Once again, a friend of ours, Joachim Lindhardt has been exploring the boundaries of his physical and mental capacity. Some months ago, he took on one of the hardest races in Europe. The decision to participate in significant ultrarace like The Goats reflects a commitment to physical fitness, mental resilience, and a passion for challenge and achievement. We are glad that Joachim will share his passion, thoughts and challenges with us. Happy reading
The Goats23 by Joachim Lindhardt
In October 2023 I went to Portugal to race the inaugural edition of the GOATS. After finishing the Hellenic Mountain Race in May 2023, I already knew that my next big race would be the Atlas Mountain Race 2024 (AMR). But during the summer I felt really good and decided to participate in the GOATS as part of my preparations for the AMR. It turned out to be much more than that.
Coming in to the race my summer had been more “ride by feel” than structured programming and training. When I decided to sign up for the race it was mid August and I started working a bit more structured. I felt good on the bike and the strength was building up nicely. I participated in some shorter fast paced races in Denmark. A big part of my preparations is being outside on the bike, for longer periods. Doing big days and doing them no matter the weather forecast. 250 km in the rain and mud in Denmark puts a big toll on your gear. But that is the only way to really test it. And I really enjoy being outside on the bike, and do all my preparations outside, no matter the conditions. I’ve found that to be the best way to mentally prepare for every kind of weather when I am racing (or almost – let’s talk about heat later).
In the aftermath of the Hellenic Mountain Race I really wanted to change my setup, to go lighter. Part of racing ultras is the never ending search for optimizing. Lighter, versatile, durable, faster gear. It almost becomes an obsession. From multitool to bibs, bottom brackets to gloves. You keep going over every detail in your head, test new gear and go back and forth between different setups. When racing I only want to bring the bare minimum of what I might need during the race. The problem is you never know which issues you will encounter, and what you might need to fix them.
The bike and the bags:
For the race I was riding my Ari Cycles gravel bike put together by BENBEN cykler. It is a steel frame welded by Ari in Denmark. I have been riding this bike for many kilometres and I know how the bike and I work together. For this race I chose a 34 chainring with 11-46 in the rear. I went with aerobars as well, since the elevation didn’t seem too bad and some of the route took us out for longer tarmac stretches. Pirelli Cinturato M 45 mm’s on the rims.
I tried Apidura’s frame bag (14 l) with a three litre water bladder and apidura seat bag (14 l). Both of them where too big and I could’ve done with smaller bags. You live and you learn.
The race:
The GOATS is a 750 km (approx. 16900+ m elevation gain) gravel race through the Serra da Estrela mountain range in Portugal. The 2023 edition started in Penhas da Saúde from where the parkour is a loop through these beautiful mountains. The race finishes in Torre at 1993 meters of elevation which is the highest point in Portugal. The race is a fixed route unsupported bikepacking race.
Arrival:
Getting to Penhas da Saúde from Lisbon Airport is fairly easy. The infrastructure in Portugal is good and it was only a four hour train ride. Arriving in Penhas da Saúde a few days before the race allowed me to do a few shorter rides. I did a small recon ride to check out the first part of the route. The first part was a little bit sketchy. The rain had taken its toll on the gravel roads and you needed to focus.
Spending a couple of days before the race also allows you to meet fellow riders. This is one of the many great things about bikepacking. The community around it is very welcoming. You meet a bunch of people who have the same interest as you. You meet seasoned riders providing advice or first timers nervous before going out on their first bikepacking adventure.
Day 1:
On race day we started at 9 in the morning so I got up at 6. Quick breakfast and coffee before getting the last things ready. It is always nerve wrecking before the race starts. Those last few hours you really start to wonder if you packed right if you brought enough food, enough water, too much food, too much water? The best feeling is the second the race is off and you leave all those worries behind. When you hit the road you can’t change anything about your setup and you can focus on riding your bike, rather than worrying about what’s on your bike.
After a few kilometres of climbing, a long descent started which quickly scattered the riders. As mentioned above the first downhill was kinda tricky and you needed to focus. Especially when riding in a group which blew up a lot of dust from the road. Knowing I had a long race ahead I didn’t go too fast down the first descent. At the bottom I picked up my pace as we started climbing and I felt really good on the bike. I was satisfied with my setup for now, not knowing the steeeep climbs ahead, and I felt I was in a good state of mind to race.
40 kilometres into the race I had a feeling I lost pressure in the front tyre, but couldn’t really see any tubeless sealant coming out. So I decided to move on a little bit. Turning away from the tarmac put a bit more pressure on the tyre and sealant started to show. Reaching in to my frame bag to grab my dynaplug and fix the leak was where I found something worse than a small leak in the tyre. In my apidura frame bag there is a divider which is meant to keep the upper compartment separated from the water bladder. This is supposed to be held up by Velcro. It turned out that the divider had collapsed and the pressure from the stuff I had in the upper compartment had blown my water bladder open and emptied it into my frame bag. Upside I knew the frame bag was water proof since the 2 litres didn’t leak – downside everything in my frame bag was soaked, including my pump which gave in later on in the race. First things first I fixed the tyre and then emptied the water out from my frame bag. I had to repack everything and ended up spending 30 minutes at a water fountain to get all set again. Not the start to the race I had hoped for but nothing too serious as well. Moving on from that the day started getting warmer. My pacing strategy was on point and I felt good throughout the first 12 hours. I learned that the ascents were steep and the descent tricky. But most of it was rideable and a fun challenge. My only concern was my tyres. Pressure kept dropping without any leaks. After 9 hours on the bike and multiple stops to inflate I decided to get a big meal for dinner. I ordered two toasts with ham and cheese. The lady behind the counter told me how big they were and assured me I couldn’t eat both. I left her with two empty plates and a bit surprised. Waiting for the toasts to get ready gave me the chance to have a closer look at my tyres and hopefully fix the issue. I feared that the tape wasn’t holding up and the leak came from one of the spoke holes. I brought some extra sealant and two spare valve cores. Changed valve cores and put in sealant and hoping for the best. Luckily it fixed the issue. Pressure stopped dropping and I felt good going into the night.
After a few setbacks I arrived at CP2 just after midnight. CP2 was located at the top of a climb after 265 k’s and 4500 meters of elevation gain. The race so far was way steeper than I thought it would be and the surface made me miss my mountain bike. Especially the downhills.
Leaving CP2 in second place made me feel good. I still had a lot of energy and power and didn’t feel tired yet. Decided to keep pushing into the night. Absolutely loved my light setup. I had a Supernova in the front and a Fenix light on the helmet. Gave me perfect vision through the night. I had no issues during the night and I was able to keep pushing. At 5 in the morning I felt a bit tired. I’d been riding for 20 hours nonstop and decided to take a small nap. Found a suitable bus stop and sat there sleeping for 15 minutes. My sleeping kit was minimalistic and easy to unpack. I only brought a silk liner no sleeping bag and no air mattress. Minimalistic and a little bit cold.
Stats before first nap:
300 kilometres riding.
6700 meters of elevation gain.
Approx. 40% of the course done.
Don’t know if it was the 15 minutes of sleep or the sound of a freehub passing me that energized me to get going again. But after a stop for more or less 30 minutes I was back on the bike. After a few hours the sun started showing. Those hours just before the dawn felt long but I still made good progress. At sunrise I had been riding for a couple of hours, crossed a beautiful dam, climbed a fair amount, and started to feel hungry for breakfast and thirsty for coffee. 327 k’s into the race I arrived in Pampilhosa da Serra. On the downhill into the village I snapped my rear derailleur cable. Pastries and coffee were suddenly secondary and I just hoped I would be able to fix the cable on my own. But after having a closer look, I found that the cable snapped in the hood/grip, and I wasn’t able to get the “head” of the cable out. Thinking I might do more damage than good I decided to take a break and focus on breakfast and coffee. Sometimes rushing the decision making can result in bigger problems rather than fixing the ones you’ve already got. Not having the suitable tools to get the job done on the road and lack of the required technical knowledge I decided against taking the hood/grip apart on my own. Felt a bit unlucky. I came prepared but not for a cable snapping inside the hood/grip. Only way to stay in the race was get a cab and go to a bike mechanic. Best one was in Lousã – 1 hour 15 minutes away by car. But I had no other options. Took the bike apart, put it in the trunk, fix the issue at the mechanic, get the bike back in the trunk, back on the road. Had really hoped for some sleep in the cab, but the driver really gave everything to get me back in the race as quick as possible, which resulted in me not being able to sleep driving through the mountainous terrain. 5 hours 30 minutes after the snap I found myself back in the race. I re-entered the race in 5th place. I left in 3rd so it didn’t feel too bad.
