Cycling in Switzerland
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Half Way Through To This Year’s Cycling Goal.

Byrichard
Reading Time: < 1 minute

So far this year I have been cycling for 680 km in 33hrs with a height gain of 6800 meters. In this time I have used my narrative clip 2 device to document the ride with a picture every 10-30 seconds as I want to focus on riding rather than other things. I like to have as high a moving time as possible so I usually stop once I get back to my starting point.

By cycling I see the landscape at a slower, more interesting speed. I see the roads, I smell the vegetation, I feel the heat and I feel the cold. I also discover small paths that I would not take in a car or on a scooter. In practicing this sport I get to know the landscape. I also get to see seasonal changes.

This year I have cycled in the rain, in the snow, in the wind and on days like today. Today it was sunny and there was no wind to fight against. It made the ride more pleasant.

The technology I took on today’s ride was my narrative clip 2 to take pictures of the bike ride, my Crosscall Odyssey+ phone, the Cateye Evo+ and finally the Suunto Ambit 3. I also took the Ricoh Theta S but never stopped to take pictures. For future rides I should fix it to the handle bars. I could bring you with me on my next bike ride. Of course I would keep just the interesting bits of the ride. I can throw away the rest.

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The Bulle Slowup
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The Bulle Slowup

Byrichard

Bulle is a city by a lake in the Canton De Gruyère in Switzerland. Last weekend they held their annual slowup event. A slowup is an event where roads are closed to motorised transport in favour of cyclists, roller bladers, skate boarders and other self propelling sports. The loop is around 26km long and there are ares to stop and enjoy food every few kilometres.

At this event you can also get your bike maintained for free except for parts that need replacing. It’s a great opportunity to take an old worn out bike and have it reconditioned. As I spent several days getting mine back in to condition I did not abuse of this opportunity.

[caption id="attachment_2432" align="aligncenter" width="300"]The first climb The first climb[/caption]

The landscape around Bulle is nice. As you cycle you can see the Moléson mountains in the distance, and without clouds for a change. You can also enjoy a few climbs and descents. The gradients are not steep and the climbs are not long. A friend of mine was on rollerblade and it impresses me that she did around 30km.

[caption id="attachment_2433" align="aligncenter" width="300"]Father and daughter Father and child[/caption]

The best feature of slowups is the ability to enjoy a wide road and cycle anywhere you like without the usual cars overtaking too close and too fast. As a result parents and their children can enjoy this beautiful landscape.

[caption id="attachment_2434" align="aligncenter" width="660"]BYOB, not bring your own bike or beer. Bring your own barbecue BYOB, not bring your own bike or beer. Bring your own barbecue[/caption]

It’s amusing to see someone take a cool box and barbecue for such an event. I didn’t see them stop and start preparing food though.

 

Cycling to the Vallée de Joux

Cycling to the Vallée de Joux

Byrichard


Yesterday I tried cycling to the Vallée de Joux and succeeded. A few weeks ago I cycled up to St George and I saw a sign that said that the Col De Marchairuz was less than 6km away so I decided to try it. When I succeeded that I saw that getting to the Vallée de Joux would be possible. 


On Sunday due to the weather I thought that I would go for a small 30km loop to avoid the bad weather and rain. I felt fresh when I got back to Nyon so I decided to go further and I headed towards the Col De Mollendruz but took a wrong turn and arrived in Bière. As I felt tired I changed course and headed back for home. 


The Col du Mollendruz variant


Yesterday I went for the Col De Mollendruz. I headed from Nyon to Rolle and from Rolle headed up to Perroy before heading across to Aubonne. From Aubonne I headed up towards Ballens and then east towards Mont-La-Ville. This route is nice because you climb more gradually than if you do the Col De Marchairuz or go via St Cergue. A gentler gradient makes it accessible to less experienced cyclists. Mont-La-Ville is the start of the Strava segment to get to the Col De Mollendruz. From this col there is an easy descent to the Vallée de Joux. 


From Le Pont du La Cure the gradient is slightly positive for about 30 kilometres. You then cross back in to Switzerland and head for St Cergue and back down to the plains. The circuit is about 104 km. 


If you’re looking for a variant of this you could choose to go from St Cergue to Arzier and back down and if you still feel full of energy you could head towards La Faucille and head back down from there. 


A ride to revisit when the leaves turn


This bike ride would be nice to do when the leaves are turning because you pass by the vineyards and ride through forests. It is also interesting because by taking the bike you are going slower than by car. You notice that some buildings are from the 1700s, you see that others are from the 1800s. You also see that there are long stretches of road with very few cars. 


