Our Rides in Words, Photos & Videos

[Nashcruiser]

Decided to ride a bike path that’s on the other side of town. Being that I had to go through downtown to get there I loaded my bike into the back of my truck and checked possible routes to take to avoid the traffic. I think I might have a route for future rides over there. Downtown Nashville is a scary place to be on a bicycle but the path I followed took me around the worst of it so I look forward to giving it a try. Certainly want to avoid the party busses that cruise downtown these days. Busses is a loose term as there are trucks and tractors pulling trailers too full of partying tourists riding around drinking and getting crazy. Probably would throw beer cans at me if I passed one. They’ve really become a nuisance around here. But about my ride:

Parked at the railroad tracks and caught the path at the observation center.

Path runs along two rivers and terminates at the dam. It’s probably the most scenic path in town.

An impressive pedestrian bridge crosses the first river (impressive to me at least).

After crossing the river it goes underneath the highway through a couple of tunnels.

Then it goes for a bit and crosses the other river and goes down the path and passes a cabin of some history that I’ll have to investigate someday.

Riding along the path it goes by some properties that had one all decorated for Halloween.

Finally arrived at the dam and observed the fishermen trying their luck.

That last picture you have to look along the bottom of the dam to see one little speck of a person playing with danger at getting his fish.


Then it’s heading back the way I came to get back to my truck enjoying the path and spotting a great blue heron cleaning itself.

Midday sun made for a warm ride but not to bad with temps in the low 80’s. Very nice enjoyable ride that I look forward to doing again. To begin from home would probably add another 10 miles.

 

[Nashcruiser]

Cool very picturesque. Nashville must have some obscene wealth to build a bridge for cycling.
I'm discovering new trails myself just riding within my zip code.

It was back when we had a democratic governor and mayor. Would never happen with these guys in office now.

 

[kahn]

Decided to ride a bike path that’s on the other side of town. Being that I had to go through downtown to get there I loaded my bike into the back of my truck and checked possible routes to take to avoid the traffic. I think I might have a route for future rides over there. Downtown Nashville is a scary place to be on a bicycle but the path I followed took me around the worst of it so I look forward to giving it a try. Certainly want to avoid the party busses that cruise downtown these days. Busses is a loose term as there are trucks and tractors pulling trailers too full of partying tourists riding around drinking and getting crazy. Probably would throw beer cans at me if I passed one. They’ve really become a nuisance around here. But about my ride:
View attachment 103401

Parked at the railroad tracks and caught the path at the observation center.
View attachment 103402View attachment 103403


Path runs along two rivers and terminates at the dam. It’s probably the most scenic path in town.
View attachment 103404


An impressive pedestrian bridge crosses the first river (impressive to me at least).
View attachment 103405View attachment 103406View attachment 103407


After crossing the river it goes underneath the highway through a couple of tunnels.
View attachment 103408View attachment 103409


Then it goes for a bit and crosses the other river and goes down the path and passes a cabin of some history that I’ll have to investigate someday.
View attachment 103410View attachment 103411View attachment 103412


Riding along the path it goes by some properties that had one all decorated for Halloween.
View attachment 103413View attachment 103414


Finally arrived at the dam and observed the fishermen trying their luck.
View attachment 103415View attachment 103416View attachment 103417
That last picture you have to look along the bottom of the dam to see one little speck of a person playing with danger at getting his fish.


Then it’s heading back the way I came to get back to my truck enjoying the path and spotting a great blue heron cleaning itself.
View attachment 103418View attachment 103419

Midday sun made for a warm ride but not to bad with temps in the low 80’s. Very nice enjoyable ride that I look forward to doing again. To begin from home would probably add another 10 miles.

Nice but there's this red bike cluttering up all the pictures!

I've been to Knoxville but never Nashville.

 

[Nashcruiser]

Nice but there's this red bike cluttering up all the pictures!

I've been to Knoxville but never Nashville.

It’s all about the red bike!
Knoxville is more scenic.

