RSS Feed

Tag Archives: Den Haag

Welkom in Nederland

Posted on December 13, 2012 by alchemyrider

On Tuesday 20th April 2010 I did a last Tuesday ride around the streets of Houston with the West End Six Thirty group.  Our bikes (my road and hybrid bikes, and the biker chick’s cruiser bike), along with the rest of our belongings, had long since departed Houston bound for  Rotterdam.  I had Tom B. to thank for loaning me a bike for the Tuesday ride.  On Thursday I joined the group at Jax for the post-ride meal.  On Friday I collected my passport and visa at the Netherlands consulate, dropped our car off at the freight company, and took a taxi to George Bush Intercontinental Airport to catch my 3.30pm flight.

On Saturday morning I flew into a damp and chilly Amsterdam Schiphol airport.  Den Haag, our home for the next few years, was no drier nor warmer.  I had arrived with a suitcase full of what I had been wearing the week before in Houston.  I had shorts, t-shirts and sandals.  What I should have packed were sweaters, scarves and boots.  My first purchase in the Netherlands was a Nike sweatshirt.  I would have bought gloves too, but the shop assistant told me that winter was over!

The weather stayed pretty ugly for the next few weeks.  Usual Dutch spring weather in other words.  It was five or six weeks before it warmed up enough for me to consider a bike ride.  By then I had found Bikes For Rent.  I reserved a bike for the weekend.  Then I crossed fingers and toes hoping that the weather would not revert to wet and windy.  Fortunately Saturday dawned dry and reasonably warm.  Warm enough for my tropical blood at least.  I rode away from Bikes For Rent on a three-speed Johnny Loco.

Johnny Loco Three Speed

I had a map of the bike route to the beach.  The map was helpful but I soon found that the bike paths in the Netherlands are very well signposted.  The cycling infrastructure is really very good.  The bike paths are very well marked and maintained.  “Yes” everyone checks for bicycles before opening car doors.

Bike path

Cyclists even have their own traffic lights.

Bike light

The path to the dunes and the beach took me past the Scheveningen water tower.  Built in 1874, the tower contains 1 million litres of drinking water and has the largest storage capacity of all the water towers in the Province of Zuid-Holland.  It is still in use today.

The bike trail towards the Scheveningen Pump House

It wasn’t the brightest of days so the North Sea looked pretty raw.

The North Sea

I didn’t expect to see World War Two gun emplacements facing out to sea along the dunes.

Eastward view

On the way home through Scheveningen I saw a few more signs of just how much the bicycle is the go-to mode of transportation for many in the Netherlands.  I’ve seen bike racks before, but these two boys on the right took racks to another level.

Surfboard racks

You can leave your bike in a guarded bike parking areas like this one for less than €1.

Guarded bicycle parking

The route back home took me past the Vredespaleis or Peace Palace.  Andrew Carnegie donated USD1.5 million in 1903 (the equivalent of USD40 million today) to fund the construction of the Vredespaleis.  Today the building houses the International Court of Justice (which is the principal judicial body of the United Nations), the Permanent Court of Arbitration, the Hague Academy of International Law, and the extensive Peace Palace Library.

The Peace Palace

This was a very nice welcome to riding in the Netherlands.  I couldn’t wait for my road bike to arrive.

1 Comment

Posted in Cycling in Texas, Cycling in the Netherlands and tagged , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Weather Blues

Posted on December 8, 2012 by alchemyrider

It has been pouring with rain almost every afternoon and into the evenings for the past two weeks.  The Racun Cycling Gang’s evening rides are not the only things that have been washed out.  Five times the normal daily rainfall contributed to a landslide that washed out a 200 meter section of road alongside Tasik Semenyih.  That puts paid to our weekend rides to the Tekala Recreation area for a while.  The landslide also caused a change in the route for tomorrow’s Broga Reverse 116 ride.  It is now the Broga Reverse 105.

Landslide

Photo courtesy of The Star Online

Precipitation of a different kind forced the cancellation of today’s Not Possibles morning ride.  Enough snow fell on Den Haag yesterday to make the bike paths icy and hazardous.  We were lucky last winter.  There were many below-freezing days and some snow, but not enough to get in the way of our Saturday rides.  Not last winter anyway.  This is on the Rottermeren.

Bike on Ice

It was a bit different in the winter of 2010.  I took this video from the warmth of our kitchen.  You had to be Dutch, or Inuit, to ride on this particular day.

