Ulm-Eggelstetten-Kipfenberg-Regensburg (Days Thirteen to Sixteen)

“We Ride to Eat”: one of the many pluses of riding a few hours each day (i.e. Ave 4 out of 5 days) is that you burn a few calories and thus can either lose some weight and or eat pastries and ice cream guilt free. Though the former does not give carte blanche for the latter. I’m not wearing a heart rate monitor so not exactly sure how the Garmin calculates calories burned and when I compare the calories estimates on this trip to my rides at home, when I am wearing a heart rate monitor, the current readings are much higher. Nonetheless one does think in “Kilories”:  kilometres ridden = calories burned = indulgent foods can be eaten😀😀.

 

Ulm to Eggelstetten (Friday 24 July)

After a short convoy out of town, Trond and myself rode with Collin and Callum (father and son from Scotland/Holland) – Collin is a front runner who sets a good pace – not uncomfortable but perhaps slightly faster than if I was left to my own devices.

The route/ride was fairly straightforward: Downhill/ flat – no climbing of any substance. Took our “small lunch” at ~49k then #2 Lunch ~64km. Up until today the post lunch sections had been quite hot (30-35) but today was ~25C making the riding much more enjoyable. It is easy to convince yourself that you are fitter than you are on days like this.

We didn’t stop for photos but there was not a lot on view that was new, different/interesting. However at strategic i.e relatively safe moments I did take some photographs whilst riding the  bike. On display was a range of energy options: solar, nuclear, and wind power. As well as the ever present wheat (though in diminishing proportions) and corn, there were fields of green leafy vegetables – cabbage I guess.

  
  

That afternoon I had a lesson in why it’s a good idea to read to intructions when one has aquired a new tent. I discovered that the external air vents on the  tent fly were zipped closed. So those hot nights need not have been quite so hot😡.

 

Eggelstetten to Kipfenberg (Saturday 25 July)

Today the route took a diversion away from the Danube and switched over to another valley and we were rewarded with some pretty views.

This turned out to be the “cruisiest” riding day so far – a combination of the relaxed speed we rode, the flat terrain and cooler weather. Only last 15km was slightly challenging when we were affected by strong wind gusts.

Trond and I set out at 7:40 – 10 minutes later than usual and 15-20 minutes after the bulk of the riders. We followed prescribed route, regularly sight in the orange marker tape etc however we rode for more than an hour without seeing other riders. (Except Barb and Jim).

 

At the 30km mark we stopped at a bakery and soon thereafter a large contingent of those who set off well before us arrived. They “accused” 😀 us of taking a shortcut (which ironically Trond had suggested that we could do this to catch up but we hadn’t acted on the idea). However in support of our case the following facts are proffered: we saw more tape markers than they said they had including through an area that they could not recall and  the location of lunch was at the prescribed distance according to our Garmins but not theirs. As was the case for the camp reading.

After the bakery stop, Trond and I rode with Tone, Bill, Rinda, Debbie and Gill. One of the random dangers of the ride struck Debbie when she was badly stung by wasp on the face as she was riding along. Liz had suffered the same painful fate just a day or two before and Trond had almost swallowed one. Others like myself have had near misses where the bee/wasp bounces of the face whilst riding.

  

    

Ice-cream / drinks break 15km out from camp. Had warmed up a bit but there was a gusty breeze. Photo of ice cream and flowers : former for Dad and the latter for Mum. NB I’m trying to space out the ice-cream & pastry indulgences I.e. not every day but temptation is seemingly at every turn.

Today’s profound inanity that came to mind whilst riding along was that one way of retaining some of the feel of this ride when I return home will be to purchase some orange tape (same as used to mark sections on this ride) and mark out my usual exercise/ recreational rides.

 

  
    

Windy at the camp site when we arrived – gusts but dies down overnight. the accompanying coolness was welcome.

Kipfenberg to Regensburg (Sunday 26 July)

In gender stereotype terms “boy talk/information” on rides is the technical data i.e. How far, fast, metres climbed etc (which you can get from the links for each day’s ride (as per the heading above). FYI in this vein I leave the Garmin on throughout the whole ride including breaks which is why you will see periods where there is no movement. The total time for the day’s ride includes these breaks. So as for how fast I’m riding you need to scroll down to see “average moving speed”. Another consequence of leaving the Garmin on is that the temperature reading can spike (misleadingly) during these rest times if Garmin in sun.

Cool start to the day. Trond had devised an alternative route (shorter) for the first section and we were joined by a few new/returning Trond acolytes. The route was on a road but Sunday meant that there was very little traffic –  nice up and over (steady climb and fast descent). As we resumed the official route and cruised along the bike path following a river (Altmuhl which flows into the Danube) the term “Trondling” came to mind (evolving from trundling) and was quickly adopted by the group – with each giving it their own intepretation 😀

So as we trondled along the bike path there were lots of people in groups and by themselves out for a Sunday ride,  stroll, walking the dog, jogging, etc. The cafes alongside were well patronised and on the river itself there were people water skiing and the presence of boat moorings.

As many know I’m linguistically challenged i.e. don’t learn new languages easily but the German cyclist who narrowly avoided hitting me when I wandered onto the wrong side of the bike path did manage to convey very clearly his sentiments 😡

 
    

We stopped for lunch ~11km outside Regensburg. Plate envy led to me having a substantive lump of well cooked pork. Meanwhile brass and string bands (with accordion) alternated to provide musical fare.
  

So finishing where we started i.e. to the ride to eat theme dinner that night was in a lovely secluded courtyard and I offset the pork by having gazpacho soup and salad. On the way back to the hotel were were ambushed by an ice-cream stall😀

Rest Day Regensburg (Monday 27 July)

7*7=49 therefore a 50 day trip is 7 weeks (& a day): simple yes? However for some reason I’ve had it in my head that the duration of the ride was 6 weeks – so now I have an extra bonus week of riding to enjoy. 😀

Regensburg is a 2000 year old city and our small but well appointed hotel was located centrally in the old part of town i.e. cobblestone streets and narrower alleyways in all and every direction. As in other such places the limited number of cars entering the plazas provides for a more relaxed feel with relatively unecumbered pedestrian movement in seemingly random patterns.

    

Lots of tourists taking in the medieval sites – local and international. Bill and I visited the cathedral – part of which date back to the 8th century. Inside it is massively spectacular and photographs cannot convey its enormous cavernous nature.

We also did a tour of the Thurn and Taxis palace – a designated UNESCO World Heritage site which was interesting though we didn’t get the full benefit of the tour as the guide spoke in German and our audio guides did not sync so well with the stops due to a temporary event being accommodated at the time. 

  

 
Lots of pharmacies/ chemist shops one of which I availed myself to replenish my first aid-kit. Others in the group also made use of them due to spills/accidents and the aforementioned wasp stings.

I suspect that not many Germans practice gluten free diet – given that bakeries abound in number. Also ice-cream shops are not in short supply.

So what does one do to cap off a visit to a 2,000 year old city – why go to a screening (English) of Marvel superhero movie Ant Man of course. Turned out to be an enjoyable night out organized by Trond, with about half of the group and the lateness of the hour didn’t matter too much as the next day’s ride was scheduled to be short and flat.