tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-39066747375656849172024-03-13T10:40:23.760-07:00Niel "The Wheel"A desire to experience the world by Bicycle.
Follow my journey.Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.comBlogger202125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906674737565684917.post-32659921585776432742015-10-06T01:37:00.000-07:002015-10-06T01:37:48.677-07:00Sweden and Time to Reflect.<br />
So now I have time for reflection. After my couple days break in Copenhagen I cycled the 50 or so kilometres north up the coast to the ferry that would take me to Sweden. The coast north of Copenhagen is scenically pretty with expensive looking seaside homes. Unfortunately like a lot of Danish roads I encountered it was heavy with vehicles. It was a Sunday so maybe a lot of this traffic was weekend day trippers. The weather now ,had ,since Copenhagen , settled to fine sunny days. I took the chance on leaving the Danish capital of using a bypass to try to avoid the the main city streets as I went north. This all worked well and I arrived at the ferry without stress for the 20 min journey to my last Scandinavia country , Sweden.<br />
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The ferry dropped me off in a medium sized Swedish city that I just wanted to get north through so that I could start my 5 day journey towards my final departure point, Stockholm.<br />
I was stopped before heading across town by a cycle passenger also disembarking from the ferry and out of courtesy talked for ages about his quest of cycle touring one day. I thought I might regain a bit of wasted time by using his local knowledge of the city I was in to get north more quickly, but after spending ages following him and still not getting out of the wharf area I just bid my farewells , put my head down and headed inland as fast as I could. In an hour I was away from town and heading into the Swedish countryside. Another two hours saw me on smooth quiet roads the likes of which Danes can only dream about. Not another cyclist or cycle lane in sight. As in Norway , food premises seemed to pop up just when needed and invariably they would be Italian. Pasta and lasagna for dinners fine by me. And just as in Finland, wild camping was just a matter of pulling off the road in the forests and finding a smooth ish spot to pitch the tent. In fact the countryside was very like Finland but with a moderate rolling nature to it.<br />
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I think some may have been put off touring Scandinavia by the notion that it is expensive here. But on reflection now having experienced every Nordic country and coming from New Zealand, which is expensive, I feel that this is not the case. If you are the sort of cyclist that is happy to freedom camp at times a Nordic trip will probably cost you less than a campground tour through other parts of Europe.<br />
On my 4 to 5 day cycle to Stockholm I freedom camped all the way, expecting to stay in a campground near central Stockholm. My last night of freedom camping was I discovered in the morning , spent 2 meters away from a huge ants mound. The little fellas , of which there were thousands, didn't disturb me at all during the night even though they could have completely smothered the tent should they had wanted too. I was immensely grateful for that, so grateful that I gave them half a bottle of coke and a handful of m&ms. They seemed to really enjoy the sugary treat and I thought it was a good partnership we had going.<br />
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With Stockholm in my sights I thought I had the whole thing in the bag. But didn't factor in that ;<br />
1. The camping ground on the outskirts of the city clearly did not want to be found, by not advertising it's presence along the road as I approached , and<br />
2. The effect big cities have on sucking cyclists in towards their Centre.<br />
Before I realised it and even by stopping and asking locals, I had passed the campground that no one knew existed, and was headed on a non stop collision course with central Stockholm much like I had with Oslo weeks before.<br />
No worries I thought. Map info and Internet searches showed a central Stockholm camping ground. Not as handy for the international flight home but good enough to stop me ending up on a park bench. Anyway after the predictable horrid ride into the central city the camping ground did not materialise. Darkness , approaching now at 7 pm, put a slight pressure on , and passing a hostel sign right in the best part of town , I called in.<br />
I don't like backpacking hostels, but a beds a bed. And I booked a couple of nights to give me a chance to search better accommodation in the following days. To this point I had effectively closed my Scandinavian circuit and had covered 7000kms. ... to be continued, the final chapter Stockholm.<br />
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<br />Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906674737565684917.post-29443508624772088252015-09-20T11:44:00.000-07:002015-09-20T11:44:39.619-07:00Denmark.I've been cycling in Denmark now for 4 days.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Ferry from Norway. 3hrs</td></tr>
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The first day I cycled north to the northern tip of the country to see the seas meet and to also check out the WW 2 bunkers etc.<br />
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There are three things that at this stage in my trip I can say that I like about Denmark.<br />
Firstly it is a very flat country. No effort is required to cycle along Denmark roads. That is unless there is a wind blowing. The wind does blow quite a bit but it certainly hasn't slowed me down. And having grown up in Wellington , NZ I'm pretty used to cycling into a gale or two.<br />
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The second thing I like about Denmark is that it is so far predominantly fine. I have had the odd shower but the sun has been out for longer than the rain has been falling. Something I failed to encounter on the east coast of Norway. My tan that I acquired in Finland is starting to reappear. I haven't though managed to get my training top off so my arms will maybe now have to wait for the New Zealand spring.<br />
The final thing that I am enjoying here are the friendly people. But that they have in common so far with the Fins and the Norwegians.<br />
In other respects to me Denmark does not feel like a Scandinavian country. The buildings are all made of brick giving it a more English feel. And so far the countryside I am cycling through I would have to say is unremarkable. If you are reading this from NZ then I could best describe it as a cross between Foxton area and the Manawatu. Beachside communities with wind, and pasture / grazing land.<br />
Two other points that I have noted are that .. no its not any cheaper for a kiwi here as although things cost less per krone the exchange rate with the NZ dollars is not s good so it works out at about the same. The other point is that the cycle ways although everywhere, are just as much as a pain in the arse as cycle ways throughout the world. After following the cycle ways on my first day up to the tip and back , I thought I'd give the national cycle way no.1 a go down the west coast. Well.. I lasted on it for maybe 30kms before giving up in disbelief as I had me going round and about along forest and sand tracks and out to what seemed every deserted beach settlement. I ditched it and started self navigating on the rural roads and within minutes had myself not only going in the correct direction but actually passing civilisation where I could get a bite to eat or a coffee and see the odd person to talk too.<br />
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Although there are more urban cyclists here, once you leave the towns you see no more cyclists than you would in NZ. Maybe even less.<br />
Maybe my views will change as I get closer to Copenhagen. Time will tell. I am not freedom camping in Denmark. And this is due solely to the fact that I have slowed right down in kilometers covered a day. I'm limiting myself to about 130kms per day as I'm way ahead of schedule and don't want to kick around in Stockholm for two weeks. So doodling along at that rate means that although I don't get on my bike until 10am I still arrive at about 4 pm. If I was to freedom camp I'd be having dinner at a town at 3pm and then sitting in a hedge row somewhere for hours until the sun went down. Freedom camping really only works for me when you have dinner at about 5 to 6 pm and then cycle for a few more hours , put up the tent and get to sleep. I think you really need to be doing 200 to 300kms a day for that. So it's camping grounds and hot showers for now. I'll reassess the situation when I get into Sweden.<br />
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Although I'm having to pay for camping grounds I'm not buying so much food as I'm not cycling that hard. It's all swings and roundabouts.<br />
My next blog will probably be from Copenhagen as I will stop a day or two there to look around and do the laundry again.<br />
Well I'm looking forward to another day of wind turbines and farmland tomorrow when I will be in Southern Denmark approaching the German border. Then it's a hard left turn for the Mercian and myself and northeast towards Copenhagen.<br />
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Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906674737565684917.post-85654243134965108732015-09-15T11:15:00.000-07:002015-09-15T11:15:58.682-07:00Three Acts of Kindness. <br />
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During my last two or three days in Norway the weather has been an absolute shocker. Apparently it's normal for parts of Scandinavia to get a lot of grey and rainy days in autumn. So I shouldn't be surprised by the weather. But where I come from the situation is reversed with calm stable weather generally in autumn and wet changeable weather in the spring. So it does take some adjusting to.<br />
Anyway today I was chatting to the campground owners about using the drier to dry everything after last night's downpour and whether I should bother washing clothes as tomorrow the forecast is not much better and during the discussion I told them of course that I was from NZ and had cycled to the Northcape and was on my way back. They seemed interested and during the discussion we talked of Ed Hillary and how similar NZ is to Norway.<br />
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I went of then to start the washing and drying process and while fluffing my now dry sleeping bag the owners wife came in and said that the weather was going to be once again heavy rain tonight and that I could have their best room for nothing , as their guest !<br />
What a great way to finish off Norway ! So now I'm writing this from an upstairs apartment overlooking the coast. Scandinavian people are very friendly and I think appreciate the outdoors and people who get out and make the most of it.<br />
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Just after I had received the key to my home for the night a German couple who I had talked to came over and gave me a bottle of beer. And wished me a good trip around Denmark. They were campervaning around Norway.<br />
My third act of kindness came when I headed off to the local ten pin bowling alley for a big pizza ( because that's the only size they do) and they said they didn't have any boxes to take it away. So i said just throw it in a plastic bag and I'll get it too the campground some how.<br />
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They did that but on leaving the owners girlfriend said that she was off shortly and would take it with her in the car. Awesome !! I just had to follow along behind on my bike.<br />
So here I am happy as a sand boy , as my mother used to say. And tomorrow I head down the coast to catch the ferry to the top of Denmark.<br />
Thanks Norway for a trip to remember.Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906674737565684917.post-25663553435884217662015-09-14T12:28:00.002-07:002015-09-14T12:28:34.774-07:00Norway Will Not Let Me Go Without A Drenching.Since my last blog I have travelled south through the mountains and fjords on the west coast in lovely weather. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Luckily for me I have seen some of the scenic spots on the west under sunny sky's. The climbing around Geiranger was spectacular and the passes that followed. However it hasn't been without its problems. Trying t(o get to the Atlantic Coast road I had to negotiate some pretty bad tunnels in fact one of them was closed while I was in it and another was full of roadworks. Very sketchy. I met a Swiss cycle tourist who actually cycled into one that said that cyclists were forbidden and they closed the wIhole tunnel and the police picked him up , told him off and escorted him in their car out. I think my tunnel was closed for some other reason but I did not feel particularly reassured and the tunnel with heaps of roadworks inside and traffic was just plain horrible.</div>
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So anyway after making a slightly wrong turn I decided to continue eastwards over one last mountain range towards Oslo. Well, what can I say. I rode straight into shocking weather going over it with sleet and thick pea soup fog combined with strong headwinds. I came down the other side into driving rain ! The mountain just would not descend quickly enough and at an alpine town I had to buy another pair of gloves.</div>
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Norwegian mountains are formed by long gone glaciers so they are very rounded and don't drop away quickly. Whereas you can ride over a New Zealand mountain and down the other side quickly you tend to stay up in the cold zone a lot longer in Norway.</div>
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Anyway with the mountains done I thought I'd avoid Oslo as it is just another big city that traps cyclists and is hard to negotiate. I tried with all my might steer the Mercian south of the city but I just couldn't manage it and with the odd error me due to roadworks etc I ended up on a collision course with the city that the locals told me would be inevitable. Once you get in a certain valley in Norway then you just have to travel down it to its conclusion. And in my case that was Oslo. </div>
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After a long day in the saddle I had to get through Oslo as it is just too expensive to stop there in accommodation. </div>
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I cycled out south as best as I could all the while being hindered by motorways excessive traffic and a puncture just when I didn't need it.</div>
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I managed to find a freedom camp in the back of a church ground, well more a cathedral by the sound of the bells and size of it. Feeling pretty smug I went too bed to be awakened during the night by torrential rain. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Although this old rail trail may be nice for the locals, once again it proved a pain in the arse for me. Once on it it lead me way off course and then just stopped without any explanation as to how to once again find the route.</td></tr>
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Once again with wettish sleeping bag etc I broke camp and have had such a struggle getting away from Oslo ' s pull that I have only managed to get about 150km down the coast. Nothing is straight in Norway. Travelling by bike is trying at the best of times when you can cycle around corners for 100kms and travel only 20km as the bird flys but south of Oslo you also have to stick to the twisty coast because the bloody motorists have all the straight roads solely for their use.</div>
