In retrospect - 300 km on a bike - one night - Vätternrundan 2016 and 2017

Vätternrundan is a fairly big race in Sweden. 300 km is the distance around the lake Vättern and the race starts and ends in a little town called Motala.

Vätternrundan

Bikers from all over come to join the ride. Some do it just for fun on their regular city bikes, some veterans do it on really old, heavy bikes, but many bike clubs go there every year and aim for speed. My goal was survival...


According to the web page, biking 1000 km pre-race is enough of training. If you are a commuter you can easily extend your route and gather km's. I didn't commute and had to look for routes in the countryside for the race and quite frankly, going out alone just to bike is super boring. Anyhow, I had a goal and biking I went. I didn't train enough the first year, though, and so I was really exhausted that time.

While training you find out what to bring and what to change about your bike. I have a pretty small Crescent, but during the first ride I realized the handlebar was too far away. If I had trained enough the first year, I probably would've been too frustrated about it to accept it. The second year I swapped the handle bar stem out for a shorter one, which made a significant difference.

Other gear that we got for the race were rubber shoe covers in case of rain (for the second time - The first time we got super soaked in the whee hours of morning and ended up sitting wrapped in woolen blankets in a red cross Samaritan tent), waterproofs, extra sweaters in merino wool (light, warm no matter if wet or dry), gloves and hats.
More technical stuff: Strong lights on the bikes for the short, but dark night (, lights are compulsory). Stuff for fixing a flat tire and an extra tube, just in case (Ben actually had a flat tire just 10 km before the finish line our second year).
And then loads of snacks and some water.

Super fast cyclists don't bring so much stuff, but we preferred to be prepared.  As you can see these things don't take very much space. We had a couple of small bike bags. Some things you can just tape onto the bike frame. If you wear a bike t-shirt you'll have the smart pocket at the back.

Each pit stop has fruit, bread, coffee, sweet drink, water, salted pickles. At two stops you get dinner. It is ridiculous how much you can eat during that one night. And everything tastes good. Everything!! The dinner pic above is actually at a stop at 6:30 in the morning and we are having lasagna.

There are people having parties all along the road (where there are towns) and the sunrise picture is taken just after a happy fellow shouted:
"Welcome to Västergötland (the county), this is where the sun is ALWAYS rising!"
And it always is when you reach that spot.

The race
The first part goes south along the lake and starts quite lightly. The route has a slight slope before heading into a long flat area along some fields. Most people keep a good pace here, and the first people will hit a bump getting flat tires already within a few km. There always seem to be several people fixing flat tires on this part.
The first half of the race is pretty fast and around 100km in the darkest hours you get to the long downward slope as you near Jönköping, a town on the southern tip of the lake. Here you can reach crazy speeds and I think my max was 70 kmh??
By the time we reached the large pit stop in Jönköping the muscles were beginning to be a bit worn. Most people have a long stop here, having dinner, massage and just hanging out.
After Jönköping the work begins, because you start to really feel the distance. No long downward slopes anymore, just short ups and downs. By the time we reached the northern tip of the lake my ligaments around the knees were aching. Stopping for a break was good for the muscles ,but really bad for everything else. The pain of starting up again really tested my masochistic abilities. Second year I felt less exhausted, but knowing how far I had left to bike was a pain.
The last pit stop is placed in an upward slope. The sun was beaming as we reached there. Some people were lying around in the grass almost comatose in the heat. We had loads to drink, some snacks and headed off for the final burst. Its hard to start off going up when everything is aching, but soon we finally hit the final downward slope to Motala in great sunshine and arriving in town with loads of people cheering us (and a couple of thousand others) on. Yay!


Getting to and from - hostels and tents
So the first year we went all out and rented a car that could fit our bikes. We booked a hostel for the night before the race, really nice place with an apple tree garden, right next to Göta Kanal.

Göta Kanal

The second night we got a cheap tent spot for recuperating after the race. Driving is strongly advised against and quite frankly, I felt drunk and slow after the race and probably could've hit a lamp post at 20 kmh had I sat myself behind the wheel. Luckily our sister came to drive us home later.

I had, of course forgotten my tent at home and had to squeeze into my brothers 1-p, light weight one, to his exasperation.

To and from - Lygnartåget - the Lygnar train
The second year we decided to do it the easy way. There is a train that goes from Gothenburg to Motala and back. You can book a chair or a bunk bed, lunch and dinner. We went with the chairs and brought our own food. You check your bike in, get a name tag, hop on the train and relax.

Lygnartåget  (only in Swedish)

After the race people can head back to the train, shower at a local school or such, sleep or whatever. The train heads back to Gothenburg at midnight when all cyclists have returned. Flip side is arriving in town at 5 AM, but this arrangement is really a good one I think.

When you've finished the race five times you receive a special medal. We have 3 more to go... ;)

In retrospect - Road trip on the Swedish west westcoast and southern Norway - Part 4

On a lovely sunny day we found our way to Ravnåskollen in Drammen, Norway.

