Our Summer Vacation - Neusiedl am See to Sopron

We started out the day with a wonderfully substantial breakfast - this is a much larger hotel, with many bikes for rent, a clothesline in the back for all the cyclists to hang out their laundry, and a spa.

We rode out from the hotel on bicycle route B10, which will take us into Hungary. We rode along the lake, but it was often hard to see from ground level, as there were wide bands of reeds between the path and the lake. the path went to pebbles over a hard packed surface for a few km, then went back to asphalt. We passed through a resort with a swimming beach, then pack into the countryside. The tops of sailboats could be seen over the reeds.





We stopped at an observation tower and climbed to the top to see the lake and lots of waterfowl.



Lots of groups and families out cycling here - this is a popular route. Cyclists wear what we'd consider cycling clothes here, even small children.

Crops on the left were vineyards, corn, vineyards, wheat, vineyards, sunflowers, vineyards, veggies...

In Illmitz we needed to decide if we were going to take the long (9km) or short (3km) route into Apetlon. We found Tom in a park at the decision point; and waited for about 15 minutes in the shade for everyone else to show up. It was HOT. We voted for long.



I had an EXCELLENT hammer on the bike path - flat, flying past vineyards (occasional car, very strange). I suspect the tailwind and faster tires on the Bleriot helped out some. I stopped a couple of times to take pictures of storks.



The group found me at the main road, then Rich, Kris, Fitz and I took off again for Pamhagen. Rich and I traded pulls, then just entering Pamhagen, his front bag took a dive. Pause to reassemble. (signs for Pannonia - Latin for Hungary - pointing off to the left).

We rode through town to find Zuzana, who directed us to the restaurant. It was Sunday and stores were closed, so they couldn't get groceries for our excellent picnic lunch today. Parked our bikes in the Radlerrast (bike rack) and went on back.



Choice of goulash, noodle soup (hausgemacht nockerln!) or liver dumpling soup. We got tureens and tried all three. We were in a nice shaded patio with flowers. At this point, Tom discovered that his wallet had fallen out, and he and Zuzana went off to the police to report it and cancel the credit cards.



The boys did not finish their soup...the waitress: "You don't like it? You didn't finish!" I have relatives like that... After a long lunch (ice tea comes in bottles here), we started riding out to the Hungarian border, minus Tom. Many cyclists were heading both ways over the border - circling the lake is a popular ride. After some persuasion the border guard produced a stamp (silly Americans!), and Rich couldn't locate his passport (!). After a conference, he and Bohumil headed back to see if it fell out. Bohumil gave us the repair kit - not necessary, except for the spare tubes, but he insisted. I had the same stuff in my bag.



The bike path in Hungary was less well maintained. I did get my camera out and successfully took pictures while riding.



There were big rainstorms threatening, but didn't get us. The countryside became hillier. Lots of little villages with wheat and sunflower fields. We were riding by the Ferto-Hansag National Park. The towns had upgraded bike paths. Little houses with similar architecture, and thatch roofs on the bus shelters. More black tile roofs (as opposed to red tile) and a little more run-down.

More wheatfields, and a lot more rolling countryside. We finished the ride in Balf (Hungarian for wolf), now a suburb of Sopron. We were the first to arrive. It was HOT, and there was a little pub right across the street from the church.





Kris: they have beer
Me: and ice cream

Zuzana and Marian arrived with the good news that all the missing documents had been located (let's just say pilot error and move on), and Rich, Tom and Bohumil were riding in.

The woman at the pub spoke a little German, as did Zuzana. They would take Euro (we had not acquired forints).

Kris: I have Euros



So 2 beers (Soproni) and I was jonesing for a coke float. 1 Coke, 1 vanilla ice cream scoop in a glass and a spoon. Hit the spot. The guys all showed up, and Zuzana told us about Sopron.

We then loaded up and headed into town.