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I've booked into a campground tonight and tomorrow so that I can once again wash and dry stuff but I'm dreading what weather will be thrown at the little tent. The forecast is not good for the next 4 days so I may not see another fine day before catching the ferry to Denmark.</div>
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Norway is fighting me tell the end, but I will get down the coast and complete the mission in this country.</div>
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Hopefully my next blog will be from Denmark,??</div>
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Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906674737565684917.post-86104986095692884392015-09-06T10:03:00.000-07:002015-09-06T12:08:57.733-07:00The Norwegian Sun is Shining. <br />
The cloud has cleared and the sun is shining. In fact for two days now there hasn't been a cloud in the sky. But boy do you know it at night. I haven't been cold actually in the tent but upon waking the temperature gauge on the bike parked outside is reading 4C. And then both mornings I have been on the shady side of fjords so have been singing encouraging songs to myself as I cycle like a frozen Popsicle until the morning sun finally hits me. O what bliss when it does. By 10am the temperature has usually climbed to 10C , my happy temperature because there's no pain anymore. And then by 12 am it's up to 14C when I take off my legwarmers and try to maintain my tan. By 3pm today we were nudging 17C !<br />
Today while having morning tea I saw the first cycle tourist that I thought could maybe be going my speed. And he was heading south like myself. The reason I thought that we might be able to travel together was because he had roadie type kit on and although loaded heavier than me he wasn't carrying the mountain of stuff that the less experienced people always take.<br />
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Anyway I finished my breakie thinking I'd probably catch him up the road and then headed out in pursuit. Well 10km up the road was a massive tunnel, with the option of the twisty cycle track alternative. The tunnel was 9 kms long ! And had no DON'T CYCLE THIS TUNNEL signs on it. The alternative cycle way could have gone anywhere as far as I was concerned. Like cycle ways everywhere they sucker you in and then just leave you high and dry. They're a bit like women I suppose. You never know how it will turn out. But you keep on trying.<br />
Not this time for me. I had serious kms to do. So into the tunnel I went and onto the next town where I had lunch. And i never saw Mr Roadie tourer again. I think he fell for the old take the cycle way and we'll lead you into the mountains and then dump you.<br />
I cycled on for the rest of the day and I'm now camped next to the prettiest bunch of rapids. I wasn't going to stop here but once I'd taken a few photos I thought why not. I'd had an early dinner and I can make my desired distance tomorrow easily I think because I've been slowly climbing today so tomorrow should be down for a bit. ( Famous last words ).<br />
I even fired up the primus for a coffee and I've got enough Non Stops to get me through the night.<br />
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The problem with the dampness in the little tent continues however. I thought if I slipt my lower sleeping bag in a plastic liner that would stop it touching the tent and getting wet. But now what happens is it gets condensation wet ! On these clear cold nights I get condensation in the tent and on wet nights the bag touches the wet walls of the tent drawing in moisture ! The answer I think is a fly. I have one at home and will modify it so that it covers the little tent and my bike standing beside the tent for the TransAm next year. That should help with condensation and rain.<br />
It's cooling off now. Brrr. I'll have to get up later for a comfort stop and to check out if there is a Borialis thingy. ( Northern Lights ).<br />
Now the Norwegian sun isn't shining again. In fact last night cycling into town for dinner after a 200km day once again the heavens opened up and I sat in the restaurant soaked eating dinner thinking, " I can't be stuffed going out after this to try to find a freedom camping spot. I knew there was a camping ground in town so once I'd finished eating I went off to find it and possibly even get another cabin. Luckily for me when I got there the reception was closed so I was forced to put the tent up. And also luckily I had a 10 krone coin for the shower.<br />
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I slept well enough and it only rained lightly through the night so I didn't get soaked in the tent. Come morning the reception was still closed so I took the chance and left saving myself 120 krone or $20 NZD. The day sunnyed up as I rode towards Trondhiem and my feet were almost dry when , you guessed it, the heavens opened up again and I got soaked !<br />
I'd just like my feet to be dry for a day or two ! The thing about Norway is that if it's not raining then the ground and grass are soaking from the dew or yesterday's rain. So unless you wear gum boots everywhere or drive a car to places you will get wet feet. Camping and cycling shoes do not make for dry snugly feet.<br />
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I have got to Trondhiem though and I'm taking a day off to go into town tomorrow nd look around. Because this I feel is another milestone in my trip. I am finally on the bottom half of my map. I'll now stay on this south section until I go home. I also feel that just maybe I'm in more favourable climes. I shouldn't get snowed or iced on from now on, cross fingers.<br />
I'm way ahead of my schedule so will probably head south into Denmark before swinging around and heading up to Stockholm.<br />
I have to say that although the cycling and general logistics of this trip have been easy on my own I really do miss the company of others. I think for achieving personal goals on the bike such as this trip and the Transam doing it alone is good, but for travelling in general , I think it's best if it's shared.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">All washed clean from a day off the bike and ready to go again.</td></tr>
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<br />Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906674737565684917.post-31154294742443817422015-08-31T13:03:00.000-07:002015-08-31T13:03:10.872-07:00South Through Norway<br />
While my sleeping bag dries again I will write another blog. I rolled into Norway and after bit of a wrong turn made it to the North Cape. Little did I know at the time that upon leaving Finland I would also be leaving the sun behind. I have lost track of the number of days that I have been in Norway but it must be more than a week. In that time I have seen glimpses of the sun in neighbouring fjords but nothing in my vicinity.<br />
Tonight I finally cracked and shelled out for a cabin. The weather looked like it was lightening up but after 200kms of hills and rain I came off a saddle through driving rain hoping to leave it all on the summit only to find that it was waiting for me with renewed vigour in the fiord that I had plunged into.<br />
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I'm not saying that it has been raining the whole time that I've been in Norway. It's just that it seems to always be raining in the fiord that I'm in or the saddle that I'm crossing. With the coming of hills and clouds the other cycle tourists seem to have somehow vanished to cycle gentler routes maybe or merrily sail around on the numerous ferries. I've voided all ferries so far as they take up valuable cycling time. Today I really haven't made the distance I wanted not only due to the rain but also because I ran out of road and they put a ferry in my way. I had to wait for about 40min while they refuelled it and loaded everyone on. Just long enough to freeze my arse off.<br />
I know the sun will come , although when I ask people when they just looked confused. "You know the Sun, yellow thing"<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A brief Moment of Sun. Bicycles everywhere Celebrate the Arctic Tour.</td></tr>
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Another delay today was having to buy another lock for my bike. Last night I left my bike outside a restaurant and when I returned my bike lock had been mangled by someone to the extent that I couldn't get it undone. The bike shop guy said that a Norwegian would never try to steal a bike around here and I tend to agree. But it is odd. Maybe they were drunk. Anyway I did manage to finally break it off showing that it was a crap lock anyway.<br />
The tent I brought certainly has the advantage of being easy to erect on the smallest bit of ground. But it's really not up to west coast Norway. I'll need to make some improvement s to it when I get home. (Like get another one) . No just joking, it needs another layer. Either I'll use a bivy bag inside it or devise a fly. If my sleeping bag touch the side when it's raining then you get one wet sleeping bag. And since I do like to move a bit during the night , my lower self ends up sacking up moisture.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Have a Summer Vacation in the Arctic they said, lots of skinny dipping in the fiord s ." Yeah Right.</td></tr>
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There are a number of things that are really working in my favour in Norway though. For one thing it's very like New Zealand s west coast. So it's like riding on home turf. The drivers however are fantastic by New Zealand standards and truck drivers..... well I could actually get to like trucks here, they have skill and are courteous! Neither of which Kiwi drivers possess.<br />
Then there are the eating places. Up until tonight I have been freedom camping so I ca afford to eat at fast food and hotels. Well they just seem to turn up just when you need them and they all have bike racks and wifi.<br />
The WiFi thing however has been problematic due to the lack of sun. my solar charger has I thought been struggling to keep the tablet charged. So I have not been communicating as much as I would want too. I thought I had better save the juice just to let people know where I am once in awhile.<br />
But then today in the middle of yet another serious hose off my solar panel went green indicating that it was fully charged !<br />
That made me all happy inside. The Mercian has been doing her best, but someone messing with her probably upset the poor picket of bolts and then this constant dampness has been causing the transmission a bit of grief. Like me she needs a couple days of dry riding with oiling of all parts.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sometimes You Just Need a bit of Luxury.</td></tr>
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Another great thing about Norway is that the 6 min coin showers so far seem to last for 20 min. ! Time passes slowly in Norway. I have refused to go onto Norwegian time. I have stayed on Finnish time which is 1 hour ahead. It means that I always get everywhere early here. I never miss dinner but I have noticed that the Norwegian s don't seem to be early risers. I sometimes have to forgo breakfast because even at 8am nothings open !<br />
Well that's about it for now. I'm at over 3000km now and am well ahead of my schedule. Not sure what to do with all the extra time but I may use some of it to cycle through Denmark. That will make it a hat trick of all Scandinavian countries. I'll wait and see what develops with the weather. There's really no point in stopping if it's pissing down. I may as well be on the road heading south. Once I get to the bottom of Norway I will look at shooting through Denmark ( I think it's a smallish country, checking out Copenhagen) then into Sweden and make some kind of track to Stockholm, my final destination.<br />
watch this space.<br />
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Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906674737565684917.post-16870949850817944712015-08-25T23:53:00.000-07:002015-08-25T23:53:04.405-07:00Heading North through Finland.<br />
O the joys of a hot shower and the chance to clean your cycling kit. I'm one of the fortunate people out there that does not sweat much when cycling. However 5 days cycling and wild camping is enough even for me. And Rovaniemi provided the opportunity to clean up. I wanted to stop here because since starting this ride I had set my mind on buying a finnish made camping knife . I'd first seen them on another's blog and my friend Annika said that many Finnish people carry one when in the countryside. So I rolled into town on a glorious day , bought my knife and just pegged out literally at the camp ground cleaning things and fiddling with my bike. That is until a couple of German cycle tourists pulled into camp. As with many that I had met I the past these two where fully kitted out, their bicycles groaning under the weight of it all. They did however give me some advice on what might be open as I headed further north.<br />
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It's really hard to leave a bit of luxury when you have it but the next day I was back on the bike for another 200kms stint up the country. I passed through Father Xmas' s village and stopped just long enough to sort out why he hadn't delivered the Raleigh Chopper I ordered in 1975.<br />
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Cycling doesn't get much better than this and the next few days just fell into place with me arriving at roadside cafes or restaurants just in time for breakfast , lunch or dinner. I never missed out on a meal. Then freedom camping for the night. This is when things genuinely went a little pear shaped with me frantically throwing the tent up and securing the bike before being bitten alive by mozzies.<br />
On one particular evening I was in a cloud of mozzies and what looked like a thousand little white fly things getting it all together and thinking that once I had the tent up I could usual taunt them from the other side of the mesh, only to find that the little white fly things were small enough to come through the mesh. Before I realised my folly at not battering down all the hatches the little tent was full of them all walking over my sticky body! I'm still not sure if they were biting me but the torture of the itching from the perceived biting was almost too much to bare.<br />
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There are reindeer everywhere up here and as most tourists do I'm sure I kept taking photos of them in excitement until a small herd of them almost took me out when they decided to cross the road in front of me !<br />
The sun and light winds continued as I headed North and then things unravelled a little as I crossed the border into Norway. Up until then I'd been following a compass bearing of northwest day after day for 1200 odd kilometers. I knew that once into Norway I had to head more west. But the map that I had resembled little the roads I encountered. This would have been partly due to it being a 1982 printing , one my Father had used for some purpose before passing it on to me.<br />
Anyway by the time I realised that I was on the wrong road heading way 2 a too far east it was too late and I was committed. I ended up on the north coast of Norway much to far to the east. And although beautiful it rained that night and my feet got wet while in the tent !<br />