Being back on the road I immediately started the climb towards CP3. It was a rather long climb and after the setback I found myself starting the climb at midday. With the temperature rising it was not ideal and made the climb harder. The ascent was steep but rideable. Some shorter sections with 20%+ inclination riding under big wind mills in treeless terrain with no shade was a big challenge for a tall and somewhat heavy guy from the Danish climate. But it was manageable. The views were spectacular and I really enjoyed being back on the bike. Having mechanicals puts you through and emotional rollercoaster. From wondering if you have to scratch to getting back on the road can fuck with your head. Even smaller ones can make you wonder if the bike is going to last.
I decided to get a late lunch. Stressing about the rear derailleur cable made me forget everything about food, so I stopped at a café to get something to eat. At the café they didn’t have an English menu and didn’t speak English either. My Portuguese is equally poor and the only thing I could tell from the menu was the translations in the end of some of the main courses. To list a few; calf cheeks, tongue and so on. To avoid putting pressure on my digestive system I didn’t want to eat too much meat and chose the only course without translation in the end. That was the only item on the menu that included “Arroz” which I knew was Portuguese for rice. Turns out that it was meat from a goat mixed with rice, and cooked in the empty belly of the goat. Normally I’m not a picky eater but in 35 degrees I couldn’t think of anything worse. So I ate the fries and salad that also came with the dish and left the goat.
From there on the ride to CP3 and on was beautiful, hard, and pretty uneventful. Other than changing brake pads and waxing the chain nothing out of the ordinary happened. I made a quick stop to get some dinner and grabbed a couple of sandwiches to go. Kept on riding till 4 in the morning. Starting to feel tired I found a suitable bench. Keeping my ascetic lifestyle going I popped out my sleeping kit and decided for an hour of sleep.
Stats before second nap:
480 kilometres of riding.
13000 meters of elevation gain.
Approx. 70% of the course done.
After 1 hour of sleep I decided to move on. Waking up in 5th place after getting back to 3rd before the nap made me want to push. I ate the second sandwich for breakfast and left the bench at 5:15 in the morning. The day started cold and a little rainy – perfect conditions to push through without overheating. After an hour of riding I caught up with the 3rd place and reclaimed my position on the podium, knowing there was still far to go, I was optimistic. Even with the extensive setbacks I still managed to stay at the sharp end of the race. I decided to go all the way to the finish line knowing the hardest part was ahead. Only 270 km and almost 4000 meters of elevation to go…
The first part of the day was perfect. Still a little cold and still a little rainy. After 3 hours on the bike I wanted to find something to eat. Couldn’t really find anything and eventually I ate 8 plastic packed croissants and brought 5 with me. Not the best nutrition but at least it was better than nothing. Around midday I started a part of the race we were warned about at the briefing. 30-35 kilometres without any water supply. It might not seem that long, but this part was up steep climbs and down tricky descents. I had 3 litres of water with me and thought I would be fine. Little did I know that the weather would change. Suddenly it was 40+ degrees and this part of the course took me longer than expected. Something around 5 hours. I ran out of water after 3. Knowing that heat and no water and salt was bad I tried to convince myself not to drink water to fast, when I would find a water source again. That plan failed. When I found water I immediately drank 2 litres. Idiot.
I kept riding for an hour. Suddenly I wasn’t able to find the track – something others also struggled with at the same spot. Feeling a little dizzy I decided to get some dinner. Found a restaurant and started eating. Feeling more dizzy I knew I had fucked up. Suddenly I needed to vomit and it was clear I was in the middle of the aftermath of a heatstroke. Started to get really confused as well. In the end I decided to get a cab to the hotel where the race started, in Penhas da Saude. Worst decision ever, but that is what happens when your confused, dizzy, and have a none existing
ability to make good decisions. After 1 hour in a cab I came back to the hotel and booked a room. Vomited a couple of times during the night and felt like shit when I woke up. All energy had left my body and I just felt bad. But I was determined to get back in the race to finish the course. My mindset before a race is always “scratching is not an option”, and that was also the case here. But it took all my mental strength to get back on the bike. Every fibre in my body told me not to. Getting back on the track made me feel a little bit better though. Somehow my legs actually pedalled and I was able to climb. Not fast paced climbing but climbing nonetheless. I decided that I could finish in “touring mode”. But it was important for me to cross that finish line and get to Torre. The last day was a day where headache and a tired body was the main issues. I made slow progress but Torre was within reach. Luckily the last part of the course was amazing. Steep climbs with amazing views and fast paced descents. Made it to the finish line just before midnight. Felt so good to finish. To actually be able to put mind over body is something I have learned to do from these races. Being strong-willed is definitely an ability you need as an ultra-racer. I finished the course of 750 km and 17000 meters of elevation in three days and 13 hours and 7th place. Much longer than what I planned but I was just happy to finish taking all my problems into consideration.
The race is something I would recommend for anyone who want put themselves through a challenge of mind and body. I hope I can come back one day.
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Joachim is 33 years of age, born just outside Kolding in Jutland. He has a B. Sc. in physioterapy and a M. Sc. in neurorehabilitation and works today with rehabilitation of disabled kids
When not working we have the pleasure of Joachim at some of our weekly rides and for chats about gear and stuff at our café.
Joachim recently completed this year Hellenic Mountain Race 2023, which according to rumours was one hell of a challenge with DNFs all over the place, Joachim completed the race, and here is his description of his journey.
Race report Hellenic Mountain Race 2023, by Joachim Lindhardt
I’ve been encouraged to write a somewhat thorough race report after completing the Hellenic Mountain Race (HMR) in Greece. The following will be a description of my adventure going through the Pindus Mountains. I will try to touch the following subjects: background, my bike, preparations for the race, and the race itself. I hope this can help others who wish to participate in HMR or similar races.
Background
Unlike most who actually wish to participate in such events as the HMR I haven’t been riding bikes on a competitive level. At least not to the extend many of the other participants have. My search for bike adventure started in 2019/2020. By that time I had been riding road bikes for some years, and of course been riding regular bikes my entire life. But in 2019/2020 I bought an old Gazelle CX bike. 90’s steel frame with an odd and old 2x7 setup. Nonetheless this was the first bike I took out for adventures in the forest and on gravel. I was sold. That led me to buying my first actual gravel bike from BENBEN in Copenhagen. Since then my interest for bike touring and bike packing just kept growing. Since I am a competitive person I took special interest in bike packing races, and with my education in physiotherapy I was keen on finding out how far I could push my physical and mental boundaries. This eventually led to me signing up for the HMR in December 2022.
The Bike
The first time I visited Ben and Ari in their workshop at Prøvestenen in Amager, I told them I wanted to go bike touring and that my aim was to eventually go for a long distance bike packing race. I don’t know if they believed me back then….
But in 2022 I came back to buy my second bike. A bike build for adventure. A frame welded by Ari and put together by Ben.
The bike is one of ten Special Edition adventure gravel frames build on Amager by Ari and Ben. It is a robust steel frame which can handle the extreme pressure put on the bike, when the adventure takes you further and longer. The bike was originally born with a rigid steel fork which is longer than your average gravel fork. It was produced like this to make sure it could fit a suspension fork without changing the geometry of the bike. The bike takes 29x2.2 tires and the geometry is made for hefty and rocky terrain, with steep climbs and hardcore downhills. Monster cross, hybrid off-road, adventure gravel bike, drop-bar MTB, gravel-X…. Success has many fathers.
Preparations
As mentioned above I am a physiotherapist. I obviously have a big interest in the endless possibilities but also the limitations of the human body. Preparing for this race I had to imagine what kind of pressure my body would have to endure, and how to best prepare it for that. Before starting the preparations two things were clear to me. I didn’t want a strict training program and I wanted to plan it all by myself. I only felt comfortable doing it like this since when racing I would be alone out there. If I failed I didn’t want anyone to blame but me. This is not something I recommend for everyone. If you don’t have a basic understanding of the human physiology I would definitely recommend that you take or buy advice from someone capable of providing such. I’m sure that my preparations weren’t the most efficient and that outside help might have taken me further.