Leave a comment

Posted in Cycling in Malaysia and tagged , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Ice is Nice

Posted on November 19, 2012 by alchemyrider

After last weekend’s Broga broiler my biker chick gave me strict instructions.  I was to get a full medical examination before doing any more hot and humid rides.  Which in Kuala Lumpur meant before doing any more rides – period.  Turning 55 was additional incentive, not that I needed it given that my cycling was at risk, to get checked out.

So I spent a few hours being been scanned, prodded, pierced, x-rayed and wired to various machines.  I was declared fully fit so I was able to turn my attention to what rides to do over the coming weekend.  A group from the Racun Cycling Gang and some Cyclistis had signed up for this ride:  a charity ride in support of the Malaysian Aids Foundation.

By the time I got my act together registration for this ride had closed.  Fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately given the weather forecast for the day of the ride, the organisers accepted my entry despite my tardiness.  The ride was 130 km.  There was one water stop, at the 80 km point.  The organisers recommended that riders have two, or better yet, three bottles to get them to the water stop.  I had three bottles on the Broga ride and that hadn’t been enough.  I would have to do some things differently to make it through this ride in better shape that I had been during the Broga ride.

The first thing to do differently this time would be to not let my heart rate shoot past 150 bpm.  The Karvonen formula, which is a more accurate way to calculate your maximum heart rate than the frequently quoted 220 minus your age method, puts my maximum heart rate at 165 bpm.  I suspect that part of my troubles during the Broga ride stemmed from riding at greater than 85% of my maximum heart rate for more than an hour, including hitting 165 bpm at a few points.  In other words I would have to curb my competitive instincts and not chase after faster riders.

The second thing to do differently this time would be to stay as cool as possible.  I should have done this very simple and, in hindsight, obvious thing from my first ride in Malaysia.  I put my three bottles in the freezer overnight.

Farid and I rolled through the start at about 8am.  It was already warm and it was obvious that we were in for a sunny morning.

Bike-X 04

Photo courtesy of Cycling Malaysia Magazine

You can see two frozen bottles in my cages.  The third bottle was in the rear centre pocket of my jersey.  Pouring ice cubes down someone’s back was a high school prank.  Who would have thought that I would volunteer for the equivalent now?  Regular sips of frosty sport drink combined with that lump of ice at the base of my spine kept me lukewarm rather than hot for most of the ride.

Despite taking turns at the front of a group that hit better than 40 kph at times I managed to keep my heart rate in check.  This was helped in large part by the very flat route.  We were riding on the coastal plain to the west of the city, where the only climbing was up highway overpasses.  Much like in both Houston and Den Haag.  We did approach one climb today but just as we got to the foot of the hill we turned to the right and away from it.  I was not disappointed!

Of course there is no avoiding the effects of the heat and humidity completely.  I was dripping in no time at all.  This time I remembered to bring my Sweat GUTR, which I had bought to keep the sweat out of my eyes in the 40° C and higher summer temperatures in Houston.  It still works a treat.

The water stop had been moved to the 59 km point.  I was glad to see it.  I refilled one bottle.  I probably should have topped up my other bottles but I didn’t want to dilute the Nuun sport drink.  I poured some water over my head and the back of my neck.  More to wash the sweat off my face then to cool down.  Once we got moving again it did help to have wet hair and a wet jersey.

The organizers had shortened the ride to 98 km.  I was not disappointed about that either!  By the end of the ride all three of my bottles were empty.  I rolled across the finish line hot and sweaty and in need of fluid.  As you can see there was more  to drink at the finish area.

Photo courtesy of Cycling Malaysia Magazine

It may not look it from the photo above but my strategies to not overheat worked.  The freezer is my new friend.

4 Comments

Posted in Cycling in Malaysia and tagged , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

. . . Just the Wrong Clothes

Posted on October 27, 2012 by alchemyrider

As someone once said, there is no such thing as bad weather, just the wrong clothes.

After my plastic bag booties ride the days continued to shorten and the average temperatures fell into the single digits centigrade.  I am a tropical person through and through.  If I was going to ride through the Houston winter I had no choice but to add to my cold-weather wardrobe.  The guys at West End Bicycles equipped me with DeFeet Blaze socks for my eternally cold feet, Endura tights and a jacket for my torso, and Specialised long-fingered gloves.  Icebreaker base layers and a beanie completed my starter winter ensemble.  When below-freezing temperatures arrived I bought a scarf and a balaclava.  This is what kept my head, neck and hands warm.

