Our Rides in Words, Photos & Videos

[kahn]

You're going to make it, Stefan !

@Stefan Mikes

I had to have that converted by Alexa to miles. You are right - he's going to make it.

 

[kahn]

A repeat is today's almost 16 miles, 700 foot bike ride.

The red arrow is the first shot. The green arrow shows where shots 2 and 3 were taken. The pond, fresh water, enters the sound, salt water, just off the beach scene. All are pans created on the computer.

 

[mschwett]

tuesday‘s ride was my longest yet by a good stretch - well over an imperial century and close to a metric double!

the route took me from home, across the bridge and through the small towns in the flats of Marin county, up over the hills and then onto the point reyes national seashore, a rural chunk of land which has the distinction of being on a DIFFERENT TECTONIC PLATE than the rest of North America - it’s on the other side of the San Andreas fault!

stats for the ride, 118 miles, almost 8,000 feet of climb, as always the battery used only when needed for big ascents or terrible headwinds, totaling exactly 100wH, or 30% of the Creo’s internal battery. I was very happy to make it home, but not much worse for the wear other than a partially numb and aching left hand.

the usual start, through the presidio and over the bridge, just a bit earlier than usual!



into the hills! the redwood forests clear just before the town of point reyes station



pit stop for drinks and snacks, at which point a friend joins for the middle third of the ride. he’s riding a gravel bike, but is a strong rider on the road climbs.



the country in the national seashore is fairly flat, with rolling hills, an unusual green shade of grass (for this part of the world) and lots of ranch land. there was also a vicious north to south wind of around 20 miles per hour, and the rollers not steep enough to protect all the upward sections.


the rollers turn into real terrain at the end, looking down on an old lighthouse and an enormous, deserted beach.


now past the halfway point, we head back. strauss makes some of the best ice cream in the area, so i was pleased to meet the cows who provide it! the half a barn had clearly seen better days…


Second pit stop at the 2/3 point of the ride, more gatorade and snacks!


the trip back winds along the coast, with more hills to climb than the outbound route, for which i gladly used a 25% assist (actually 50%) on my creo.


almost home now, the city reappears as the sun starts to set…

 

[dodgeman]

100 miles, that’s quite a ride. My backside starts to hurt at about 18 miles and I get into some serious pain at 30 miles. Nice scenery and pictures, thanks for posting them.

 

[RabH]

Back to icy conditions today but only for the start of my ride thankfully, -2C with a biting cold northerly wind! It felt quite pleasant out of the wind but my heated gloves and warm layers kept me nice and toasty so I could enjoy my ride! By the time I got home the ice had melted and it was a balmy 4C! @mschwett Awesome effort there, you are making me jealous! How I would love to do another imperial century but circumstances mean it will probably be a while unless things change drastically at home, at least I'm getting out so I just need to be content with what I have for now!

Some steeds were eyeing up my steed!

I think I was boring them!

It wasn't a day for the paths!

The sun finally melted the frost!

Its been a while since I got out twice in the same week, I have no chance of getting near last years mileage but I have still enjoyed some great rides with 5 imperial centuries so I should be happy with what life is throwing at me! I have now covered 4,735 miles from 110 rides which is an average of just over 43 miles which isn't too shabby! The next 2 days are going to be stormy, hopefully I will get a ride on Sunday all going well!

 

[Stefan Mikes]

I even cannot comment the exploits of @mschwett... Shocking!
@RabH: Your posts have become even more attractive since you started posting the best pics full-size!

 

[kahn]

@mschwett Color me quite jealous of both your distance and the scenery you can access from home.
I barely eked out 53 miles and 3,000 feet with a Range Extender battery on my longest ride of the year and longest on the Creo. And I like that understated GRAY color - just a very nice bike.

@RabH You, too, have great scenery. And heated gloves. My last three rides have been with heated socks and nowhere near freezing.

 

[Merle Nelson]

tuesday‘s ride was my longest yet by a good stretch - well over an imperial century and close to a metric double!

the route took me from home, across the bridge and through the small towns in the flats of Marin county, up over the hills and then onto the point reyes national seashore, a rural chunk of land which has the distinction of being on a DIFFERENT TECTONIC PLATE than the rest of North America - it’s on the other side of the San Andreas fault!

stats for the ride, 118 miles, almost 8,000 feet of climb, as always the battery used only when needed for big ascents or terrible headwinds, totaling exactly 100wH, or 30% of the Creo’s internal battery. I was very happy to make it home, but not much worse for the wear other than a partially numb and aching left hand.

