Our Rides in Words, Photos & Videos

[Stefan Mikes]

I just wanted to share the most typical Tuscan view, so I'm sure Chargeride won't show it to his missus!

Tuscany consists of hills with cypresses, olive trees, and grapes. Sadly, I could not take a good picture of a maritime pine, which can only be found in certain areas of the Mediterranean. (Tuscany is the easternmost border of the area where maritime pines grow).

 

[RabH]

After 2 days of heavy but much needed rain it was good to get out on dry roads today, there were some floods around but nothing too bad! It was time to head north into The Campsie Hills again, its been too long since I ventured up there! I took the hard route today up the Tak Ma Doon road, even on the e bike its a toughie! Its worth it for the descent at the other side and the views at the top!

I had an absolute blast down the descent, today it was into the wind but still awesome Not that the wind was really strong though, just 15mph! The views in the valley are pretty nice also!

The hill I just descended!

I was now heading for the Campsies at the other end from where I started, the ride takes you past the Carron Valley Reservoir which was looking rather low! Hopefully with Autumn approaching it will get topped up again soon, 2 days of heavy rain made very little difference of course!

Some of the roads here are really rough but some are lovely to ride like these ones!

A few miles on and I can see the climb I am just about to tackle, on my way up I passed a couple struggling on a tandem! I told them they should get one with a motor for climbs like this and they agreed!

At the top of the climb, just before another amazing descent down into Lennoxtown!

No more photos after this, time to concentrate on getting home safely with the schools back after the holidays! The roads here are crazy when the schools are back, in my day we walked to school....

What a great ride in perfect weather, I'm hoping to cycle to the car racing on Sunday if the weather plays ball...

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Damn!

I'm being sent to Frankfurt/Main for a trade show, the whole next week. Meanwhile you Rab beat my distance ridden this year (I am not capable to match your 74 vertical kilometres in any case...)

 

[Mulezen]

Yesterday morning (Tuesday) was a fine morning for a ride with my friend from town. The temperature was 71f, 21c with dark clouds scudding along the horizon but ultimately we stayed dry. We rode the tony part of Goochland county (Virginia) and with some of the steep hills leading to the James river managed a peak speed of 38mph. My friend was ecstatic over this and wondered why I wasn't. I replied it wasn't really a feat to EBR (Scotland?) aces but he expected to rub it in to the other friend who has ridden the same bike. Seventy year old men still reliving competitions of fifty years ago. Fortunately his guide was more mature and cognizant of the responsibility to photograph barns. But though there were many they sat in distance green pastures out of reach of my point and shoot. And a few were of brick and brass and certainly cost more than my farm. The road seemed smoother than my pot-holed chip seal, and the cars politely our back were the expensive kind...tony.

 

[PatriciaK]

Another training ride this morning:


Looking across the harbor to Mount Baker:



She's there, if you know where to look !

Couldn't resist a shot is this Navy "trainer":



Who needs a pedal car when you can fly this baby !

Beautiful day, beautiful ride!

 

[Chargeride]

I just wanted to share the most typical Tuscan view, so I'm sure Chargeride won't show it to his missus!

View attachment 132205
Tuscany consists of hills with cypresses, olive trees, and grapes. Sadly, I could not take a good picture of a maritime pine, which can only be found in certain areas of the Mediterranean. (Tuscany is the easternmost border of the area where maritime pines grow).

Im down to visit my dad, got the wife with me so writing this in the bathroom.
Yes, thats the Tuscany I know, which shows how much I knew.

Heres the wife casually admiring some young man diving into the river.
'Isnt he fit' she says.
Imagine me commenting on a 20yr old woman.
Silence for the rest of the week.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Heres the wife casually admiring some young man diving into the river.
'Isnt he fit' she says.
Imagine me commenting on a 20yr old woman.
Silence for the rest of the week.

So true...