There were times when I looked more like the Michelin Man than a cyclist.  Dane S took this photo of our Six Thirty group shivering at the start of the 2010 Tour de Houston.  Do you think Skip regretted not wearing a jacket?

By the time I moved to Den Haag my tolerance for cold had improved somewhat.  Even so double socks weren’t enough to keep my toes warm in the constant wind.  So I added a pair of Shimano RW80 Winter Road shoes to my arsenal.  Three of us were wearing RW80s on the Not Possibles Christmas ride last year.  Andrew B’s son on the other hand looks like he spends most of his days in Antarctica.

1 Comment

Posted in Cycling in Texas, Cycling in the Netherlands and tagged , , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Reverse Dragon’s Back

Posted on October 21, 2012 by alchemyrider

I was so excited to finally do my first long ride in Kuala Lumpur today that I could hardly sleep last night.  So it was no hardship to be up at 5.30am for breakfast.  That gave me time to drive the 27 km to Bukit Jelutong.  I got to the rendezvous point at 6.50am.  Mark L. arrived shortly thereafter, followed by Wan A.  By 7.30am we were a Racun Cycling Gang of four roadies and three foldies, ready to get on the road.  We weren’t the only ones heading out for a ride this morning.  The car park quickly filled up with all sorts of vehicles that disgorged all sorts of bikes and riders.

Mark led us on what he described as a Reverse Dragon’s Back ride.  Which meant tackling the six hills that make up the Dragon’s Back at the start of the ride rather than at the end.  A wise choice in my book given the potential for roasting sunshine by midmorning.

As it turned out we were lucky with the sun.  It was humid and fairly warm, but it stayed overcast for most of the morning.  I was glad that I had sunscreen on though.  I picked up some color in spite of the cloud cover.

Riding in Kuala Lumpur reminds me of riding in Houston.  The Houston weather, at least in the summer, rivals Kuala Lumpur’s for heat and humidity.  More to the point, riding in Kuala Lumpur requires cycling alongside all manner of motorized vehicles.  Fortunately I had a gentle reintroduction to sharing the road.  The Sunday traffic was relatively light.  This is Mark coasting down one of the humps on the Dragon’s Back with just the occasional car for company.

Some of the major tollroads have separate motorcycle lanes.  Which of course make excellent bike paths.  Almost like the ones in the Netherlands.  After the Dragon’s Back and a stop for a drink we rode for 30 km on the motorcycle lanes alongside the Guthrie Corridor Highway.  The road surface is excellent and as it was a Sunday there were very few motorbikes out.

What is different here as compared to Houston and Den Haag is the lush and verdant foliage that covers everything beyond the shoulders of the roads.  Vegetation quickly reclaims any cleared land.  In just a few years secondary jungle takes hold.

The route that Mark chose was one that few other riders were on today.  We had long stretches to ourselves, including one 5 km section where Mark and and I were able to cruise along at better than 40 kph.  We stopped at regular intervals to regroup, including at the point where we would leave the highway.  Once back together again we returned to the urban roads.  From there we gently pedaled the last 2 km to where we had parked our cars.  Which just coincidentally was right in front of a ‘restoran mamak.’

These are very popular restaurants run by Indian Muslims.  These restaurants grew out of the roadside stall equivalent known as ‘gerai mamak.’  Some gerai and restoran mamak are open 24 hours a day.  All serve a variety of food and drink, including the ubiquitous roti canai and teh tarik.  Those make up the standard order at the end of a ride in Kuala Lumpur, in the same way a koffie verkeerd and an appelgebak met slagroom put the finishing touch to a ride in Den Haag.

2 Comments

Posted in Cycling in Malaysia, Cycling in Texas, Cycling in the Netherlands and tagged , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

R R Go Away, Come Again Another Day

Posted on October 16, 2012 by alchemyrider

The weather had looked threatening all afternoon.  The heavens finally opened in spectacular fashion at 6.30pm.  Thunder, lightning, and lots of water.  This was the view from our hotel room at 7.00pm.  Droplets still running down the window, but the main show was over.