Back to Cycling

Back to Cycling

Byrichard

Yesterday I went back to cycling after breaking my arm and letting it recover. My lower body is fine despite not cycling for a long time but the left arm still feels vulnerable. I could feel it when changing gears and when going over bumps.


As silly as it sounds to wait for weeks before getting back on the bike I see that it was justified. When I tried to shift gears I could feel that the muscles for shifting gears have not entirely recovered. The bone has fused, but all of the muscles that were seldom used during my injury still need to grow back and strengthen.


Changing gear is so simple when you are feeling normal. You do it without noticing. Now there were instances when I felt that I was lacking the strength to push the lever.


I could also feel that my upper body was getting tired. I had to take a break or two during this ride. The longest break was when I was waiting for a person walking two horses to get off of the rural road I was on. I didn’t want to get kicked. I also had no reason to rush.


I took an unsurfaced road for part of the ride to avoid traffic. During this section of the ride I was slower than usual. I checked for potholes and had no intention of putting more strain than needed on the arm. I actually thought about turning back after this section.


On the straight road that goes down from the farm, past the observatory and down to the roundabout I didn’t pedal as hard as I could. I cruised instead.


We will see how I feel the next time I ride the bike. I expect it will feel better. I need to get my arm used to these strains, and to strengthen the muscles accordingly. At the end of this winter I should be back to normal. Imagine if i tried snowboarding with this weak arm.

Day 55 Of Self-Isolation in Switzerland – Long Horned Cows

Day 55 Of Self-Isolation in Switzerland – Long Horned Cows

Byrichard

Long-Horned cows are a rare treat. We usually see short-horned or even de-horned cows in Switzerland. To see longhorn cow is a treat. I took a tiny detour from my walk to get some pictures. I have walked by the field a few times before seeing them close enough to the fence to consider taking pictures again.


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One of them started to approach the fence so I moved back. I later noticed that some calves are in this field too.


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We are now two days away from the 11th of May when shops will re-open and life gets one step closer to being “normal” again. We are going to be in a dangerous phase of the pandemic for two reasons. The first reason is that people aren’t going to be as careful about who they come in contact with so the virus will have a new opportunity to spread within small communities.


The second reason is that I see people driving two or more hours to do activities in the mountains rather than staying locally. By combining the two the virus may grab the opportunity to start spreading again.


I am not critical of the government. I am critical of the people who are taking liberties that don’t yet make sense. In theory I could be climbing Monday afternoon but I won’t, because I think it would be wise to wait to to three weeks before enjoying such luxuries.


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The best sport that we can do for the environment, and for each other’s safety is cycling, whether on mountain bikes like these two people. or on road bikes like others. By cycling we are staying within a three hour radius of home, where our range is limited by our physical health.


It makes sense to continue enjoying what the local area has to offer. By now we should have seen that there are plenty of things to do locally. This is especially true for people who have experienced the pandemic in Switzerland.





Did you find some interesting walks by staying local?

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Indoor Training With The Elite Qubo Fluid

Byrichard

The Elite Qubo fluid is a home trainer using a viscous fluid to provide resistance when you’re cycling with your road bike indoors. It is easy to assemble and within minutes you can start using it. 


https://youtu.be/ulhpwTRvAfo


These devices cost less than apartment bikes and allow you to train with your existing bike within the comfort of your own home or garage over the winter months when wind, rain or snow would make cycling outdoors less practical. 


They also have the advantage that they’re cheaper than a gym membership and more flexible. My issue with gym memberships is that if you spent an equivalent amount of money you could buy some nice machines and keep them at home. With the equivalent of two years of gym membership you could buy an elliptical machine and use it from the comfort of your own home. 


I tested it twice today. The first time I tested it on the balcony for a few minutes just to get a feel for it and then I moved it and the bike indoors and trained for 23 minutes. 


With such a device you vary the intensity of the resistance by pedalling faster but also by changing gears. If you want more resistance you can shift up a gear or two and if you want to recover you can shift back down. This provides you with the intensity that you want. 


After the 23 minute workout I touched the radiator unit and it was very warm to the touch. I didn’t see how long it takes to cool down. When you are done with the workout you can remove the bike in seconds, fold away the trainer and store it out of the way until the next time you use it. 


If I setup the cateye device on the bike I am currently using I could log the distance and cadence of my training and observe the progression as well as get an estimate of the simulated distance I am riding. 

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