Gore Bike Heart

Day 7: Kaisma - Rapla - Tallinn

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Soininen) — Sun, 30 Jun 2013 19:24:00 +0000

The first thing I remember reacting to this morning was the quiet noises of Matthew (@ArcticCycler) getting out of his tent, then a short pause followed by a loud "WOW!". I felt, however, that I did not want to get up at 5 in the morning, so I stayed in my sleeping bag and rolled over. A little before 6, the lack of snoring coming from my tent made it apparent to Matt that I was no longer asleep. He soon urged me to get up and take in what I quickly realised was an absolutely stunning morning, complete with a rolling layer of mist on the lake.

In no rush what so ever to leave, we took time to enjoy the view and eat our breakfast. After reaching the main road again we kept the pace slow, allowing our legs an equally gentle start to the day.

Nearly halfway to Tallinn we entered the town of Rapla, where we ended up having an extended lunch by the little stream running through town. We didn't let the fact that we were underneath the droning AC fans behind the mall detract from our enjoyment of this almost luxurious picnic consisting of bread, cheese, yoghurt, strawberries, cherries, juice and other goodies.

After Rapla the road slowly became busier and busier as we started to get closer to Tallinn. Having stuffed our stomachs with way too much food during lunch, our bikes were also moving slowly at this point. Still outside the outer ring road Matt noticed that we were no longer on the recommended route he had pieced together by reading cycling forums. Near the village of Tagadi we cut across to Kiisa where we found ourselves on excellent bike paths which we would follow all the way into the capital. The new route took us through Saku, past the largest brewery in Estonia, and onwards to Tallinn.

The busy urban traffic of Tallinn was exciting after the hard shoulder of the highways and quiet country lanes I'd mainly been on for the last week. We made our way to old town to pose for the obligatory "I made it!" photos and the 'necessary' twitter, facebook, (foursquare) and Google+ updates. We were both exceedingly giddy at this point, me having completed my tour and Matt proud of the accomplishment of reaching Tallinn from Eindhoven. Mind you, he's on his way to Nordkapp so I recommend you keep following his blog as well.

Seemingly unable to find a suitable café, we headed over to Matt's friend Ranno's place for a quick pit stop before I continued to the Russalka memorial where I waited a few short minutes for Nele, my Couchsurfing host, to show up.

The day in numbers: 111.76 km, 5 h 49 min 24 sec, 19.19 km/h avg, 38.1 km/h max.

Tour total: 700.13 km.

Day 6: Kinksi - Pärnu - Kaisma

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Soininen) — Sun, 30 Jun 2013 15:33:00 +0000

The local youth of Kinksi continued their beer and BBQ party into the wee hours, but I still slept well and woke up fairy early. By then I was alone on the külaplats, making my morning routine faster than any previous day. This helped me get an early start and with the weather being cloudy, the cool, oxygen rich air meant I was soon trucking south towards Pärnu at a steady pace.

My only proper stop on my 60 km sprint to Pärnu came in Aruvälja where I enjoyed 2nd breakfast on a bench outside the village grocery store. 10 km later I had to unclip my shoes from the pedals again as roadworks brought traffic to a standstill for a while.

Once in Pärnu I stopped at the main library where I took the opportunity to give the battery of my phone a boost while waiting to hear from Matthew (@ArcticCycler, arctic-cycler.com). I had tweeted him the night before when I noticed he was also heading for Pärnu and would be there around the same time as me. During the hour I spent at the library I almost fell asleep on the chair I was sitting in. Sleeping less than 6h most nights of my tour was starting to take its toll on me.

With my phone battery having enough juice to last the rest of the day, I made my way in the general direction of the beach. I soon received a tweet from Matthew. He was going to Steffani pizza, together with Raimo, an Estonian roadie he'd cycled with since crossing the border from Latvia. Pizzas ordered, Matt and I soon started comparing notes and discussing the road ahead. It immediately became apparent that not only were we both heading to Tallinn, our schedules and planned routes were nearly identical.

Having made the obvious decision to share the road from Pärnu to Tallinn, Matt and I followed Raimo to Hawaii Express, a bike shop where we borrowed a track pump to get our tyres up to nominal pressure. Raimo then proceeded to guide us out of the city to where route 5, which would take us the first 35 km north, started.

For the final camping night of my tour, we endured the 6 km gravel road to Kaisma Suurjärve. After the külaplats in Kinksi, this was the place I had the least advance information about. I had chosen the place purely for its location (100 km south of Tallinn) and even chose to call to confirm there would be fresh water and showers before passing the last shop along the way.

There was a shower as well as fresh water. The shower was adjacent a modern sauna with space for 10-15 people. There was also a well equipped kitchenette, a proper toilet as well as a large lounge complete with leather couches, a stereo and a 50" flat screen TV. The man who came around to hand us the key was also keen to tell us we'd be more than welcome to sleep inside the lodge should it happen to rain that night. The price for all this you ask? 5 euro, for both of us.

Today in numbers: 126.93 km, 6 h 5 min 59 sec, 20.81 km/h avg, 33.2 km/h max.

Tour total: 588.37 km.