Sopron dates back to the 4th century - the Roman Scarbantia. It was on the amber trade route. Dinner was on our own. We explored the area, and foun dthe old town wall, Roman road and various ruins, all nicely displayed. We also found the ATM and got forint (about 180HUF=1USD), then walked back and had dinner at the hotel.







Liszt Ferenc (Franz Liszt) gave his first performance at age of 9, just down the street. The Hotel Wollner is the coolest hotel ever - 300 year old building, flowers everywhere, patio restaurant and a nice back garden with the old city walls as part of it.



Many more pictures here.

Our Summer Vacation - Malacky to Devin

After a breakfast on the patio with Rich and Kris, we all loaded up and drove to Malacky, which is in Slovakia (passports stamped all around at the border crossing).



Our ride today was to be all in Slovakia. We started out riding 15km on the road, rather like our Washington County roads, in terms of surface and traffic, but with deciduous trees, wheatfields, sunflowers, cooler-looking villages (heck, villages!) and flat. There was a long line of massive construction equipment blocking the road - we inched up and around it. It was a wonderfully hot and sunny day.



We arrived in Zahorska Ves, to be intercepted by Zuzana and Marian, making sure we did not miss the turn onto the bike path.



We got onto the bike path - the plan from here was to follow the Morava River until it joined the Danube River. Except we didn't quite. There was an unmarked choice - ride up on the dike, or through some wheatfields. We picked the dike. It was crushed gravel; the 34mm tires on my Bleriot had no problems.



We saw storks flying. The path then went through forest, but it was clear. Then we popped out into wheatfields, with a church and village visible in the distance.



Then we were in Vysoka Pri Morave, and a bit puzzled, so waited by the river, wondering where to go next. Bohumil rode up and asked if we were last. We knew we weren't, so we waited.



He hadn't seen anyone else. After awhile, Kris, Rich and Pearce showed up; we'd all gone by way of the dike, which was not the right way. Tom and the boys were ahead of us somewhere. Another long direction-getting conversation with a passerby, which pointed us back onto the bike path.

The map distances were off, but we did find the left turn into the forest, with lots of educational signage throughout about the the Morava River floodplain, which we would be riding on for the rest of the day.



Popped out into endless meadows. It was beautiful - meadows for miles. Austria was on the other side of the Morava River.



We stopped to explore a Cold War border bunker and a section of barbed wire fence (Iron Curtain remnant). This part of the trail is the Iron Curtain Greenway.





More riding through the meadows (a cherry and plum tree stop) and then the path got lumpy going around Devin Nova Ves. We finally arrived at the confluence of the Morava and Danube rivers. There was a memorial to those killed trying to get out during Iron Curtain times.

Then a left turn put us by the ruins of Devin Castle. Another excellent picnic lunch, then we put away the bikes and climbed up to the castle and had a great time exploring. There were some archeological exhibitions (this spot has been inhabited since forever), and a breathtaking view of the confluence of the two rivers.







We then walked down to see a medieval combat exhibition (WWF meets the SCA).



We then had an hour-long drive through Bratislava and into Austria (passport stamps all around). This border had a major police presence, but our crossing was uneventful.

Dinner was a buffet at the hotel, where I got to pull out what was left of my small knowledge of German for maximum effect :-) Ja, bitte!

And finally, Real Vegetables at dinner!

Many, many more pictures here. It is not possible to take too many pictures of a castle and the Danube River.

Our Summer Vacation, Rozkos to Hlohovec

We started out our day with a tour of Telc castle. Lots of receiving rooms, an armory, a room with trophies from Africa (it is a wonder that there are animals left in Africa), a ballroom, courtyards, gardens...

We then transferred to Rozkos, through relatively flat countryside, with the tailwind from heaven. Many fields of sunflowers.




Crossed a busy road and entered the town of Damnice.



After the obligatory picture stop, I noticed that my lower coupler was loose. Ooooh. Now I know what that feels like! I gave the couplers a pre-emptive tightness check every morning after that.