 

[Nashcruiser]

BTW…I did these two rides on a single charge. I don’t remember now but I think I still had 20% left when I finished the last one. 53 miles with 4200 ft of elevation gain. I’m getting pretty comfortable with the range I can get with it.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Pardon me David
I had to spun your thread

Ya, Rome, that would be perhaps better if you posted a single (well-thought) post a day, thank you very much. (You do not need to answer that).

The Fourth Anniversary of My Angioplasty

Four years ago, I had my second and the last possible angioplasty surgery of my left leg (at that time, my wife Sheila got cancer that eventually killed her one and half years later...) The surgery took some five and half hour, and left me another, ailing person. I was clearly told I needed to do workouts to prevent my leg against potential amputation. I was forcing myself to long walks but that was hard and painful because of intermittent claudication which means terrible leg pain after you have walked for several hundred metres (so you have to stop). I bought my first e-bike in August 2019, and that changed my life.

I can hardly walk but I can pedal. It does my legs good and keeps me in better shape. If I don't ride at least every second day, my body tells me I'm moving in the wrong direction (as to say). Therefore, I went on a ride on Thursday afternoon, fully aware it was rather cold, could rain, it was windy, and I was expected to come back at night. Magically, I feel fine after I have started pedalling!

The pretext for my ride was to see a friend of mine who was interested to ride my Vado SL to only try how the RedShift ShockStop stem really worked. And, by bad luck, he was not at home!

The "Woman's Thoughts", a mural sponsored by a pharmaceutical company, Grodzisk Mazowiecki.

Not a particularly long or fast ride but it certainly had contributed to my fitness. (It is spectacular to observe how RideWithGPS and Wahoo ELEMNT both help me find new places and routes in the neighbourhood I thought I knew so well!) For instance, Walczewski's Ponds, a recreational area I was totally unaware of before, ponds where small boats are sailing!

 

[ActionJackson]

The Fourth Anniversary of My Angioplasty

I hesitate to say this but it’s true - Happy Anniversary on your surgery. Great to hear the e-bike is such a road to recovery and rehabilitation for you Stefan - and thanks for your sage advice!

 

[Mulezen]

Ya, Rome, that would be perhaps better if you posted a single (well-thought) post a day, thank you very much. (You do not need to answer that).

The Fourth Anniversary of My Angioplasty

Four years ago, I had my second and the last possible angioplasty surgery of my left leg (at that time, my wife Sheila got cancer that eventually killed her one and half years later...) The surgery took some five and half hour, and left me another, ailing person. I was clearly told I needed to do workouts to prevent my leg against potential amputation. I was forcing myself to long walks but that was hard and painful because of intermittent claudication which means terrible leg pain after you have walked for several hundred metres (so you have to stop). I bought my first e-bike in August 2019, and that changed my life.

I can hardly walk but I can pedal. It does my legs good and keeps me in better shape. If I don't ride at least every second day, my body tells me I'm moving in the wrong direction (as to say). Therefore, I went on a ride on Thursday afternoon, fully aware it was rather cold, could rain, it was windy, and I was expected to come back at night. Magically, I feel fine after I have started pedalling!

The pretext for my ride was to see a friend of mine who was interested to ride my Vado SL to only try how the RedShift ShockStop stem really worked. And, by bad luck, he was not at home!

View attachment 103528
The "Woman's Thoughts", a mural sponsored by a pharmaceutical company, Grodzisk Mazowiecki.

View attachment 103529
Not a particularly long or fast ride but it certainly had contributed to my fitness. (It is spectacular to observe how RideWithGPS and Wahoo ELEMNT both help me find new places and routes in the neighbourhood I thought I knew so well!) For instance, Walczewski's Ponds, a recreational area I was totally unaware of before, ponds where small boats are sailing!

Stefan…congratulation…you have pedaled yourself a great distance from those dark days

 

[RabH]

A frosty but beautiful start to the day, with the weather taking a turn for the worse after tomorrow I decided to get a 50 miler in! I had to take to the busy roads at first as I didn't want to chance the back roads with a chance of icy patches, thankfully our schools are closed this week so the traffic wasn't too bad! The Campsie Hills were looking beautiful in the morning sun!

