Our Rides in Words, Photos & Videos

[kahn]

The Land of Snow, Ice and Everything Else in Between

It was a glorious albeit overcast morning as I set out on another ride along a familiar route. Night rides are something to experience if you haven’t done so before but day excursions are hard to beat especially when it comes to the odd encounter with one of the locals.

View attachment 112651
View attachment 112652

It was a bit disappointing not being able to even see a glimmer of sunlight today and the gloomy skies made it appear to be much cooler than it actually was.

Trail conditions, on the other hand, were near optimal even with the recent spell of warm weather. It was ideal hard pack making it oh so grippy for the studs with just the right amount of softness beneath the tires allowing me to enjoy a relatively constant pace even on uphill sections. I actually prefer it to be quite a few degrees colder than the unseasonably mild -1C that we were rewarded with today as the drive train is kept much cleaner by the end of the ride.

View attachment 112653

Part my route runs parallel to the public paths which work well for everyone including XC skiers as well for those who are simply out for a brisk walk.

View attachment 112654

I came across only one slushy section along the trail as well as a fair amount of ice on a bridge crossing - a tell tale sign of the thaw/freeze cycles that we’ve been experiencing.

View attachment 112655View attachment 112656

I’ve been a consistent visitor to the Bower Ponds in recent days. I must say that the municipality does a great job in maintaining the ice conditions from snow removal to flooding.

View attachment 112659
View attachment 112658

A short video of today's ride.

How fast are you cruising through the woods?

 

[Prairie Dog]

How fast are you cruising through the woods?

I really couldn’t say for sure...maybe 10-15 kph on some of the straighter sections. Definitely not as fast as on the pond ice. I rarely glance down at the stats on my Garmin when I’m on the trails as I’ve had my fair share of mishaps as a consequence of not being focused enough. Today was an exception as the ground conditions were that sound and I was having so much fun that I rode another loop.

 

[Chargeride]

To give you an idea of the road cyclists standing in the UK, the Daily mail has just run a piece on cycle lanes

RICHARD LITTLEJOHN: Bike lane Britain...the Great Leap Backwards

RICHARD LITTLEJOHN: Under the cover of Covid, our leaders have surrendered public policy to blinkered 'green' fanatics who have installed bike lanes everywhere.

www.dailymail.co.uk

 

[RabH]

To give you an idea of the road cyclists standing in the UK, the Daily fail has just run a piece on cycle lanes

RICHARD LITTLEJOHN: Bike lane Britain...the Great Leap Backwards

RICHARD LITTLEJOHN: Under the cover of Covid, our leaders have surrendered public policy to blinkered 'green' fanatics who have installed bike lanes everywhere.

www.dailymail.co.uk

Fixed that for you I never read anything they print, they hate cyclists with a passion...

It was a very misty morning but with 45mph winds forecast for tomorrow I wasn't letting some mist stop me! Just local roads today but it was great fun despite the murky conditions, quiet roads sure help in that respect! Not really much to report other than I had a blast, no photos due to the conditions!

 

[kahn]

To give you an idea of the road cyclists standing in the UK, the Daily mail has just run a piece on cycle lanes

RICHARD LITTLEJOHN: Bike lane Britain...the Great Leap Backwards

RICHARD LITTLEJOHN: Under the cover of Covid, our leaders have surrendered public policy to blinkered 'green' fanatics who have installed bike lanes everywhere.

www.dailymail.co.uk

Wow, that guys writes very long articles. Who is "Genghis Khan" - not being familiar with British nicknames!

 

[Chargeride]

They called them lycra wearing lunatics

 

[Stefan Mikes]

I was trying to remain silent CR... and I will. Cannot restrain myself to say Daily Mail is an exceptional sewer though.
Around 100 years ago it was them Jews and cyclists that were guilty.

No need to answer.

 

[DiggyGun]

Good rides and pictures everyone.

Haven’t been out for a few days as I was helping a mate move and I’ve now got a cold.

Hope to get out on Saturday as the weather doesn’t look too bad.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

and I’ve now got a cold.

Get better soon!

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Yes, it’s right-side loading as well but I find it overall to be more sturdy and stronger than the Zee.

FLOW CAGE SL ENHANCED - RIGHT

Durable, fiber reinforced Composite Matrix construction. Optimized side-load shape for easy bottle access in compact frames. Engineered to hold bottles securely. Oval mounting holes allow fine tuning of position on frame. Available in left- or right-side configurations. Sold individually or in...

ride.lezyne.com

View attachment 112620

Art, I need to ask the question again.
There is a notch at the side of the Range Extender. That notch is for securing the RE in the Zee Cage by turning the battery, so the insert of the Zee gets into the battery notch. That makes the battery secured on the vertical. Are you sure there is such an insert in the Lezyne Flow Cage, too? Because I cannot see it in the picture you have shown.

I can remember my first ride with the RE. I didn't know I should have secured the battery by turning it inside the Zee, and the road vibration almost made the RE jump off the cage!