Day 5: Kuressaare - Muhu - Kinksi

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Soininen) — Fri, 28 Jun 2013 05:14:00 +0000

I got up at a decent hour but somehow my morning routine took a bit longer than necessary, so I was only on the bike a little before 10. Knowing that the ferry from Muhu to the mainland runs every 30-35 minutes and that I'd only have well under 20 km to go once I'd crossed I decided to go for a two stop strategy.

This was also necessitated by the fact that the temperature was close to 25°C and rising already in the morning. Before leaving Kuressaare behind I stopped at the Auriga mall and found a sporting goods shop where I picked up a new pair of cycling gloves. Having also restocked my food supply, I soldiered on to Valjala where a lengthy food and drink stop was on order.

My second stop of the day was in Orissaare for which I had to make a little detour. I'm glad I did, as the sea breeze in the marina was the only respite from the scorching heat I had all day. Immediately after getting back to the main road towards Kuivastu I found myself on the Väikese väina tamm, the causeway joining the islands of Saaremaa and Muhumaa. Here I also enjoyed a bit of a cooling effect from the wind, but being from the side it also made cycling the narrow causeway a little tougher. Once across it was a further 14 km or so to the harbour in Kuivastu. While I truly enjoyed the flat landscape of the Estonian islands, making cycling very easy, it also robs you of an effortless roll down to the dock which you get on most islands in the Turku archipelago.

The ferries, there are two shuttling between Kuivastu and Virtsu, are quite new and proudly boast "Made in Saaremaa" on the bow and aft, visible as you drive off. The staff in the small café on board, though, were not allowed to fill up my bottles with drinking water. I instead stopped at a bar in Virtsu for an ice tea (not the Long Island variety, mind you) and also to find that the water I already had would be more than enough to last until I'd reach the campsite.

With less than 10 km to go I stopped to check for my turn to Voose from a roadside map. It was then that I discovered a potential campsite even closer to the crossroads where I would turn towards Pärnu in the morning. I quickly decided to head for the tiny village of Kinksi instead.

Less of a campsite and more of a village park or fairground, the Kinksi Külaplats initially seemed only moderately better than camping wild. My first impressions were, however, very deceiving as I was able to get electricity for my phone, fresh water (and a bag of homegrown cucumbers!) from the farm only 150 m up the road. The local boys were also at the külaplats, swimming in the pond, drinking beer and blaring music from their car. This was clearly the local pastime, so I decided to swap my lycras for my swimming trunks and joined in.

The day in numbers: 96.66 km, 5 h 1 min 5 sec, 19.26 km/h, 25.8 km/h max.

Tour total: 461.44 km.

Day 4: Sõru - Kihelkonna - Kuressaare

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Soininen) — Wed, 26 Jun 2013 21:24:00 +0000

Today I had to get up on time as the first ferry of the day was at 8.15 and the next one would only be at 12. Thankfully it was only a few hundred metres from the sauna raft to the ferry. After I'd boarded and bought my ticket in the café I walked out on deck where I was soon asked where I was from. The question came from Aadu, a farmer from the village of Viira on Saaremaa who had been on Hiiumaa to visit his girlfriend.

Our chat lasted for the rest of the hour long ferry ride and resulted in me being invited to visit Aadu's farm. This would mean another detour for me but the promise of fresh strawberries and potatoes coupled with the fact that it was still early gave me no option but to accept. Well there I was given a short tour of the farm, including a tractor count. Aadu's mother served me potatoes, salad and a piece of well cooked sheep's ribs. Well fed and with water bottles filled from the well I found my back towards the main road heading west along the north shore of Saaremaa.

Along the way I was offered many choices of shortcuts across the island and my destination for the day, Kuressaare. Although the heat was tough to deal with, diluted grape juice helped me stay the course and continue all the way to Kihelkonna, the westernmost point of my planned route. That is, after I decided that the visit to the farm in the morning meant I could allow myself to skip Lümanda and start heading towards Kuressaare. Once I reached the main town of Saaremaa I let my GPS guide me to Piibelehe B&B and camping where I had to sit in the the shade for a while before being able to muster the strength to take a shower. Once I had the tent up I figured it was time to go into the centre to see if I could find a restaurant. As I activated the GPS again a couple of motorhomers, also heading into town on bikes, reacted to the fact the turn by turn directions blaring from my phone were in Finnish. Being countymen in a foreign land we joined forces and made our way to the fortress and a terrace bar that had come highly recommended. Quite understandably so as the service was great, the prices agreeable and the view of the fortress splendid.

With none of us really wanting to eat fish, we got on our bikes again after only one drink each. It didn't take us very long to stumble upon Vinoteek Prelude where the menfolk went for the wild boar while the lady chose the beef. The wine suggestions won support around the table and the desserts were also really good. Feeling quite pleased with how the evening had turned out, we cycled back to the campsite to call it a night.

The day in numbers: 117.88 km, 6 h 7 min 47 sec, 19.23 km/h avg, 30.8 km/h max.

Tour total: 364.78 km.

Day 3: Haapsalu - Kärdla - Sõru

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Soininen) — Wed, 26 Jun 2013 20:02:00 +0000

The early bird gets the worm and the lazy cycle tourist misses the ferry. I took my dear time to get ready in the morning and was only on the bike well after 9.30. With 9 km to the harbour in Rohuküla I figured I might just make it, but that it wouldn't matter if I didn't. As I got closer I started to think I actually would be in time after all. In the end I indeed was, just in time to see the 10.00 ferry round the pier.