I used to drive this road every weekday 11 years ago, its still as rough as it was then! It was actually covered in 3 feet of snow in 2010, took me 6 hours to travel 10 miles that day...

Back in June this was the scene at my local loch!

They looked a little different today! Its amazing that all 8 have survived!

Near the end of my trip I came across this!

Wally is hiding behind a telegraph pole!

I had a real fun trip today, it might be another week before I get out again, my only hope is the weather forecasts might be wrong like they usually are! I live in hope...

 

[Chargeride]

Off to Devon again for 10 days with the missus.
I'll try to find something new, I should have cell service, so I'll post some pics.
Also going to Bude in Cornwall.

May the rain gods slumber.

 

[Nashcruiser]

Ya, Rome, that would be perhaps better if you posted a single (well-thought) post a day, thank you very much. (You do not need to answer that).

The Fourth Anniversary of My Angioplasty

Four years ago, I had my second and the last possible angioplasty surgery of my left leg (at that time, my wife Sheila got cancer that eventually killed her one and half years later...) The surgery took some five and half hour, and left me another, ailing person. I was clearly told I needed to do workouts to prevent my leg against potential amputation. I was forcing myself to long walks but that was hard and painful because of intermittent claudication which means terrible leg pain after you have walked for several hundred metres (so you have to stop). I bought my first e-bike in August 2019, and that changed my life.

I can hardly walk but I can pedal. It does my legs good and keeps me in better shape. If I don't ride at least every second day, my body tells me I'm moving in the wrong direction (as to say). Therefore, I went on a ride on Thursday afternoon, fully aware it was rather cold, could rain, it was windy, and I was expected to come back at night. Magically, I feel fine after I have started pedalling!

The pretext for my ride was to see a friend of mine who was interested to ride my Vado SL to only try how the RedShift ShockStop stem really worked. And, by bad luck, he was not at home!

View attachment 103528
The "Woman's Thoughts", a mural sponsored by a pharmaceutical company, Grodzisk Mazowiecki.

View attachment 103529
Not a particularly long or fast ride but it certainly had contributed to my fitness. (It is spectacular to observe how RideWithGPS and Wahoo ELEMNT both help me find new places and routes in the neighbourhood I thought I knew so well!) For instance, Walczewski's Ponds, a recreational area I was totally unaware of before, ponds where small boats are sailing!

Thanks for your revelation. Both heart wrenching and inspiring. Last month my sister-in-law passed suddenly and my brother is still in much pain. Losing a spouse is just terrible. Biking and now ebiking has helped me in more ways then just staying healthy. It’s helped me with my mental and emotional health too.

 

[Deleted member 18083]

The best rides are with friends…

Brisbane Valley Rail Trail
Esk, Queensland​

After waking up far too early, I almost missed the rendezvous with my TOP Cycling friends. (Blame a leisurely breakfast, a little bit of gardening and a second mug of coffee!)

Nine of us – six on ebikes – rode up the rail trail between the little towns of Lowood and Esk, on the way skirting old farms that had, a century ago, had their milk and cream picked up by the daily steam train service. The rails have turned to trails but the old farm buildings are, regrettably, turning to rusty old iron and firewood.

Of the ebikes: 2 R&Ms (my Homage Touring and Annette's Nevo) and 4 traditional mountain bikes (including Stephen's Trek Rail in the photo).

For this 71-km ride, the wind was blowing at around 30 km/h (gusts to 50 km/h). Temperatures ranged from 18ºC (7:00 am start) to 25ºC (10:30 am coffee time!).

With not a cloud to be seen, UV radiation was high and, as usual, all of us wore long-sleeved tops for sun protection.

 

[RabH]

Thank you very much RabH.
I'm inspired to ride the distance.
Just to appreciate beauty in my surroundings.
I too use my phone to capture images. It shows real time images.
Your photos made me feel i was really there in time.
Dynamic is a more descriptive word to use
Ride on!
England has got to be the best Island to be in.
I had to say that.