Ravnaskollen-crag














Driving there went through some remote area with very few houses and we had a little bit of trouble finding the site at first. The last part to the site is a gravel route, and we had to use GPS to get there. You'll pass some single houses on the last part of the way and if I remember correctly there is a lake a bit off behind some forest to your right and the rise is on your left. At one point you come to a small open gravel area that could resemble a parking lot. There was nobody at the site when we got there, so not very crowded ;)

Probably there is a path up to the rock, but we didn't look for it. Instead we took the straight route up and the walk was short, but really very steep. The steep was covered with leaves and just a tad slippery, but with some struggle we got up to the rock.
There we found several sports climbing routes and this is where I did my first outdoor lead climb.

Ravnåskollen has 9 sports routes, the easiest being 4+ and the most difficult one being a 7a+. The 4+, called "De første stegene" or "The first steps" was my maiden climb (pic). As I have not done lead climbing indoors (which wise people consider to be the way to begin) this was an easy alternative way to start.  The rock had some lichen to be cleared away at each step. Wearing gloves might be an idea too depending on your skin status.

We had brought our picnic stuff and had coffee and snacks with us. We had a great weather with sunshine overhead and shade from the trees that surrounded us.
There were lots of signs of this being a moderately frequented spot, even if not as much as the previously mentioned Vindön. Nonetheless I guess we were just lucky to have all the space for ourselves.

Ben tried a 6a+ route among other routes here. The last one he did was "Opp til utsikten" - "Up to the outlook/view point". That is a long route of over 30 meters (pic) that seems quite fun. Abseiling down is not so bad either. :-)

At some point we realized we had to travel on, we had a hotel room waiting for us some ways off. So pack the climbing gear, dust off all our stuff - there are ticks in the Nordic forests, and off we drove.

The hotel I had booked had a sauna and a pool - one night in the forest in a tent, one night in a hotel with all extras. Whats not to like?

The hotel we went to was Arendal Herregaard Spa & Resort, a beautiful building placed near to the water in Arendal.The main building is visually very pleasantly decorated. Our accommodation was not so impressive, however. The room was tiny, the building had signs of age and water damage in the door so it was difficult to lock. The place was pretty nice even so.

We got there a bit late in the evening and hurried to get to the pool to get as much time there as possible. It's funny how childishly much you can enjoy splashing around in pool of water, no matter your age, your university years or how much authority you express on a regular work day. ;-) We spent the evening in the pool and sauna until the spa area closed.

The next morning we had breakfast included and I really enjoyed the buffet. The coffee was good, they had alternatives for allergics and they made omelettes on the go if you wanted that.

Our next goal on our super short, mega effective road trip was  Froland, a spot that also can be found in Arendal. All about that in the next post.

In retrospect - Göteborgsvarvet - festival level half marathon

I used to think that I couldn't run, that I simply didn't have the build for it.  Running has always been a struggle for me when I was younger. I remember the dreaded track runs at school and having to try measure up to all the others and the burning in my throat from the cold air, and then coughing the rest of the day.
I didn't stop trying, however, but it took years before I realized I was a slow runner. Really slow. I had simply tried too hard before.
When I finally figured out the right tempo was more or less the same as ultra-marathon runners use (super slow) I actually found that running was fun! I started looking for official running events and considered some trail runs. I found out that I could do 10 km and somewhere around 12 km I got the idea, why not 21?

So, with a spot at Göteborgsvarvet, a half marathon, that almost has reached festival status in Gothenburg.

Göteborgsvarvet

It's ridiculously big and constantly growing, I found a more structured training program, increasing the distance gradually. I actually got so invested in running that I sometimes turned down social events in favor of running.
I didn't feel the need to do 21 km before the actual run, but being able to do close to that was the goal.
I found a program online that I revised to fit my needs and I think I settled for the standard increase of max 10 % per week, along with training of stabilizing running muscles - core and lower back in specific. Important!!

I think Runnersworld has some good programs that you can use. Many programs include intervals, tempo training and such. I don't really fancy those types of running (burning throat mentioned earlier), so I just skipped all that.

At this time I found my favourite brand of running shoes - the only ones that have never caused trouble for my knees, Saucony. For a while I had 4 different kinds of Saucony. A soft soled one, Kinvara, which I stopped running in though, because they were too soft. Hattori, a minimalist, zero drop one, that I still sometimes walk with - I don't run minimalist anymore, it was no good for my feet I realized. Kilkenny a thin shoe with spikes which I've mostly used when cross country running on the Faroe Islands (even though they are racing shoes) and then the ones I still use, my regular 12 mm drop, neutral shoes, Ride.

The run is really fun. As mentioned above it is more like a festival. There are people EVERYWHERE. Some runners go through it with different outfits. There is music along the way and some people use the opportunity to engage in a Gbg-Varvet-party. I remember passing a residential area where some people were sitting at the windows a couple of floors up, lowering a bucket filled with ice and gin shots for the runners to grab as they passed. I politely declined, laughing.