My initial training included a lot of kilometers. I live in Copenhagen and have no way of doing big climbs or accumulate lots of elevation. Therefore my thought was to go long and do so for many rides. For the first two out of six months of training, I did no intervals and I basically only did long slow distance. This helped me build a solid base. Getting closer to the race I started doing different longer and shorter intervals, and also a few sessions that included sprints and such. Although I always listened to my body and tried to change the pace on a day to day basis. If I felt like going fast I allowed myself to do that and if I felt tired I also allowed myself to go slower. Most important for me was building a foundation for riding big days with a lot of kilometers.
The race
Hellenic Mountain Race takes off in Meteora in Greece. This was the inaugural edition and therefore I didn’t know exactly what to expect. Although the stats did give away some information. 950 km and 30.000+ meters of elevation. You need to be self-supported throughout the entire race.
Day 1:
The race started at 9 am with a neutral start from Meteora. The first kilometers took us through a singletrack which quickly scattered the riders. It was a quick 15 kilometer loop that took us back through Meteora before making our way towards CP1.
40 km in I got my front wheel stuck in some mud and crashed. Felt like someone hit me with a hammer just above my right knee. In a short moment I feared the race was over for me… I grabbed my first aid kit and used a bandage to put pressure around my thigh to try and keep the swelling to a minimum. Luckily there were no swelling in or around the knee joint but only muscular pain and swelling above the joint. So I decided to move on and at least try to push through the pain till reaching the first village. Making my way there I felt alright and pretty optimistic. When I arrived I was somewhat confident that I could actually continue the race so I kept pushing to get to Metsovo, which was my first planned resupply on the route. Quick resupply and back on the bike.
After 10-11 hours of riding it started getting darker but I felt good and decided to push into the night. After a few hours in the dark I arrived at a hike-a-bike section. I totally lost the track and found myself crawling through the woods while dragging and pushing my bike. This went on for an hour or two, before I found a somewhat rideable singletrack and got back on the route. Those hours felt so long and I felt completely empty.
On the first day of a race people aren’t that far apart yet and I had the chance to chat to some of the other riders. This is one of the best things about bikepacking. The community is so welcoming. Almost everyone is open for a quick chat. Even though some of those chats aren’t longer than two minutes, it’s nice to meet someone else out there.
The day ended in a small village where I slept in front of a closed Mini Market.
Stats from day 1:
19h 30min on the bike.
175 km.
4500 m elevation gain.
Day 2:
My initial “best case scenario” was to reach CP1 in the first day. I didn’t even come close. The terrain and weather made it hard to move forward at the pace I wanted to. After a few hours of sleep and a quick breakfast in front of the Mini Market I started riding. Day two turned out to be one of the tougher days. I started out climbing down what felt like endless rocky and slippery stairs which led to crossing a bridge. On the other side of the bridge I had to drag me and my bike up similar slippery rocky stairs.
After climbing those stairs I finally arrived at a rideable section. This took me to Vikos Gorge, one of the many breathtaking views from the race.
After the loop to Vikos Gorge I again arrived at a hike-a-bike section. Lucky for me I started that at the same time as Andrew Chapman. A Canadian guy, we chatted on and off going down that section. We both had hoped to go faster and expected to be further then we were. We shared some stories from the road. Andrew lifted my mood and I felt optimistic to keep on pushing. After 3-4 kilometers of hiking in the wet grass a short gravel downhill led into the final climb to CP1. A tarmac climb which was rideable and nice.
Arriving at CP1 I met a lot of the other riders. All knew what waited after CP1. A long section of hike-a-bike to the Mount Tymfi Refuge. Some of the riders already finished the hike – and looked wasted from it. I ate a big meal since I heard the next 10 kilometers (5 up and 5 down) would be long. That hike was extremely tough. Starting the hike I met Theo, a Canadian guy I also chatted to on CP1. He was on his way down and looked tired but happy to be done with it. He told me I had a couple of hours to go to reach the top. Covering those 10 kilometers going up and down took 4-5 hours. Coming back into CP1 I was ready to eat again! Many riders decided to stay at CP1 to sleep. I thought about doing the same, but after a meal and a big resupply I felt energized and optimistic to keep on going. Leaving CP1 at 22:00 I thought about riding for a couple of hours and then get some needed sleep. Going back down the same tarmac climb that led me into CP1 was nice and easy. After the descent I remember from the Race Manual that I would go through an invisible but “rideable” track along a river. Only thing I forgot, this late at night, was what Nelson (race director) told us at the riders briefing. I think it was something like “you will hate me going through this part of the course”. And boy did I hate him. The track wasn’t rideable at all – definitely not in the dark. I only needed to go 4 kilometers in this terrain, but moving was so slow paced. It was pitch black and all I could hear was the river running down below the narrow track. Finally made it through after a couple of frustrating hours.
Decided to keep on going for another hour. Being soaked from hiking through the forest on the riverbank I found a hotel, where I could sleep for a couple of hours and my get some of my clothes semi-dry.
Stats from day 2:
17h 30min on (or next to) the bike.
80 km.
3000 m elevation gain.
Day 3:
Coming out of the hotel after a couple of hours of sleep I immediately had to start a climb. In retrospect I would have preferred to do it at night. It’s tough to start the day with a long climb, but at least that got the blood going. I started with a stop at a baker where I ate some sweet pastries and had three espressos.
Before I started climbing I met Reeze. A south African guy I talked to during the first day. He went straight to the bus stop. The first two days had worn down his brakes and the pistons flew out of his rear brakes, emptying them from hydraulic fluid. He had to go to a bigger city to get it fixed. I felt sorry for him, he was fast and efficient on the bike so I hoped I would see him later in the race. I learned later that he scratched. The problems with the breaks and rain and cold just became too much. Many riders started scratching from the race. It is different from other competitive sports. It didn’t boost my moral to hear others scratch. It just felt a bit more lonely on the track. But I was determined to keep on going.
Day three was the day of big climbs and less hike-a-bike. Some tarmac here and there was nice and made the progression faster. After doing a long remote stretch I arrived in Metsovo in the night. Found a nice bus stop where I could sleep.
Stats from day 3:
16h 30min on the bike.
165 km.
4900 m elevation gain.
Day 4:
Started with a long rainy descent. Wet and freezing I started a long climb. According to my garmin it was 21km of climbing with 1.300 m elevation gain. The climb was “on and off” some really steep section where I had to hike-a-bike and some more fast paced sections. This led to the highest point in the race just above 2000 m of elevation. It was cold, windy and still snowy on the top of the climb. But no rain and most of it was rideable. After long climb a short descent led to some rideable running hills, that almost felt like home. Not too steep and nice. The landscape was totally different though. Felt extremely remote and hostile, but very beautiful.
Eventually I descended into a historic and picturesque mountain village called Syrrako. Feeling good about my progression I didn’t stop for many photos. After the village a short descent led to a single track. Being on a gravel bike I hiked it. It was steep and I kept the brakes blocked. Halfway through my rear tire suddenly lost all pressure in a matter of seconds. Fuck. Side cut. Loooong and unfixable. I decided to hike the rest of the single track to get to the tarmac.
Like angels from above a couple who lived from their van waited at the end of the single track. They toured the world in their van with bikes. They decided to dotwatch the race and meet some of the riders. They offered me warm(!!) coffee and crackers. I tried to fix my tire but it wasn’t possible. So I inserted a tube and kept on moving. After 5 kilometers I was flat again. I met two guys when I was trying to fix the tire. Guy and Jose. Great guys who offered words of advice. I eventually put in my second tube since the first when lost pressure all the time. Same thing happened to my second tube. I told the guys to move on as I would have to stop and fix the pressure every kilometer or two. Eventually I decided to hike the last 10 kilometers in to CP2. It was a tarmac climb all the way there. I thought it best to make a decision from there. After hiking for an hour Jose and Guy suddenly overtook me again. They had made a wrong turn going downhill for 4-5 kilometers, which they had to climb to get back on track. Spirits where high though and I told them I would meet them for pasta bolognese in CP2.