There must be something a wee bit fishy about the waterproofing down there.<br />
Now that I was off the beaten track I had to really put my head down and pedal to ensure that I didn't go hungry as places were further apart and thin around the edges. The road too went from glass like to NZ like and I had to do some emergency maintenance on the mudguards mounts on the Mercian. The terrain was however not NZ like. Gone were the long flat straights of Finland, to be replaced by exposed high country. 22C and sunny was replaced by 11 C and heavy cloud. A bid foreboding. <br />
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It didn't rain though and I am back on track and after another run of freedom camps I'm at the Northcape. And for every cloud there is a silver lining . There are so far no mozzies in Norway! II do however miss the sun and warm temps of Finland.<br />
Today I'm going to whip up to the actual Cape about 20km away and take some pictures. Then back to camp to enjoy another hot shower and get this posted.<br />
Tomorrow I start my ride south ish back down the Norwegian coast. Please come out sun!<br />
And just an aside, I have discovered that you don't need to pollute the countryside with toilet paper in Scandi the moss is very soft.<br />
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Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906674737565684917.post-33223704505722051972015-08-19T03:30:00.000-07:002015-08-19T03:30:01.686-07:00Finland : The Tour Begins.<br />
The sun is just going down behind the trees on my fourth day of cycling in Finland . It's only 8.30pm but I've done 200km today and there is a big girl town coming up so thought I'd take the opportunity to wild camp again. <br />
I arrived in Helsinki about a week ago and the weather although warm was gloomy and drizzly. To make matters worse I was pretty much toasted by jetlag and my bicycle had decided to take a stopover in Singapore. If I'd known that, I would have had a stop over in Singapore. Anyway all the worries of the time I lost my bike in Casablanca came flooding back and although this time they could tell me where my bike was , I still couldn't sleep thinking it might not make it and what would I do then. A sure sign of course that I am a bike addict.<br />
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Anyway I plucked up courage and messaged the only person I knew that lived in Helsinki and spoke English . A person who I had never met and had only occasionally said the odd thing to online. I'm a naturally shy person so it was difficult but Annika was great. She said all the right things and agreed to help me with the problem the very next day. In fact she lived only 500mtrs from the budget hotel I'd picked at the last minute to stay at. We met the next day at her place for coffee and icecream and it was so real to just get my mind off the missing luggage and talk about normal stuff.<br />
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Much happier I went back to the hotel to find out that my Mercian had decided to move on from Singapore and not bother going to Paris as I did but to come directly to Helsinki. The next morning I woke up and he was waiting outside my room having turned up I the night.<br />
After looking around Helsinki on the bike and getting horribly lost again. I've got to get a smart phone, I headed North. For the last 4 days I have been cycling about 200km days and wild camping in the forests along the way. The weather has been in the low 20s and the roads are awesome. Smooth with a good shoulder. If I wanted to do big kms then I certainly could info LA dint his weather. There are burger places all along the way and I can tell you that there are a good my more kms Ina Hesburger than a McDonald's burger.<br />
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Along the way so far I've met an Italian cycle tourer who thought I was a motor scooter ( he was just carry I g too much stuff) and a Scots cycle tourer called Angus. I've seenseen Angus twice and he is taking a shortcut so I may bump into him again. <br />
The sun is now setting further and although it's nice and warm when it's up it gets nippy quickly when it sets. I have to wear warm clothes and a wooly hat at night. That's about it for now. I've found Finnish people so far friendly but a bit reserved . A bit like myself I suppose.<br />
I love the fact that they are active people. On the cycle ways there's many everyday people just getting out there and doing it , not just sports people . And the cycle ways are also full of Nordic walkers and Speed Skaters.<br />
Time to rug up for another night. A couple more freedom camps and I will really need a night in a campground so that I can have a shower.Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906674737565684917.post-48271964182563015572015-08-12T01:51:00.000-07:002015-08-12T01:51:45.878-07:00Getting There.You know I went to a lot of care arranging what to bring on this trip and neatly storing it in its own spot. I had a precise picture of how the bike would break down and fit in the bike box. I was taking a moderate amount of stuff but much less than most on a two month trip to the Arctic Circle. But when it came to putting it into the bike box things became a might heated between the Mercian and myself. To the point where I just couldn't help myself , after 20 minutes of being Mr Nice Guy I just told told it all to " Just get the fuck in there !" My nicely packed items were just stuffed in and the box was taped shut. A few last minute items were squeezed though the hand hold holes and I scrawled my name and email address on the outside.<br />
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It wasn't until half an hour later while sitting on the couch contemplating life that I had the thought that once I ditch the box outside the airport in Helsinki that I will have my contact details all over it ! Bugger that , I just made life easy for an over zealous litter infringement officer in Finland.<br />
You know that you're bored on the plane when you get great delight in examining the offerings from the flight crew. Like free gifts at a fair the gifts in economy class aren't likely to raise your heart rate much except of course when you have already looked at the in flight mags , made cursory chat to your neighbour, and worked out that the TV screen isn't functioning yet.<br />
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Bad news for me in the in flight entertainment stakes. The latest 'Taken' movie is not there and there are no disaster movies ( just as well that I watched one at home just prior to the flight, amazing how few bolts actually hold a jet engine on)<br />
Everyone seems remarkably normal on Air Singapore today. My neighbour's however are getting fidgety as the the other aisle has TV and we don't ! Me though, I'm Mello after having at least 2 bourbon and cokes. More alcohol than I've had in a while and enough to have me swaying a bit as I got up to once again check that my bag was where I lift it in the overhead locker.<br />
Now back to that free gift..... look at this.<br />
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Pictured above.<br />
I didn't need to cut my toothbrush short after all because Singapore Airlines gives you one ready made. And look at that, a pair of tent socks. And topped off with a little zip up bag to keep my spare tubes in.<br />
Lunch has got to be coming soon. This must be how my mother lives in the retirement home. Looking forward to one meal after the next just to cope with the boredom. But then it's only 8 hours until we reach Singapore and then i might be able to call it half way... not.<br />
No, there's plenty to keep me occupied. I can take a picture of my foot.<br />
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And in a couple of hours a trip to the toilet to look forward too. Might even go twice if I enjoy it.<br />
Well my and my neighbour's TV refuse to go so they've shifted us. My new home is down in the baby section and if I'd known before I shifted that there was nothing worth watching on at them movies I would have refused to go. Good to see however that the kids were all having fun with their new toy Buzzy Bees.<br />
My 12 hour flight from Singapore to Frankfurt was on anAirbus 380 dreamliner. I did see a couple of good movies but the toilet stops where still the highlight.<br />
Next stop Paris to pick up my bike and jump on the last flight to Helsinki.<br />
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<br />Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906674737565684917.post-19277289958128137842015-08-09T05:02:00.002-07:002015-08-09T05:02:38.592-07:00Helsinki Here I Come.Finally my time is drawing near to take off to Scandinavia for my Nordic cycle tour. I'd be lying if I said that I wasn't a tad nervous. Jumping on a plane and heading to the other side of the world with just a couple of bags of stuff and a bicycle with the intention of camping in a tent for two months while you cycle unknown roads always makes me nervous. But to be honest for me the nervousness is usually centred around how I will cope with the loneliness of cycle touring more than the nuts and bolts of actually doing it.<br />
Every trip seems to have its own set of factors that give you cause to worry in addition to this loneliness factor. The altitude scared me when cycling in Peru, getting food was a constant fear in Bolivia, the fear of being killed by motorists kept me awake at night in Brazil. The chaos on the street would often make me not want to leave my hotel room and jump on my bike while cycling in Asia.<br />
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This upcoming trip has me worried more about the weather that I may encounter than anything else. I'm cycling to the north of Norway in the Autumn, and until recently I haven't been able to find anything on the net that would give me an idea about how cold it could get above the Arctic Circle in September. But last week I found a u tube video of someone who had done it, and ( Famous last words ) , it didn't look too bad. I'm certainly not expecting to come back to New Zealand with a tan though.<br />
In the interests of my new desire to cycle tour with less stuff I will be taking my one man tent that has unknown water resistance, and very limited home comforts. I'm cutting right back on stuff as practise for the TransAm cycle race that I intend to do next year. Check out the site if you're interested. So far there are about 30 entrants from a multitude of countries.<br />
http://transambikerace.com/<br />
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The last time I used this one man tent I vowed to never use it again because of its claustrophobic nature. But it is so light and compact that I have decided that if it's all I have when I land in Helsinki in the next week then we will just have to learn to get on. Having used it no more than a handful of times since I bought it in the 1980's I can not remember whether it actually protects it's occupant from the rain. Limited research has shown me that there is no way I will be able to afford a roof over my head in Scandi so things are going to be unpleasant if it leaks. Freedom camping however is accepted where I'm cycling this time so I want to take full advantage of it.<br />
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The final bicycle service has been done in the workshop and M.U.M 2 just needs to be boxed for the flight.<br />
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It had better be a little bit cold in Finland as I cycle north since one of my three cycle bags is full of warm type clothes. Booties , thermal socks , merino training top and gloves. In addition to these I have a bigger than normal sleeping bag and woolie hat. And i couldn't go on this trip without the trusty little kerosene primus that I took across Canada a couple of years ago, and was of course made in Sweden back in the 1940's.<br />
These items will all be regarded as unnecessary luxuries for my race across America next year but on this trip I won't be attempting to ride 300 kms per day. In fact my schedule for this trip is only 100 to 200 kms per day. I won't want to get to camp early I suspect as the tent is not exactly conducive to lying around in. A bit of soft pedaling and the odd Billy up may be the order of the day unless the weather is shite, in which case I generally get too cold to muck about.<br />
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Next post will be from Helsinki with luck. Tomorrow I will box the Mercian, clip my nails , shave my legs , hair ,and generally wander around the house and about the garden soaking up Nelson ' s winter sunshine. When I return it will be mid spring.<br />
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Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906674737565684917.post-8565034853196911532015-07-14T21:58:00.001-07:002015-07-14T21:58:34.729-07:00Back To Your Maker.<br />
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I've decided to send my first Mercian frame back to its maker. Earlier this year I discovered what looked like a Crack in the top of the down tube so had to disassemble the bike and start using my standby Mercian frame. I put the whole idea of replacement on the back burner thinking that I would sort it out once I had completed my tour of Scandinavia this year. But pondering on cycle related things in a moment of quiet at the bike shop recently I thought I'd get the whole thing in the pipeline before I go. I don't like not having a spare frame. I mean what would I do if for some unexplained reason my Mercian 2 was to spit the dummy early next year while I was planning my TransAm attempt ?<br />
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When I get back from Scandi it will be spring here and hopefully I will be concentrating on summer Audax and then training for the ride across the US. My repaired frame will turn up from the UK and all I'll have to worry about is how to pay for it. I'm hoping that I can send it to Mercian in the UK via normal parcel post. It will be no cheaper but it will be a lot less complex than using some freight forwarding company. As tempted as I am to have them repaint it in an exciting new colour, I think I will replicate the pearl white of Mercian 2 but with different coloured transfers. The reason being that all the parts will swap across without any nasty clashes and I also won't need to replace my cycling wardrobe either. It would be bad form to be wearing non matching kit.<br />
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Before the frame gets sent off I had the low rider lugs brazed onto the front forks by Andy my cycle engineer . (Every serious cyclist needs an Andy Engineer). My current preferred option of light weight cycle touring, and the way I intend to do the TransAm will be using a pair of fork bags and a large saddle bag. In the next few weeks I will be testing whether I can get everything into this format as I pack for Finland.<br />