The route is a little bit hilly and I know that some people find it a bit arduous. If you're prepared you wont really feel it, is my experience. There are a few ups and downs ranging from sea level to 60 meters, so nothing dramatic. You run along the quay, cross a couple of large bridges and cross through the center of Gothenburg and the start and end is in the greenest area of town, Slottsskogen (Castle forest) close to the botanical garden.

There are shorter runs for kids too and many people use this opportunity to set up a pick-nick site near the finish-line and hang out in sun. After my run several members of my family have done it and hanging out during the run and after has become a thing. I actually gave my brother a spot as a gift without asking him and he ended up doing the race the year after.

I haven't had the opportunity to do the run again, but one day maybe. :-)

In retrospect - Road trip on the Swedish west westcoast and southern Norway - Part 2

When snorkeling and hanging out in Gothenburg was over and done with  (https://adventuresoup.blogspot.com/2018/10/in-retrospect-swedish-west-coast.html) the trip continued northward.

I'm a (forever) noob climber and my brother is really a more proficient one. The west coast is known for its many crags (check out 27crags.com) and he had found one that looked fun. We go to places where there are low grade routes for me and higher grade for him.

We brought all climbing gear (harness, shoes, carabiners, rope, helmets, gloves,  quick-draws) and headed off toward Uddevalla, a town that through history has been part of Sweden, Norway and Denmark in turns.. over and over...
Nowadays it's a pretty pleasant town, with a water front, hilly topography and lies close to interesting nature and towns.

The crag we decided to try out can be found on Vindön (wind island, red arrow.

https://27crags.com/crags/vindon

The area has a lot of interesting rock to climb and has 50 routes at levels from 4 traditional or 4+ sport to 6c+ traditional and 8a+ sport.
There is also a single boulder leveled 6b.
I had been climbing for several days already in a row (not a good idea) and my fingers and forearms were bummed.

The rock looks fun and there are quite many routes here. The longest routes, I think, are actually multi pitch (you climb up, secure yourself up there, bring your rope up and continue upward from that point - several pitches).

I didn't do a lot of climbing at Vindön. Instead I mostly stood on the ground and secured Ben, who on the other hand tried several routes, but he too had been climbing a bit more than usual. At some point we realized we had to keep traveling toward Norway. We decided that this place is so much worth visiting again.

As dusk made its way towards us we set off northward in my blue Peugeot. Driving in  Sweden is easy and the roads are good. Max speed is 120 kmh (130 kmh in Denmark) and there are loads of possibilities for a break on the road.

Quite soon we reached the Norwegian border. The border control is quite relaxed and doesn't cost anything.

Driving in  Norway is pretty much the same as in Sweden, but there are loads of road tolls, so you either should  register your car (so as not to receive the highest payable rate) or if you go there often, get an autopass.

http://www.autopass.no/visitors-payment

There are loads of tunnels in Norway. We only passed the ones near the border this time, but depending on where in the country you are you might be in really long tunnels, in sometimes steep angles, with intersections in the deep. Makes for some interesting driving.

By the time we got to Norway it was getting dark and we still had some ways to go to reach the area, Drammen, where we had planned on staying the night in a tent. More about that in the next post...

In retrospect - Road trip on the Swedish west westcoast and southern Norway - Part 1

So this was a short, but intensive road trip, traveling along the northern west coast of Sweden up to southern Norway during a short vacation.

Sweden to the right, Norway to the left
and the top of Denmark below

As most locals know, the summer of 2018 has been quite amazing. We had sunshine, warm weather and more sunshine.

The week started in Gothenburg, Sweden, where I, as usual, spent a load of vacation time working on my laptop due to a deadline. That meant I, during breaks, got to see some of the local area instead.
My brother and sister have made a habit of snorkeling in the archipelago of Gothenburg. If you haven't been there, go! Summer on the west coast of Sweden is GOLD! GOLD I tell you!!

I don't have a wet suit, but I had brought my goggles with me, so one day we headed off to Hönö, one of the islands just west
of the city (red arrow). You can drive all way, the ferries out to the islands are part of the road network and under the jurisdiction of the road administration, so you can just drive right on to the ferry and over to the islands.
The roads on the islands are narrow and a bit worn by the harsh coastal weather, but ok to drive on. On Hönö there is a parking lot in a foresty area just north of town - you can't drive right up to the beach here, walking is required. Actually I have never seen cars right on the beach in Sweden. In Denmark it is another matter and people will park right at the water line, in order to not have to waste physical strength to get there.

The west coast is mostly rocky. The rocks are smooth and rounded in most places and here and there you can find traces of the ice age, such as completely rounded holes in the rock. Potholes they are called in Swedish.

In many places you can find a private nook, with clear and calm waters to swim or snorkel in. I would suggest bringing beach shoes or something of the like, even though I've not used such before now. The rocks can be a bit unpleasant to put your bare feet on since they are so covered with kelp and you can't really see whats hiding underneath.

If you are into fishing, trout is a popular goal for many fishers along the coast line. If you are more into mackerel you need to be on a boat.