欧州自転車レース追っかけ日記

After this TPMS incident and after it was temporarily or permanently remedied, I picked up the pace and droveon.

I arrived at the foot of the hill. It was a mess. A lot of people were there and cars and buses. I don't know if all the people were there for the race event but crowded.

I tried to find a place to park in the vicinity to no avail. So I drove into a narrow street that seemed to parallel to the race course. It turned out to be the race course. I was climbing the race course. What could I do?

After a while, I parked at the place where parking was possible. It was around 1.5 kilometers from the finish.

When I parked and saw that I had some time to kill, I checked around the car. I made a disturbing discovery. There were scratches on the boot lid and bumper where Saris Bones Solo's feet stood. They (soft rubber feet) were supposed to be scratch free or anti-scratch. How did it happen? How did those soft feet leave scratches on the paint surface? I tried to minimize the damages by scrubbing them off with a disposable towel soaked with mild polishing agent. I bought these years ago when I was still living in Germany.

I tried but they did not go away. I was very sad.

I watched the race and after the race I drove back to Bergamo. I think I paid around €18 to €20 on way. So it makes around €40 for the round trip.

I got stuck in the traffic near Milano. It was a big congestion and I lost more than half an hour or so. As I left Milano, the traffic was smooth again.

After coming back to the B&B, I wrapped those feet with rug. I hoped it would work.

Milano-Torino is a simple race. As the name suggests it starts in Milano and finishes in Torino. The highlight of the race is ups and downs in the circuit course. The best way to enjoy this race is take the bike and ride the circuit course.

The course safety measurement is pretty lax. Or should I say very accommodating and relenting. I like it that way. You can ride the course until just a few minutes before the race comes.

This time I went to the start to see what it was like but It was not a good idea. I should have gone to Torino in the morning and ride the circuit course.

October 6th
I woke up early and drove to Maglio. I took out my bike and rode up to Sormano. It was fun.

Now the Saris Bones Solo made no more scratches on the paint surface. The wrapped rug does not look good. I think I have to find a better solution.

Speaking of finding a better solution, I have to find a better way of tying two of the straps that hang downward from this Bones Solo.


October 7th
I left the B&B around 08:00 and drove straight to the gas station and bought €20 worth premium gasoline. The gas station system here in Italy is certainly different from that of Luxembourg. In Luxembourg the system is simple; you pump and then pay at the counter later.

Here it seems that there are prevailing prepaid system stations and there are first pump system stations, too. The gas station I went to was semi-first-pump-system station. After this I went to a self car wash a couple hundred meters away. I gave my car a good splash and hurriedly dried it up.

Driving to Maglio was easy by now and I arrived there by 11:00. I started applying some wax (Carron) on my car and RainX on the front windshield. I still had a lot of time to kill. This was a mistake. I did not know any better.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [October 5th PartII, October 6th and 7th]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車ロードレース - ジャンル:スポーツ

1. 2017/10/07(土) 22:06:39|
2. Bike Races in Italy
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I left for Milano around 08:00, I think. I took some wrong turns and it cost me 10 minutes more of unnecessary detour. My trusty Garmin nüvi kept calm and told me what to do and in one hour and a half I was in Milano.

There was a traffic congestion near Milano. This was expected. Milano is a big city. Although driving to the destination (South outskirts of Milano) did not require me to drive through the center of city, the traffic was heavy.

The start area was a industrial and commercial zone where you will see IKEA and other shops on one side and some logistics company's big yard on the other. GLS (a logistics company well known in Europe) was one of the parters of the event and its property was the parking for all the vehicles. They put up a big balloon shaped in a Zeppelin (airship) over their property to add some sense of festivity.

I was there around 10:00, I think. To my surprise, I saw two of my Dutch friends there. They were on vacation and enjoying the race.

I had some missions to complete. 1. Say hello to Fumy Beppu. 2. Say hello to Manuele Mori. 3. Take some pictures of Philippe Gilbert for keeps.

I completed my missions and by the time the riders started to gather before the start gate, I was already in my car to leave for Torino.

The highway between Milano and Torino was impressive. There were at least three wide lanes and were even four lanes near Milano. The road surface (asphalt) was very smooth.

My ride was supposed to be as smooth as the asphalt but it turned out to be not so smooth.

It was 50 km (I do not remember well) before reaching Torino, I heard an alarming beep. It took me by surprise. I saw the TPMS alarm light on. The strange thing was I did not feel any vibrations or hear any suspicious noise coming from the tires.

I wanted to stop and inspect the tires but I was driving on the highway and at the same time I did not sense anything wrong. So I decided to slow down a bit and kept on going until the next parking.

I stopped at the parking and inspected the tires. They seemed OK. To be sure that nothing was wrong, I took out the air pump and checked the air pressure of all four tires. They were at 2.0 bar on the pressure gauge. I don't think this pressure gauge is 100 % correct but I had to assume that it was not so wrong.

I don't know what triggered the TPMS alarm but at that point I was driving over one hour at a speed of well over 100 to 110 km/h. This qualifies the air pressure as not "cold air pressure" but as "hot air pressure."