Coming in to CP2 I learned that I could fix my tire in Ioannina. But I couldn’t do anything other than wait the night in CP2. Set me back 16-17 hours but that’s part of the game.
Stats form day 4:
13h 45min on the bike.
79 km.
2800 m elevation gain.
Day 5:
After a good nights sleep in CP2 I went to Ioannina to get a new tire and redo my tubeless setup. Coming back to CP2 it felt so good getting back on the bike. After a few setbacks I was determined to finish the race. And having dropped back in the general classification motivated me to go as fast as I could.
I started with a tough climb from CP2. At the top of the climb there was a short hike through some snow. The race organizers had to dig out a path for the riders to go through. Crossing the snow led to a long path with big sharp rocks. Once again the views where the breathtakingly beautiful. But I had to stay focused on the path to avoid punctures or worse. This day didn’t demand a lot of hiking, which made me very happy.
After riding a few hours along a water reservoir I arrived at a restaurant. I met Kasimir in the restaurant and we both decided for some sleep in front of the restaurant. A short day on the bike given the time I had to spend to go to Ioannina and back. But a feeling of progression.
Stats from day 5:
12h 30min on the bike.
134 km.
4000 m elevation gain.
Day 6:
After a couple hours of sleep in front of the restaurant I decided to leave. It was still dark as I left in the middle of the night, but I knew I had back to back gravel climbs so I just wanted to get started. Unable to make good resupply in the restaurant I only had a sandwich with feta for breakfast. Finishing the two climbs left the tank empty.
Coming into a small town I found a café. I ordered a pizza, five pieces of cake, two cokes, bag of crisps, and some sweets. Topped that of with some juice boxes and two chocolate filled croissants, 30 minutes of sleep and I felt good to go again. I was determined to make it to CP3.
There was some hike-a-bike during the day. One being long and really tough. But generally a day filled with more time on than next to the bike and a lot of beautiful surroundings.
Coming into CP3 was a 16 km climb. I really started to feel the wear and tear after a week on the bike. I arrived at CP3 in the night and decided to stay for some sleep.
Stats from day 6:
20h 0min on the bike.
110 km.
4250 m elevation gain.
Day 7:
I woke up and decided this would be the last day on the bike. I wanted to go all the way, no matter what. I couldn’t imagine waking up one more time and getting the body going again. I did a big resupply in the city where CP3 was located. After a short downhill I arrived at a short but tough and steep hike-a-bike. Few kilometers on the bike and a long and extremely tough hike-a-bike followed. That path was narrow and I had to carry the bike for a big portion of that hike-a-bike. In the distance I could see Thomas, a French guy who I had met a few days before. He’d had stomach issues for the first part of the race, but was now feeling better. He really showed his strength and I was impressed by his determination to keep on going. That boosted my moral.
After the hike-a-bike a gravel climb with a lot of switchbacks followed. The descend was filled with switchbacks as well, and my hands felt numb from putting pressure on the brakes. Coming down from the gravel descend a 13 km tarmac climb followed. The weather had changed and I found myself climbing in 34 degrees Celsius. My system struggled to adjust to the hot conditions. At the top of the climb I found an oasis. A nice restaurant where I met Tom. An Australian rider with who I shared lunch. We had a nice chat and he moved on. Just as I was about to leave I met Quinda and Andrew. We had a coffee and a piece of cake. We rode together for 15 minutes before they stopped. Andrew had some bike related issues and Quinda was stopped for an interview, as she was the leading woman. She went on to win the women’s race.
Being determined to go all the way I didn’t think about places to sleep, only about riding. I knew from the race manual that the last climb would be tough. Leading in to the climb was a long bumpy ride with a lot of barking sheep dogs. Starting the long climb felt good. I felt like it would soon be over. But suddenly the tarmac stopped and a gravel road started. I had no power left in my body. At one point I lost the track and had to sit down on the ground and think for 10-15 minutes before figuring out where to go. I hiked up a steep hill to find the road again. Turns out it was a switchback which was easy to follow, if sleep deprivation didn’t trick your mind.
Getting to the top of the climb made me feel so good. Like it was all over soon. I had to do a short descent to reach the finish line. But it was so windy and cold I had to stop and put on some extra clothes, even though I only had 8 km to go.
Stats from day 7:
23h 30min on the bike.
190 km.
7000 m elevation gain.
Arriving at the finish line in 17th position after 6 days 20 hours and 50 minutes on the course. 950 km and 30000+ m of elevation gain.
A lot of lessons learned from the race and a huge feeling of accomplishment.
That was my Hellenic Mountain Race 2023.
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Anders has been taking notes along the way on his endaveaurs on the impassable roads through Portugal, into Spain and France, which seems so far away from the well prepped gravel roads around Copenhagen
Anders has been so kind to write us a summery and "Part 1" from his trip, so just read on and get inspired to do more off-road bikepacking stuff
Words By Anders:
I've now completed a third of the European Divide Trail. Arriving in Valence in the Rhône Valley marked the end of the Southern Section of the trail and what an experience it's been. It has taken me from the incredibly challenging terrain of Portugal with its alternately sandy and rocky but most of all beautiful landscape across the old smuggler's route into Spain. My dad followed me for the first week and we were both amazed by the roughness of the country but also surprised by all the abandoned mining complexes we got to ride through. Some of which dated back to Roman times though all were filled with piles of chemical waste and slagger that discoloured any nearby water.
The lack of water is obvious everywhere I've been. In southern Spain there just wasn't any. All the small streams and lakes were dried up. It's become better the further north I've come but even the big reservoirs are affected.
We took a detour down to Seville where I said goodbye to my dad who only had time to follow along until then. To our surprise we arrived in the middle of the traditional Easter parades so the streets were full of well dressed people making us feel even more like the odd ones out in our sweaty and dirty lycra.
From Seville I went further east to the ancient city of Córdoba for another day of rest. And to enjoy the old Roman and Moorish architecture that can still be found despite many centuries of Catholic rule of the city. These were also the first days on my own on, reviving the independence that's necessary to undertake such an endeavour.
As I approached the sierras of eastern Spain, the landscape became quite monotonous with olive trees as far as I could see. Not only do they make for a rather uninteresting view after a few days, they also did nothing in terms of cooling the local environment hence it was hot. Extremely hot. I couldn't wait to climb the Sierra de Carzola and to enjoy the coolness of the 1700m of elevation. And it didn't dissapoint.
After a long morning of climbing to reach the plateau I was rewarded with a stunning view. At these heights there are hardly any vegetation. The few plants that can call this rugged place home are just as hardy as the rocks they grow on. It all reminded me so much of the Mongolian highlands that I half expected to see a yurt every time I turned a corner.
From here, the route flattens a bit as it runs along some of the Via Verdes with some of the best gravel so far. The Via Verdes are old railway lines that have been turned into cycling infrastructure. Though they are not very well maintained, they still make up some fun km to ride as the gradient never goes above 2.5% as the road tunnels through the hills instead of going over them.
However, the biggest sprocket of the cassette was only allowed a short break as there were new hills to conquer. These have turned out to be the hardest yet as it was just a question of how much of the climbs were at 10% or more and how far I'll have to push or carry my bike. There's a limit to how many times I'm able to do that every day, hence I took four days off to rest in Barcelona and to look after my bike, which was in dire need of attention.
Gear-wise I've found that I've been way too ambitious with the gearing. A 40:52 as my bailout gear has turned out to be too hard for the gradients of Spanish country roads. I've been doing a lot of involuntary threshold training. I've also contemplated changing out some of the gear I've brought, like my sleeping bag, and send home some clothes. This would allow me to get rid of the rear panniers and help a lot on the uphills, I reckon.
Besides, nothing important has broken yet ('knocks on wood'). Apart from having to change sealant and a worn out rear tire, everything just works. This has been a pleasant surprise as I tend to break parts like Pogaçar breaks his opponents. If I'm lucky everything will continue to hold up when I cross the Juras in the coming week. (At this moment, Anders has had some mechanical issues - more on that in a later post)
Having been fed up in Barcelona I had the energy to jump on the bike again and turn for the Pyrenees, looking forward to cross into France. There's something magical about crossing country borders on a bike. It feels like a massive accomplishment especially when it has taken a month to go from one to another like it took me to get through Spain. Even though the border itself was nothing special only being marked by some old fortresses, a small military cemetery and a sign warning about high risk of forest fires.
