Learning to Slow Down with Electric Cars

Learning to Slow Down with Electric Cars

Byrichard

One of the weaknesses of Electric cars is that they take longer to refuel than a petrol burning car. One of the advantages of electric cars is that they take longer to refuel than a petrol burning car. For some people this is a deal breaker. They don’t want to be forced to wait from two to 12 hours for their car to charge. I think that this could be a strength of electric cars.

Taking a Break

When you drive a conventional car you go to see people for an hour or two, and then you get in the car and you drive home. With an electric car you don’t behave like this. You drive somewhere that has a plug. You plug in the car and then you sit down, write a blog post, and then you go and see people. You even go for a walk with this people, have lunch, and more.

With a petrol car you go to see people and you can leave whenever you want. With the electric car you need to slow down. You need to give the car time to recharge from an ordinary wall socket. Plenty of buildings do not have the capacity to fast charge cars, so that’s where learning to slow down comes in to play.

Driving Speed

Yesterday I drove home at rush hour and I welcomed that traffic was slow. In a petrol car I would be frustrated and impatient to get from A to B but in an electric car I am not. The reason is simple. If you accelerate fast you waste energy. If you drive fast you burn more energy. If you drive at traffic jam speeds you use less energy for your trip. Instead of using 10 or more percent for a set journey you use seven to eight percent. When 10 percent equates to two hours of waiting for the car to charge, it pays to drive more conservatively.

If you drive at rush hour you can drive more conservatively, without annoying other road users.

The Jubilee Line Experience

When you take Jubilee line trains, or electric buses you hear the sound of the motors as they accelerate, or regenerate power as they slow down. It is a fun sound. You get a tamer version of this with electric cars. I find it fun.

And Finally

If I was driving to the shops and back I would be using one percent or less per trip. To recharge the battery after such trips would take a few minutes, rather than a few hours. Electric cars encourage short trips as charge times are lower but they also encourage longer drives to be for longer periods of time. In so doing electric cars encourage us to take the time to experience the places we drive to.

The Case for Trail Glove 7

The Case for Trail Glove 7

Byrichard

Yesterday I went for an after lunch run. It was the seventh of Septembre and despite this I felt myself getting warm. The air temperature is currently around 29°c in September, when it should be declining to 20°c or less. It’s warm, and almost uncomfortable. I don’t know whether it’s because I was running, rather than walking or cycling, or because the humidity is higher. In either case we have had summer temperatures for months now, and the weather never changes. It’s always warm and sunny.

When it’s constantly warm and sunny there is never a valid reason for not spending an hour or two in the sun, which gets in the way of being indoors, working towards other goals.

No Suffering

Despite the trail glove 7 I use having 500+ kilometres on them they still feel fine. They are the best running shoes I have used in a while. I don’t know whether it’s because I gave myself time to heal from training over winter, whether it’s because my ground strikes have changed, with the wearing of barefoot shoes, or if they are just better for people like me to run in.

Not Instant

I still walked around 500 kilometres before I started to use them as running shoes, so my stride type, and foot positioning had time to adjust to this shoe type. Now I am benefiting from taking the time to transition from one style of shoes to the other. I have managed three 5 kilometre runs, without pain or regret. I consider this a victory, given how much some running shoes can cost. These are cheap.

Possibilities

If my knees do not hurt as I run, then I can consider longer runs once again. I set myself the goal of five kilometres because I knew that if I tried for 10 or more kilometres I would feel pain. If that pain is no longer an issue then new doors open up. The aim isn’t to push until it hurts. The aim is to confirm that five kilometres are fine, and comfortable, and then extend my range.

And Finally

I got so used to wearing minimal shoes that normal shoes now look absurd to me. it’s funny to see how used we are to seeing the thick soles of normal shoes. If normal shoes had not let me down so quickly after purchase I would have continued wearing normal shoes, but now that I have made the switch I am happy with the new style of shoes.
If winter ever comes I might revert to normal shoes, but for now minimalist shoes are serving me well.

Keir Starmer’s Speech Today

Byrichard

This speech reminds us that English democracy is not gone, that there are moral people still around, and that we need to get the current Tory government out of power and go back to having leadership worthy of respect.