Just to correct you, I'm from Scotland which isn't part of England!

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Specialized Turbo Tero Demo Ride

I'm exhausted. Too cold & windy cycling day, too long a distance ridden on two e-bikes with three distinctive ride segments. And I don't want to make a review of the Tero here, so let me be curt.

I set off for a Vado SL ride at 7:12 am, to reach Specialized Warsaw at 9:05. Strong tailwind let me reach my destination effortlessly and with very low battery consumption. Yet, I re-charged my batteries at the store, as I was painfully aware my ride back would be against dramatic headwind... Besides, I didn't need to bring my charger and Y-cable to Specialized: they would have immediately helped me with their own gear.

I liked the technician (who was the only person present at the store at 9:00). He let me put my SL inside the store, then approached my e-bike with a measuring tape. "It's 72 centimetres" - I remarked helpfully (he was about to measure my saddle height). "Are you returning the bike on Monday?" -- he demanded -- "No, returning it by 14:00 hours" -- "Ah, good. I was asking because I would need to handover the charger to you". It was all quick: the Tero's battery was fully charged, wheels inflated; as a verified customer I just got a one-page chit to sign. "The bike is not insured. Please do not make damage to it, don't let it be stolen or lost, OK?"

Still in the lobby, I connected Mission Control to the Tero, and guessed how to operate the e-bike's electronics (the MasterMind system is quite intuitive; I only could not guess how to reset the daily trip meter -- it's the "-" button long press). With Mission Control -> Smart Control I instructed Tero to be able to ride for 50 kilometres with 150 m of elevation gain with 10% battery left as spare at the end of the ride, and rode I off, choosing mostly off-road terrain.

The MasterMind TCD (new display) is certainly interesting. You get a lot of information in its five data pages. The current assistance level is indicated by the theme colour (Smart Control is indicated by pink). The indicator below the speedometer is the cadence meter. Once you pedal over 70 rpm, the bar becomes green (may many cyclists finally learn what cadence means and what the gears are for!) You can adjust the assistance (tune the motor) as you ride. And there are two dedicated buttons on the remote, marked F1 and F2 now. All very practical.

Specialized Turbo Tero ST 3.0. The e-bike in its habitat. Tero just loves to be ridden off-road, and gladly accepts the fact some people need to ride from the city to the trail Shortly: there was no surface Tero could not ride through, including shallow sand. It was not as hopeless as e-MTBs typically are while on the pavement.

I Got Lost In The Forest
I actually hate what lumberjacks do to the forest. They damage fire-roads and paths. They litter the forest with tree-branches and twigs. As I had the bad luck to ride into a deforestation area, I could not ride, had to walk Tero (it liked being walked!), carry it over obstacles (Tero 3.0 seemed to be surprisingly lightweight, with the centre of mass forward -- because of the heavy Suntour fork). I lost a lot of time in the forest and -- afraid I might not be back at Specialized on time -- I shortened my trip. I just rode straight to Zimne Doły (Cold Pits).

An Exhilarating Police Story
As I reached Cold Pits, I could see a police exhibition stand, and several men and women in blue around. Intrigued, I approached them and asked what they were doing there:
-- "We're here with an educational action for Boy/Girl Scouts. We could demonstrate it to you but will you remove your helmet, goggles and glasses?"
-- "Well, my e-bike (which is actually not mine) has no kickstand, and I don't know how to support it safely not to damage it"
-- "Not yours?!" -- "A rental one"

To which, their Captain asked me with the utmost interest: -- "Is it an e-bike?!" -- "Yes, it is" -- "I apologize for my insolence but would you let me ride it? I've never ridden an e-bike!" -- "Please, do!"

Meanwhile, a policewoman handed one of their goggles to me. I wore their goggles and was asked to walk along a row of bollards. The vision was the most strange to me! I was stumbling over the bollards, and felt erratic very much.