View attachment 107788
the usual start, through the presidio and over the bridge, just a bit earlier than usual!

View attachment 107789 View attachment 107790

into the hills! the redwood forests clear just before the town of point reyes station

View attachment 107791 View attachment 107792 View attachment 107793

pit stop for drinks and snacks, at which point a friend joins for the middle third of the ride. he’s riding a gravel bike, but is a strong rider on the road climbs.

View attachment 107794 View attachment 107795

the country in the national seashore is fairly flat, with rolling hills, an unusual green shade of grass (for this part of the world) and lots of ranch land. there was also a vicious north to south wind of around 20 miles per hour, and the rollers not steep enough to protect all the upward sections.
View attachment 107796 View attachment 107797

the rollers turn into real terrain at the end, looking down on an old lighthouse and an enormous, deserted beach.
View attachment 107798 View attachment 107799 View attachment 107800

now past the halfway point, we head back. strauss makes some of the best ice cream in the area, so i was pleased to meet the cows who provide it! the half a barn had clearly seen better days…
View attachment 107801 View attachment 107802 View attachment 107804

Second pit stop at the 2/3 point of the ride, more gatorade and snacks!
View attachment 107803

the trip back winds along the coast, with more hills to climb than the outbound route, for which i gladly used a 25% assist (actually 50%) on my creo.
View attachment 107807 View attachment 107805 View attachment 107806

almost home now, the city reappears as the sun starts to set…

View attachment 107808 View attachment 107809 View attachment 107810

Fun to see such a great post about scenery I know and love - we are in Bodega Bay. My hat is always off to the road riders in this area and look for the day we can get an 8 foot bike path beside Hwy 1 and many of the great coastal and near coastal roads.

 

[mschwett]

Fun to see such a great post about scenery I know and love - we are in Bodega Bay. My hat is always off to the road riders in this area and look for the day we can get an 8 foot bike path beside Hwy 1 and many of the great coastal and near coastal roads.

hello neighbor! i haven’t been up that way in a long time, but i have some fond childhood memories of the area. a bike path on highway 1 would be amazing, but i won’t hold my breath

 

[DiggyGun]

Another cold ride out today. With the wind chill, the temperature was 2oC.

I was trying out some new threads as got some Gore WindStopper bits.

Wearing the gloves and the tops, I still felt the cold, but to be honest, apart from my fingertips being uncomfortable the rest of me survived. Put a thick pair of Seal Skinz gloves over the Gore ones and that helped.

However, the Gore WindStopper Beanie was great, kept my head and ears nice a warm.

 

[Mulezen]

I meant to ride to Beaverdam so loaded the bike and drove to the Montpelier Arts Center. Here I began my ride on Bearverdam road...somewhere along the way I turned off it and got lost. But it was a good twenty miles and I'll be better prepared on my next ride there. Those ex military trucks were absolutely huge...I would have posed my bike for scale but thought twice about trespassing. Numerous flags like this one, and sometimes the American flag next to it. I guess its something like a secret handshake.

 

[Prairie Dog]

Great trip reports all of you! Distance wise, my trail rides pale in comparison but I still enjoy getting out.

Along one of our runs, we came across this large cow moose foraging in the bushes as she glanced briefly back at us in bewilderment. Since her calf wasn’t too far away, we kept our distance.

I snapped a few before and after shots of a home in my neighborhood. This guy is a bit of a car nut and does a remarkable job restoring antique autos. During the festive season he proudly displays them out in his front yard.

 

[BlackHand]

I snapped a few before and after shots of a home in my neighborhood. This guy is a bit of a car nut and does a remarkable job restoring antique autos. During the festive season he proudly displays them out in his front yard.

The swordfish guy needs to up his game.

 

[Deleted member 18083]

Neither cool nor warm; but definitely wet…

After too many days kept indoors, I had decided that today was definitely the day to go ride an ebike!

The Bureau of Meteorology had different ideas:

• Temperature : neither too hot nor too cold; in a word, perfect!
• Wind : negligible; perfect again!
• Precipitation : torrential, copious, horrid!

Maybe, a quick ride before the rains set in?