The next ferry was scheduled for 11.30, so I bought my ticket and spent the next hour having coffee and charging my battery pack in the terminal. The ferry to Heltermaa took a little over an hour so it was close to 13 before I got truly started on my lap around most of Hiiumaa.

The surface of the road got really bad after only a couple of kilometres from the harbour. I tried to push on but elected to take a smoother detour to Hellamaa even though it would add some distance to my daily total. And man am I glad I did. I found the church ruins in the picture hidden behind some trees in a tiny village called Kuri. As soon as I'd taken the photo I was buzzed by a couple of NATO F-16s at MIL power barely over treetop level.

Detour over I returned to the main road which was a lot better as well from that point and almost all the way to Kärdla. There a perfectly smooth bike path started some 2 km before town and would continue for more than 10 km after. In Kärdla I treated myself to a long lunch stop followed by a visit to the grocery store to pick up some waffles and black currant juice. Back in 2007 I learnt from my touring partner that summer, Sergej, that this is an excellent method for coping with the heat while cycling. I diluted the juice to 2/3 with 1/3 water to avoid it being to sweet to gulp down.

I continued on my way and met a few groups of cyclists going the other direction. Once the bike path ended the road itself was decent, but had some sections which were downright terrible with the road bike. Also, although I was on an island and close to the shore I only saw the Baltic sea in a couple of places. Being surrounded by mostly forest, with any village being off route, I made good on my intention to arrive at my destination no later than 19.00.

In fact, I was so far ahead of schedule that I could afford myself a final ice cream stop in Emmaste before continuing to the harbour of Sõru. Once there, I called the owner of the Sauna Raft Sea Rock who soon came down to let me in and fired up the stove. Feeling fresh after a few rounds in the sauna followed by dinner, I spotted a young couple also on bikes looking a bit lost. Having plenty of space in my floating home for the night, I asked if they needed a place to stay. Turned out they were also Finnish but were happy to sleep in their tent. They were, however, unable to say no to a go in the sauna. We talked for quite a while afterwards leading to me only going to sleep at 1 am.

The day in numbers: 98.29 km, 4 h 25 min 44 sec, 22.19 km/h avg, 34.3 km/h max.

Tour total: 246.90 km.

Day 2: Keravere (Oonga) - Haapsalu

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Soininen) — Mon, 24 Jun 2013 05:07:00 +0000

(Late update due to me falling asleep before I'd written everything I wanted to.)

Today was both a short and a long day. Short because my planned route for the day was only 20 km and long because I got up quite early and am only in my tent now, well past midnight.

I woke up a little before my 8.00 alarm after sleeping like a baby in the loft above the sauna at Tiit and Signe's summer house. After a while there were noises from the main building indicating that the others were awake as well. A delicious breakfast and a few travel anecdotes later I was moving again in time to reach the main road by 10.00.

This meant I had an hour to cover the remaining 18 km to Haapsalu if I wanted to see the victory day parade (Võidupüha paraad - video). The smooth road and the light tailwind made it even easier. As I reached the city centre a friendly policeman pointed me in the right direction towards the old train station. Once there I parked my bike and soon found a free spot along the barrier, just in time to see the President of Estonia, Toomas Ilves, arrive.

After the parade had left the grounds of the old train station, the crowd started to move as well. I followed suit on my bike, being careful not to run over any unsuspecting toes with my trailer. Soon I heard a Finnish man behind me asking if I was looking for a place to spend the night. When I replied that I was already planning to go to Camping Pikseke he was quick to inform me that he's actually the proprietor. As it turned out he originated from Turku but has lived in Estonia for 40 years. He also explained that the crowd was moving in the direction of the castle as the victory day celebrations would continue there. I entered the courtyard of the castle which was so nice I decided to sit down and have lunch. Having dealt with my hunger I went to the campsite to leave the trailer behind and also pitch my tent.

Not quite full after only having eaten what bread and cheese I had left from yesterday, my random cycling around Haapsalu and along the beautiful Promenaad soon led me to Restoran Jahta by the marina where I found some chicken pasta and a beer with my name on it.

After spending another hour or so rolling around town taking in the sights I decided to pick up some breakfast material and head back to the campsite. I soon found myself in the company of three German cycle-tourers with whom I spent the rest of the evening throwing frisbee, playing badminton and discussing languages, cultures, history and politics.

The day in numbers: 37.69 km, 2 h 20 min 54 sec, 16.05 km/h avg, 31.9 km/h max.

Tour total: 148.61 km.

Day 1: Tallinn - Keravere (Oonga)

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Soininen) — Sat, 22 Jun 2013 21:41:00 +0000

I call today day 1 as it was the first full day of riding. Then again, it wasn't even that as I got going only at 11. My discussions with my Couchsurfing host Anleena, involving politics, history and cultural stereotypes, went on for slightly longer than I had intended. It also rained a bit when I woke up, so I was in no hurry to leave.

When I eventually did, the sun had come out and the temperature was already around 25°C. It would get even hotter as the day wore on and the rain, forecast for the afternoon, apparently chose a different route. This also meant that I struggled somewhat with the pace and went through a lot of water.