Another excellent picnic lunch on a grassy roadside in Damnice. Passing out through the next town (Jirice u Miroslavi), we hunted down an old Jewish cemetery on the outskirts. Asking directions always gets a long and convoluted answer. It seemed to be down a gravel road. We didn't find anything on the way in (I knew it was there, I could see the stone wall), but spotted it on the way out. Fitz, Kris, Rich, Bohumil and I did a little exploring Someone might be taking care of it, but it wasn't obvious.




No cherry trees today, but many apricot orchards. We rode about 10km on a main road, but it had a nice shoulder, and was not what I'd consider at all scary. Both in Telc and here, we saw many groups of touring cyclists.. Riding past any pub or resarant, there are several loaded bikes parked outside.



Then, after a ride along a lake and across a dam, we turned left onto a bike path., which ran along the lakeshore for 3km. Saw lots of fishing poles and tents, and people associated with them. Not holding the fishing poles. It is possible that actual fish were not required. :-)

Then into Dolni Vestonice (significant archeological finds here from the stone age), where we decided that, given the tailwind, we'd got to the hotel by bike in PLENTY of time for our evening wine tasting. Kris elected to hop in the van by then, so Fitz, Rich, Bohumil and I went on. It got a little hilly for awhile. Through three towns, through some road construction, then through Hlohovec to our hotel, which sits right on the former Czech/Austrian border.



After a shower, off to our wine tasting. Our host, Miroslav, showed us his cellar with casks, underground, built by the Franciscans in 1736. Very short Franciscans. We then went to the other cellar with the bottled wines. During WWII, they were used as shelters and were all interconnected. Part of one had collapsed and was walled off. Then off to the tasting. 10 bottles from white to red. We bought 4 - $10 total! And really good wine, too. Our table wasn't drinking all the generous pours, but the other table had a couple of VERY sloshed 16 year olds.







Back to the hotel for dinner.

More pictures from the day here.

Left on the table

All in all, it wasn't a BAD year.

Year to date cycling miles, not counting commuting - 3944.
Since I started recording, the number has only gone up.
If commuting was in there, it would be closer to 5000.

Randonneuring kilometers - 1828.

That one hurts. One more brevet, and I'd have had over 2000km. But the weather in December started out really awful, and then, well... I just ran out of discretionary time.
One triathlon, second in my age group.

Lots of running at lunch, but no timed events this year. This is fine, because I run because I like to. I'm not ever training for anything. I like the cardio and caloric expenditure benefits.

Goals for next year:
A longer brevet - 400km
Work toward achieving Rickey's 5 hour plan - complete 100km every 5 hours.

Probably the Last Ride of 2007

Cecil, Beth and I were to meet up and ride out to Smith and Bybee Lakes, and Kelley Point Park. Cecil ALWAYS rides out here to meet me, so I rode over to her house to meet her. The weather was, um, wet and grey, and the descent through Washington Park and Portland was intense (note to self: new brake pads on Bleriot).

Over the Hawthorne Bridge, east some more, then south to Cecil's. At this point I elected to put on the booties - the PI gore-tex shoes were perhaps being overloaded by relentless rain. Cecil's agressively friendly Corgis helped.

Then northward to meet Beth. I couldn't tell you how we got there, exactly, although I did recognize Peninsula Park as we passed it, possibly because it had a sign. And rosebushes. I elected to change to dry gloves at this point.

Beth took us further north, then through the backside of the Portland Meadows racetrack, where several jockeys had the horses out training, in the mucky wet track. Then through the industrial area, and down a ramp the wrong way, which put us right on the trail along the Columbia Slough.



We saw a bald eagle, and lots of geese. No herons today. Passed behind PIR and Heron Lakes golf course, past the water treatment plant and out to Smith and Bybee Lakes. Looked pretty much like it did last week - gray, rainy. The ducks were in pretty much the same spot, too.