Emails about the weather were a common feature of ride days in Houston.  A number of online weather sites were consulted.  Screen shots of radar images went out.  Six Thirty riders looked out of their office windows and reported about the state of the roads along the ride route.  If the roads were going to be wet at 6.30pm the ride would be canceled.  The Six Thirty group never rode in the wet if it could be avoided.  I remember just one occasion where we got caught in a deluge about halfway through the ride.  Somewhere in the vicinity of the old Masonic Lodge on the corner of Brompton Road and North Braeswood Boulevard.  Whatever the weather there was one constant.  The words “rain” and “wind” were never used.  It was always just R and W.  One of those cyclists’ superstitions.  Which I will disregard for the rest of this post.

The weather featured large in Den Haag too.  Saturday morning Not Possibles rides and all other rides were preceded by a look at various weather forecasts.  The concern was less about the rain though.  It rains much less in Den Haag – 25 cm / 10 in annually than in Houston at 122 cm / 48 in per year.  Plus everyone in the Netherlands seems to be very comfortable with riding in the wet.  We often rode on wet bike paths and in the rain.  A waterproof jacket and SKS Raceblade Long fenders were essential items.

For The Not Possibles it was more about the direction of the wind.  The average windspeed in Den Haag is 28.6 kph / 17.8 mph compared to 13.3 kph / 8.3 mph in Houston.  The decision to be made prior to the start of every ride was which way to head out so that there would be a tail wind on the return leg.  The wind in Den Haag is a fickle beast though.  We had many rides where the wind seemed to be in our faces no matter which heading we were on.  On some particularly windy days we chose to sail along with the wind, spinning at an effortless 50 kph for an hour or more.  Then we would ride the train back home.

The amount of rain in Kuala Lumpur is double that in Houston.  We get 240 cm / 94.5 in a year here.  This evening’s downpour dumped a significant amount of water onto the streets.  Enough water for Albert K to call at 7.15pm to say that the Racun Cycling Gang evening ride had been called off.  The fall during last week’s ride is still fresh in the memory.  That no doubt contributed to the decision to cancel this evening.  I shall have to get used to the R getting in the way of riding here.

2 Comments

Posted in Cycling in Malaysia, Cycling in Texas, Cycling in the Netherlands and tagged , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

“Toto, I Have a Feeling We’re Not in Kansas Anymore.” *

Posted on October 13, 2012 by alchemyrider

My last urban night ride was in Houston in April 2010.  The Six Thirty West End group still does a Tuesday evening and a Thursday evening ride through downtown Houston.  I can still hear Juan R’s “Two Minutes” call at 6.28pm.  And I can still taste the Tex-Mex at Jax Grill where we had regular post-Thursday ride meals.

I was delighted to hear that Van’s hosts urban night rides in KL.  They start at 9pm so lights are essential.  Of course when I was packing up my riding stuff in Den Haag I didn’t think I would need lights right away.  My Niterider MiNewt Mini and Planet Bike Super Flash are in the sea freight, not to be seen until November sometime.  So if I was going to ride on Tuesday evening I needed lights.  When I was at Van’s on Monday, creak hunting with YC, I bought a Cateye Rapid 5 tail light.  Raymond T at Van’s kindly lent me a headlamp.  Good to go!

The Racun Cycling Gang met at the Decanter restaurant on Jalan Setiabakti in Bukit Damansara at 8.45pm for a 9pm start.  We were a mixed group of nine riders.  As was the case with the Genting Sempah ride the majority were on folding bikes, although Wan A was on a rather tasty looking yellow Specialized  S Works Tarmac SL3.  We headed out onto quiet residential streets with YC following behind in a car.  The roads were still a bit damp from the afternoon rain.  And my bike was still creaking!

Those were the least of my concerns though.  Here is the elevation profile for the first twelve kilometres from my last ride in Den Haag:

Here is the elevation profile for the first twelve kilometers from the Tuesday night ride:

We weren’t even two kilometres into the ride and my heart rate was pushing 150 bpm.  Which is not far short of my maximum heart rate.  The rest of the ride was more of the same.  A series of  7% to 9% gradients packed fairly together.  Those low-geared folding bikes were starting to look good.

We were fortunate to have YC in a car following behind us.  At the 4km mark we were all descending at some speed.  I heard the unmistakeable sound of a bike hitting the pavement behind me.  The damp road surface, wet leaves and speed had brought down one of our group.  Fortunately he came away with only scrapes and bruises.  YC took our unlucky rider to get his road rash cleaned up.  The rest of us looked around for my headlight, which had fallen out of its handlebar mount at about the same time the accident happened behind me.  We found the batteries and the light, less the battery cover and lens cover.  The LED was still working so I stuck it back in its mount and rode on.

