Having ridden for three days straight from the Netherlands to us in Germany we of course took Tom out on a bike ride next day. We joined Gunnar Fehlau for our regular lunchtime spin taking in a mixed surface route with a twist – we got a puncture! All fixed with the quick hands of Gunnar… Continue Reading
Latest in: Gravel – Gravel, green lanes and forest Weg
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We followed the line-of-march of the US First Army through Göttingen and we rode adjacent to the Leine River to Bovenden where the 3rd Armour fought off a Nazi Panzer counter-attack in 1945. Just a few kilometres from Bovenden is Lenglern, this is a rather generic German village where old farm houses and a sombre… Continue Reading
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The temperature had been a nice 25 all day which wasn’t much use to me as I was busy. Thus, I ventured out at 6.30pm thinking it will of course be cooler only that’s not how Central European weather works. It was instead 28 to over 30. I covered pretty much now well-known roads, gravel… Continue Reading
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The letter from the Zoll said that on pain of fees, taxes and fines we must collect a parcel they had held from us for over a week. We had ordered an item from a German company, via a German website and paid in Euros, but the vendor had sent it straight from the USA… Continue Reading
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Once more Gunnar Fehlau and I went out like ‘Mad Dogs and Englishmen in the mid-day sun’ for a quick lunchtime ride (30 plus being the temperature). We zipped along although Gunnar had to be patient with me on the climbs and the gravel descents as my battered ribs still do make me go ‘oooh’.… Continue Reading
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Or following in Grandma’s footsteps and German Castles are just not ‘hard arse’ enough. My image of castles was formed by visiting Wales where large and imposing castles were built to express power, deliver military dominance over and the subjugation of the Welsh by the English. Also ‘hard as nails’ castles built by the Norman… Continue Reading
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A week off the bike after bashing my ribs after a very slow and silly fall from my road bike, I set off to redeem myself with a Sunday gravel run. I must have had my mind elsewhere when getting dressed….. oh yes, and thankfully I was told before I would be outed on social… Continue Reading
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Apart from the Baltic Coast few Central Europeans have access to the sea, therefore being from the UK it is a very odd feeling not to be within even a 100 kilometres of a beach or sea in a landlocked Goettingen. So what to do? Central Europeans visit the lakes and there are many to… Continue Reading
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Only mad dogs and Englishmen, plus Gunnar Fehlau go out in the mid-day sun Noel Coward wrote a song in the 1930’s satirising the English – “Only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the mid-day sun.” Previous to this Rudyard Kipling had written about the English in Empire India: “Only fools and Englishmen go… Continue Reading
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The sun is strong and the temperature is high and there is no better place to ride than the forest in such conditions. Oddly, there is something about a German forest that is slightly disturbing even on such a nice day because you do get the feeling that the trees are watching and twitching behind… Continue Reading
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This was super solo ride taking in some new gravel sections on a well known route and a wee bit of mixing up the order of climbs and descents. It was great to find new way to one of the old watchtowers that circle Goettingen. It was also great to ditch the leg warmers after… Continue Reading
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The rains had lashed us from above for a few days which saw the temperature fall. What is interesting is that unlike my experience of the UK it remains pretty warm here in Germany despite the deluge and now it is getting quite toasty again. I rode a pretty tough 50 kilometre this day with… Continue Reading
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Another Bank Holiday snuck up on us and so we went for a ride… I also got to pick up a new chainset and gear ratios to replace my Carbon Campag Record. Super-tough engineering from Chemnitz! In Germany I have noticed that so many of the fields are bordered by wild flora and fauna, with… Continue Reading
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Sunday it was hot at over 30, on Monday a massive storm hit central Europe and Tuesday we all kept under cover, but on Wednesday the sun shone and once again it hit over 30. I have noticed that many Germans have hydrometers and barometers (we have both) and watch the rise and full of… Continue Reading
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I began May with a bike ride and ended it with another; in fact I rode quite a lot in this spring month. On Wednesday I went road riding but went off script and ended up on gravel, Wednesday I did the same ride on my cross bike and it was so much easier. This… Continue Reading
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With my favourite Jimi Hendrix song in my head I got a little carried away. I had intended a simple spin down to the Bahn, but I became adventurous and rode some great and new to me gravel roads. On route I managed to include two old watchtowers (hence the song) that once guarded the… Continue Reading
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40 kms of rough stuff, kolonnnenweg and kopfsteinpflaster, mit cakes, watch towers and an old Jewish Cemetery on our May 5 ride. Cakes we consumed at Spinnerei Gartetal e.V. The ride – https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/3620853847 Cycle Fahrrad Goettingen home page
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Mayday is a public holiday in Germany and like most public holidays and Sundays retail life slows almost to a halt and it all seems a bit old fashioned compared to the 24/7 shopping fuelled frenzied lifestyles (and endless sales) which seem the norm in the UK. Except, even here in Germany there are those… Continue Reading
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Around the globe most of the land is owned by just a few people and this affects how much access we have to it. I’m not a believer that land is somehow French, German or English and for me talk of sacred soil is weird and somewhat nudging on nationalist fanaticism. What I believe is… Continue Reading
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Today’s midweek ride with Gunnar Fehlau seemed to pay homage to the Spring Classics with a route that combined sections of Flanders like Kopfsteinpflaster, bergs and Ardennes fast tight flowing roads. I should add that of course we included gravel. Post ride Kitty seems to not be impressed with yet another ride by me and… Continue Reading
Velo Klubhaus 