It's only a few weeks until I catch the plane to Helsinki and the time will go quickly arranging last minute things around here , attending to jobs that Adi can't do around the house such as clearing gutters , sweeping the chimney and making kindling for the fire. It's time again to go into battle against motorists of another culture. I've annoyed the local car lovers enough around here lately. Just the other day I pulled up at the local supermarket bike racks to be confronted with the usual gaggle of market trolleys discarded by lazy motorists who couldn't face the effort involved in replacing them in the trolley bay.The cycle parking area being a more convenient place for them to dump them. Being a somewhat cycling activist and hater of lazy car drivers I took the opportunity to redistribute the shopping carts to empty car parks around and about the mall. Well ! The fury that this evoked in one fat family sitting in their car was beyond the pale! You would have thought that I had banned them from ever consuming another plate of greasy chips in their lives or made them go out and walk the dog each day. They were too lazy to get out of their car and confront me but the language ! It would have made a sensitive God fairing man blush. I just covered Adi's ears and smiled to myself. You are always sure to get a swift and over the top response in life if you challenge the status of the mighty automobile, the right to reproduce ones -self multiple times, or apparently the connection between the overly inflated Auckland property market and the Chinese.<br />
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Talking of kids , and the need to make less of them. I was minding my own business while cycling along the cycle way between Richmond and Brightwater the other day and having successfully dodged numerous dogs , owners of dogs and toddlers I came up behind a 'Mother' ( careful, sacred) riding with her adolescent daughter who were both riding on the wrong side of the path. I tell a slight lie here. The Mother was cycling on the wrong side but the daughter behind was cycling in front of me on one side and then the other. Clearly confused as to which was preferable because her Mother had never taken the time to instruct her.<br />
When the daughter seemed to have settled on her proffered side I started to overtake on the other from behind. Well, you guessed it . No sooner was I along side the said adolescent did she then choose to change sides again and ride into me. Luckily I was under power and she hit me in the rear part of my bike. By powering on I was confident that she would hit the deck and I would be spared. My luck however ran out when upon crashing she threw her full not unsubstantial weight onto the rear of my bike. We both went hard left off the cycle way and down a bank towards the creek below. !!!!!!!<br />
I could have been angry about all this if it wasn't for the fact that I only went part way down the bank and was comparatively unscathed. Whereas adolescent dragged her muddy body up from the creek bed and then had to reassemble her bike all the while looking pouty.<br />
Riding away feeling happy that I had done my bit to help educate the young in cycle way etiquette I only had left to negotiate an apologetic Mother and then a minute or two later their wayward dog.<br />
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Vespa Chick is back now. But in case you were concerned that she may have got back early and caught me out before my last order could arrive, all's well , it bet her home.</div>
Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906674737565684917.post-84233488462207761842015-06-17T21:50:00.000-07:002015-06-17T21:50:06.115-07:00Still Home Alone,It's early winter now. The temperature has dropped and I'm on my own rattling around the house with a couple of attention seeking cats that require constant pats and pick ups. Thank you Adi for that. I have however managed to re educate them on what they like in the way of cat food from the supermarket. They now know that they must like anything, as what comes home in the bike trailer is 14 cans of whatever my hand grabs first. They have also found themselves locked in once the clock strikes midnight. When I am in bed I have decided, I will not tolerate cats coming in with mice and or dirty feet, only to then jump up onto the duvet and then unload nature's bounty.<br />
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Adi has been riding 200 km days on the TransAm cycle race. That has been an awesome achievement day after day while carrying a load. But it hasn't been without a cost. She has been suffering saddle sores and other physical problems recently and yesterday decided that enough was enough and pulled out of the event. There were only two women game enough to compete this year and both pulled out on the same day. A real shame considering all the effort and expense involved in getting to the start line. I can't help but think that if they had ridden together from the start that they both would have lasted longer. But then I'm a real loner on the bike myself so don't know what makes me think that.<br />
Adi's attempt has however galvanised my feelings on the TransAm. Initially I wasn't interested in entering it because I'm not that competitively minded and also felt that I had seen enough of the US recently. But once she had left NZ and was meeting and greeting the other contestants, I realised that I was quite envious of her ,and I also wondered how quickly I could travel across the continent.<br />
So next year I have decided to enter myself. And unusually for me I want to see how quickly I can go.<br />
This decision has also made the dilemma of my Scandinavian trip easier. I was wondering how I was going to get all my gear and bike to Helsinki without paying excess luggage chargers.? Well the answer to me is now clear. I will use my Scandi trip as early training for next year's TransAm and will go as lightly as possible. I will use my horrible one man tent and leave behind the rear carrier and pannier bags. Everything will have to fit in two low rider bags on the front and a saddle bag behind. Gone is any idea of taking ski pants , balaclava etc.<br />
I'm not totally stupid though. I know that northern Norway will be cold. So I will take thermal gear. But only light compact stuff. And i do want to take a cooker and mug to Scandi because I'll have plenty of time to faff around with it . Prices for everything are high in Norway too so I'll need to cook. I won't however take this stuff on the TransAm.<br />
In a week or two I'll try to get everything in the three bags. I have made a start.<br />
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Adi will be back home in a week so I think I might have just enough time for a last on line order. I can't have goodies arriving once she gets back. In the next 4 days I will have to start to get the place ship shape again. Bike stuff will have to be cleared off the dining room table. Discarded sweetie packets will need to be burnt, recycling will need to go out. My friends tell me a little disorder may be good so that she can say "I see you have had trouble coping without me".<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Maybe If I Blow on it It Will Dry Quicker?<br /><br />While Adi has been gone I have taken the opportunity to acclimatize myself for northern Europe. Although it has been pretty cold outside in the evenings I haven't bothered lighting the wood burner. Although a might nippy when I get up in the morning I have found that not only is this good for saving on firewood it has the added advantage of encouraging all the unwanted house insects out of hiding to be sucked up by the vacuum cleaner or to just make a break for the comparative warmth outside.</td></tr>
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A cold house does create other problems though. The semi soft butter needs to be pre heated before you can spread it on your bread and I tend to stay longer under a hot shower. And when not in the shower I tend to spend more time outside working on the property , sitting on the deck, or out cycling.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">These Things Are Sent to Test You.</td></tr>
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While out on one of these so called warm up rides last week I discovered that I had broken my second left hand crank in less than six months. I felt this one coming so managed to sit back down on the saddle and negate any chance of my balls meeting the top tube at warp speed. And since I was only 15 to 20 kms from home I also managed to keep the bike in one piece until I got there by soft pedaling on the left hand side. So now I have no spare left hand campagnolo cranks left. This is an intolerable situation which cannot be left to endure for any great time. So I will have to scour the second hand sites for a spare crank or two,</div>
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Vespa Chick has got me a little gift from the US. I reckon it's something from the Adventure Cycling Headquarters in Missoula. ?<br />
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Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906674737565684917.post-23290315370140015432015-05-31T23:08:00.000-07:002015-05-31T23:08:56.871-07:00Single Guy and his Bike.Tomorrow evening I'll be living as a Bachelor. Today I am the critic as 'Vespa chick ' packs her bike into the bike box I got for her upcoming trip to Portland in the morning. After a bit of argy bargy about where to put the padding and how best to dismantle various bits, the bike is finally in the box and she just has to add her panniers before taping it closed. I have given her the assorted male lectures on how to reassemble it. The do's and don'ts of cycle assembly have been gone over too frequently but now I can sit back and say that it left here in perfect running order ,and with a full service, the rest is up to her. The whole package I have to admit is very light compared to the weight of our stuff when we cycle tour together.<br />
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And I am envious of the minimal gear she is taking compared to what I will be packing for my trip to Scandinavia in 8 weeks. I really don't want to be overloaded as it's a right pain trying to deceive check in staff as they weigh the package ,and then be wearing as many of your clothes on the plane as possible. You struggle aboard with hand luggage also over the 7kg allowed and a man bag that you then argue is the equivalent of a woman's purse. Then there's the in flight reading material that you are also allowed as an extra, but isn't in flight reading material at all but all your trip type literature and electronic tablet. Just when you think you have made it ,you find that the pannier that you have stuffed as on -flight luggage won't go in the above seat locker due to the bike helmet and cycle shoes that you have tied to its exterior. So while everyone cues up behind you you remove it all and stuff it in. Then you can't sit down because your legs won't bend as your wearing cycle tights , cycle shorts and a pair of casual trousers over it all. If you're really unlucky some fat person will be not only taking up his seat but half of yours and there will be family with babies within spitting distance.<br />
I'd love to go light like 'Vespa Chick' but I just don't know how cold it will get in Northern Norway so will have to err on the side of caution and take really warm cycle clothing and heavier sleeping gear. In addition to the thermal gear ,because I know how to fully service my bike ,I like to take a full range of tools. I'm also going to take my beloved primus and cooking gear. It's expensive apparently in Scandinavia so I want to cook my own dinners and coffees etc. 'Vespa Chick ' although camping is not intending to cook anything. Instead she will eat salads from supermarkets and junk food as she cycles across the US.<br />
I just know that I'll be once again on the weight limit. Anyway I'll start getting my stuff together in a few weeks time.<br />
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For the next 6 to 8 weeks I'll enjoy my bachelor ness. Life won't be hugely different except for the meat and three vegy meals, my bicycle being permanently in the lounge, long conversations on dating apps trying to convince girls that I really am single, and equally long periods sunning myself on the deck with nothing on my to -do list except the occasional 150km circuit ride. Both those last things will be weather dependant but I'm hoping that Nelson will turn on a mild winter as I'm not expecting a hot summer holiday in northern Europe.<br />
O that's right , I also have to keep an eye on the TransAm site to make sure that 'Vespa Chick's 'marker regularly moves, although I'm not sure what I can do if it doesn't?<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hiding Behind a Pile of Palings</td></tr>
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If I get bored while she's gone there's always home maintenance. The picket fence palings have been quietly rotting for the last 15 years. It's timely that the neighbour's have decided recently to throw away all there's. I asked if I could have a few and they dumped enough to fix my rotten ones and then about 70 more. There will be plenty to keep my fence repaired for the next 150yrs and possibly build another fence just for the sake of it.<br />
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It's been a week of receiving out our way. The nice City Council boys dropped off the new recycle bin as well. Now I have a purpose recycle area in the garden. A compost receptacle where the rodents live, a glass bucket for all my mayonnaise and Nutella bottles and the new everything else wheelie bin. Down the back of the garden I have the ultimate recycler, an incinerator that will burn almost anything and turn it into toxic fumes. I like the principle of the incinerator the best because it forces this generation to deal with this generations rubbish. No stockpiling it for future generations with this baby. Burning the rubbish until we can't breath any more is the idea. It's a self limiting solution.Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906674737565684917.post-53634003842430135292015-05-27T04:29:00.000-07:002015-05-27T04:29:22.914-07:00Extreme Thermal Tights<div>
The first signs of winter have arrived in NZ. This week snow feel in the Highlands and even some southern coastal towns had a dump of the white stuff. I went out on my bike as normal in Nelson but the cold made me wonder what sort of leg protection I might need in northern Norway when I cycle through next September. I've hunted for blogs that might give me some idea but to date have only found travel accounts of people who have done the trip in June or mid summer. Even these writings suggest that tights may not be sufficient and that over trousers could be needed if the weather in Lapland turns nasty. I really don't want to buy over trousers because for one thing I've never cycled anywhere where I have needed them before and secondly I can see that after the trip I'm unlikely to ever use them again. Before our cold snap here I was prepared to go with a new set of tights and leg warmers for less cold times.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ski Pants Trial...Take One.</td></tr>
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Rummaging through the cupboard at home I came across a pair of ski pants that I hadn't used for twenty years. They were tight I remembered ,when I bought them from a second hand ski sale back then,so I wasn't surprised when they were even tighter when I tried them on this time around. I considered that if I cut off an inch or two of hip bone I may be able to have them on the recommended setting but since that's not an option I made do with the last adjustment point. I recall that I got them very cheap all those years ago because they were a kids sizing. I thought if I could make them work on the bike, they may be an answer to my problem. I've never heard anyone suggest using ski pants for cycling but then most people are followers and not try ers. They would certainly be warm and waterproof where required. And unlike over trousers they are tight, no arguments there.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Take Two.</td></tr>