Then out to Kelley Point, where today we saw some grain barges and a big container ship. We elected to go back the way we came, which would lead to a shop with hot-beverages-of-choice and pastries. I must say, Cecil and Beth know every pastry and hot beverage shop on the east side! The waitress in Cup and Saucer kindly let us drape our wet stuff at one table and sit ourselves at another table. Hot-beverages-of-choice and a basket of scones helped thaw out some.

Then Beth had to get home (figure skating viewing was waiting), so we all headed out. Eventually Beth peeled off, and Cecil and I continued south to the base of the Hawthorne Bridge, where she headed home. After careful direction from Cecil, I rode across the bridge, west on Main, left on 3rd, right on Jefferson, followed Jefferson all the way until it was just about a freeway on-ramp and hopped onto the bicycle trail, which took me up to the entrance of Washington Park. Nice! Avoided the Salmon Street climb!

Climbed through the park in persistent rain; fortunately no accompanying traffic at the steep pitch out of the Rose Garden. At that point, the climbs are easy, and then once I'm at Sylvan Summit, it is all downhill...



50.59 miles.

Riding on the east side of Portland is different. There are lots of wide, low traffic streets. It is MUCH flatter. I see a lot more cyclists. The riding is more stop-and-go, then out on the west side. There are still the drivers who blatantly run red lights at high speed. But it is generally not too high stress, and there are coffee shops on every corner.

More pictures here

What I want

I want persons who operate large vehicles on the public roadways to wake up and pay attention to where they are going.

A repeat of last year's close call. Riding eastbound on Jenkins, moving over to the center lane to turn left onto Ecole.Car turns right off Ecole onto Jenkins (westbound), traffic isn't moving quite as smoothly as they'd like, so they cut over into the center lane. Except at that point, it is a double yellow line, and they aren't supposed to be there, as it would interfere with the traffic turning left onto Ecole. I was the traffic turning left onto Ecole. Painfully bright headlight, plus flasher on helmet, plus reflective strips on the jacket. I yelled. I smacked the car with my hand. I saw it slowly move forward and turn left into my place of employ.

Maybe someone will come yell at me tomorrow for terrifying someone who was coming to pick them up from work. I don't care. They'll get it with both barrels. If they'd smacked ME, they would still go home to a nice dinner, and with any luck, I'd be in the ICU.

Other things I want:

I expect other vehicles to pass me SAFELY.

Not pass when they can't see far enough ahead - this includes uphills and curves!

Not pass when there is oncoming traffic - most roads out here are not wide enough for 2 motor vehicles and a bicycle.

Not pass so close that I could reach out and touch them.

Not pass so close that I am crowded off the road.

Not pass and then immediately turn right.

Bonus: no honking, yelling of "encouragement", or throwing things.

I don't ask for much.

Volunteering at the Community Cycling Center

My co-worker Evan organized a group of us who know how to work on bikes to volunteer at the Community Cycling Center, for their Holiday Bike Drive. Most volunteers clean bikes. If they think you know what you are doing, you may wrench on the bikes. As these kids bikes are donated, many of them need a little (or a lot) of attention - they will be the first bike the recipients ever had. Remember your first bike? That's the feeling they want these kids to have. (mine, by the way, was a 20" red Ross.)

We did this as part of the United Way Day of Caring week. I've done volunteer time at both the Food Bank (bagging beans and rice) and CCC, and thought I'd go back to the CCC this year.

Co-worker Ian and I planned to ride over - yes it was across town, but we could skip the hill climb and subsequent steepish descent into town by hopping MAX, and getting off at Goose Hollow, riding through downtown, over the Broadway Bridge, thence making our way over to Williams, north on Williams, then zigzagging east and north to get to NE 17th and Alberta.