I started by finding my way to route 4 heading south from Tallinn. After 21 km I took the exit for Haapsalu and, after a 30 minute lunch stop, started heading west on route 9. I stayed on the 9 for the next 50 km, with a second food stop in Risti. After Risti the by then narrow hard shoulder disappeared completely, but thankfully I only had a further 9 km to go to Palivere. Here I left the highways behind and continued on regional road no. 160. In Palivere I had a nice chat with a local truck driver who actually works in Naantali.

The 25 km along the 160 from Palivere to Oonga offered the only truly enjoyable cycling experience of the day. This road, despite its rough surface, was the highlight of my day on the bike. Beautiful, mostly empty countryside and virtually no traffic had me grinning and singing to myself. At times I even forgot about the slight headwind I had to overcome.

I arrived in Keravere an hour too early, but was met by the sister of one of my warmshowers hosts. Soon I came to realise that the summer house I'd been invited to was quite large and we'd be joined not only by Tiit and Signe but also Signe's parents, the previously mentioned sister as well as three youngsters and little Paula.

After a few rounds in the sauna it was time to eat. I had the privilege to join my extended host family for a lovely Midsummer dinner, complete with wine and vodka. Well fed, I've now turned in for the night in the loft above the sauna.

The day in numbers: 95.83 km, 4 h 29 min 28 sec, 21.34 km/h avg, 31.2 km/h max.

Tour total: 110.92 km.

Day 0: Turku - (Helsinki) - Tallinn

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Soininen) — Fri, 21 Jun 2013 18:25:00 +0000

A new year and a new tour. Time to reboot this blog and see if I can do a better job of keeping it updated from now on. One excuse for failing to do so previously would be the fact that I attempted to blog in both Finnish and English all from my phone, while cycle-touring and doing interviews with radio and newspapers.

This time there's just me, my bike and the open road. Speaking of roads, my planned route looks a little something like this.

So far today I've got out of bed way too early, taken the train from Turku to Helsinki and endured Viking XPRS for 2.5h to get to Tallinn. I've also enjoyed a nice cappuccino in Helsinki and an excellent pizza on the outskirts of Tallinn. With regards to cycling, however, today was rather uneventful as I only logged 15km. Traffic in Tallinn wasn't so bad and I mostly encountered friendly drivers who yielded when I needed space. Tomorrow I will start my tour in earnest as I aim to reach Keravere on the west coast where I've been invited to a sauna equipped summer house. Only 95km of Estonian roads separate me from this, the holiest of Midsummer rituals :)

The day in numbers: 15.09 km, 59 min 6 sec, 15.32 km/h avg, 38.0 km/h max.

Tour total: 15.09 km

Bonus photo post

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Soininen) — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 06:49:00 +0000

Ok, you'll get two bonus photos ;)

Orivesi - Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä - Suonenjoki

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Soininen) — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 06:48:00 +0000

Quick update for my non-Finnish speaking followers. I'm in Suonenjoki this morning having stayed here last night and in Jyväskylä the night before. My need for rest and food has overridden my ability to keep two blogs and twitter feeds up to date. You'll get a bonus photo instead :)

Anyway, since you're dying to find out, here are the numbers from my two previous days on the bike:

Monday 9.7: 120,8 km, 5h 55min 1sec, 20,4 km/h avg, 61,3 km/h
Tuesday 10.7: 100,0 km, 5h 06min 15sec, 19,6 km/h avg, 56,0 km/h max
Tour total: 448,2 km

Urjala - Orivesi

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Soininen) — Sun, 08 Jul 2012 19:48:00 +0000

As you can see from the photo today's route was even more rural than yesterday's. Well that's not quite accurate, but I at least left route 9 so that I could actually admire the scenery. Oh, and avoid a fine for cycling on the motorway :)

From the area around Viiala I followed some excellent cycle paths to Valkeakoski where I stopped for lunch outside a supermarket. The road from Valkeakoski to Kangasala was really nice and the hills were few and far between. This changed for the last push from Kangasala to Orivesi during which I, for a brief moment, started contemplating the wisdom of this endeavour. Undulating is an understatement and my compact crankset doesn't have the range for comfortable climbing when tired.

Fortunately I had company for the last 10 km or so as a local roadie had caught up with me and stuck around to find out what I was up to. We parted ways as I turned towards the Säynäniemi campsite, yet to face a single drop of rain or the forecast lightning. As I came to a stop in front of the reception building the skies openend up and thunder crackled through the air.

I explained the purpose of my tour to the landlady and ended up being donated a stay in a small cottage. As I'm writing this the rain har started again and I'm happy not to be huddling in my tent.

Today: 110,2 km, 5h 25min 33sec, 20,3 km/h avg, 54,8 km/h max
Tour total: 227,4 km

Turku - Urjala

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Soininen) — Sat, 07 Jul 2012 20:42:00 +0000

I had an uneventfulday on the bike interrupted by pleasant encounters almost everytime I stopped. The BOB Yak is as good a conversation starter as ever and I had to explain myself a few times. People's reactions tend to vary between being mildly impressed to "you're doing what?". Mentioning my heart condition and the charitable purpose of this tour equalizes most to "oh, that's nice".

Route 9 from Aura onwards is rather boring but fairly safe to ride. The shoulder is wide enough and there wasn't that much traffic today. Most drivers passed at a good three feet or more but there were of course a few that came closer as well.