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So out in the cold I went yesterday to cover my 150km circuit. The temperature was about 12C when I left and about 5C when I finally got home. The ski pants flare at the bottom clearly designed to go over ski boots. This was no problem as I had cycling over booties on. The trousers tucked into them. Being made of a sort of neoprene material they matched my Campagnolo training jacket and had extra material over the knees. Normally for the first 100kms of my ride energy wise I need no more than a bowl of cornflakes and a couple of spoonfuls of sugar washed down with a bit of cream. But 15kms before my lunch stop I had completely hit the wall. I put this state of grovel down to the increased resistance in my pants.<br />
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Downing an extra chocolate bar or punnet of fries should, I hope ,take care of that. During the final part of the ride when temps were low I was amazed to find that ca rearing down Rae ' s Saddle with the cold wind finding it's way through my winter training jacket and vest , I felt no cool air at all on my legs!</div>
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So, for piece of mind ,I think regardless of the extra weight involved I will take those ski pants to Scandinavia.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">What's that Hamish?</td></tr>
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Last week a few friends came over for a bit of a get together. During the evening Hamish asked me if I wanted what looked on first inspection to be a lead sinker for a fishing line. I haven't fished since I was a kid ,with my father. And I have to say that even back then I found the whole experience rather awkward, doubly so in fact as Dad decided to use the time together as an opportunity to instill in me the facts of life. I mean I didn't need any education in that area as me and my mates had learnt all we needed too on frequent trips with our bikes to the local industrial dump. The place was littered with that sort of educational material. I was initially slightly bewildered , but Hamish quickly explained what the little cycle doodacky was for. Although I had heard back in the 1970's that something like this existed I'd never seen one in real life. Friends would tell me back in the 70's that girls would kiss you behind the bike sheds but I didn't believe that either.</div>
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Anyway here's a picture of it. Any guesses as to what it's for?<br />
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I was just thinking cycling home from the supermarket today ,having filled the cycle trailer to bursting ,how much fun normal people miss out on. It's not normally in my nature to feel sorry for MrJoe Public ,as he has made his own choices, but cycling along and feeling self righteous on a beautiful day I just happen to spy a feigoa hedge. And you wouldn't guess it, it was heavy with another man's fruit. On closer inspection that man appeared to not be about. And that man if ever about was clearly also not interested in bending down to harvest his bounty. So while 'Vespa Chick 'stood watch 'Niel the Wheel' filled a couple of empty bread bags and then the two 'happy go luckys 'made their escape.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Old School Freewheel Remover for an Old school Sort of a Guy.</td></tr>
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As Mr Retro-Man I like Hamish' s little doodacky so much that if I don't use a set of wheels with a screw on cluster for the Scandi trip I most certainly will for my trip next year. The idea if you haven't guessed it is,( once bolted as in the picture ), to lock the prongs into a Crack, crevice or some body's picket fence and then turn your cluster off so that you can replace the broken spoke you've acquired or service the bearing that's playing up. I could have used something like this on my 2013 tour across Canada when my rear hub gave up the ghost. It wouldn't have saved the day ,as my hub was toast ,but it would have been fun impressing the locals.</div>
Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906674737565684917.post-34835768230043224312015-05-14T15:09:00.001-07:002015-05-14T23:03:52.548-07:00Pre TransAm Service.Two and a half weeks now until Adi the 'Vespa Chic ' heads across the Pacific to Portland for the start of her big ride across the US. She doesn't appear nervous at all. In fact while I was out last week on one of my cycle rides I spent some time contemplating this and actually started feeling nervous for her!<br />
I think she's actually really looking forward to ditching me for an extended period.<br />
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There was a bit of a panic this week when hunting travel insurance for her. I tried the crowd we usually use and the quote came out at $500. Not content with this I tried again only to get a figure of $1400 ! Admittedly this was insurance designed for full on competition. Since the TransAm is not regarded by the organisers as a race and since the 'Vespa Chick ' is not signing up for a race , we settled on normal travel insurance suitable for an unassisted solo ride across the States.<br />
The final on-line order of cycle bits turned up at the gate yesterday so I spent today doing the full workshop service on Vespa chick's bike. Her bike is only a year old but in that time she has done a fair number of long day rides and more than a few mini tours over the last summer. So I am replacing all consumable items on the bike. New tyres, tubes, cables , transmission bits , brake blocks, you name it . In addition to that I have greased and adjusted all bearings and checked that everything else is tight. I won't be there to help her with maintenance so hope this will suffice to get her across America. She is under strict instructions to not let any bike shop touch her bike unless it is unavoidable.<br />
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It's not that I don't trust the work of other mechanics , it's just that I don't want them working on a bike that needs to run faultlessly for extended periods. I'm sure they are more than capable of fixing a weekend warriors bike. A bike like that falls under the category of sports equipment, such as a tennis racket. <br />
Serious bikes fall under the class ' transport' and need to run in all weather conditions and are depended on to get the operator to the next destination without assistance. There's no room for 'quacks' to be working on these machines. It's no fun to be 30kms from the nearest habitation on a wet cold evening and finding that some idiot mechanic didn't tighten your cranks sufficiently.<br />
Anyway to try to avert any unscheduled stops in the middle of nowhere ( and there's a lot of nowhere when cycling across America) for the Vespa Chick I spent the day today servicing her cyclocross bike. It all went swimmingly I might say. In fact when I pulled the rear hub apart I discovered that the Chinese man or woman who assembled it a year ago lost count of the number of bearings that should have gone in the drive side and somehow misplaced one. Only a small error you might say and certainly not a sack able offence but one that could have had the Chick walking through Kansas instead of cycling. Some of those States are mundane enough even at cycling speeds, you don't want to be reduced to walking through them.<br />
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I'm very pleased with the tyre choice. We could have used Continental Gator skins or such like , but that would have necessitated a tyre change and service halfway across. As previously mentioned I wanted to try to get the cycle all the way with no pit stops so opted for Schwalbe Marathon Plus tyres. But narrow ones at 25cm. These tyres are heavier but I really wanted to minimise the chance of the chick having to fix flats. We will see, but I know these tyres will do the distance. They may be heavier but she won't need to take a spare tyre and will need fewer spare tubes. ( Famous last words).<br />
Tomorrow I'll put the final touches to it and then it has a couple of weeks to settle down before a final cable tighten and nut check. Then we'll have to partially disassemble it for the plane flight. I know that Vespa Chick can reassemble it as I've watched in awe as the disassembled bike has been slowly reassembled by her in the lounge with only the odd piece on backwards or not at all :#Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906674737565684917.post-36413710627459747252015-05-07T04:28:00.001-07:002015-05-07T04:28:37.010-07:00EarthquakeThe earth shock here a couple of days ago. Initially I stood frozen to the kitchen floor my chocolate spread sandwich clutched in my hand. A sharp creak from the ceiling beam had me heading for the door however and once outside I once again stood motionless waiting for the next shake , the one that would render all the recent work I'd done on the house pointless. It didn't come however so I headed back in to rescue my chocolate buttys from the house flies. Bolted to the coal range is the house earthquake monitor. Every home should have one and mine was reading force 1. Number one ball bearing had come out of its rocker indicating that I hadn't imagined the shake. I'd hate to be here if no. 3 , or more came adrift.<br />
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My tickets have arrived in the mail so come mid August I will be standing in Helsinki with just my Mercian for company and my trusty compass pointing me north towards the Arctic. I've checked Helsinki on Google maps and there looks to be a reasonable campground in town. I will be very jet lagged when I get there as the flight from New Zealand goes all over the place. I arrive at about 4 pm so will then have to assemble my bike and stagger towards the campsite. I'll stay a couple days in the capital until I feel human enough to head into the northern environs.<br />
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The east side of the old house is now under my scrutiny. A quick check revealed more wood borer Infested timber. About the only part of the front facia not infected seems to be the verandah. So I removed the climbing vine from it and have repainted and attached a proper gutter to it. Getting enough gutter and spouting home to span the 11 Metre length could have been problematic had I not bought a bicycle canoe trailer last summer. The 3 Metre lengths proved no problem with this trailer and I'm guessing that when I start ripping out Infested weather boards I'll be able to bring them home from the timber yard in this way as well.<br />
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After a full mornings work installing the gutter I was pretty pleased with the finished product. I thought I deserved a break so went off to tinker with my bike in the garage for the rest of the day. Just as dusk was falling I returned to the house to perform a working test on the new drainage now that the glue had all dried. After all an expert spouting installer like myself knows better than to pour water into a system that is still dying. Rain was forecast for later in the week so a test was deemed sensible. It was just a matter of pouring a bucket of water in the far end and watch it happily discharge down the downpipe. I poured it in and nothing happened..? So I poured another bucket in and still nothing. A third bucket showed me where the problem lied. Clearly back in 1879 the builders had constructed the house on an angle. There was only one thing for it. I had to reposition the outlet to the other end of the verandah... problem solved and the water poured out to perfection. Nineteenth century workmanship clearly not up to 'Niel the Wheel's' standard.<br />
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Autumn weather has been kind to us in Nelson. Just today we had fine weather and a temperature of 21C. Yesterday it was raining but at 95% humidity and 19C it was hardly cold. Winter will turn up sooner rather than later though so it was just as well that Murray the firewood man finally delivered the wood today. Stacking a truckload of wood into the shed takes the best part of a day but when it's done you get a satisfied feeling knowing that you can sit next to a crackling fire when it's frosty outside.<br />
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The gum takes so long to dry out though that it will probably be spring before it's ready. I could start burning the borer Infested weather boards until it's ready I suppose. Perhapes I should attempt to go through the winter without heating to prepare myself for a Scandinavia Autumn. NNielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906674737565684917.post-54554812725393779642015-04-20T14:59:00.000-07:002015-04-20T14:59:16.537-07:00More Borer!I feel that I am back on track again concentrating on what I enjoy most. And that would be long distance cycling In new environs. I spent last week chatting to my travel agent Di about changing my flights this year from Paris to Helsinki. I have definitely decided to not ride the Paris-Brest- Paris In favour of my cycle tour of Scandinavia. If I fly Into Helsinki In southern Finland and head north I may just get to North Cape , Norway without getting my arse frozen too much.<br />
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I'm still waiting for her to confirm my tickets , but It looks like It will happen. Not doing the PBP also means that the pressure Is off for trying to stay fit through the next 3 to 4 months of winter here In NZ. I'll continue to try to cover 200 to 300 kms on my bike a week but wont get too distressed If Its not achieved. The weekly riding will be more about keeping the winter flab at bay than trying to remain cycle fit. Once I get to Finland and start cycle touring north I'll get fit enough quickly.<br />
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I'm finding motivation for cycling this autumn easier with Adi training for the Across America event. She leaves In 6 weeks and If I can mirror her weekly averages until she goes that will keep me fit until winter. Then I'll just grovel through as best as I can until I go.<br />
I took a couple of fine days last week to paint the north facing verandah. It was looking a bit untidy from frequent chicken poops and bicycle grease splatters. Its now looking clean and sparkly white. Future bird poo may be less visible but the grease from cycle cleaning may become more of a problem. I may have to repaint It a shade of brown. Anyway Its done for now and I can move on to the borer Infested front of the villa.<br />
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Clearing vine from the front verandah has helped to show what I'm In for. Lets just say that I'm glad I bought a canoe trailer last summer because I think It will be hauling new weather boards during the winter to replace the bug Infested ones on the house. I'm not quite sure at this stage how to get some of those cover boards off.<br />
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O good , a distraction. My new retro cycle gloves have arrived.....<br />
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Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906674737565684917.post-2375765437445313402015-04-06T04:20:00.001-07:002015-04-06T04:20:49.236-07:00Easter 2015 <br />
It's Easter weekend and changes are In the wind. Obvious changes Include the loss of daylight savings time and the heat of summer. My enthusiasm for early starts and 250km day rides has gone with the loss of the extra daylight and trips to the beach with the canoe have also been postponed until next summer. My fitness Is good and I'm still happy to crank out 150km rides but my thoughts on competing In the Paris-Brest-Paris race next August have turned to thoughts of doubt. I still have to complete a 600km qualifier before the end of Autumn and although I feel I'm fit enough, I'm questioning whether I really want to do the Paris event enough to go through with the 600 and the winter training required to stay fit enough for the August start.<br />
