… done some things. This post is a kind of experiment, as there’s been stuff I’ve been trying to write about, but was never able to push through it. Years have passed, but I’d still like to put out some words about it, so…
It’s been 3 years since…
I’ve ditched Wahoo ELMNT BOLT V1 and replaced it with also Wahoo’s ROAM V2. BOLT has been a neat little device and my first bicycle computer. I’ve never actually fallen into the Garmin trap and I have considered myself lucky. Between 2017 and 2023, the little computer has done over 50000km and has been a flawless companion. Unfortunately, things wear out and get outdated. Some rubber parts (buttons mostly) started to deteriorate and it was about time to get a new device. Because I was really happy with my experience, it’s been only natural to go with a newer model of the same brand.
ROAM V2 has a slightly bigger screen with some colors added for readability and much improved maps with better navigation. What I like about it is that it is doing exactly what the previous model has been doing, with the same reliability.
That’s the thing about Wahoo – yet another device and the software and hardware have never failed me. ROAM V2 has accompanied me through over another 30000km and it has a lot more life in it.
It’s been also 3 years since…
I’ve betrayed Shimano. I’ve always been a fan of the affordable 105 and GRX 400 group sets and I’ve been a very satisfied user of both. And while the road bike, which is now, unfortunately barely being used, still rocks good old 105, the gravel bicycle’s GRX had me one day so disappointed, it has pushed me to do the unthinkable.
After one exceptionally muddy adventure, rear derailleur cable has been so gunked up with mud, that it would require a complete re-cabling of the thing. That would force me to rip the cable out of the internally routed handlebars and push the new housing back in. It was a nightmare when I’ve done it the first time and I definitely didn’t want to do it again.
I decided to go nuclear on it, ripped out the thing off the bike entirely and replaced it with… SRAM Eagle AXS wireless derailleur with Force AXS shifters.
In those 3 years, it has survived all the weather conditions, being hit by a car, two bent derailleur hangers and rib-fracturing crash. It’s now done over 30000km, just like the Wahoo bike computer. It has some signs of wear and scratches on it, but it’s been a no maintenance bliss with no cables to go bad and needing replacing. Just recharge the battery every now and then and you’re good to go!
Whatever the next bike I’m going to get will be, I’m 100% sure it will be sporting SRAM.
It’s been 5 years since…
I have built myself a gravel bike. It sounds trivial, but step by step, little by little, it has taken over my cycling entirely and has rendered road bicycle useless.
In those 5 years I’ve done over 50000km. I have gone through the countless consumables, like chains, cassettes, brake pads, tires and chainrings. I have replaced handlebars, rear derailleur and its hanger, shifters, both wheels, stem and pedals. In fact, the only original parts are the frame set, seat post and the seat.
I cannot really pinpoint the reasons why this bike has been so popular with me. Having a most useful hub dynamo might be one of them. Having the lights always there, working without charging has been a bliss, especially since I do ride at night a lot.
It is also far more versatile and with fat (in road bikes terms) tires allow to easily go through the nastiest forest roads. I can go through the mud and sandpits, over the roots and loose gravel with more confidence.
The last thing would be, I fear to admit, the disc brakes. When you cannot choose the weather you ride in, you have to adapt. Cork brake pads rubbing mud and sand into the carbon rims was not the nicest sound to hear. It hasn’t been raining a lot in our region, but when it does, the roads are always nasty. Also, the Winter time is not so forgiving to the rim brakes, making them both weak and unreliable and simply destroying the braking surfaces.
One way or another, the gravel bike has become my friend, so to speak. I’ve been spending so much time on it, it has only become natural to pick it first and leave the poor road bicycle in the dust.
And finally, it’s been 5 years since…
My first bike packing experience. To be honest, it wasn’t planned at all. We were supposed to back everything, including bicycles to a car and go to the Polish coast, but faith is sometimes cruel. Our car has broken just a day before the departure, and since we were not able to fix it in time (it was very tricky water damage to a gearbox computer), we had to improvise.
We ended up packing up into all sorts of panniers and backpacks we had, put our 2 boys in a bike trailer and we took it all to the train station. We haven’t done a lot of cycling, but still I call it my first, because we had to carry everything on bicycles. And we even have spend some nights in a tent!
It was sometimes difficult to move with the entire thing from train to train and some mistakes have been made in terms of what to take, but we really didn’t have much time to adapt and in the end it was an immense fun!
So, I’ve had plenty of gear for the thing, but haven’t really done anything like that until… I’ve been slowly eroding my Friend to cycle with me. I’m proud to say I’ve had enough influence on them, they have then pushed me to do the real bike packing. Year after year on top of that!
Let’s go for a proper bike packing!
The first trip we’ve done was last year and it was a banger! A very popular R10 route was an easy choice and an accessible choice. We went to Świnoujście by train, then cycled for 3 days to the east, to Władysławowo.
We had to go against the wind all the time, but at least the weather wasn’t complete shit and it has ended up as exhausting but really enjoyable. We’ve done over 380km route in 3 days, which might not be impressive to some, but I was really happy we’ve done anything at all.
This year’s plans have been growing more and more ambitious. Initially, we wanted to continue our trip by the Polish coast line. In the end we have gone to the same starting point – Świnoujście. But this time, from Świnoujście we went 130km to the west, to Stralsund, just nearby the Rügen island.
From there, it’s been our plan to do a lap around the Rügen and that’s exactly what we’ve done.
It’s been a bit shorter loop than proposed by the official routes, as it’s been well beyond our capabilities. We still ended up going massive 175km and it’s been my second longest distance in one go. The weather was very nice and sunny, but the route has been sometimes very demanding. The welcomed gravel sections have quickly become very uncomfortable and some of the Rügen roads came out as not exactly bicycle-friendly.
In the last day, tired from our previous efforts, we just wanted to get home as easily as possible. We’ve skipped the not-so-interesting coast route and took the direct road back to Świnoujście. It was still over 100km to cover.
It was quite a ride and our legs hurt for some time. We will remember Rügen dearly, especially that part of the dreaded 15km cobblestone road to and from Stralsund we had to take because there was no other way. Since then we have more ambitious plans, but I will keep them in secret for now, and maybe in the future, I can write them up right away.
That’s about it – posts I’ve always wanted to create, but I’ve never been able to finish what I’ve started. There would probably be even more content, but it is possible I didn’t even create a stub of a post to reforge into a more broad summary. I’m still happy I have pushed it out and you can hopefully enjoy it at least a bit!
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