Tonight I'm staying at Taikayö Camping, approximately 8 km west of Urjala. Tomorrow I'm getting back on route 9 for a bit then switching to smaller roads through Valkeakoski and Kangasala on my way to Orivesi. Here's to the forecast for heavy thunderstorms not being accurate..

Today: 117,2 km, 5h 39min 33sec, 20,7 km/h avg, 49,3 km/h max
Tour total: 117,2 km

Good Will on Wheels

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Soininen) — Sun, 01 Jul 2012 20:57:00 +0000

This year I've already cycled far more than I did last summer. This blog has, however, remained dormant even though I've been clocking up the kilometers. Another thing that's different from last year is that I'm also counting the total distance I've cycled in miles in addition to kilometers. The reason for that is that I'm part of 1000 miles 2 work, raising money to pay for heart operations for kids in Vietnam with congenital heart defects (CHD). I was 'recruited' for this campaign by Val Monk who started it all about a year ago and has since just bout completed her 1000 miles. Read more about Val on her blog.

At the moment I'm up to about 652 miles (1050 km) but will soon be putting my participation on hold for a week as I'm about to set out on another charity project of my own. Starting on Saturday July 7th my aim is to cycle from Turku to Nurmes, a journey of about 620 km if the measurements on online maps are anything to go by. With mE I'll be dragging my trusted BOB Yak trailer and in it I will be hauling the usual cycle-tour gear: tent, sleeping bag, camping cooker, food, tools and clothes. I'll stay at campsites where available, use CouchSurfing or Warmshowers.org in the larger towns and the odd B&B.

As in 2010 I'll be touring to raise awareness about CHD and to hopefully also inspire at least a few to donate to the Finnish Association for Heart Children and Adults. The association works to improve the lives of those who are living with congenital heart defects as well as their family members. In addition the association also supports research and education in matters related to CHD.

During the tour I'll be blogging mainly in Finnish in my tour specific blog with more frequent updates in English over on twitter. There might still be the odd blog post from the road here as well, but I'm not promising any daily digests as I've failed to deliver on that promise previously.

Here's a rough route plan for the Turku to Nurmes tour:

Bike route 1382138 - powered by Bikemap

Yesterday I also took the trailer out for a spin as I went on a short ride to Raisio where the heart association organized an event called Good Will on Wheels. This event called for an all together different type of biker than I've usually written about on this blog as some 15 Harley Davidon riders gathered to take CHD kids for a short cruise. Unfortunately the weather was somewhat less than ideal with a cold, light drizzle keeping turnout at a minimum. Still, the kids who's parents didn't shy away from a little light rain seemed to enjoy the chance to ride on a large motorcycle.

Day 2: Tammela - Asikkala

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Soininen) — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 03:55:00 +0000

Last night I was way too sleepy to write a full post for day 2. I barely managed to stay awake to post in Finnish over on http://sovatour.blogspot.com. Here's then a short recap of at least how the day ended.

I had a decent but long day on the road. With over 6 hours in the saddle combined with some uncertainty as to where I was going to spend the night it started to wear me down at the end.

There aren't any proper campsites in all of Asikkala and as I rolled into town I caught an intense shower of cold rain. Soaking wet, and getting cold fast, I quickly made a reservation for a cabin and soon found myself in a hot sauna. Well rested I now look forward to another day on the bike. The sun is out so it should be a good one. I already have accomodation booked in Mäntyharju for tonight.

...

Yesterday: 128,32 km, 6h10m00s, 20,94 km/h avg, 52,8 km/ max.
Tour total: 233,26 km.

Day 1: Turku - Tammela

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Soininen) — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 20:28:00 +0000

Today was the first stage of my tour from Turku to Punkaharju. I had a great day on the bike and besides a 20 minute light rain I can't think of anything that didn't go according to plan.

The Venesilta camping here in Tammela is really nice, and I had a lengthy chat with my neighbours while sitting next to the fire in the photo. The view of the lake is really something special, and my tent is less than 10 meters from the shoreline.

It's now time to turn in and get a good night's sleep. Tomorrow I'll be riding some 120 km from Tammela to Asikkala.

...

Today: 104,94 km, 4h55m18s, 21,50 km/h avg, 44,2 km/h max
Tour total: 104,94 km.

Tour preparation

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Soininen) — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 22:36:00 +0000

I'm in the midst of finalizing my preparation for my bike tour next week. On Monday morning I will set out to complete a project that's been several months in the making. The SOVA-tour will be a five day adventure from Turku to Punkaharju, during which I will blog and tweet from the road. The main body of this reporting will be in Finnish, and posted in my tour specific blog. Not to neglect this, my main cycling blog, too much, I'm hoping to post a couple of brief reports here as well. At the very least I will take the time to compile a post-tour write-up when I'm home again.

Embedded below are the planned daily stages, courtesy of bikemap.net. Based on Google Maps, bikemap.net and it's sister sites for other sports offer a great mapping and route planning tool. I've always enjoyed pouring over maps and dreaming away wanting to visit different places. With digital maps combined with efficient routing tools, it's very easy to see how far 100 km or so a day actually gets you.