The same day I entered France, another cyclist riding the European Divide Trail Guilhem LaBûche did. Guilhem is from Lyon and used to ride mountain bikes. This is quite obvious from his bike handling skills. He also travels lighter than I do, making him significantly faster uphill. He doesn't have a gold chain though!;-)
We had been in contact a few times before online but this was the first time we had the opportunity to ride together. So in Béziers we caught up and rode together, battling the massive headwind that has continued since then. A bit of bummer as this was the first time the route hit some proper flat terrain. Still, we had a wonderful three days together with much laughter, coffee, beer and discoveries of many of the possible ways to have peanut butter. Him being France he knows exactly which local foods are the best for fueling a bike tourer, so the quality of my snacks have gone through the roof. He also tends to be much better to stay in a cheerful mood when the route would lead us onto some of the worst roads of the trip so far, steep and with rocks the size of baby heads strewn all over them. We had the pleasure of staying a night at his mother's place in the Ardèche region. However, in the coming days, Guilhem will deviate from the route to go to his home in Lyon to rest for a few days and catch up with his girlfriend. Needless to say, on tours like this one it's always hard to leave someone when you've just met them, but this time was particularly tough. I don't have the time to follow him to Lyon as I'm quite a bit behind schedule. Even though I'll have to pick up the pace, I hope Guilhem will catch me again soon so we'll be able to ride together again. Untill then I'm on my own again.
It's hard to keep up with the calorie expenditure of bike touring. My cooking has bettered noticeably with new skills like frying conserved fish in the tin. Pasta and rice are also regulars for dinner.
I suffered a double puncture of the sidewall of the rear tire. Nothing a few plugs couldn't fix though.
The towns north of Perpignan are ghost towns this time of year. There are no tourists to fill the holiday apartments, streets and beaches that are left empty. Wide stretches of perfect sand and the occasional abandoned water park are the result.
In Part 2 Anders will describe how he continued through Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Finland and ending waaaay up north in Norway.
We at CCC thank you for sharing this with us an inspire us an (hopefully) others to pack some bags and get going
Best
CCC
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It starts today and will end the 21st of January at 6pm
All you have to do:
Do as many laps as possible - with the chance to win the ROAM V2, Coffee from Nordic Coffee House and products from Maurten. There are prizes to the three riders that will do most laps over the period from the January 8th to the 21st of January.
The route you will have to ride:
https://www.strava.com/routes/3044916349968084660?v2=true
Every time you have finalized a lap, you are welcome to stop by Copenhagen Cycling Club - and coffee will be on the house
We also have something set up for the fastest man and woman on the same route. Go and do the fastest lap possible, and you will have the chance to win an entry to The Crit in June 2023.
https://www.strava.com/segments/33522711
Winners will be announced at Rd.2 at The Gravel Series in Vestskoven
How do we keep track?
Strava will do the work for us. See picture below. "Segment Efforts" will tell you/us how many laps you have done.
You can continuously send us info about your lap status on contact@copenhagencc.com. We will also keep an eye out and give you info about the leaderboards on our Facebook Page
On a dark November morning, I was picked up by my friend at 4am. We were leaving for Morocco to ride gravel with Running26, a travel-adventure company specialized in tailored events for the explorer. We stuffed our bike bags into a large taxi and chugged off to the airport to meet the 35 other dirt geeks, who loved gravel enough to get out of the warm beds at this God forsaken hour.
After 4.5 hours in the air, of which I proudly managed to sleep 4, we landed in Marrakech. We swiftly got our bikes out from behind of the oversize counter and we could all breathe a sigh of relief after having body searched our frames and rear derailleurs without finding any damage. A part of the group had rented bikes from a bike shop in town, which we headed towards to change clothes, get a handle on all our gear and pick up the Moroccan gravel machines for the rest of the group. The sun was shining from a bright blue sky and with a blink of an eye I had forgotten all about the 0 degrees at home in the dark; my mind was only set on what the next four days on the bikes would offer.
The start of the first stage was from a parking lot on the outskirts of the city, where we could see the Atlas Mountains on the horizon. We drove off in 4 groups led by the local guides, who were with us for the whole trip and knew all the small dirt roads that you can't find on Google maps. My group had been given a Moroccan MTB champion as leader and I quickly learned that I shouldn't try to follow his track. He rode the whole trip on a mountain bike and we were all a little envious when we got to know the character of a rather bumpy desert roads on the first day.
The goal on day one was a Bedouin camp in the best luxury 'glamping' style. The road went through the desert with a lot of small dried out riverbeds we had to cross, going steeply up and down. You had to concentrate and hold on tightly to the handlebars while getting used to the rocky desert surface. It was nice, rough and "dreamy" to cruise around in this very exotic but harsh landscape while having a little too few hours of sleep in the bank. As we moved across the dry dusty roads I was reminded of movies with people stranded in the desert being unable to think about anything but water. There wasn't a drop for miles around and I was extra pleased about having filled two bidons before the trip. With pretty bad "flying-legs" and lack of sleep, not everyone in the group thought the long sand pit we encountered was as great a gift as our guide had intended it to be. The sandbanks in Koksijde seemed like a small sandbox compared to this approx. 1K stretch in a dried out river covered by deep dry sand. It put all the pale Danish gravel people through the mill, and there wasn't one of us who didn't have to give up in this 'the-earth-is-poisonous game' and see ourselves half-running in despair, deep in the heavy sand.
Wrapped in a fine layer of reddish desert dust, we arrived at our luxury camp for the night, placed on a top of a ridge in the desert. To the south, we could spot the contour of the Atlas Mountains and to the north, the lights of Marrakech twinkling as the darkness settled. We were accommodated in top-tuned tents, each of which most of all reminded us of a large private luxury hotel room with high ceilings. The level of energy in the group was at a low point during dinner, which was served in the best Moroccan style. We were sitting on the floor at a long table and had one delicious dish after another served directly from the steaming tangine. After the meal, a few stayed and looked at the quite breathtaking starry sky by the fire, but most of us quickly called it a night and went to catch some sleep.
On the second day, the course was directed towards the foothills of Atlas. We drove off as a group across several more dry desert roads but the landscape slowly began to become partially more lush with olive tree plantations and small succulent-like plants alongside the road. We made an early coffee stop that I will probably never forget. A small restaurant overlooking a peaceful dammed lake, a beating sun, nice company, cold colas and a coffee like.. well the coffee was there anyway. A big zen moment for me, sitting there on the terrace with zero worries and great joy in being right there, right now. Shortly after the stop we met a herd of camels with tourists on their backs and then there was no more chit chatting. Now, the first regular climb of the trip on tarmac came. Lunch was waiting at the top of the climb and it was announced that we would gather there. It had been a long time since I had climbed and I was quickly reminded of all the genius and brutal things about climbing a mountain on a bicycle. How to find the rhythm, push; push; push, the naked truth on power as the group slowly splits into atoms on the way up and I am "on my own"; the sweat burning in my eyes, the demand on keeping distractions out, ignoring the fly that swarms around my head, keeping self pity thoughts out, push; push; push, the uplifting feeling of seeing the coffee stop lake getting smaller and smaller, as I slowly eat the altitude meters and finally see it looking like a small puddle down there; surrendering to the circumstances, it goes up and it goes slowly; finding the patience, the balance, how I zig-zag towards every little patch of shade that's on my way; the relief at the top that it's over and the pride in dragging myself all the way up there.
I found my own pace and rode smoothly to the top alone. On the way up I was greeted by a couple of locals who came roaring down the mountain on their overloaded scooters and by others who were standing in their fields harvesting something I couldn't understand could grow there. Two very foreign worlds that crossed up that mountain; first and third world challenges, side by side.
After being served lunch on the mountainside by our driving chef, we moved deeper into the Atlas Mountains and the surface changed again from tarmac to rocky gravel. The landscape reminded me that the Star Wars was filmed here, and I could easily imagine Anakin Skywalker rushing forward from behind a rock wall. We had one more climb on the menu and this time the rocky ground demanded my full attention. We crept in long lines up to the highest point of the day at 1400 meters of altitude, after which we could look down into the valley to our hotel, which was located in a paradisiacal lush oasis, and would house us for the next two nights.