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My thoughts on my upcoming tour of Scandinavia however have not faulted and my new Mercian bike frame has In the last month or so proved to be as comfortable and versatile as Its predecessor which Isn't surprising really considering that they were replicas of each other. I'm happy now also with the new colour and have asked the local Brooks Importers to get me another Brooks saddle from England. The saddle that I have ordered Is of a colour that I think will suit the pearl white of the frame better than my current brown and black saddles.<br />
Alright, the real reason Is that a friend of mine broke his Brooks saddle so I sold him one of mine and then as I was reordering a replacement for that the I just happened to spy this other one... It'll take month or two to arrive. How do I pay for this saddle fetish you may well ask?<br />
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No problem, I have that covered too. Just yesterday while out cycling In the southern ruralness of the Nelson area I spied a shiny somewhat foreign object In the grass verge at the side of the road. I thought at the time that It was probably another piece of chromed plastic commonly associated with the junk that normally falls off autos as they speed by. But It had an odd shape that caught my eye and I thought It deserved a second look.....<br />
This lovely shiny Jaguar bonnet mascot I first thought would look good next to the other trinkets on the bookshelf .<br />
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That was before I realised that If I combined It with the other old car mascot that I found many years ago, and Is still kicking about, that I could raise enough for my piece of leather saddle bling. And how satisfying flogging of auto parts for something really useful. I bet that weekend classic car buff was pissed off when he got home from his tear -up In the country to find that piece of his motor missing.<br />
I realise that I cant go on like this , buying things and storing them in the bike shed, so I am having a clean out. From now on the emphasis will be on pottering on the house and throwing out all useless junk. In the next year anything considered to be of no Improvement to my life will go for sale second hand or to the tip. The house needs a big de clutter so that there Is room for travel and cycling stuff.<br />
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The ultimate goal will be minimisation In all things except leather saddles.<br />
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<br />Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906674737565684917.post-66502761570428510532015-02-09T00:05:00.000-08:002015-02-09T00:09:06.572-08:00The M.U.M is Dead.The M.U.M is Dead , Long Live the M.U.M<br />
My previous blog was all about playing at the beach and getting through Christmas with the minimum amount of distress. I achieved an A+ in both of those topics but unfortunately February has not been as forgiving.<br />
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My first failure was in the 600km event that I entered as my final qualifier for the Paris -Brest -Paris. Having done a post mortum on why I managed to complete only 120 kms of the 600km event , I can with assurance put it down to over confidence , or as we say in this part of the world "being too bloody cocky". Through being "too bloody cocky" I had decided to cycle the 1oo kms to the event the day before and sleep the night in a tent. Not a good idea as I got no sleep due to the hard ground and the fat guy in the neighbouring caravan snoring his head off! The next mistake was packing my tent up on the morning of the event and instead of leaving it at the campground I put it on the front rack and entered the event with it, intent on using it at the half way point. The next mistake, taking a front rack at all ....what was I thinking! And all the other stuff packed in the rear bag, such as ; a sleeping bag, sleeping roll and silk liner. A tooth brush and credit card were useful items but I should have stopped there. To be honest though at the end of the day my head just wasn't in it. My bike was fine (but more on that later) and physically ( in spite of the lack of sleep) I was ok.<br />
We started in warm tropical like rain and by the time I got to the 120km mark ,( which just happened to be the closest point to home), the weather was hot and sunny, and I was telling the organiser Craig that I just couldn't be faffed and was going home. The reality of the situation, and something that I hadn't fully comprehending at that time, was that I was overloaded and wouldn't have made the distance even if I had plugged on. If gravity hadn't got me then the lack of sleep would have. <br />
So now I have still to do the 600km qualifier. The next and only local one is out of the question, its the busy time at the bike shop and I cant get the time off. Also the event is part of a series and I cant spend the time or money doing all of them. My last chance to qualify will be a 600km circuit in the North Island in late April. This will be on unfamiliar ground, through what looks like tough country, and in Autumn. I'm going to go for this but I'm going to lighten the load, put my best wheels on, and use the credit card for a few luxuries such as a bed the night before and at the halfway point. The organiser doesn't know it yet but I'm going to attempt to stick with him as he knocks these rides out regularly, and i think pretty much without failure.<br />
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And now to my Mercian..... what can I say, last week my world was thrown into complete caos. While cleaning my bike,( the bike that has served me faithfully for 7 years standing watch over me as I slept in rat infested hovels in Bolivia , llama huts in Peru, and the bike that got me out of the cayman infested Pantanal) I discovered had cracked. The bike that had carried me across Australia, Canada, Vietnam and the US was fatally fractured. I could send him back to Mercian Cycles to be repaired and repainted but the cost of the freight would be prohibitive and who's to say that when he got home he wouldn't shortly develop problems in another tube. I thought about it for the day and then decided to strip him down , clean him up and hang him in the bike shed. A constant reminder to the fun and loneliness we shared together. He can hang next to three other frames that I have also ridden to death.<br />
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Id be telling a lie if I said there weren't tears as I removed all attached components, but there you go, nothing lasts forever.This was something I said to the Mercian people seven years ago when I commissioned him. At that time they gave me a questioning look when I also commissioned a spare ( M,U.M 2, or to possibly be called 'Step Mum') Now that spare has been pressed into service.<br />
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So my 7year old spare frame has been built up and i hope will continue to carry me around the globe, starting in Scandinavia this year. Later in the year I will contact Mercian Cycles and check that they still have my M.U.M blueprint. I will tell them that their frames are only good for about 150,000kms when 'Niel the Wheel' rides them and that they'll have to start building me another spare. I'll tell them I am mildly unamused and I have calculated that at the rate that their frames break down I will need to put aside about $1 per day to be able to travel in the class to which I have become accustomed.<br />
I'm going to have to end now as I'm too sad. I'll finish by saying though that M.U.M 2 or my new' Step Mum' has built up into a fine thing and I am happy for her. In time we'll bond , but I'm still sad and having trouble growing attached to something so transient. I'm not even sure I'll clear coat her paint work. Whats the point , she's just going to die and leave me in 7 years.<br />
A CHICKEN CAN PROBABLY LIVE THAT LONG!<br />
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ps. I bare no disrespect for the craftsmanship of the Mercian builders as they do a lovely job. Its the raw materials that are at fault. Reynolds Tubing may have built structural components for Spitfire fighters back in the day, but then what was their life expectancy? Serious cyclists need something tougher than steel.Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906674737565684917.post-44067088680713047812015-01-12T18:06:00.000-08:002015-01-12T18:06:29.411-08:00Roll on 2015.Another year has begun and Christmas is done and dusted. I'm pretty pleased with myself for not wasting any money over the festive season. I managed to get a week or so of covering work at the bike shop so could afford my Christmas present and the costs of my next qualifying event for Paris-Brest-Paris.<br />
Working for the ten days up until Xmas and having to deal with the frenzy on the roads was enough to put me off Xmas for the next three years to come. But you do have to get your priorities right and a month before I had ordered the gift to myself on line and on the day it was waiting in the garage.<br />
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Once uncovered and with a little tweaking, it was ready for the road. The one thing I lacked here when years ago I sold the last of our modern cars to finance a cycling trip overseas ,was a means to get my canoe down to the beach 10kms away. I toyed with the idea of getting a very short wave rider type of canoe that would fit on the BoB trailer but then I would have the hassle of selling our two bigger canoes. The idea of getting a proper canoe trailer cemented itself when I realised I could also use it for bringing over sized items such as weatherboards back from the hardware shop. A hunt on-line showed the wicked prices for these overseas. But wonders never cease and I located a New Zealand engineer that could make me one for $250 ! When it arrived just before Xmas I of course had to check that it was all there and in doing so was very pleased with the quality.<br />
In a couple minutes I had the canoe on the trailer and it all hitched up to the Mercian. I have to tell you that I wasn't looking forward to going in to battle with the NZ motorist as I pulled it all to the beach. There are back ways that I can take but unfortunately I have to mix it with Mr 'Testosterone' and Mrs 'Don't hold us Up' in a couple of places. I also wasn't unaware that the Xmas/New Year road toll last year was 7 and already this year we were up to 16. The whole package had very stable and predictable handling but did stick out to the side by an xtra 500mm or so. Something that I knew would prove daunting to Mr & Mrs Autobottom.<br />
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I found that on the flat I could comfortably sit on 20km/hr but that the drag was easily twice as much as with my BoB trailer. The ride to the beach is all flat and after 10kms or so I was there in one piece. Ignorant motorists stared as if they'd never seen anything like it but I was not subjected to the intolerance that I had expected. Some vestitude of the festive spirit or perhaps the calming effect of a glass or three of wine still in their systems I expect.<br />
Once I'd got home and had unpacked I realised that the iphone that work had given me had got salt water on it and was acting in a somewhat erratic way. The next day was a hard 400km PBP qualifier that I'd hoped to plot using the iphone.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Takaka Hill a Few Years Back. Not Much has Changed.Still an Epic Climb. Still too many Motorists.<br /></td></tr>
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The ride was brutal over the Takaka hill range and back in the heat. But all I could think about was how my smart phone wasn't working. It refused in the end to respond to any touch commands and the following day once I had recovered from the ride I threw the whole phone into a jar of methylated spirits in a desperate attempt to get the salt water out of it. Once the bubbles had stopped coming out of it I left it to dry in the sun and then switched it on. To my amazement everything worked perfectly although with a somewhat purple tinge a left over side effect from the meths. Not to be beaten I then drowned it in clear Colemans Spirits. Things were a bit clearer now but the WiFi wouldn't switch on? The cure for this suggested Utube was to blow torch the phone and then let it cool down. The blow torching went beautifully , cooling down in the freezer took some time, but too no avail , WiFi would still not switch on although to be fare to my efforts the phone was no worse.<br />
With that iphone consigned to the dustbin a friend at work said he'd sell me his old iphone for $80. So I'm up and running again and determined to be more careful with this one. It's a bit doggy but I cant justify the hundreds of dollars for a new one. You can see that I'm totally addicted to them now though and when I need another, I have decided to by the oldest model iphone that you can buy new.<br />
Later this week I have the final 600km qualifier for PBP to complete and it looks like rain. We need the rain, but what a bummer because in an effort to save money and hold steadfast to my principles of unsupportedness I have decided to ride the 100km to the start of the event and then home afterwards and to sleep in my one person coffin tent at the start / middle and finish. Ive got 40 hrs to complete the 600km. The others have all booked accommodation for the rest stop but I will settle for a patch of flat ground somewhere at the 350km mark. These things always sound so easy when you plan them on the couch. Think of the time I will save not having to check into a motel or having a shower. I'll also have to carry the tent , a sleeping bag and other bits and pieces that can only serve to make me stronger. The whole thing is easily justified until you actually have to do it. I just tell myself that it cant be any harder than the Kiwi Brevet that I did last year. In fact when it comes to unpleasantly hard cycle camping I have a whole host of experiences to draw from. You have got to feel sorry for people that haven't suffered like a dog on the bike and have nothing to bring to mind when they need cheering up.<br />
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Next week I'm going to invest in a solar charger for my iphone and cycle light. The idea being that when I'm cycling in Europe later this year I can freedom camp as much as possible while still maintaining the charge in the phone. This will be the first time that I will solely rely on my smart phone for communication and blogging. I can save a lot of weight by not taking the netbook and its charger. But I think that buying a credible solar charger is not as easy as looking at a couple hundred reviews and putting your money down. I think there are a lot of charlatans selling fake and totally ineffective solar chargers out there. I'm resigned to the fact that I will have to buy it from a local store and not on line, just because no matter how much research you do on a particular model, the nagging doubts are still there. The store will have to take it back if it proves ineffective ( cross fingers). It would of course be easier to make the choice if they knew something about the products they sell. A, "we've not had any come back" only goes so far to reassuring the customer. And they wonder why they are losing sales to the on line stores. The on line stores are telling me that they have 200 satisfied customers and 20 customers that think the product is shite and will never do business with the company again. I don't want to be the 21st. I'm going to go with one called the Solar Monkey Traveller. Here's hoping that I can attach it to the rear rack of the bike and in the course of the day it will charge the phone.<br />
