distance!

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At Torphicen I turned west and had a blast hurtling down the descent towards Westfield, then it was time to start climbing again on the road towards Avonbridge! I stopped for a snack and grabbed a couple of photos, first one was looking north and the second looking east at the Westfield Viaduct!

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Before Avonbridge I turned south to take the back road up to Heights, part way up the climb I decided to take the road north where I had my double puncture recently! Its a cracking rollercoaster of a road and thankfully no punctures this time, at the end of the road I turned west for Limerigg and had another nice view of the Ochil Hills!

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Its pretty much farmland everywhere in these parts!

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I had another big climb now up to the Black Loch at Limerigg and just before sunset, more photo opportunities!

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I continued west towards Caldercruix but decided to turn south and join the cycle path alongside Hillend Loch and the railway!

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From the loch I headed west for home and arrived before darkness this time, the bike just needed a wipe down this time thanks to the mainly dry roads! What a fantastic ride that was in perfect conditions for the time of year, 6400 miles in the bag now! 👍
 

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NEVER GIVE UP!

The Monday's "Night BRIDGES Classic" ride was not the best for me. There were five "workhorses" on the ride: the men who could ride gravel (with technical segments) in the winter at 26.7 km/h for 40 km and beyond! It was obvious I would ride alone and it was a pretty nice experience if not the fact the strong wind made my bad foot freeze at the 20th kilometre! No riding pleasure afterwards!

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On a segment called "Suzuka". It is a hard-packed gravel with many bends! The Vistula can be seen on the left.

That's not what the story is about, though :) As I was riding (and needed several short 'technical stops'), I discovered my gross riding time turned out to be too long! I might not be able to catch the return train, which would make me wait in the railway station for another half an hour!

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As I approached the gravel ride end, I stopped the ride recording on my Wahoo and immediately started a new recording at the point marked with X. Then I started pedalling very hard towards the City!

As it later turned out, it was 21:24. The last 'earlier' train would leave the station soon past 21:30. There was no way to catch the train! Yet, I didn't give up and was fighting!

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I had two red lights on my sprint, all other being green. I had to climb Tamka (I think 5.6% max grade) in TURBO, the rest at 50% assistance.

After exactly 8 minutes ride, I reached the Warsaw City Center station. I grabbed my heavy Vado in both hands and ran four flights of stairs towards the platform! The train stopped far away! I was running!

The train departed at 21:33 with myself onboard :)


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The crazy ride won me a King Of Mountain for the segment!

NEVER GIVE UP! :)
 
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