On the third day, which misleadingly was called 'the rest day', you could choose whether you wanted to hike or bike. I chose the bike ride and very quickly found myself on an unmanageable long climb that caught me unprepared. It's been a long time since I've suffered that much and the uncertainty of how long the climb would last was especially difficult to handle for the inner control freak in me. But I got up, flanked by two stand up guys who helped with a fine pace and who didn't suffer half as much as me. I later found out that we had climbed a little over 1000 meters on a approx. 16K stretch, where the last kilometers were on a small gravel ledge. A really cool climb, very beautiful as it snaked its way through the rock walls, putting the hammer down with a max gradient of 18% and with hairpin turns in the finest Alpe d'Huez fashion, before crawling up on the last bit on the gravel patch, where I had a slightly pounding heart reminding myself to lean a little up against the mountain side and not look down. Again a gigantic zen moment for me, sitting at 2000 meters altitude, eating lunch in the sun, in the calm, with a mountain view and with a lot of nice gravel people around me, who were all equally stoked about what we just had been through.
At home by the pool, stories from the different groups' adventures of the day were exchanged and the day ended with dinner and World Cup soccer in the hotel fireplace launch.
The Queen stage came quicker than we expected, and by that the end of the trip also slowly creeped in on us. We woke up with the chickens on the fourth day and most of us were shivering a bit in the rather cool night temperatures, which were still hanging in the valley when we rolled out at 8am. We started with a quiet asphalt climb while the sun slowly rose above the mountains. I had to wake up slowly and get my body going again after the hardships of the "rest day". Todays biggest challenge was called 'Outghal 'and was an 18K long rolling climb, exclusively on gravel, where we had to gain 725 meters of altitude. The whole group was again gathered on the bikes and the excitement was high towards Outghal. The elevation profile had been talked over and over again, what energy might be good to take in (but not too much) had been discussed, and many speculation had been given on the tactics of the best way to reach the top. Although the trip had had a minimal competitive feel throughout, there was still a bit of play and racing in it when we reached the bottom of 'Outghal'. My legs were good, but tiny signs of fatigue had gradually appeared. Especially the somewhat sluggish pulse hinted to me that I should not follow any accelerations too soon. So I opted for the defensive Froome tactic and let the others go, as they tried to keep up with the guide and the lightest guy in the company. But quietly my diesel engine also revived and I slowly closed the gap to many from the morning break as I ate 'Outghal' bite by bite. I met my partner in crime from the rest day's climb after a while and we went together for the rest of the way up. I think we both got motivated by each other's company, by the unspoken common goal of getting to the top together and from the special bond that forms when you have climbed a mountain while suffering side by side and overcome it together.
At the top, a great treat of a lunch in the open again awaited, this time totally surrounded by the mythical Atlas Mountains. The day ended with a seriously long gravel descent where you, for approx.15 playful kilometres, had to keep a cool head and let yourself surf over the gravel. A huge rush to wrap it all up with. We slid into a couple of buses at the foot of the mountain and drove back to Marrakech, where I just had time enough to get lost in the medina and have a nice dinner with the group before pulling the plug at our nice hotel and flying home the next morning.
Facts.
Stages:
Day 1: 47 km and 750 hm
Day 2: 66 km and 1470 hm
Day 3: 53 km and 1370 hm
Day 4: 73 km and 1650 hm
Gear:
I rode my cannondale superX cross bike with 42 mm well studded rhombus tires from Spezialized. I missed a few more gears. Regular mountain gearing would have been an advantage.
Clothing:
We were in Morocco at the end of November. The weather forecast can fluctuate, but we had 20-25 degrees every day and high sun. At night, the temperature drops and loose arms, possibly legs, and a vest can be a good idea in the morning. Gloves are also a good idea - bumpy roads. Sunglasses are of course a must - full value on the rays down there.
Thanks to Running26
Photo cred: Alexander Overby/Running26 and Cornelia Crone
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I have been riding on dirt, trails, gravel and roads since the 90s. Now working in the bike industry, and having the chance to put together that bike, I had a few thoughts before I pushed the button. The bike that I imagined, had to have the following qualities.
The Paint Job: In close collaboration with Jesper from JH Design, who is without a doubt the most skilled bike painter in DK, we have put together a little masterpiece of a bike. It demanded a lot from Jesper to understand the picture/and design envisioned in my head. But as you can see from the pictures, Jesper is extremely skilled and clever in understanding the thoughts and ideas of his customers. Kudos to Jesper!
Getting the frame back was Christmas, coming early this year. Paint job done, and he nailed it.
The off-road category is one of the most demanding disciplines when it comes to choosing the right gear for your dirt rides, and we have lost count on how many times that a CCC customer have entered our retail in search of the perfect gravel shoe cover, and does it even exist ? It was therefore an obvious decision to make when local GripGrab contacted us about a month ago, to inform us that they were ready with just that product, which GripGrab claim will fulfil this tough demand.
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The off-road category is one of the most demanding disciplines when it comes to choosing the right gear for your dirt rides, and we have lost count on how many times that a CCC customer have entered our retail in search of the perfect gravel shoe cover, and does it even exist ? It was therefore an obvious decision to make when local GripGrab contacted us about a month ago, to inform us that they were ready with just that product, which GripGrab claim will fulfil this tough demand.
With the ‘Explorer Waterproof Gravel Shoe Covers’ GripGrab has re-designed their successful ‘Flandrien Waterproof Road Shoe Covers” to give it a more durable TPU toe cap and underside wear patches, which are some of the more exposed areas on a shoe cover, that often tends to wear down quickly. The soft knitted three layer construction makes your feet breath, and keeps them dry over several hours of riding in wet and muddy conditions, and the images speaks for itself, when our very own Steven together with a few good folks from the community, took the ‘Explorer’ through the test, one wet and dirty Monday morning just before sunrise in Hareskoven.
The new gravel specific shoe cover meet up to its promises and more, and we are super proud here at CCC to be able to present this great new product in collaboration with GripGrab exclusively to the DK community for its first season.
Come join the dirt party and experience the new product, when we this Sunday, October 30th, join forces with GripGrab during this years “Gribben” and together go ride and put their products to the test. CCC will have an expo lined up, where you'll be able to see, touch and try the ‘Explorer” and if you’re happy with what you see, bring a pair with you home.
Available now at our retail and on our web.
I had some talks with the 5-year-old - She was more than ready for some camping, bikes, bonfire, exploring the nature and the stories to tell afterwards - but surely not knowing what it really was about, this bike packing thing.
Nevertheless, we chose a day, and I spent some time packing our gear, and of course, kids being kids, she also wanted some "bike packing gear" on her bike. We mounted my regular saddlebag onto her handlebar and a Velcro strap to secure her rain jacket to her seat post, and finally carrying the pink backpack herself. Now the playing field was equal, we were both doing our part.
My setup consisted of my mountain bike, which was the only one I brought for the vacation. It is not ideal for bike packing because of all the cables on the handlebar and no room for a frame bag. I still managed to get at handlebar bag on without bending any of the cables too much, saddlebag was no problem, and of course also had to carry my own backpack - carrying most of the gear for both of us.
In highlights, our packing list consisted of a tent, sleeping pad, sleeping bags, extra rain gear (that was needed), food, a book, some tools, fire starters and other random stuff to make the trip successful.
We had chosen a spot 25 km away, and I had no idea if that was a big time overreaching for a 5-year-old on a 14" wheeled bike with single speed. The plan was to take it easy, no stress, take all the breaks we needed and spend time exploring the landscape. Keeping enthusiasm high was key.
We headed out at 2pm and drove out of the small city Vejers Strand and after a few kilometers we made a right into the most dreaded gravel section in the area. Kallesmærsk Hede. 7 km of loose gravel and the road going direct south, you can see several kilometers down the road. And by looking ahead, you don't seem to go anywhere. For me the road seemed much easier than normal, well, properly because we were riding the gravel road at around 11-12kmp.
“Dad I think my legs hurt a little” - she started saying 1/3 of the way into Kallesmærks Hede and only being 6 km from home. "Should we take a break" I asked her. "If you think, '' she replied. Yes, of course, let's take a break and explore the surroundings.