Before I get to the maps, I would like to take the time to thank a few companies and businesses for helping me make this tour a reality. Things started to fall apart on Tuesday morning when I noticed that my BOB Yak trailer had been stolen from its place in the common bike shelter in my building. Distraught I called the sole Finnish importer, Kareisen pyöräkorjaamo, to check if they had any in storage. There weren't any available, and the prospect of getting any more this week were uncertain to say the least. None the less, I would be contacted as soon as any showed up, with the promise to overnight a trailer to Turku should any arrive on time. On Thursday I received a phone call saying no new trailers had yet been delivered, but that there actually was a bike shop in Turku that also carried the trailers. I rushed over to Next Bike and true enough, they had a BOB Yak in the shelf, straight out of the box. Since I had already made my police report and filed a claim with my insurance company, I elected to buy the new trailer there and then. By now it was almost lunch time, and after lunch I got a text message saying my new trailer had been assembled and was ready to be picked up.

I've since taken the trailer out for a shakedown, and had my bike given some professional TLC at Visan polkupyörähuolto. Dropping just about everything he was doing, Visa swapped my brake pads and a gear shift cable, opened and reassembled the bottom bracket and retuned the gears. With my bike feeling as good as new within hours after dropping it off, I was more than happy to pay the reasonable fee instead of making a mess of my self and only getting half the job done.

Day 1: Turku - Tammela.

Bike route 392738 - powered by Bikemap

Day 2: Tammela - Asikkalan kk.

Bike route 392748 - powered by Bikemap

Day 3: Asikkalan kk - Mäntyharju.

Bike route 392754 - powered by Bikemap

Day 4: Mäntyharju - Ryhälä.

Bike route 392761 - powered by Bikemap

Day 5: Ryhälä - Punkaharju.

Bike route 392772 - powered by Bikemap

On the road again..

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Soininen) — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 07:12:00 +0000

Yesterday I went out on my first road bike ride of the year. With an ambient temperature of around 10°C and the sunshine making it feel even warmer I was determined to go out for a spin. This year I'm starting from an even lower level of fitness than last year, even though I did go ice skating a few times during winter. I've got some decent incentive, however, as I'm planning to cycle-tour from Turku to Punkaharju in the middle of June (more on that later).

As I was preparing for my ride I noticed that the batteries in both my Sigma bike computer and my FRWD sports computer were flat. I then resorted to logging my performance with Nokia Sports Tracker istead. It works well enough, and while it in a way felt liberating not to stare at a speedometer the entire time I think I prefer to have a display in front of me over the phone in my jersey pocket.

There's still a lot of sand and gravel on most bike paths in the area, with only a narrow clean line near the middle along most of my route yesterday. Hopefully they will be cleaned soon, as it did detract from the enjoyment of being out on the bike again. The sand also decreases the amount of grip offered by 23 mm racing tyres to dangerous levels. At one point I hade to slow down almost to a crawl to negotiate a turn without wiping out.

Roadie season premiere: 18.8 km, 51min3sec, 22.1 km/h avg, 43.8 km/h max.

You've got a friend in me

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Soininen) — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 09:42:00 +0000

A week ago I was out on my bike again. But not just on any ride, oh no. This time I was on a mission. I had decided to go to a charity concert held in benefit of the Finnish Association for Heart Children and Adults. The "Ilman ystävää et jää" (~You won't be without a friend) concert was in Helsinki on Sunday, so what better way to get there from Turku than to hook up my Yak trailer to my road bike and start pedalling?

I started out on Saturday morning, just after 9.30. As agreed on a cycling forum, a fellow Turku roadie met me on the street corner and together we set out towards Piikkiö. Janne would tag along all the way to Halikko where, after a cup of coffee, he'd turn back to (I believe) go to someone's graduation party.

Before we ever got to Halikko, though, I had a few problems with the trailer. I had waited to take it out of storage until the night before, only to notice that it was missing a pin. Without it, the trailer would not stay on the bike, especially not in a bump or sharp turn. I went through every box and drawer in my flat in order to find an alternative, ending up with a sturdy piece of string as my best option. I was, after all, not going to cancel this mini tour on count of a missing cotter pin. The string held up fairly well, too. I had to retie it once about halfway to Halikko, where I eventually found a hardware store that carried a pin that fit the bill.

As the day wore on, the heat became more of an issue. With air temperatures of around 27°C, I went through a lot of water, and on the inclines the road surface temperature of about 50°C made it self known. It was almost like pedalling uphill in a sauna. Luckily the old saying of what goes up, must come down is still in effect. Cruising downhill at 50+ km/h sure cools you down even on a hot day.

A little before 19 I arrived at my destination for the day, Vihti. The last 20 km were really hilly, but the scenery made it worthwhile. Once in Vihti I made my way to my CouchSurfing host for the night. E and her daughters where waiting for me in the yard, and we soon went over to the neighbours and sat in the garden. After I'd had a shower a while later, I was treated to delicious pies (veggie and rhubarb) and ice cream. E and I sat up talking til around midnight, when it was more than time for me to turn in for the night.

On Sunday morning I headed out again a little after 10, as I was in no real hurry to get to Helsinki. Again, I had to tackle quite a few hills after leaving Vihti. Fortunately I know well enough how to climb with the trailer, slow and steady. Still, with the heat setting in around noon, it was still pretty tough this early in the season. All in all the landscape north west of Helsinki is a lot more rolling than I'm used to here near Turku. Guess I can only blame the ice age..