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Had a nice paddle at the beach today. The over-spenders where all back at work and the children and carers where confined to the shallows. Frolicking among the waves and surfing in on the swells was all going swimmingly until I en counted a dead and bloated whale drifting down the beach. The smell alone drove me ashore where I promptly packed up my kit, hitched the canoe and trailer onto the back of the Mercian and headed home. I might have been able to provide a picture had I not decided to never take my phone canoeing again. At the rate of drift I would say that the whole smelly mess would be washing up amongst the paddlers in about 40minutes. By then I should be back at home with an alcoholic beverage.<br />
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Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906674737565684917.post-75458490750473934352014-12-17T16:18:00.001-08:002014-12-17T16:18:46.421-08:00Pre Xmas Stress; Not.<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;">My tickets to Europe have arrived. So that's it I'm going. I don't leave until August next year so have plenty of time to think about it and to finish qualifying for the PBP cycle event.</p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-lpbe8LoKg24/VJIdEHHJdqI/AAAAAAAABsc/iM3YNkSsuV8/s640/blogger-image-967618501.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-lpbe8LoKg24/VJIdEHHJdqI/AAAAAAAABsc/iM3YNkSsuV8/s640/blogger-image-967618501.jpg"></a></div><br><p></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;">I have done the 400km pre qualifier and the 200km and 300km qualifier. But still need the 400 and 600km under my belt. The reality of the situation is that I live for cycle touring and whether or not I get into the PBP has no influence on whether I go to Europe. My tickets in effect can't be cancelled anyway. </p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;">As I look at the ticket dates I can see that I will be kicking around in or about Paris for three or four days waiting for the event to start. That's time that I could be cycling towards Northern Norway if I wasn't entered. But the PBP only happens every 4 years so want to make the effort to be part of it.</p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;">I'm still very conscious of cycling within the Arctic Circle in autumn so want to get started North as soon as possible. </p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;">Last week I tried to organise a long distance ride of 300 km but ended up as a no show! It was just as well that nobody else bothered to turn up either or things could have been embarrassing. I dragged my arse out of bed in the end and rode my 250km loop telling myself that all was well and that I had better turn up for the 400km ride that I've put on the program next month. I not only need that ride for a qualifier but I'm also pretty sure that some other Audaxers will also turn up for it.</p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-u1ArA9UFbIc/VJIdJoyOd1I/AAAAAAAABsk/X5evEXp3808/s640/blogger-image-972163470.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-u1ArA9UFbIc/VJIdJoyOd1I/AAAAAAAABsk/X5evEXp3808/s640/blogger-image-972163470.jpg"></a></div><br><p></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;">The Christmas frenzy is slowly winding up out there. I can hear the busy little bees zooming up and down along the road beyond our gate. Trying to find another gift to stuff in little Sarah's bulging sack and of course other things that they won't wait for the day for. Of course out on the roads the usual dim wit truck drivers and everyday autonom's continue to practice there selfish driving habits but with the added excuse that they are busy and stressed at this time of year so any smaller road user in their way just shouldn't exist.</p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;">My thoughts on that are that it's time for petrol and vehicle registration to go up again as there is clearly to many of them now on the road getting in the cyclist's way. Inconceivable as it may seem, the price of petrol has just dropped again for the summer season! Encouraging more fat and lazy teenagers to get behind the wheel.</p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;">I bought my Xmas present a month ago and have hid it from myself in the garage. Obviously I know what it is and had to have a peek just to make sure that it was all there when it turned up ,but other than that I am prepared to wait for the day before playing with it.</p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;">That act of self denial apparently puts me in the more intelligent than average category. Sorry kids, those that can't wait and already have their Xmas gifts are now described in studies as the more mentally challenged in our society. You will grow up to be truckies and pram pushers.</p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-b0rR-XuLZl4/VJIc-2gQDQI/AAAAAAAABsU/7i6ZjgoCbMc/s640/blogger-image--1009285475.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-b0rR-XuLZl4/VJIc-2gQDQI/AAAAAAAABsU/7i6ZjgoCbMc/s640/blogger-image--1009285475.jpg"></a></div><br><p></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;">My left crank broke off the other day while out on a recovery ride. It's not every day that a crank breaks and a first time for me. Once I'd picked myself up off the road and checked that my top tube was unscathed from the whack that my balls gave it I had time to think about the excitement of this rare event happening to me. Almost S exciting as when my front forks broke a few years back. The end result from both these incidents was the same however.... A long walk home. I have to be honest about this and admit that eventually a motorist did stop and offer me a lift the rest of the way home. But it was unsolicited by myself. I wasn't too proud to refuse though. </p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;">When I got home and the reality had finally set in that my 30yr old Campag cranks where toast I was much saddened and apprehensive about how to juggle finances in such away as to afford another set. Vintage Campag on EBay is an exorbitant price. I thought I'd try a long shot and put the word out locally first. </p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-XqDVerrry0k/VJIdY_h80mI/AAAAAAAABs8/zzFtS5GoPLo/s640/blogger-image--2095487249.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-XqDVerrry0k/VJIdY_h80mI/AAAAAAAABs8/zzFtS5GoPLo/s640/blogger-image--2095487249.jpg"></a></div><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica; min-height: 15px;"><br></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;">Jim, a local cyclocross man had not one but a pair of cranksets that he agreed to sell for a fare price. A meeting was arranged and the deal done. In less than three days the Mercian was fully operational again and I have a spare crankset and a still undamaged right Hand crank.</p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;">And just to show that life doesn't totally revolve around cycling and travel I have included a photo of the new mini feijoa orchard I hope will be on line in the next year or two.</p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-0VrpPZe1Lxk/VJIdOZjEJcI/AAAAAAAABss/tFhHYIPLSNE/s640/blogger-image-1520033672.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-0VrpPZe1Lxk/VJIdOZjEJcI/AAAAAAAABss/tFhHYIPLSNE/s640/blogger-image-1520033672.jpg"></a></div>. A sure sign of Xmas in our parts is the flowering of these little devils. And the fruit is available from the gate everywhere in late Autumn. Once the grapes are finished and that's left around here are kiwi fruit and feijoas. I need to have a bit of that action.<p></p><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-SXlUsQks564/VJIdTq5gMqI/AAAAAAAABs0/DOh5vr7WVeM/s640/blogger-image--98507115.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-SXlUsQks564/VJIdTq5gMqI/AAAAAAAABs0/DOh5vr7WVeM/s640/blogger-image--98507115.jpg"></a></div>Summers here and the darkest lens are now required in the riding glasses. In case you're wondering, no all these lens didn't come with the glasses. But old lens are often easy to adjust with a file to fit other frames. Variety is the spice of life.</div>Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906674737565684917.post-37845656036112224172014-10-27T01:23:00.001-07:002014-10-27T01:39:37.416-07:00To the Arctic.<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;">Home life is never dull for 'Niel the Wheel'. Having returned home after completing my PBP pre qualifier my Adi informed me that she was going to do the Trans American Cycle Race ( called the TransAm for short) and then fly to Europe to follow me in the PBP before then doing a European cycle tour with me. </p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;"><br></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-k0GuRHPmQTg/VE4A94Oas6I/AAAAAAAABrM/w4ry3-YBcI4/s640/blogger-image--1662914171.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-k0GuRHPmQTg/VE4A94Oas6I/AAAAAAAABrM/w4ry3-YBcI4/s640/blogger-image--1662914171.jpg"></a></div>Now like most people I dream from time to time that I can fly or save the world using my super powers, but most of the time, while my eyes are open, I would say that I'm a realist. As a realist I quickly saw this as a desperate attempt to be involved in everything cycling for 2015 with absolutely no way of financially achieving any of it.<p></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;">I couldn't quite get my head around it all at once, having completed the 400 km </p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;">event and then scootered back from Picton,I was a might groggy up top. </p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;">I could see that Adi needed a goal, something achievable so I strongly suggested that she pick either Europe or the US and go for it. A wonderful fun filled cycle tour with me or a frantic slog across the US with only her bicycle for company. Of course she chose America. I should have guessed that shantytown America would top Paris every time.</p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;"><br></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-VRrlE_KFHbw/VE4D-rNRdRI/AAAAAAAABrg/U4FAPGsVqko/s640/blogger-image--231037270.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-VRrlE_KFHbw/VE4D-rNRdRI/AAAAAAAABrg/U4FAPGsVqko/s640/blogger-image--231037270.jpg"></a></div><p></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;">So be it. I'm proud of her for wanting to go out on her own . She always has been more competitive than I am and the thought of a racing / touring mix proved too strong for her. I'm excited for her and will follow her from the comfort of our lounge. It also means that I can look after the house and our 3 boys while she's gone. </p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;">But most of all it means that I can plan my own cycle tour immediately after the PBP that has all the things I like in it. Namely hills , tunnels, and tough and slightly isolated terrain. Now Adi has told me that I am not allowed to further my adventures in Eastern Europe and Asia without her because we both want to do that. And I'm not suppose to go anywhere she hasn't been and wants to go because I'm already a bit ahead on countries due to my Sth American adventures. So things were looking like the med and South until I hatched a plan to go somewhere that I knew Adi would never want to tackle. </p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;"><br></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-WgVGLL4AVmo/VE4EJLk_wzI/AAAAAAAABrw/t_8AWpoODOo/s640/blogger-image--1920205757.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-WgVGLL4AVmo/VE4EJLk_wzI/AAAAAAAABrw/t_8AWpoODOo/s640/blogger-image--1920205757.jpg"></a></div><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;"><br></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;">A place full of huge bridges, long tunnels, mountains, biting insects, rain, more rain and long slogs between towns. O and maybe a bit of snow in the late summer. Sounds good you reckon? Not to Adi. And that's why she has given me the green light to cycle from Paris to Honingsvag and back. </p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;"><br></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-cDp3Q3RrZgc/VE4D6K2yT2I/AAAAAAAABrY/oYIHifm2anQ/s640/blogger-image--898480265.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-cDp3Q3RrZgc/VE4D6K2yT2I/AAAAAAAABrY/oYIHifm2anQ/s640/blogger-image--898480265.jpg"></a></div><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;">Honingsvag is at the end of the world and a prettier place would be hard to find. It is situated north of the arctic circle and will mark my turn around point. Assuming I survive my pedal to Honingsvag I will then turn my wheels south through Finland and Sweden back to where my balls can thaw out in Denmark. The only thorn in my tyre over all this is the annoying fact that the PBP event doesn't start until the 16 August and so I can't start my passage north until after this. ETA at the top of the world will therefore be in Autumn. </p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-_PCOdv1KdQk/VE4EDjkEI5I/AAAAAAAABro/FsnwZDGKyxU/s640/blogger-image--671545560.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-_PCOdv1KdQk/VE4EDjkEI5I/AAAAAAAABro/FsnwZDGKyxU/s640/blogger-image--671545560.jpg"></a></div><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica; min-height: 15px;"><br></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;">If there is anyone reading my blog (such as this person) who lives in Hammerfest could you please tell me the likelihood of me completing this little jaunt north of you, and returning with all of my fingers and toes un-frosted . I can probably afford to loose a toe or two in each foot. My cycle shoes will then fit better. But I'd rather not loose too many fingers. Google tells me that you lucky chooks in Hammerfest are today enjoying a balmy autumn day of 3C falling to 1C tonight. My drink bottles won't freeze then. </p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;">Adi is a dear, she is so keen to send me off to the arctic next year that she has already completed my itinerary and signed herself up for the TransAm.</p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;"><br></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; font-family: Helvetica;">Thermals , that's what I'm going to need. Lots of thermals. </p>Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906674737565684917.post-396830328583411472014-10-15T18:18:00.001-07:002014-10-15T18:18:26.556-07:00Eat Me Out Of House And Home.<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: '.Helvetica Neue Interface';"><span style="font-family: '.HelveticaNeueInterface-Regular';">I spend all my time dreaming about cycle rides and pretty girls. </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: '.Helvetica Neue Interface';"><span style="font-family: '.HelveticaNeueInterface-Regular';">While I ponder gear ratios and spoke patterns those hard shelled little bastards are eating my house. Season by season they munch away trying to drill out my weatherboards like a 1970's break lever. I know they feel they are doing the right thing, rimu weatherboards are over engineered for their intended use. But as with brake levers I now prefer the smooth unadulterated look. Those little cannibals can piss off ,before my hair is blowing in the breeze while I sit on the couch.