The weather was, to not put too fine a point on it, bad. Heavy sideways rain, wind... I had wool everything on, so I'd stay warm once we quit riding. Ian had the same approach. We met at 11am, rode over to the Millikan Way MAX station (adjacent to the Tektronix campus), where I really did try to buy a ticket. First machine wasn't selling the ticket I wanted, second machine was not taking bills. Ian gave me a 2-zone ticket so I'd be legal, at least until the next stop. We got off at the Beaverton Transit Center and managed to buy a ticket there with a credit card, then hopped onto the next waiting train. Whew!

Off at Goose Hollow, then north through downtown, onto 14th, then Lovejoy, over the Broadway Bridge (just a BIT windy up there), and then following the above-mentioned route. Traffic was light, as it was midday. We arrived the at same time everyone else (who drove :-) )

Got the intro tour, paired up (I went with Evan - I have worked on bikes, I have built my own bike, I have majorly overhauled other of my bikes, but kid bikes are a bit different. I wanted a bit of guidance), and got started. Our first bike took a really long time - it needed new wheels altogether - we went into the basement and brought some up, but the hubs were not wide enough. I went back downstairs, and scored a set with red rims. This was a red bike, so it would look nice. Adjusted the crank. Installed one wheel; Evan did the other. Replaced the grips. It got a new chain and a replacement pedal for the missing one. Evan kept being called off to check everyone's work or offer advice.

We were working in an outside covered area, with a tarp roof and tarp walls that rolled down. The walls were lowered one by one, as the afternoon proceeded, and the rain got more sideways. We had to move our work stand - it was originally positioned under a major drip.

Advice:
"This is not your bike. It won't ever ride as nicely as your bike. Given a choice between a loose hub/headset/bottom bracket, or a slightly tight, notchy one, go for the slightly tight. No one will ever adjust this bicycle again. Grease everything. Tighten down the bolts! Tight!"



After a lot of rummaging around for a rear reflector AND a nut/bolt combination that would hold it on (the bin labelled "bolt/nut pairs" lies. It has many bolts, some nuts, and they are not matched up :-) ), the bike was almost ready. Neal checked it over (everyone's work is checked by someone else. Neal and Evan had final checkout responsibilities, so Neal had to check Evan's work). Loose stem... Evan had to go find a cheater bar and really reef on it.



FINALLY that bike was ready. I celebrated by walking down to the coffeeshop and getting a mug of coffee and a muffin for Evan.

Evan: "did I tell you I was cursed? I end up with all the bikes that have complicated repairs and take forever."

We started in on bike #2. Evan got called away, so I adjusted the bottom bracket (Cool! Got to use a pin spanner!) to perfection. I declared the headset indexed, and after some tweaking, got it to behave as well. We removed the front and rear brakes (all the kids bikes leave with a coaster brake), then started in on the wheels. The rear hub was beyond sticky. Again, more adjusting, and it turned out very smooth. Smoother than I would have hoped, actually.



Starting to run out of time. We did manage to finish bike #2. Yay!

Ian, Scott and I prepared to leave. But no. Bleriot had a flat front tire. :-( Fortunately, I had it in a great location. We wheeled the bike INSIDE. (Warm. Dry.) I put it up on the stand and set to changing the tire. I wasn't putting the tire back on until the cause was found - the weather was awful, and I did not want to have another flat. Scott finally found a bit of glass. The mechanics all had to come look at my bike, of course.

That done, we headed out into the storm, aiming for the Rose Quarter Transit Center, on the east side, so we could get our bikes on the train before it was too crowded. I suppose I'd get used to in-town traffic, if I did it every day, but it was a little stressful. If it hadn't been raining sideways, it would have been better.

Long MAX ride to the Sunset Transit Center - power was out, so the train had to go slowly. That was fine, Ian, Scott and I chatted the entire way. Finally there. Carried my bike up all the steps, crossed over the highway, crossed Park Way, went to turn on my helmet light. Felt something fall down my arm. Half a block later, I looked in my rear view mirror. Oops. I walked back and forth along that half block stretch 4 times, before I finally found it. It was raining so hard that it was hard to see anything!

Whew. Down the hill, home, everything in the laundry.

More pictures here.