After reaching Helsinki I went to a friend's place to cool down, take a shower and chat for a while. H also agreed to drive my trailer and bag to the train station after the concert was over, making my life in central Helsinki a lot easier. With the unloaded bike feeling almost unbelievably light, I rode into town and found a kebab with my name on it. An hour before the concert was about to start, I went to the Savoy theatre, the venue of the evening, and convinced the doorman to allow me to take my bike inside the cloak room. The people from the heart association were thrilled that I had come by bike, and supposedly there's now going to be a story about me in the association's magazine. The concert was great, with several nationally, and some internationally, recognised artists donating their time for the charity.

Once the concert was over I met up with H outside the train station, thanked him for his help and caught the last train back to Turku. Mission accomplished.

...

Saturday: 130km
Sunday: 55km

Åland Runt 2009

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Soininen) — Tue, 26 May 2009 10:09:00 +0000

This weekend my cycling got a shot in the arm (I know, bad metaphor). Last year I rode my bike(s) only slightly more often than I updated this blog. A lot has happened since my last post, which I won't mention here. I did recover my stolen MTB, but I won't go into that story now either. The topic of this post is, and will be, Åland Runt 2009.

Last saturday, together with 32 other riders, mainly from Turun Urheiluliitto's Harrastepyöräilijät, and a support van, I embarked on a two day light tour of the Åland islands. We met up at the club 'stable' at 7.15 in the morning, loaded our overnight gear in the van and rode the short distance down to the Viking Line terminal. Onboard we had a small conference room booked where coffee and sandwiches were served, and the itinerary of the trip was presented. Later on, before reaching Mariehamn, we also had lunch in the buffet restaurant.

We divided into two groups, with the aim of keeping the average speeds moderate. I chose the 25 km/h group, where I was joined by 18 others. This left the faster, 30 km/h, group with 13 riders. We were to ride mainly the same route, with the faster bunch taking predetermined detours to meet up with the support van at about the same times as the slower group.

We spent the night in cabins at Puttes camping, right next to the ruins at Bomarsund. Both the thai food dinner in the evening and the oatmeel & sandwich breakfast the following morning was literally devoured, to the astonishment of the cafeteria staff. Even with all the food available to us in the van, we had still burned enough calories to be very hungry :)

The weather on Saturday was cloudy, with even a few drops of rain as we disembarked the ship and rolled out of Mariehamn. The sky cleared as the day wore on, ending with a beautiful sunset to crown the evening at the camp site. On Sunday we woke up to a bright morning, not a single cloud to be seen anywhere. Still, we rode almost exclusively in long bibs, as May is not to be regarded a summer month here in Finland.

The scenery afforded to us as we blasted through the Åland countryside was stunning. If you're ever in this neck of the woods and you've got your bike with you, you should definitely make a stop there. Also, on your way back, why not indulge yourself in a celebratory meal in the à la Carte on the ship? We did, and it surely was a feast!

This trip was a great opportunity for me to try out my new wheels and tires. I'm now riding on Mavic Ksyrium Elites wrapped in Schwalbe Ultremos. Before the weekend, I had only done five or six laps on the velodrome on them. Now, with almost 200 km done, I'm very happy with their preformance. I also finally got to use my FRWD on a longer ride, you can check the data from both Saturday and Sunday on traxmeet.com. On top of that, here's a short, poor quality, video to illustrate riding in a chain gang. I've yet to upload any photos, but I'm hoping to get around to doing that soon..

...

Stats: see the traxmeet.com links above.

Around and around..

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Soininen) — Sat, 24 May 2008 17:38:00 +0000

The photo to the right is the view from the top floor of our building. The velodrome (Wikipedia) just sits there, taunting me, right across the street. This Wednesday there was a local track meet, with 500m, 1000m and Keirin races. As I wasn't doing much else, I walked over and took a few snaps instead. I'd been planning to have a go at it myself with my roadie ever since I moved here together with my girlfriend over three weeks ago. Finally, this morning I got my act together and headed out there.

The Turku velodrome (Wiki, Finnish) is a 333,33 meter outdoor circuit where the Finnish track championships have been held quite a few times. The last time I'd ridden on it was in 2006, if I'm not mistaken. Today I had the track to myself, but since I still haven't ridden much at all this year, I decided to take it really easy. In total I did about 60 laps, 20 km, including a couple with one foot unclipped. I really liked how the freedom from having to worry about traffic and other road hazards allowed me to concentrate of my riding style and position on the bike. Before heading home I went for a short spin to Lauste, a quaint suburb to the southeast.

After I got back home again and had had some bacon and eggs, Maija and I headed to Ajopyörä so that she could buy a pair of single-sided SPD pedals and matching shoes. She's been commuting to work, through sleet and snow even, but now I might just be able to lure her with me on even longer rides in the countryside.

...

Morning ride: 32.17 km, 1h14min24sec, 25.94 kmh avg, 44.6 kmh max.

Author Vision '06 stolen!

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Soininen) — Thu, 08 May 2008 07:16:00 +0000

I got an sms last night from my girlfriend. My MTB, my Author Vision '06, has been stolen from in front of our building in Turku while I've been on the ship. It was locked with both an, albeit somewhat flimsy, Basta wire lock and a Kryptonite U-lock. Dammit, why can't people just respect the property of others?