We stopped and stretched our legs, looked at some military houses right next to the road. The gravel Road in Kallesmærks Hede is part of the largest military training facility in Denmark, close to Oksbøl.
You can on a regular basis hear the cannons and see tanks and other armored material cruise around in the landscape. That is also one of the reasons why it is not allowed to go into the area and into the houses. This one was only 10 meters from the road, and with no one in sight, we checked it out anyway. Not much to see there in the empty wooden house, but still interesting for a small kid, and that transformed into questions about "who lives there?" "What are the military training for?"
After some back and forth about the military in a context that made sense for a 5-year-old, I asked if we should get going. "Can we have a piece of candy before we go?" she asked - followed up by some clever words that I also eat a lot when I am out riding to keep the energy up. Ok, we shared some candy, and then back on the bikes. Shortly after the rain started pouring down and we stopped to put on rain jackets. The rain was no problem with waterproof bags and it being a hot day we weren't freezing.
The rest of the way on that gravel section we spotted some burned down heavy material vehicles, met other bike packers and saw some deer in the outskirts of a forest.
Going out of Kallesmærk Hede you arrive at Blåvand, which is a highly popular summer destination for many Danes and at least as many Germans. We had already at home agreed that we would take a small break in Blåvand and with the number saying 13 km from home, this was a good opportunity to get some refreshments, and actually the only place it turned out.
We headed for the "Bolche butik" where we made our order. Soft ice with licorice topping and hot Cocoa for the small one, and black coffee from the pot and two scoops of ice cream for me. Too many tourists in Blåvand for my taste, so I made sure we didn't stay too long.
We moved on, and from now on it was tarmac the next 10 kilometers from Blåvand to Ho. A long stretch on the tarmac, where Edith again started saying something about her legs were tired. I tried to test her a little and asked her if she wanted to go home? She looked odd at me, and asked back at me, "why should we go home?" - and we just pedaled on and after a few minutes of radio silence she said; "Dad, there is a longer way home than to the camping spot"
Shortly after, we saw a frog, dropped the bikes and chased it into the ditch. No concern about sore legs anymore.
I had the idea that we could shop some extras for the dinner when we arrived at Ho, but no shopping possibilities in miles made us take a few funny detours to a cyclist camping, football golf field and lastly Blåvandshuk Golfclub where we bought the drinks for tonight's dinner. Beers and soda.
A few kilometers outside Ho we arrived at skallingen which is a half island in Vadehavet. It stretches for 7k's and is a stunning flatland where you in the distance can see a silhouette of the industrial harbor of Esbjerg. It is really worth a visit and is easily accessible on bike and the road out there reminds more of a bike path than an actual road
We sat up camp at Ho Elipsen where there is a shelter, fireplace and a large area for setting up tents. It was around 6pm, so I hurried to set up the tent and wanted to start the fire asap - knowing how smaller kids react to being hungry ;-)
We still had to pick up some wood, so we went into the forest, and ended up exploring the place, which was quite magical. Wood was eventually found, and it was not an easy task due to all the rain we had had the day before and earlier in the day.
I had quite a hassle getting the fire started and only with help from the very last grill briquettes we succeeded. I was starting to think of plan B's and C's about food, but we made it.
The menu was sausages and small pancakes that we could wrap it up in. Edith overlooked the fire and I sat up the table. Pancakes with sausages and ketchup rolled up was a well deserved dinner, and we enjoyed it big time, sitting there in the sunset. Me having an Odense Pilsner bought at the golf club and Edith her soda. That was a real quality daddy-daughter moment sitting there talking about all the experiences we had and the challenges we faced. She was happy and proud, and so was I.
Two pancakes left, a banana and a small plastic bag with Nutella brought from home. What a dessert we made ourselves, simple but could not have been better in these surroundings.
The clock was 8.30pm and Edith started to talk about going to the tent. She went in and I cleaned up a little, and afterwards we were both lying in our sleeping bags. We ended the day reading the great story of Pippi Longstocking and a few pages in she was out. We slept like babies and didn't wake up until the next morning when my better half arrived with our one-year-old, bringing coffee, buns and cheese. The storytelling started immediately. Everybody had to hear about the adventure from the day before.
To sum it up, we had a fantastic micro adventure with a fairly easy setup. We could have done without the tent and just slept in the shelter. Bags that I used was a 14L saddlebag, 9L handlebar bag and a backpack.
As a preparation to going on tour with a young kiddo, I think it was important to talk about the trip in advance. Especially the length, and challenge, of a trip like this. We ended up with 27 kilometers, took all the breaks we needed and made sure to explore the surroundings when there was something interesting.
Back to the head line of this blog post - Yes you can :-)
A month ago CCCs own Steven Olesen dressed his bike with bags for the first time and headed towards Sweden to test what this bike packing and touring thing is all about. On his trip Steven was accompanied by two good friends of CCC, Tobias and house photographer Emil, to have his back and capture CCCs virgin “voyager” into the unknown fields of this thing called “bike-packing”
A month ago CCCs own Steven Olesen dressed his bike with bags for the first time and headed towards Sweden to test what this bike packing and touring thing is all about. On his trip Steven was accompanied by two good friends of CCC, Tobias and house photographer Emil, to have his back and capture CCCs virgin “voyager” into the unknown fields of this thing called “bike-packing” - Here’s Steven’s report on what will be a series of tales, connected to CCCs Dirt Adventures section under the name “Dirt Roads of Sweden” - Enjoy.
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Last weekend we took the bikes for a Micro adventure in Sweden with Emil and Tobias, which are good friends of CCC. We drove a few hours from CPH to our destination in Halmstad. We sat up the bikes and found our way to the first dirt roads just outside the city.
We were off around 5pm, a little late but still with plenty of time to do the planned 60 km on day 1.
The bikes weighed in at approximately double the weight carrying the bags (incl beers and food for the camp site later), which makes the pace on the rolling gravel hills a little slower than usual. But not that much, actually.
We were carrying a 9L saddlebag, a 5L frame bag, and a 9L handlebar bag. All of them rainproof and easy to mount and pack.
We had to move on and said our goodbyes to the local swedes. During the next 80k's we primarily rode on well prepped gravel roads and a few times we hit some small sections of single tracks. A few times we crossed some big rocks with a few steps of "carry the bike" - At one time the route took us through some very close and impassable vegetation, but of course had to give it a try. And of course we had to turn around and ride a kilometer on the tarmac we tried to avoid. That small detour properly set us back 10 min, but nevertheless it was all worth it when we turned off the tarmac road. We saw what looked like a big horse 50 meters up the gravel road. It was not a horse, it was a young moose the size of a horse, a big one. It stared at us for 10 seconds, and then wandered back into the forest. Seeing a moose when bike packing in Sweden is not an everyday event, and we were pretty thrilled about the whole thing. High on that experience we rode on and on the last part of route the nature and landscape just kept being so different from what we normally see in Denmark. A few really sharp and punchy climbs in the last 30k's started to empty the tanks and even though the spirit was still high, there was a little less chatter at this point.
The stats:
Distance: 175 km
Surface: 80% Gravel Roads
Elevation: Approx 2000 altitude meters
Gear -
Tires: Slick tires will do
Bags: See text
Gear - Most important:
Sleeping bag(we used a summer sleeping bag)
Fair quality sleeping pad
Rain jacket
Long underwear(for sleeping)
Slippers
A cup and a spoon
Knife
Lighter briquettes
Sun cream
Bike tools
Powerbank
Headlamp
Socks
small warm jacket
Coffee and a mug
Mini stove kit - so you can enjoy that coffee in the morning
Wrap-up:
Thanks to Tobias Christensen from Bike & Co Elsinore, for always supporting our small projects and nursing Steven on his first bike packing adventure, and Emil Møller for documenting this great adventure with some fantastic moments we will never forget.
if you are thinking about testing out bike-packing in the near future, be sure to keep an eye on our feed for the new “How To Bike Pack” initiative, where you as a rookie can dip your toes in a category which is flourishing these years, and for a damn good reason.
Reach out and let us help you getting started, and CCC have all the gear you need for you to embarking your first bike packing mini adventure.