If so 2.0 bar is a bit too low. Was this the cause of the alarm? There was no way of knowing of the cause.

I pumped all of the tires to 2.2 bar and was on the road again.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [October 5th Part I]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車ロードレース - ジャンル:スポーツ

1. 2017/10/05(木) 22:11:25|
2. Bike Races in Italy
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October 2nd and 3rd
Dear, Diary.

I left Luxembourg around 22:30 and headed for Italy via France and Switzerland.

It was already cloudy in Luxembourg and when I entered France already some 5 minutes after the departure, it was damp and it felt rain was imminent. I kept the soft top up.

It rained lightly sporadically in France so my decision to keep the root up was right. The traffic was light in France and I took a break somewhere near Mulhouse, France. I slept in the seat about 2 hours in the parking along the French highway (for which I think I paid about €12 or €14 in total).

I started driving again around 05:00 and arrived at Basel (French-Swiss border) around 06:00. I expected some traffic (French people commuting to Basel) and I was right. A lot of cars on the highway before Basel and around Basel (when German commuters join at the border point). There seemed to be a minor accident on the highway (I saw two cars stopping and creating a bottle neck).

At the border I expected to be stopped by the custom officials and then they would offer me the vignette (Swiss highway yearly subscription toll system ticket) but there were no officers standing at the control.

I stopped at the border control point (there is a small parking, of course) in disbelief and walked to the office. There were numerous signs and there were two kinds; one saying that there is no toilettes here but there will be in 15 km (next parking, I guess) and the other telling that Vignettes are available in the office.

So they changed the system. One has to park and go into the office to get one. I got mine and stuck it on the front windshield and drove on. It started to rain and later pour.

I stopped at a parking and had another rest in the car. I don't know exactly when and until what time but slept rather comfortably in the seat of Mazda MX-5. I guess it was somewhere near Luzern.

When I woke up and started to drive again, the sun was up but it continued to pour. The rain did not clear up until I was close to the Swiss-Italian border. When the rain was gone, I stopped at a parking along the highway and open the roof.

I arrived at Varese around noon. I looked for the parking and parked in an undergournd parking in the center of Varese. It was just three or four hundred meters to the finish of the race.

Tre Valli Varesine was won by Alexandre Geniez. I could feel the dismay of the audience who had hoped that Vincenzo Nibali would win or Fabio Aru.

After the race I headed for the place for the night.

So I am in Italy. I noticed some changes beside the FM radio talking Italian that are really noticeable. One thing that bothers me a bit is my GPS navigation pal (Garmin n¨vi 2340 also) began talking differently.

No she (because my choice of voice is always female) does not suddenly started talking Italian (although I can switch to local Italian if I want) but she started saying "roundabout this" and "roundabout that."

There are so many roundabouts around here. I have to roundabout this and that constantly. Seriously!

Sometimes the instruction she gives me is, "Enter roundabout and take the second exit. (a moment later) Take the second exit to enter roundabout." Seriously! A plethora of them!

During the drive from Varese (the race finish) to a small inn outside Come about 25 km, I think I heard her say "roundabout" at least 30 or 40 times.

The inn was OK but the Wifi did not work. The password was either incorrect or the router was not functioning.

Sidenotes:
I took my bike out during Tre Valli Varesine and noticed some time later that I had lost the one of the caps on my Limits power meter. What happened to them? I mean Limits technology. Is it still alive or already dead?

Don't some kind people who live near the company in Scotland visit the company to see if they can find warm bodies or dead bodies there?

October 4h.
Dear Diary.

Next day, Wednesday, October 4th I woke up around 07:00 and started packing after taking a shower. I had some things to do.

Visiting Maglio, a small village at the foot of Sormano climb featured in Il Lombardia and then Madonna di Ghisallo was on my list.

There were a lot of cyclists on the road despite the fact that it was Wednesday. I did not drove all the way up Sormano as there was no point doing so by car.

I visited this small place called Madonna di Ghisallo. I did not go in the museum next to it. The entrance fee was something like €6 as there was no point doing so. I could have rode my bike there but the previous night I noticed something. I forgot to pack my bibshorts. I had the jersey but not bottom. I also packed the spring autumn long sleeve jersey and long bibshorts but the weather was definitely for shorts.

I then drove to Bergamo via Como. There were so many, wait for it, roundabouts on the way.

I checked in the Bed & breakfast inn there. This place was also nice. I asked the host woman if there was a sporting equipment store nearby. I knew there was a Decathlon 3 km away. She told me to seek a shop in the center of old town (of Bergamo). I walked to there and bought a discounted sale bibshorts. These will do.

I have not yet decided if I should take a bike with me for Milano-Torino. Probably I won't. I will walk up the hill where Milano-Torino finishes.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [October 2nd, 3rd and 4th Diary]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車ロードレース - ジャンル:スポーツ

1. 2017/10/04(水) 20:33:14|
2. Bike Races in Italy
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1. Tre Valli Varesine (Tuesday, 03 October)
2. Milano-Torino (Thursday, 05 October)
3. Il Lombardia (Saturday, 07 October)


Random notes on these races. I looked for more information on participants of these races but some teams put the rosters and others don't in advance. So what I know now is not much.

