[ringoism]

Not so much day trips as extended morning rides, but anyway...

Am back in this small MZ town again and loving every ride... everything is exploration as I'm new to the place and not using any navigation aids. Great times on great farm lanes/trails.




Attachment 2410250



Attachment 2410255




I'm on the venerable Hero Thunder MTB, had put a raised / extended stem on it and despite the smallish frame size it works ok for my 6'2" frame and thankfully is light. Rigid fork a bit hard on the wrists, I admit.

I saw some MTB tracks in the dirt at one spot I thought too remote for kids to be... found out later that there's a NE MTB multi-medalist living in the next village!

-Eric

[amol4184]

Originally Posted by ringoism

Not so much day trips as extended morning rides, but anyway...

Am back in this small MZ town again and loving every ride... everything is exploration as I'm new to the place and not using any navigation aids. Great times on great farm lanes/trails.

-Eric

Looks like ideal setup for those gravel riders. Great fun I bet!

[Jeroen]

A slightly different bicycle background to most image here.

This image I took yesterday after a day cycling in my home country the Netherlands. I left home about 09.30 cycled to the nearby station in Gorinchem and got a train to Bergen op Zoom. Had to change trains only once, with a 11 minute stop over, so I got myself a very nice coffee.

On these longer routes I always prepare a route on my computer and upload it to my Garmin GPS. It’s not necessarily that I would get lost otherwise. It is more that I like to think through in advance what route to take, along which nice little bicycle paths and so on. Also, I try to plan my cycle trips so I have the wind in my back the whole time or at least on the last home stretch.

When I arrived in Bergen op Zoom it was still cold, only 2oC, but I can easily dress for that. I rode almost 100 kilometers, mostly sunny day. My route took me across endless rivers and canals as usual. I had to take several “pontjes” or ferries as you would call them. Some take cars as well as foot and bicycle passengers. I prefer the smaller ones, that don’t take cars.

Here you see my bicycle on one of the fast ferries. This thing goes at 40 km/h on the river Merwede/Waal from Werkendam to Gorinchem. For those in the know on Dutch geography and Dutch motorways. In the background the well known A27 bottle neck, the bridge at Gorinchem.

I stopped twice, once for another coffee and once to eat my lunch. Very nice day!

Jeroen

[aneezan]

I got my new bike delivered yesterday. Canyon Endurace.
Went for a short ride today to test it out. Definitely faster than my previous bike - RC120. Shifts aren't still fully precise, but I will give it a few days since she is new.

[amol4184]

My latest build is done. On its very first ride I saw a majestic sight - a congregation of about 20 bald eagles. I had never seen such a large group ever before and I am still baffled and bummed for not having a super zoom camera with me. It was an amazing experience. The bike of course turned out very well. Not very fast but so comfortable.








If you look carefully around the center, there are a bunch of eagles. And about 10 sitting in a row on a tree in the background and about 3 of them on the trees on the right.

[amitoj]

The winds can be so cruel here. One day they literally carry you home, and the next day they try to push you back to where you started from! Also, discovered that headwinds are called Dutch Hills, because apparently thats the only kind of "hills" the Dutch have. Perhapds Aneezan can verify that

With tailwinds


With headwinds

[goandude]

Morning ride 20 kms away from Mysore on Bogadi road

[aneezan]

Originally Posted by amitoj

... Perhapds Aneezan can verify that

Attachment 2432361

Absolutely correct. I found it easier to cycle in Bangalore, in-spite of the constantly changing gradients.
In the NL, the flatness and winds bring two main issues. The wind, and the fact that you just cannot stop pedaling. There is no down-hill for coasting.

Wind today at 30kph, and this is normal:-


Another "normal" day tomorrow - late 30s and into 40s.

[ninjatalli]

Originally Posted by amol4184

My latest build is done. On its very first ride I saw a majestic sight - a congregation of about 20 bald eagles. I had never seen such a large group ever before and I am still baffled and bummed for not having a super zoom camera with me. It was an amazing experience.

Not exactly targeting you, but I have been wondering about this fascination with the bald eagles in the US for nearly a decade (when I was working there). They aren't that rare (3L+), not endangered and seeing steady increase in numbers over the years. Imagine if the similar levels of excitement happened in India on seeing eagles or vultures

Originally Posted by aneezan

Absolutely correct. I found it easier to cycle in Bangalore, in-spite of the constantly changing gradients.
In the NL, the flatness and winds bring two main issues. The wind, and the fact that you just cannot stop pedaling. There is no down-hill for coasting.

Interesting. I remember seeing a video about an annual cycling contest over there on a bridge/route next to the ocean when the winds reach 3-digit+ figures. Seemed like a fun event.

Thankfully this problem isn't seen on the flat rides in & around Chennai (although humidity & heat replaces the wind there).

[amitoj]

Originally Posted by aneezan

Absolutely correct. I found it easier to cycle in Bangalore, in-spite of the constantly changing gradients.
In the NL, the flatness and winds bring two main issues. The wind, and the fact that you just cannot stop pedaling. There is no down-hill for coasting.

Wind today at 30kph, and this is normal:-

Yikes. I better not complain about my puny 14-15 kmph winds! But then I have proper hills too

Originally Posted by ninjatalli

Not exactly targeting you, but I have been wondering about this fascination with the bald eagles in the US for nearly a decade (when I was working there).

They just happen to be US's national bird, and features prominently on many logos etc.

[amol4184]

Originally Posted by ninjatalli

Not exactly targeting you, but I have been wondering about this fascination with the bald eagles in the US for nearly a decade (when I was working there). They aren't that rare (3L+), not endangered and seeing steady increase in numbers over the years. Imagine if the similar levels of excitement happened in India on seeing eagles or vultures

They just happen to be so majestic looking. All eagles do. Personally it has nothing to do with rarity - I am just a guy who is fascinated by birds, even by the purple Sunbirds of which there are about half a dozen pairs nesting around our house in India. If eagles and even more importantly vultures became common site in India I would be elated!

[goandude]

Originally Posted by aneezan

Absolutely correct.
There is no down-hill for coasting.

What happens when you have tail winds? Isn't it like coasting especially when you have flat roads?

[Jeroen]

Originally Posted by goandude

What happens when you have tail winds? Isn't it like coasting especially when you have flat roads?

More or less, but you need a very strong tail wind to actually just coast and not have to peddle.

I tend to plan my longer bicycle trips with the wind in mind. On a circular route I like to have a tail wind on the return leg.

I also often take my bicycle on the train with me and head into the wind by train and cycle back with a tailwind.

Jeroen

[amitoj]

Originally Posted by Jeroen

More or less, but you need a very strong tail wind to actually just coast and not have to peddle.

Plus the angle is also narrow for it to be effective, like +/-20 degrees.

Here's a very detailed article from the legendary Sheldon Brown
https://www.sheldonbrown.com/brandt/wind.html

[aneezan]

Originally Posted by goandude

What happens when you have tail winds? Isn't it like coasting especially when you have flat roads?

Like Joeren mentioned above, the wind needs to be really strong for you to coast.
The good thing with the rolling terrain in Bangalore is that the downhills help you coast and/or even gather the speed for your next climb, but here, its just constant pedaling. You get tired quickly trying to maintain higher average speeds. Of-course, a lot of native cyclists do that, but personally may take time to get used to.