</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: '.Helvetica Neue Interface'; min-height: 20px;"><span style="font-family: '.HelveticaNeueInterface-Regular';"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-Ajw0RzCksg8/VD8cywwCqrI/AAAAAAAABq0/vXCumjFAlM8/s640/blogger-image--976106635.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-Ajw0RzCksg8/VD8cywwCqrI/AAAAAAAABq0/vXCumjFAlM8/s640/blogger-image--976106635.jpg"></a></div><br><p></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: '.Helvetica Neue Interface';"><span style="font-family: '.HelveticaNeueInterface-Regular';">But how to get rid of the little sods? How many holes in a weatherboard constitutes a replacement? One? Ten ? Building supplies staff weren't entirely sure on this one so I came back with mixed opinions and a saddlebag full of preservative and insecticide. I'm resigned to buying new boards where I see a grouping of holes (something resembling a borer village) but I can't see the point in replacing a whole board for your solo dweller. And I have done my homework. I have it on good knowledge that the little humpbacks can hide in there for up to 3 years so if I slosh enough deadly poison on those boards I take off , paint them all over and store them in the bike shed after 3 years cooling off they should be good to use again? Slosh , paint and squirt , that'll do it.</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: '.Helvetica Neue Interface';"><span style="font-family: '.HelveticaNeueInterface-Regular';">It's simple really, I just have to treat and replace boards quicker than the little dears can eat them. Should be easy.</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: '.Helvetica Neue Interface'; min-height: 20px;"><span style="font-family: '.HelveticaNeueInterface-Regular';"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-fVZ0q6YwIeo/VD8c3lf48PI/AAAAAAAABq8/hGwYJxUewks/s640/blogger-image-1137545194.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-fVZ0q6YwIeo/VD8c3lf48PI/AAAAAAAABq8/hGwYJxUewks/s640/blogger-image-1137545194.jpg"></a></div><br><p></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: '.Helvetica Neue Interface';"><span style="font-family: '.HelveticaNeueInterface-Regular';">My smart phone tells me I'm going to have a wet 400 km ride on Saturday. It seems very convinced that I will be a wet puppy. But I won't have a wet arse because if the heavens darken tomorrow I'm putting my mudguards on. Function over fancy any day .</span></p>Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906674737565684917.post-53166886000928340132014-10-15T01:51:00.001-07:002014-10-15T01:51:17.789-07:00My First Proper Audax Event.<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: '.Helvetica Neue Interface';"><br></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: '.Helvetica Neue Interface';"><span style="font-family: '.HelveticaNeueInterface-Regular';">The day is drawing closer when I will attempt my first 400 km event with the audax club. Last week my Adi and I had arranged to do a local 335 km circuit as training for our respective attempts at the 400 km event. We chose different days so that we could each ride it in our own way and also should either of us crash and burn then the other was at home to feed the fur babies and initiate any rescue mission required.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: '.Helvetica Neue Interface';"><span style="font-family: '.HelveticaNeueInterface-Regular';"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-93JkJ3Rhugw/VD41gk3lufI/AAAAAAAABqk/HDX6q6bVE-Y/s640/blogger-image-696743275.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-93JkJ3Rhugw/VD41gk3lufI/AAAAAAAABqk/HDX6q6bVE-Y/s640/blogger-image-696743275.jpg"></a></div><br><p></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: '.Helvetica Neue Interface';"><span style="font-family: '.HelveticaNeueInterface-Regular';">Being forever the gentleman I let Adi have first crack at it. She started with gusto at 4.30 am and had completed the hilly first third of it by morning tea time. I read on face book of her adventures while on the couch with my coffee and chocolate. By afternoon tea time she was still on track having fended off attacking magpies and battling a strong headwind. I sipped my coffee all the time wishing I was there. She was so lucky to be out there doing it! Here I was stuck on the couch reading all about it on social media like some sorry person. By dinner time and with the sun going down Niel the Wheel had just returned from the fish & chip shop to read that Adi had suffered mechanicals in the dark and had called it quits at the 235 km mark. She was apparently sprawled on the plush duvet of a Havelock motel awaiting the owner to deliver bubble and sweak. It now being late and with Adi arriving in a somewhat bedraggled state the owners did all they could to revive her. Next day she arrived home having completed the final 100 km of the journey. Looking a might glazed in the eyes but with a smile on her face she seemed to have not suffered in any other way. But looks can be deceptive , she had returned a changed woman. She was now in no doubt about the Paris Brest Paris. She said "you can stick getting up early and riding through the night, I'm not having a bar of it!"</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: '.Helvetica Neue Interface';"><span style="font-family: '.HelveticaNeueInterface-Regular';">The next day 'Niel the Wheel' was up ,not so early ,for his attempt at the 335 km around the block. Things went crocked right from the started when my preferred cycling app switched off 30 kms into the course rendering my later posting of it pointless. You can't brag about stuff like this if you don't have the stats to back it up. In the dark upon leaving I had also forgotten to start my cycle computer. This was a small thing discovered when I passed under a flickering street light. I'm not a morning person and little things like this can annoy me. As the sun came up I warmed to the ride and come morning tea I was ready for the magpie infested Wairau Valley. </span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: '.Helvetica Neue Interface';"><span style="font-family: '.HelveticaNeueInterface-Regular';"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-uT9Sdo7Mao0/VD41cOSynCI/AAAAAAAABqc/ukkoX0rFlWg/s640/blogger-image-1143413165.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-uT9Sdo7Mao0/VD41cOSynCI/AAAAAAAABqc/ukkoX0rFlWg/s640/blogger-image-1143413165.jpg"></a></div><br><p></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: '.Helvetica Neue Interface';"><span style="font-family: '.HelveticaNeueInterface-Regular';">Bandits at 3 O' clock high! Bandit at 6 O' clock coming low and hard! The little shits had me on the edge of my seat for 90 kms. The finally came with one of the feathered cretins forcing me off the road and into a drainage ditch with his persistence . Clearly he was enjoying every minute off it. I dragged my Mercian back to the road and cycled off into what was now a solid headwind being further attacked until he spied a novice tandem couple coming the other way and clearly felt he could inflict more damage hassling them. Leaving me in peace to tackle the headwind to my late lunch stop. Electronic data transfer once again let me down here and for the rest of the afternoon when I tried to post my experiences on face book. Poo Bum, 2/3 of the ride was done and I had failed to tell the world about it. </span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: '.Helvetica Neue Interface';"><span style="font-family: '.HelveticaNeueInterface-Regular';"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-WMpkY0gDEaE/VD41XuWWiGI/AAAAAAAABqU/OKKEQ4dwB3U/s640/blogger-image-1750120065.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-WMpkY0gDEaE/VD41XuWWiGI/AAAAAAAABqU/OKKEQ4dwB3U/s640/blogger-image-1750120065.jpg"></a></div><br><p></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: '.Helvetica Neue Interface';"><span style="font-family: '.HelveticaNeueInterface-Regular';"><br></span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: '.Helvetica Neue Interface';"><span style="font-family: '.HelveticaNeueInterface-Regular';">While eating a plate of greasy fish & chips I consoled myself with the fact that bike and body were ambling along happily even if the wi if side was shit. While stuffing down my final greasy chips with the help of a double vanilla milkshake I made one final attempt to post something on the net and voila I was back in business. The final 4 1/2 hours of the ride was completed in darkness. I'd recently bought a Cateye 1200 front light though and the beam was so impressive that apart from almost throwing up at the top of a steep climb ,when my milkshake began to mix with the coke at the other end of my stomach , I thoroughly enjoyed the dark hours.</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: '.Helvetica Neue Interface';"><span style="font-family: '.HelveticaNeueInterface-Regular';">I dragged my now tired arse across the home doorstep we'll before midnight and having completed the 335 kms.</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: '.Helvetica Neue Interface'; min-height: 20px;"><span style="font-family: '.HelveticaNeueInterface-Regular';"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-mIh00UbW4Mc/VD41SZBhrLI/AAAAAAAABqM/GtDMCVfj_VI/s640/blogger-image--1732031781.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-mIh00UbW4Mc/VD41SZBhrLI/AAAAAAAABqM/GtDMCVfj_VI/s640/blogger-image--1732031781.jpg"></a></div><br><p></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: '.Helvetica Neue Interface';"><span style="font-family: '.HelveticaNeueInterface-Regular';">So I sit here now awaiting the actual event in 3 days. My marching orders have arrived via the randonneuring club and Adi has once again reasserted that she won't be doing it. The field looks like numbering less than 10 and the weather at best indication gives light rain. </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: '.Helvetica Neue Interface';"><span style="font-family: '.HelveticaNeueInterface-Regular';">I've done my homework for this one, the cabins booked and my mudguards will be on standby.</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: '.Helvetica Neue Interface';"><span style="font-family: '.HelveticaNeueInterface-Regular';">Bring it on.</span></p>Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3906674737565684917.post-54778127457482687322014-09-21T17:20:00.001-07:002014-09-21T17:20:47.187-07:00Foot Fungus<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica-Light;">Im addicted now to my smart phone and it's Adi's birthday tomorrow so she's going to get one whether she likes it or not.</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica-Light;">Talking of my Adi, she has been training consistently since spring arrived and can now handle a 250km ride. Paris - Brest- Paris pre qualification is just around the corner and I have jumped in and agreed to host a number of qualifiers in the Tasman area. </span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica-Light;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-cNZuIezG40c/VB9rPtmeK-I/AAAAAAAABoY/2Krt1M6aP24/s640/blogger-image--1840835701.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-cNZuIezG40c/VB9rPtmeK-I/AAAAAAAABoY/2Krt1M6aP24/s640/blogger-image--1840835701.jpg"></a></div>My New Long Distance Mascot as Found.<br><p></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica-Light;">I've put together a couple of rides that I think I could well regret . Rides that I could well find myself as the only entrant. The important thing though is that they will be qualifiers for PBP and I won't have to fork out dosh to travel out of town to qualify.</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: Helvetica; min-height: 20px;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica-Light;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-vMP7rFTYvz8/VB9rKm5KdxI/AAAAAAAABoQ/z5fpr3J3i1Q/s640/blogger-image--1671712603.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-vMP7rFTYvz8/VB9rKm5KdxI/AAAAAAAABoQ/z5fpr3J3i1Q/s640/blogger-image--1671712603.jpg"></a></div>Happy to be Loved Again.&<br><p></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica-Light;">In a months time Adi and I will enter a 400km event to pre qualify. She is naturally worried about how this will pan out for her and is going to take advantage of as much time as is allowed. </span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica-Light;">I have the option of riding it with her or going at my own pace. I'm torn between being with her to provide support in the event that she may have a mechanical problem or to leave her to it. I'm erring on the side of just doing my own thing as that is the way we will be riding the PBP.</span></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica-Light;">Last week , after two weeks of Spring sunshine ,New Zealand reverted to Winter rain and snow and I did virtually no cycling. I spent the week helping Adi get addicted to her new smart phone and roaming around the house identifying more areas of wood worm attack. By the end of the week I had ripped out a small section of rotten timber and repainted another. A mere drop in the ocean but enough to make me feel better.</span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica-Light;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-R5kOLY-mBK0/VB9rF5g8ciI/AAAAAAAABoI/VN3LSXNB-a0/s640/blogger-image--1041814462.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-R5kOLY-mBK0/VB9rF5g8ciI/AAAAAAAABoI/VN3LSXNB-a0/s640/blogger-image--1041814462.jpg"></a></div><br><p></p>
<p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica-Light;">House maintenance didn't satisfy my cycling head however so not being able to get out on my bike I set about tuning the engine. I cut down on my chocolate intake, increased my coffee consumption and reinstated my sit up routine. And after four years of treatment I am proud to announce that my foot fungus is finally in remission. I started treatment with creams when cycling the US in 2010 because unlike in NZ I didn't need to mortgage the house to afford the anti fungal creams. Toe by toe I have been driving the invader back. It's been a tough battle but with only two toes left infected , I will win the battle and banish that evil forever. </span></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica-Light;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-8gDzkl_DNiI/VB9rA47jhPI/AAAAAAAABoA/IhU-FEDhocY/s640/blogger-image--2109578053.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-8gDzkl_DNiI/VB9rA47jhPI/AAAAAAAABoA/IhU-FEDhocY/s640/blogger-image--2109578053.jpg"></a></div><br><p></p><p style="margin: 0px; font-size: 16px; font-family: Helvetica;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica-Light;">My feet are a little wide for my Sidi cycle shoes so I think this aggravates the problem. I should get my left little toe removed because after a few years it damages the fabric in my shoe. I think little toes are a complete waste of space anyway when it comes to cycling. Babies should have a couple of their toes removed from each foot when their born so that later when they grow there's more room for the other toes and no chance of chaffing on long rides while out on the bike. Much the same way as my wisdom teeth were removed so that my jaw was not so crammed with teeth that I couldn't do up my helmet strap. Some things I've found happen naturally when you cycle a lot. My hairs rubbed off the top of my head from wearing my helmet too much and my nose has got bigger allowing me to cut through those head winds more efficiently. </span></p>Nielhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05489940816297541288noreply@blogger.com0