 

[Prairie Dog]

Art, I need to ask the question again.
There is a notch at the side of the Range Extender. That notch is for securing the RE in the Zee Cage by turning the battery, so the insert of the Zee gets into the battery notch. That makes the battery secured on the vertical. Are you sure there is such an insert in the Lezyne Flow Cage, too? Because I cannot see it in the picture you have shown.

I can remember my first ride with the RE. I didn't know I should have secured the battery by turning it inside the Zee, and the road vibration almost made the RE jump off the cage!

That might be true if you’re referring to the recessed notch near the top half of the RE. For me that wasn’t an issue. The location of the crack on my Zee was exactly where yours was where it impacted and I was only toting a regular water bottle not the heavier RE. I feel that this might be the weak point of the Zee if there is one. Much of the weight stress on plastic cages is at/near where the mounting points are. The Lezyne may not be custom fit for the RE but it’s just made from a stronger reinforced composite particularly the four cage arms extending out from the beefier mounting plate. For this reason, I feel that it provides a more secure and safe receptacle for my RE but I can understand if others might feel otherwise. BTW, one of the rubber bands that came with our extenders also snapped. I’ve since replaced it with a Velcro strap.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

That might be true if you’re referring to the recessed notch near the top half of the RE. For me that wasn’t an issue. The location of the crack on my Zee was exactly where yours was where it impacted and I was only toting a regular water bottle not the heavier RE. I feel that this might be the weak point of the Zee if there is one. Much of the weight stress on plastic cages is at/near where the mounting points are. The Lezyne may not be custom fit for the RE but it’s just made from a stronger reinforced composite particularly the four cage arms extending out from the beefier mounting plate. For this reason, I feel that it provides a more secure and safe receptacle for my RE but I can understand how others might feel otherwise. BTW, one of the rubber bands that came with our extenders also snapped. I’ve since replaced it with a Velcro strap.

Thank you Art!
For general information: I learned from my Spec friend the Carbon Zee wouldn't be any stronger. However, I have ordered a regular Zee again, delivery by courier and payment at the delivery. (I did it before I read your last answer!)

Klimatyczna: Cookiez and Raining

Raining? Cold weather? Well, if you need some motivation, Dem Cookiez at the Cafe Klimatyczna are a very good stimulus for the ride! (I rode Vado SL).

Coffee Cheesecake with Double Flat White.

Apple Pie.

Klimatyczna is by no means an inexpensive cafe. My "lunch" cost almost 12 U.S. dollar. Still, I love riding to Klimatyczna!

I grew up to the point a little bit of cold, wind and raining takes no effect on me Combined with the fact I feel no aches (following my recent crash) as I'm riding is just making me feel blissful!

On my return way, I took the Hwy 579 from Leszno to Błonie. The road is under reconstruction and far from being finished. However, that made me the only user of that road on that afternoon! Later, I was enjoying excellent new bike paths from Błonie to Józefów/Płochocin. Eventually, I made a "victory round" to make my ride up to 40 km!

 

[DiggyGun]

The Land of Snow, Ice and Everything Else in Between
A short video of today's ride.

Very nice video Prairie Dog. Looked like fun.

 

[kahn]

@Stefan Mikes Did you have both of those desserts?


Glad your body survived.

 

[Yako]

So jealous of all these frozen rides I’m seeing. Stuck with this here in Catalunya (currently in Spain). And these damn empty roads.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

@Stefan Mikes Did you have both of those desserts?

Of course. That was my lunch anyway

 

[kahn]

As bike riders, this is very important news. And the last line is very telling. This from today's Seattle Times.

"Today may not seem like a special day. But you are mistaken. Wednesday marks the first day of the year when the sun will set after 5 p.m. — and that’s reason enough to celebrate in Seattle. So go forth and enjoy the day’s 9 hours and 18 minutes of daylight and be assured the “Big Dark” is gradually coming to an end. Your afternoon will no longer consist of staring longingly at the sun as it dips below the horizon, or more realistically, watching the sky darken as it drizzles."

 

[Stefan Mikes]

Wednesday marks the first day of the year when the sun will set after 5 p.m.

enjoy the day’s 9 hours and 18 minutes of daylight

Good for ya, kahn. Where I live, the Sun sets at 16:14, and the daylight is 8 hours and 49 minutes only! (That's why I was completing my latest ride in the dark).

 

[PatriciaK]

As bike riders, this is very important news. And the last line is very telling. This from today's Seattle Times.

"Today may not seem like a special day. But you are mistaken. Wednesday marks the first day of the year when the sun will set after 5 p.m. — and that’s reason enough to celebrate in Seattle. So go forth and enjoy the day’s 9 hours and 18 minutes of daylight and be assured the “Big Dark” is gradually coming to an end. Your afternoon will no longer consist of staring longingly at the sun as it dips below the horizon, or more realistically, watching the sky darken as it drizzles."

Yippee! Now the air just needs to clear a bit, and I need about 5 more degrees in the thermometer !

 

[Cowlitz]

I noticed that it was light at 7AM which is cheery, even though we are in the low clouds mode. We did have what I think is freezing fog overnight and it was so slick that my dog could not stop on her morning dash to get back inside and almost skidded into the door. No bike today although I did ride the stationary one while watching a video of a motorcycle traveler going through Colombia.