 

[Readytoride]

The Ice Cream Social Ride

A 23 mile group ride with our bike shop yesterday. An easy pedal down the rails-to-trails W&OD (former Washington (DC) and Old Dominion (Virginia) rail line operational in the early 1900s) from Leesburg (Virginia) heading east towards the domain of urban suburbia. Directly into the abyss of the maddening crowds and 6 lane highways with flying overpasses. Arrow straight into the technology heart that is Northern Virginia, a dive into the lair of the endless data centers, the processing heartbeat of the world's internet, thousands of humming computers carefully arranged in perfect rows inside hundreds of featureless buildings with no windows and all surrounded by unclimbable fences with sculpted razor ends. The rail trail rolled by, generously giving birth to numerous thin bike paths branching out on their own, all winding away from the mother trail to attach themselves to the highways, their aim being to carve out a narrow piece of hard road firmly etched with white paint in the form of a wide bike silhouette so that the adjoining motorized traffic tearing by at breakneck speed on the bigger lanes will know ...and hopefully honor ...the rights of our small group cruising that painted lane at less than light speed on our way to a local Baskin Robbins for a double dip ice cream sundae with whipped cream and two cherries on top. Or, for the lone millennial in our group, an iced pumpkin spiced double latte with a shot of whatever-they-call-these-coffee-concoctions-nowadays.

I completely failed to take a group shot of our intrepid gang enjoying their cold treats at the outdoor seating. Thankfully, our group leader took a group selfie as we headed back home, full of ice cream, and thoroughly enjoying the sunny, cool, perfect day.

We all made our leader promise to have this ride again, preferably on the 31st when all Baskin Robins ice cream dips are 30% off.

 

[fooferdoggie]

 

[Chargeride]

This is the track from our Airbnb to the local pub, its VERY steep and often full of cows and fresh cowpats.
Im going on the bike tonight and then
try to ride back up it in the dark.

What could go wrong.

 

[Prairie Dog]

This is the track from our Airbnb to the local pub, its VERY steep and often full of cows and fresh cowpats.
Im going on the bike tonight and then
try to ride back up it in the dark.
View attachment 132482 What could go wrong.

Dunno, getting mugged by a gang of Hobbits? Seriously, that is one gorgeous view from the high ground.

 

[Djangodog]

The Ice Cream Social Ride

View attachment 132458
A 23 mile group ride with our bike shop yesterday. An easy pedal down the rails-to-trails W&OD (former Washington (DC) and Old Dominion (Virginia) rail line operational in the early 1900s) from Leesburg (Virginia) heading east towards the domain of urban suburbia. Directly into the abyss of the maddening crowds and 6 lane highways with flying overpasses. Arrow straight into the technology heart that is Northern Virginia, a dive into the lair of the endless data centers, the processing heartbeat of the world's internet, thousands of humming computers carefully arranged in perfect rows inside hundreds of featureless buildings with no windows and all surrounded by unclimbable fences with sculpted razor ends. The rail trail rolled by, generously giving birth to numerous thin bike paths branching out on their own, all winding away from the mother trail to attach themselves to the highways, their aim being to carve out a narrow piece of hard road firmly etched with white paint in the form of a wide bike silhouette so that the adjoining motorized traffic tearing by at breakneck speed on the bigger lanes will know ...and hopefully honor ...the rights of our small group cruising that painted lane at less than light speed on our way to a local Baskin Robbins for a double dip ice cream sundae with whipped cream and two cherries on top. Or, for the lone millennial in our group, an iced pumpkin spiced double latte with a shot of whatever-they-call-these-coffee-concoctions-nowadays.

I completely failed to take a group shot of our intrepid gang enjoying their cold treats at the outdoor seating. Thankfully, our group leader took a group selfie as we headed back home, full of ice cream, and thoroughly enjoying the sunny, cool, perfect day.

We all made our leader promise to have this ride again, preferably on the 31st when all Baskin Robins ice cream dips are 30% off.

View attachment 132459

The simple pleasures are the best. Nice story telling too. Contentment is a gift.

 

[Mulezen]

This is the track from our Airbnb to the local pub, its VERY steep and often full of cows and fresh cowpats.
Im going on the bike tonight and then
try to ride back up it in the dark.
View attachment 132482 What could go wrong.

Bruegel-est

 

[kahn]

Nothing Bruegel-est about my trip!!! WWII exhibit at Reagan Presidential Library somewhere in over populated southern Calif

 

[dodgeman]

I’ve been visiting relatives the last week so no bike rides. So I am a mostly retired land surveyor and they wanted me to review a project that we started 11 years ago and got put on hold. My house to work is 7 miles so I rode the bike and of course a barn of the day pic.