Also, sign up for our one-day experience “Dirt Roads Sweden” where we take on the legendary route “Dirty Halland”, socialise on all kind of levels and snack it a bit halfway - it will be a perfect way to experience the fantastic terrain of Sweden, not fare from our homeland Denmark.
Sign-up here
We will also introduce new events, races and even travels in 2022, so please keep an eye on this place for more info on adventures going down around your hood in the coming months - we can't wait to share this stuff with you.
Oh, BTW If you haven't signed up for our next event please enjoy 15% discount today by using code "CCC" at checkout in link below. It will be a dirt party to remember with lots of great sponsors in our expo area and prizes from Enve, Dometic, POC, Wahoo and many more.
The Gravel Crit - De sjællandske Mesterskaber i Grus
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Buresø - First Dirty Series Route feb 2020
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Have a read.
]]>It’s been a while since our last blog post - It has been some crazy busy months organising events, prepping the shop for the summer and looking into our next move when it comes to organising new events for YOU, the community. The 2022 event calendar (when it comes to GRAVEL) is jam packed this year after a "dry" event year in 21 due to COVID , and so far we haven’t been able to actually attend some of the races ourselves. That changed last weekend, when we Saturday March 26, attended "ULVEN UNSUPPORTED GRAVEL" in Hjallerup which is located in the Northern part of Denmark. The weather was more than approved, and even thou we haven’t had the time to prepare properly for such races, the mood was at its best when Mr. Cent Cole Challenge, Adam Eritzøe, picked me up at home Friday afternoon. After 4 hours on the highway with Tool blasting out the speakers, we arrived late Friday night at Hjallerup Inn, where we pretty quickly went to sleep to be well rested and ready for the race the next day at 10am. Saturdays weather forecast didn’t disappoint, and spring showed it’s pretty face when we Saturday morning arrived at Sven Svenningsens farm outside Hjallerup 1 hour prior to race start. The atmosphere at these grassroots gravel events is probably one of our favourite things about gravel in general - everyone attending is eager to contribute to the growing community around this discipline, and all the smiling volunteers just cements the brotherhood culture this sport has to offer, and this morning in Hjallerup was no different. Fantastic event expo, low key, and with just the right vibe of an American grassroots event, well done guys.
The route was fantastic and extremely challenging with its 140K of gnarly, hilly, rough gravel terrain - I managed to pick up a call from my friend who watched the store this Saturday due to my absence, and already there I was dropped and decided to just dig deep and started chasing with the only ambition to get a good day of training in the book. All in all a fantastic day in the saddle, and high fives to Velofit and Sven for throwing such a great event. Note to self - train more if you want to hang on to the pack, and don’t answer your phone at the beginning of a race ;-)
Photo cred ULVEN: @nwr_productions
Yesterday we wrapped up the 2022 "The Gravel Series, where @dirty_series and Copenhagen Cycling Club for the first time have joined forces, to bring you a series of events where race, party-in-the-back and community was the common denominator for what we are trying to achieve. Yesterday we hosted "The Most Dirty Day" together with a group of participants from this years series, and what a day, and what a weather. Sun was shining the entire day, despite of a quite chilly morning, and the day was topped of with BBQ at @cafeparforce - big thanks to the team at Klampenborg Station for helping out with much needed equipment during the events, and for housing this years last event. Also a huge THANKS to you, the people from the DK gravel community, for bringing smiles and good vibes to all of our events - these events would be nothing without you. BIG THANKS.
Photo cred "The Most Dirty Day" : Signe Koch
With our mission to bring the best of off-road cycling to Copenhagen, we will introduce two new brands next month into our portfolio of stuff we love. Quoc Shoes and Albion Cycling from UK - these are two brands that we have been following for a long time now, and we truly believe that they will fit nicely into CCCs concept, due to their outstanding quality and attention to details and functionality. Keep an eye on our newsletter when these two new brands go live, we hope you like 'em
Photo cred from 3 edition of "The Gravel Series": Borg Studio v/Emil Møller
“But do you guys even ride Road”, is a question we often get, and yes, we actually do, but it’s no secret that we love the dirt roads and the peace you get from riding in the woods. We have teamed up with a few strong riders that will help us shred some tarmac, and we are planning to offer both gravel and road rides on a weekly basis starting mid April and throughout the summer. All rides will be announced on our event page on Facebook and on our STRAVA Club site, so keep an eye for all new events coming up soon.
We are also planning a big event just prior to the Grand Depart in Copenhagen this year together with some of our great sponsors, brands and media partners- this one will pay tribute to the history of the tour, and how it back in the days was raced on different surfaces as a full blown “all-roads” event, where dirt and tarmac was equally ridden through some epic stages only documented through historic images. Let’s pay tribute to Le Tour together, and come join this event on June 22nd, more info here
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2022
February:
6/2: The Gravel Series (2nd edition out of 3) (DK) info: more info here
March:
13/3: The Gravel Series (3rd edition out of 3) info: more info here 19/3: Unsupported Spring Classic (DK) info: more info here 26/3: "Ulven" (DK) info: more info here 26/3: Dirty Halland (SE) info: more info here
April:
2/4: UNSUPPORTED WEST COAST GRVL info: more info here 10/4: Forårsdag i Hell-singor info: more info here 23/4: Dirty Jutland (DK) info: more info here
May:
30/5: The Traka (ES) sponsored by Velocio info:more info here
June:
18/6: Drivvejen Unsupported (DK info: more info here
August:
13/8: Hansen Is (DK) info:more info here 27/8: Unsupported Grinder (DK) info: more info here
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To form a partnership around a pioneer product and brand as Open Cycle, seems natural for Benjamin and Ulrich, the Open brand is synonymous with the best within engineering, and the fact that a bike designed and launched back in 2014 is still gaining popularity more than 7 years into its existence, is a rarity unlike any other brand nowadays, who find it necessary to constantly develop on their product line, instead of just getting it right the first time :-) and for Benjamin and Ulrich, this is the reason why this particular product fits perfectly into their mutual vision on working with products and designs that are build to last, with a clear agenda when it comes to sustainability and brands that most of all sets a direction through trailblazing products that covers a specific need in market - nothing more, nothing less.
So from today Strada Bike merges with Copenhagen Cycling Club around Open Cycle and a selection of component and accessories brands that compliment each other nicely, so please check out our Open online configuator here or reach out on custom@copenhagencc.com and lets get you started on your next dream build - we´re all yours, and looking forward to assist you.
Yours truly.
/Ben and Ulle.
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It was clear from the beginning that the riders who showed up was there to shred some serious gravel, so the pace was fast from the very beginning, but as with many other gravel races its “business in front, and party in the back”, which was also the case here, and it didn’t take long before a selection was made and top 10 decided in advance - all good, no regrets and we had a blast just being a part of a growing community and do what we love - riding our bikes. The atmosphere at a gravel event is what sets them apart form other bike races, its the community thing that attracts riders to these grassroots events, and it was the same feeling we felt when hanging out with likeminded gravel heads before and after the race, its one big family and nothing like anything else out there. We can highly recommend checking out some of the many routes in the area surrounding Vejle, its not called “Kingdom of Cycling” for nothing, and just recently the legendary +200K road race “Grejsdals Loebet" was complemented with a gravel specific route as well, which is worth a try if you happen to be in Jutland around May next year.
Copenhagen Cycling Club will together with The Dirty Series host a series of gravel events in the new year, so if you’re up for some good times in the woods of Northern Zealand, please make sure to sign up for “The Gravel Series” and support our growing community here in Denmark.
A special thanks goes out to Wahoo Nordics for bringing us safely through a quite challenging route with their trusty bike computers, POC Sports for a clear vision and safe headgear, and Velocio for keeping us warm and comfortable the entire day - we couldn’t do this without your support, thank you.
Photos shot by the one and only Novak Stefanovic from www.elliotthope.studio - enjoy.
If you want to be a part of our community, just show up at one of our weekly rides announced on our Facebook page - everyone is welcome with no exceptions.
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https://facebook.com/events/s/the-gravel-series-afd-1/1741176639605316/
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We’re here to help you getting one step closer to your dream bike.
]]>Reach out and book an appointment via mail contact@copenhagencc.com or call the store at +45 2072 7777 and we’ll make sure to take you through the process getting one step closer to your dream bike.
// Ulrich Scheibelein (Founder)
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