Besides from what's obvious from the pictures, it's a 19" frame, there was a Sigma Cuberider mount on the saddle post, a damaged Sigma Evo+EvoX T-bone on the stem and some damage to the gear indicator cover on the left gear levers.

Of course, it's only a bike, and when the insurance company won't cover it's full value, it's only money. Still, I just can't fathom the concept of someone stealing a bike. Oh well, off to the police station..

XT dual-control

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Soininen) — Tue, 06 May 2008 11:56:00 +0000

Today I got my new '07 Shimano ST-M760 XT dual-control brake/shift levers for my MTB. I managed to damage my left lever on the bike back in september last year, while it was just about brand new. The old one still works, but I've been looking around for a decent deal on a replacement ever since. I thought long and hard about waiting until I could afford disc brakes, but there's just no room in the budget for that right now.

I'm on the ship again, working til the 14th. So it'll be over a week until I'll get to try out the new levers for real. Then I guess I'll have to take it easy for a while and accept that there probably is a learning curve to using STI off road.

On the 15th I'm joining MTB-Turku for the annual visit to Luolavuoren koulu (link in Finnish). The PTA there hosts a schoolyard event and we're invited to show the kids the joy of cycling. Last year I went on my road bike, and after a fair amout of encouragement I had a go at a small ramp. This year I think I'll stick to the MTB..

First road club ride 2008

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Soininen) — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 08:32:00 +0000

Last night I was on my first roadie club ride of the season. Once again, due to construction work, the route has been changed this year. And, once again, Kaharinvuori just east of Rusko proved too much for me at the speed the chain gang was going. It's not a big hill, not even by local standards. Still it's steep enough for me to drop well behind the others this time of year.

Cruising down hill again on the far side I noticed one of the other riders had waited for me. On the flat he helped me keep a pace that would let ut catch up with the gang again. Before we could do that, though, we were overtaken by two cars which in turn couldn't pass the rest of pack. More traffic in Moisio caused the gap to inrease even further. I was in no shape to go any faster, so my companion asked if I was ok with him joining the gang now well ahead of us.

I was down, but not out. I decided that I wasn't dressed in lycra for nothing, and continued along the route alone. Actually I wasn't 100% sure I was going the right way, having lost line of sight to the chain gang. But then, while still on Paattistentie, near Auvaismäki, I saw them again heading south on Auvaismäentie. I knew the area from before, having passed through on a solo ride a couple of years ago. I really should explore these parts of Turku some more, it's great cycling country.

All in all I ended up doing two laps of the Moisio - Auvaismäki - Maaria circuit at my own pace before heading home again. Not too shabby, as this was only my second outing on the roadie this year.

...

club ride: 62,36 km, 2h26m4s, 25,62 kmh avg, 45,6 kmh max

Yehuda Moon and the Kickstand Cyclery

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Soininen) — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 12:23:00 +0000

Check out Yehuda Moon and the Kickstand Cyclery, a bicycle web comic. It's hilarious and details the everyday adventures of avid commuter / bike shop worker Yehuda and his co-workers.

Yesterday I was out on my second ever mtb club ride. MTB-Turku (Finnish) holds weekly rides for beginners like me and last night I felt more like trying out the forest instead of the road. I've actually only been on one roadie ride so far this year, but I've ridden my mtb around town all winter. My first off road club ride was back in september last year..

Meeting up at Prisma Itäharju, nine riders set out towards Littoinen by way Pääskyvuori, Varissuo (Kalttasuo), Järvelä and Tehtaanmäki. The return trip had us riding through Paaskunta, Rientola and Lauste. Near the starting point, as Pave led the remainder of the group up Laukkavuori, I announced I'd had enough and headed home.

It's been fairly dry for a few days, but there were still quite a few muddy spots here and there. The terrain surrounding Turku is perhaps more suited for enduro and trail riding, not xc cruising which would perhaps be more my cup of tea. Most of the other riders were out on full suspension bikes, I can only remember seeing one other hard tail.

...

~2 hours of riding, short breaks
2 over-the-bars expriences
loads of fun

New bike!

noreply@blogger.com (Thomas Soininen) — Sun, 16 Sep 2007 12:31:00 +0000

I finally did it. I'm now officially a bike addict, owning both road and mountain bikes. For quite some time, ever since my accident in may, the thought of getting a new bike has been maturing in the back of my mind. A few days ago, while out riding my roadie in Helsinki, I stopped by Best Brakes to check out their end-of-summer sale. The guy behind the counter gave me an offer that was hard to refuse, but luckily also 24 hours to think it over.

While in Stockholm the next day I finally gave in to the urge, picked up the phone and called. With the word "sold" ("myyty", in Finnish) I bought a new bike, picking it up yesterday when I was in Helsinki again. It's a 2006 Author Vision a hardtail XC vehicle, specced with mostly Shimano Deore XT and LX components, Ritchey finishing kit and a Manitou R7 suspension fork.

Today I of course had to try it out, and what better place to do it than on the small cliff right next to the Viking Line terminal here in Stockholm. With my girlfriend in tow, carrying my work camera, I made my way up the hill with my feet touching the ground far fewer times than I had expected. Having reached the top it was time for a small photo session, the result of which can be seen here.

It will probably take a while before I'm confident enough off road to join any of the club rides on offer in the Turku area. But once I get to know this bike a bit better that's what I'm going to do.