As I took my coffee, homemade muesli and homegrown pawpaw onto the veranda for breakfast, Queenie flew in from the bush.

Is that for me?​

Australian King-Parrot (female)
Alisterus scapularis​

I decided to be brave: ride but keep close to home in case the predictions on the BOM site were correct (they were).

Leaving home under a leaden sky.​

Brassall Rail Trail
Ipswich, Queensland​

Afterwards, Ride with GPS presented me with a crazy map in which my route crossed and recrossed itself, never straying more than thirty minutes from home.

And the rains came: a veritable deluge of Sumerian proportions.

Eventually, when I arrived home, two drenched loverbirds were snuggled up, taking refuge on the veranda (how sensible). I joined them: for a second coffee.

Rainbow Lorikeets (drenched)
Trichoglossus moluccanus​

 

[kahn]

Neither cool nor warm; but definitely wet…

View attachment 107939

After too many days kept indoors, I had decided that today was definitely the day to go ride an ebike!

The Bureau of Meteorology had different ideas:

• Temperature : neither too hot nor too cold; in a word, perfect!
• Wind : negligible; perfect again!
• Precipitation : torrential, copious, horrid!

Maybe, a quick ride before the rains set in?

As I took my coffee, homemade muesli and homegrown pawpaw onto the veranda for breakfast, Queenie flew in from the bush.

Is that for me?​

View attachment 107938

Australian King-Parrot (female)
Alisterus scapularis​

I decided to be brave: ride but keep close to home in case the predictions on the BOM site were correct (they were).

View attachment 107964

Leaving home under a leaden sky.​

View attachment 107942

Brassall Rail Trail
Ipswich, Queensland​

Afterwards, Ride with GPS presented me with a crazy map in which my route crossed and recrossed itself, never straying more than thirty minutes from home.

View attachment 107943

And the rains came: a veritable deluge of Sumerian proportions.

Eventually, when I arrived home, two drenched loverbirds were snuggled up, taking refuge on the veranda (how sensible). I joined them: for a second coffee.

View attachment 107944

Rainbow Lorikeets (drenched)
Trichoglossus moluccanus​

Other than the rain, Goldilocks would consider that temperature JUST RIGHT. And the rain would not have been an issue for her since she was indoors dealing with bears not Lorikeets.

Seriously, you just have birds like that just flitting around and visiting your back porch, ahem VERANDA!

 

[ChezCheese:)]

I meant to ride to Beaverdam so loaded the bike and drove to the Montpelier Arts Center. Here I began my ride on Bearverdam road...somewhere along the way I turned off it and got lost. But it was a good twenty miles and I'll be better prepared on my next ride there. Those ex military trucks were absolutely huge...I would have posed my bike for scale but thought twice about trespassing. Numerous flags like this one, and sometimes the American flag next to it. I guess its something like a secret handshake.

View attachment 107901View attachment 107902
View attachment 107904View attachment 107905

View attachment 107906

Don't they know they lost?

 

[Mulezen]

They are determined to move towards round two…and given January 6th they might get there yet.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Night, Snowing, Sleet, Frost & Some Off-Road (Vado SL) [Buying a Specialized U1-600 Battery] - Black Friday Stories

I called Specialized Warsaw to ask what they might have on special offers on this Black Friday. As nothing seemed to be interesting enough for me, I asked Mr. Mateusz when I could expect the delivery of the batteries I ordered a couple weeks ago. No batteries delivered yet? No worries, thank you! An hour later, I got a phone call: "Your 604 Wh Vado battery with cover has just arrived!" -- "Expect me some day then" was my reply.

Then I realized that having done most of my work in the home office, I got an excellent pretext for a ride! Vado or Vado SL? Come on... It only needs to take the SL in my hand and walk out (provided I wear proper clothes). Proper clothes on and I set off for the ride. Important to mention I took an Ortlieb Vario backpack-pannier on my back. And a pair of water-resistant motorcycle gloves. And goggles. And...

It was too warm for me despite of cold weather. While on the ride, I stopped and removed a sweatshirt from my torso, hiding the blouse to the backpack. And I arrived to Specialized Warsaw having no other stops than the one I've just mentioned. (It was my gravel friends who taught me to take long ride segments without stopping!)