 

[dodgeman]

I did a little over 32 miles and 1100 feet of elevation gain today, a long ride for me. A couple of barns, one in decent shape with an intact but most likely non functioning wind mill. The other barn is pretty rough and collapsing on the left side. Also rode by a alpaca (or llama) farm.

 

[BlackHand]

Finishing up family visits in PA and MI and looking forward to getting back on the ebike soon.

I did manage a little over 4 miles around the block on ye olde 10 speed, but didn't trust it for more than that between the cracked and peeling sidewalls and an ominous creaking from the headset.

I've been down this road thousands of times in decades past. Hit about 24 mph on the tar and chip this time.

 

[BlackHand]

Visiting the other side of the family in Michigan I did get access to borrow my nephew's old bike for a couple morning rides while my family slept in.

First ride was 19 miles through downtown Grand Rapids and along the Grand River. Kind of a slow ride as I could only get 6 gears working out of the 18 on the decrepit old Mongoose. The highlights were a family of turtles hanging out on a log just across the river from the Gerald Ford Presidential Library. Continuing downstream I found a few miles of quiet trails along the river. Rather than retrace my steps I crossed back over the river and got to see the recycling plant, power plant, car impound lot, and sewage treatment facility.

The next day I headed the opposite direction outside the beltline for a pleasant 23+ mile ride through farmland that is slowly being ceded to suburbia - as evidenced by this silo that now serves as a climbing wall on a small playground.

Highlights of this ride included stumbling across a 1867 covered bridge in Ada and watching a family of Sandhill Cranes hanging out in a pasture.


Hoping for at least a short ebike ride tomorrow but we also have to pick up our menagerie of pets (dog, bearded dragon, salamander, and hedgehog) from their respective caretakers and get everyone settled.

 

[dodgeman]

I did an easy 12 miles today after a longer ride yesterday. Guess what, I found another barn to take a pic of, this is newer and on an Amish farm.

 

[RabH]

Thankfully the weather forecast was looking good for a ride to the car racing today, 2 miles into my ride the weather closed right in and I got soaked! 2 miles further and the sun was shining and I soon dried up again, that's Scotland for you! No more rain after that, the forecast was almost right...the wind was pretty blustery and I had it behind me most of the way to the circuit! After crossing the Kincardine Bridge I was heading for the back road which leads to the circuit, the Ochil Hills were looking good as always!

Onwards towards the circuit, the roads were pretty quiet and nice and dry!

The actual hill which the circuit is named after, Knockhill!

After many miles of climbing it was good to see the lovely downhill which leads to the road into the track!

My bike was now needing a rest! Well maybe it was me that needed one, I was sitting on a bench above enjoying the racing!

A ride to the other end of the circuit was now in order, I was just in time to catch the slowest cars of the day, Citroen C1's but what a lot of fun they are to watch as they try to keep momentum through the corners!

Next up were the classics, such great variety to enjoy!

It looked warm and it was when the sun was out but when the sun disappeared the blustery wind made it pretty chilly! It was time to head home now and tackle the 25-30mph headwind, I still had 43% left on my first battery but that soon evaporated as I battled into the wind! I came into the circuit from the south so I left to the north, its mostly downhill at first but it didn't feel like it with that wind!

The road runs between the trees on the far right here, it gets pretty dark here even in daylight!

After a mile or so I turned off on to the awesome quiet back road which leads to the village of Saline, its mostly downhill and such a blast to ride down! After Saline I took the back road which leads to Forestmill where you get another nice view of the Ochil Hills!

I soldiered on into the headwind and with all the downhills I had plenty battery power left so I cranked the assist up for the final climbs back home, its such a relief knowing you have all that power on tap to tackle all those climbs! I finally got home and I was pretty tired and thinking I would leave my report until tomorrow but I summoned the energy to post it tonight, I will soon collapse into bed and enjoy a much needed sleep! What a fantastic day, I just love cycling to the racing and enjoying both of my passions at the same time!