We made it safely up and down the rest of the climbs that made up this ride.  We regrouped at the Decanter, loaded our bikes into our cars and drove down to a roadside stall for a lime juice and cycling chat.  Which stretched to another lime juice and more chat.  And a third lime juice and yet more chat.  I’m not sure that “I was just out for a bike ride” worked as an excuse for why I got home at almost 1am.

* Title courtesy of The Wizard of Oz.

2 Comments

Posted in Cycling in Malaysia and tagged , , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Two Degrees of Separation

Posted on October 12, 2012 by alchemyrider

I had been home for two days.  The jet-lag made it feel like I hadn’t slept in all that time.  The default action would have been to hop on a bike and go for a ride.  If I had had a bike to hop on to.

I had not heard about when my bikes would be delivered.  My Cyclistis friend was travelling on business.  It was starting to look more and more like I would not be riding on the weekend.

The bright spot in the day was dinner with BP alumni friends at Cava.  We are a group of about a dozen who manage to get together once or twice a year for good food and lots of laughter.  A number in the group keep up with my cycling addiction via Facebook.  Alice K mentioned that her brother had been similarly stricken, and that she would send my contact details to him.

I was hardly back at the hotel when Alice’s brother Albert K messaged me.  There was a ride on Sunday.  Was I interested?

Was I ever!  I had to calm myself though.  It would all depend on whether I had possession of my bikes by Saturday evening.  SMSes zipped between us as ride location details and so on were exchanged.  I was invited to join the Racun Cycling Gang group on Facebook.  Natuurlijk!  Especially when I read the group’s ‘About’ statement:

A Cycling Group which always takes care of each other…. no one will be left behind!
We ride not for the best time
But we ride for a good time

That in essence is what I really liked about my previous cycling groups:  West End Bicycles in Houston and The Not Possibles in Den Haag.  That and the fact that we ate breakfast tacos every Sunday in Houston and apple pie at every opportunity in Den Haag.

The final piece fell into place on Friday morning.  Allied Pickfords called to say that our air freight would be delivered the following morning.  Well, in reality the final piece fell into place when the Allied Pickfords guys handed my bikes to me at 10.30am on Saturday.

My first ever road ride in Malaysia was imminent.

2 Comments

Posted in Cycling in Malaysia and tagged , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Listen up bikes! We are moving to Malaysia.

Posted on October 10, 2012 by alchemyrider

It was time for final rides and farewells with friends in Den Haag.  Time to imagine what it would be like to ride in Kuala Lumpur and elsewhere in Malaysia.  The country of my birth and upbringing.  A country where roadies were a rare breed when I left it four years ago.  A country where the past few years have seen an apparent explosion in the number of cyclists of all persuasions.

It was soon time to prepare for the move.  I ordered a South East Asia map card from Garmin for my Edge 705.  A few days later Ride With GPS announced the availability of an OpenStreetMap (OSM) map for South Asia at a quarter of the price that Garmin was asking.  Ain’t that the way?  Perhaps I’ll write up a comparative review of the maps one day.

The week before my departure my friend Richard B asked me to go with him to Rose BikeTown in Bocholt, Germany.  This is reputed to be the largest bike shop in Europe.  More than 20,000 items spread over 6,000 square metres of floor space.  A literal Aladdin’s Cave for cyclists.  Needless to say I succumbed to temptation and came away with a Ritchey WCS 4-Axis Stem and a WCS Evo Curve Carbon Bar to replace the Comp Stem and Road Logic Bar that were on my steel bike.

There was no question that the bikes were going to be air-freighted to Kuala Lumpur.  I assembled a collection of tools, a couple of pairs of bib shorts, some jerseys, socks, shoes, a pair of gloves and a helmet to travel together with the bikes.  It was touch and go to get the new stem and bar mounted on the steel bike and get the rear wheel bearings replaced on my titanium bike before the packers came to box them up.  I had until 3pm on Wednesday.  The bike with the new wheel bearings came out of the shop at 1pm that day.

A few hours later everything was boxed and in the back of a truck.  Hopefully to be seen again, intact and looking like they do below, in ten days time.

My steel bike:

My titanium bike:

4 Comments

Posted in Cycling in Malaysia and tagged , , , . Bookmark the permalink.
←
Newer Posts →