-- "Now you see. These goggles simulate how you behave after taking LSD..." -- "Oh. I wouldn't take LSD in my life after what I have seen! Do you have some alcohol goggles?" -- "We have no alcohol (hur, hur, hur) but yes, please try these alcohol simulating ones!"

The action was to show Scouts how fatal driving under the influence would be. Meanwhile, yet another policeman was riding the Tero!

-- "Sir, I am totally impressed with the e-bike! The best thing I rode in my life!" -- the Captain remarked -- "I am an avid cyclist myself but I can feel the burden of my age, and seem to need an e-bike! Tell me..." And I told him a lot

And no single picture taken! (That's me).

A surreal villa on my return way to Specialized.

A Specialized Turbo Levo Expert. (Another customer has just returned it after his demo ride). I could not show it in the picture but that e-bike is a monster. It is 'far too much of a bike'. Of course, advanced MTBers riding technical singletrack need such a heavy tank but the rest of us is rather intimidated with the premium full suspension (off-road only) e-bike. That's precisely why Tero has been met with such great interest: it's "the e-MTB for the rest of us". (Note: Kenevo -- an Enduro e-bike -- is beyond any belief).

If I needed a Tero, that would be the version 5.0 (but Step-Through if such a combination exists). Not that the 3.0 is to be thrown under the bus, no. My expectations are simply set by the Giant Trance E+ 2 Pro I used to own. The yellow one is Levo SL: How lightweight it appears compared to both Levo and Tero!

I was very hungry, so I visited a nearby outdoor bar under the name META (Finish Line). And I ate a full lunch there!

Despite of adequate clothes, I was cold. Tried to warm up my body with the bonfire.

Isn't Poland a cycling nation? So many bikes on such a cold day!

My Saturday's trip. I still am cold! Or, at least feel so!
(Note: Google Drive -> My Maps let you combine multiple maps into one).

 

[Chargeride]

What an interesting day , I can tell you are no social wallflower.
I would give the report 10/10, but it loses one point for no delicious half eaten dessert.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

I can tell you are no social wallflower.

Oh, I am. I have been working for my whole life to appear someone different I really am... Extrovert.

 

[Marci jo]

Great Post!

Great Post! Very very well written and wellthoughtout. Bikes are awesome. Glad you shared your insights on the tero.
I'm hoping you will follow up with photos of the Captain riding it, photos of boy scouts and girl scouts in uniforms. It would be very interestingly cool to see what their uniforms look like in Poland.
@RabH I admit I am not well cultured in many things.
United Kingdom and England most often i get it mixed up.

Only short ride today to see if the arborists had come to the neighbourhood and a blast through the park.
I had quit smoking three years ago and no relapses since I started ebiking. Today I was having anxiety issues and riding alleviated it.

Way to go Rome!
Another one of the many positive things about ebikes. Smoking cessation!!

 

[Deleted member 18083]

Tinge of green…

Fairney View, Queensland​

For most of October our weather has been a sandwich of wet and dry spells. This morning provided a perfect riding opportunity but, according to those who can predict what is to me unpredictable, it'll be pouring down tomorrow. The farmers' dams are filling, their fields are greening and, in the photo above, the low section of the field is a bit flooded.

Being timid, I turned around after two hours (90 minutes riding + 30 minutes refreshment stop). One of my favourite places to take a break is beside the Brisbane River at Ipswich's Kholo Gardens which has some interesting historic buildings including the old church (opened 1904; relocated 1990) which is able to be hired as a wedding chapel.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

And Who Says SL E-Bikes Are Too Delicate For Grocery Shopping

My weekly (or twice a week) grocery shopping ordeal. I typically return in Turbo mode from the 15 km round trip. (I was unable to close the lid of the pannier-backpack today!)

 

[Chargeride]

Finding no exciting games on this morning I set off for a ride. I'm posting i go, I hope it is okay.
I stopped just a mile ahead of my 5mile marker pedaling on eco. I found a broken marker, I will call the number and report it.
Also some pics I took on my previous stop to increase my tyre pressure. I had it inflated for off roading.

Whats a broken marker?