When you are at events you listen to speech after speech, and they meld into each other. Occasionally you hear speeches that stand out and are worth sharing. This is one of them. It reflects values that have recently been lost in several countries. We need to revert to good moral values. Pandemics are a marathon, not a sprint.


https://twitter.com/BBCNews/status/1488180224667832320

From A Spanish to A Swiss Autumn
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From A Spanish to A Swiss Autumn

Byrichard

When I left for Spain Switzerland was just starting to turn Autumnal. Today, when I looked around I could see that Autumn has arrived properly in Switzerland. In Spain the sun is still warm enough for t-shirt wearing and swimming. The sun is still strong enough to change our chrominance.


Yesterday I drove for around 11 and a half hours, with just one stop to refuel. I usually stop three or four times on that route but I felt like trying to do it in a single hop. This is for two reasons.


1. We’re still in a pandemic and I want to minimise risk. The stop I made was quiet so there was little risk of being too close to others.


2. I didn’t want to leave the car unattended for too long. As I am driving alone I don’t want to leave the car alone, in case people decide to steal things, not that anything was visible.


During the drive I listened to Troy, read by Steven Fry. It is interesting, and it is revision for those who have read his other books. There are moments when I struggled to hear what they were saying, due to the sound being lower, and that cars are noisy.


During the drive I enjoyed eating Spanish honey flavoured peanuts. They are easy to eat, not too messy, and good to keep you focused and attentive. During this drive I had to be focused for twelve hours non stop. People say “oh but twitter, social media and television have destroyed people’s ability to focus. I don’t believe this is accurate. I couldn’t drive for twelve hours safely otherwise.


I did see that one car had swerved off the road, into some grass, and then bounced back. I am certain that this person was either distracted, or fell asleep and smashed into the barrier. From what I saw two or three people were standing beside the accident so I think they’re fine.


Two things make driving easier these days. Cruise control, because this gives you the chance to move your leg around, rather than keep it locked and immobile. The second is to drive at the speed limit or slightly below. When I was in France several trips ago I enjoyed driving in France at 130 kilometres per hour. I eventually found that 130 kilometres per hour, in a previous car was more tiring, and that I was comfortable with 120 kilometres per hour. So from then on I always drive at the speed limit or a speed limit that I am used to. For twelve hours the goal is endurance and comfort. I would not repeat the drive within two weeks again, especially with the change from summer to winter time. I think that such a drive is easy once, but that to be repeated it would be good to wait three to four weeks, before making the return journey, especially as a solitary driver.

Cycling up to La Barillette

Cycling up to La Barillette

Byrichard

Cycling over short distances can be a challenge especially when that short distance takes you from the foot of the Jura to the top over 12 kilometres at a 6-10% grade. Cycling up to La Barillette is an endurance test. Perseverance is key.

You can start the climb either from Cheserex or Gingins. The climb starts sharply and takes you up in to the forest. As you climb you follow the winding road by a stone block where old road rules are written. The stone dates from the 19th century and speaks of the regulations which were in effect.

The path takes you up some one way and two way roads. At every kilometre as you climb some plaques tell you the gradient for the next kilometre as well as the gradient. As you progress these are welcome. They let you know how much further you have to go.

I have attempted this climb four times in the preceding months and made it up twice. One of the aspects to be enjoyed with this route is the lack of cars. If you went up via the Route de St Cergue you would encounter cars every few seconds. On this route cars seldom pass and when they do they are sometimes curteous enough to slow down and give you space as you overtake. You can also enjoy some great views of the Mt Blanc and the Lac Léman. As you go up so the view gets better and better. It also gets cooler.

The first 9 kilometres are the hardest. For 9 kilometres you will be struggling to keep your forward momentum and there is a chance that on the first two or three attempts you will give up, especially if you use as heavy a bike as I use. Once you have reached the 9 kilometre mark the path flattens out at around 1000 metres and it is just a matter of cycling for a further 3.7km.

When you get to the top you have a beautiful vista of the Lac Leman. You can see from Villeneuve all the way to Geneva. You can see the Alps in their full glory and you can see the Canton de Vaud. You can see Lausanne, Morges, Nyon, Cheserex and many of the villages below. It’s a great opportunity to spot peaks and get to know them. There is a map showing you the name of the peak and it’s shape.

If you train over the coming month and see that you have a good time on Strava then you could join the VTT race and see how you compare with others.

In summer months from Wednesday to Sunday the restaurant de la Barillette is open. It has a great view of the landscape which you can enjoy while eating an entrecôte or fondue.