Mr. Mateusz must have been very surprised on seeing me as early! I paid for the order, the cover got assembled with the battery by a tech guy, and we had a chat with Mateusz. I will be honest: my bad feet were cold, especially as I rode the last 7 km off-road segment in the first snowflakes... I spent a good hour or more at Specialized then, engaging Mr. Krzysztof (the store manager) in very interesting talk, and watching e-bikes and merchandise at the store. And you know what?

I could have bought a 2021 Kenevo with 30% discount! If I only had storage space (or, simply saying, a house)! Kenevo, a full suspension Enduro e-MTB for less than US$4900! That's a Black Friday offer! Besides, the store had all recent Tero 5.0 (EQ and non-EQ), Tero 4.0 and 3.0. Krzysztof told me the Brand Store expected a huge delivery of new Spec bikes and e-bikes soon hence he would like to empty the floor.

With the new battery in my backpack, I rode directly into snowfall! The temperature dropped to 0 C (then to -1 C, or below the freezing point). I rode through dark Kabacki Forest on hardpack surface but in snowfall. What an adventure! I had my CatEye Volt 1700 headlight on the e-bike so I just rode slower, more carefully. And my goggles soon became unusable because they got covered by snow!

I will spare you more detailed description of my "ordeal" Let me just tell you the ride was a pleasure for me! I love adventures, and I have hardened enough to enjoy riding in hard conditions! Some 14 km before home, I had to give up. My feet were freezing... I stopped at BP gas station in Sokołów (I love that place!) A charming saleswoman made me eat as many two delicious, very warm casseroles! I had a large cup of coffee, too. And mind you, my clothes (especially trousers) were soaked with water, and lumps of icy snow were falling off my helmet and gloves

That stop did me good. I surprised myself "eating" remaining kilometres in excellent mood!

No pictures this time. I just wanted to tell you how interesting day I had today

 

[m@Robertson]

I've been locked in the garage the last two days. With an hour before the sun went down, I finished my rebuild and headed off to the dunes, and the beach. Sun was already under the horizon when I got there, but I have lots of lights and the tide wasn't all the way in yet, although it was working its way back. This stretch of beach goes for miles and once you get in, there's no way out unless you either go back or finish out the ride when the hills finally open up to a state beach.

The main upgrade was a complete drivetrain change to up my rear cluster to 46T. I only needed the 40T this evening and it will probably stay that way. With deep, dry, very coarse sand, you need the 2wd this bike has to keep the front wheel moving, otherwise it submerges and then you faceplant. Plus controlling on descents is one hell of a lot easier when you can apply some power. Never throttle just synch'd pedal assist and a whole lot of attention to steering. Its absolutely exhausting. But worth the effort. This is a coastal tourist community packed with meandering knuckleheads, but this place is remote enough to be largely deserted.

For some reason my phone wanted to make the 'ahead' picture look as if it was broad daylight. By the time I turned around it was pitch dark and I was glad I have 4 front-facing lights. Then it was several miles along still-crowded mixed-use trails, lastly roads that were finally cleared, before I was back home and started up the barbecue.

 

[Prairie Dog]

I've been locked in the garage the last two days. With an hour before the sun went down, I finished my rebuild and headed off to the dunes, and the beach. Sun was already under the horizon when I got there, but I have lots of lights and the tide wasn't all the way in yet, although it was working its way back. This stretch of beach goes for miles and once you get in, there's no way out unless you either go back or finish out the ride when the hills finally open up to a state beach.

The main upgrade was a complete drivetrain change to up my rear cluster to 46T. I only needed the 40T this evening and it will probably stay that way. With deep, dry, very coarse sand, you need the 2wd this bike has to keep the front wheel moving, otherwise it submerges and then you faceplant. Plus controlling on descents is one hell of a lot easier when you can apply some power. Never throttle just synch'd pedal assist and a whole lot of attention to steering. Its absolutely exhausting. But worth the effort. This is a coastal tourist community packed with meandering knuckleheads, but this place is remote enough to be largely deserted.

For some reason my phone wanted to make the 'ahead' picture look as if it was broad daylight. By the time I turned around it was pitch dark and I was glad I have 4 front-facing lights. Then it was several miles along still-crowded mixed-use trails, lastly roads that were finally cleared, before I was back home and started up the barbecue.
View attachment 108064

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Man, I would love a chance to play in the sand instead of the snow for a change…or lack thereof. Great shots, reminds me of @Chargeride when he spends his days at the beach. Life is good.