1. Tre Valli Varesine (Tuesday, 03 October)

The official site has been adding information gradually and by now (September 30) the only missing piece of information will be the list of participants.

Trek-Segafredo has posted numerous rosters for upcoming Italian races. Initially, Beppu's official site said that he would race Tre Valli Varesine but recently changed that he would not.

I am expecting to get there just in time to see the finishing circuit course in Varese.

According to weather.com, the weather of Varese on Tuesday, 03 October will likely be sunny with some clouds and the projected daytime high will be 20 Celsius. Not bad!

2. Milano-Torino (Thursday, 05 October)

The official site has been rather reluctant and has not put up much information. The detailed time schedule is still missing and the official guide is also not present. I hope the list of participants has to be there soon.

Trek-Segafredo has announced that Fumy (Beppu) will participate in this event. I am really happy and excited.
According to weather.com, the weather of Torino (Turin) on Thursday, 05 October will be sunny with some clouds and the projected daytime high will be 18 Celsius. Not bat!

3. Il Lombardia (Saturday, 07 October)

This event is managed by the same organization as Milano-Torino so the situation (concerning the information) is much the same.

Cyclingnews.com has kindly informed me that Philippe Gilbert would be there. Other than that not much I know about the participants.

According to weather.com, the weather of Como on Saturday, 07 October will be sunny with some clouds and the daytime high will be 21 Celsius. Not bad at all.

BLINK S2

According to the latest update (ACTON's blog), my BLINK S2 (for someone like me who paid the VAT after September 18th) is now being processed for shipping by the French agent. I have not received a shipping notice yet and I will be away for about two weeks from home. I may receive mine around October 15th.

Garmin GLO

Since I am now waiting my Garmin GLO (Amazon Germany second-hand) unit, I have done some googling and downloading. My initial questions were; Are there any iOS apps for that? How do I update the firmware on it?

There was no dedicated iOS app for that. Perhaps there are no parameters to tune on that device.

On the other hand, updating the firmware turned out to be quite interesting. This device (Garmin GLO) seems to be born in 2012. Garmin still produces new units because there are constant demand for them.

Anyway, to update the firmware on it, one has to use the WebUpdate software on Macs. I used to use this software but deleted it when Garmin switched to Garmin Express. Yes, around 2012 I think I was still using WebUpdater. Garmin dropped the support for GLO when they switched to Express.

Garmin seems to be still actively working on improving the firmware since the latest firmware is quite new. I installed the WebUpdater on my MacBook and now I am ready.

People like me who own an iPad (or similar device) without a GPS (or assisted GPS) function seem to love this little creature. On YouTube site you will find a lot of people who are using this on their boats, airplanes or vehicles. Garmin offers navigation applications for them.

XGPS series from DUAL seem to be born much later than Garmin GLO. DUAL's devices look more refined and smaller. I wanted to own one but my budget was tight.


In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ

[Three Italian road race events and my late vacation (and other things)]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車ロードレース - ジャンル:スポーツ

1. 2017/09/30(土) 16:28:21|
2. Bike Races in Italy
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Tre Valli Varesine

Today, earlier I checked the site Tre Valli Varesine (http://www.trevallivaresine.com) to see if they (organizer) had posted any new information and I did not find any.

Later, Today (Wednesday, September 13) I checked again to find that they had posted further details.

Now I have the time schedule of the race. The time schedule along with the altitude information on a PDF tells me a lot of things and now I can plan the day.

There is a climb section just before reaching the city of Varese and enter a circuit course. This climb section is not long and won't do any damage to the riders. The altitude gain is under 300 meters and I wonder if it is worth going there to watch the peloton.

I will be there after a long drive so maybe I should take it easy and sit back in the city.

The race starts in Saronno around noon and finished in Varese around 16:30 to 17:00. I am not sure when I can be there. If everything goes well (no highway constructions or accidents on the way), I can be near Varese around 13:00.

The race passes the climb around 13:40 to 14:00 so I can not make it there before that, I will just drive to Varese.

After the race, I will check in a hotel about 20 km from Varese and it is near Como.

iTunes 12.7

Apple released this new version and the new feature worries me a bit. It won't download iOS device apps or keep them at all. All the apps have to be handled by iOS devices.

I read some comments on some forum that some were welcoming that feature saying that it would get rid of bulky apps on their PCs and Macs. Well I disagree.

Nowadays HDDs and SSDs are getting cheaper while their capacity is growing. It won't matter a bit to have some software on their PCs and Macs, will it?

It DOES matter when you run out of place on your iOS devices since they won't take any SD or microSD cards at all, does it?

I hate it as downloading a big app like TomTom Western Europe takes time and a lot of battery.

It is another scheme by Apple to force people to opt for more expensive iOS devices with more built-in memory. Don't you realize it?

Those who are welcoming this new feature will be fools.

Apple has just devised another brilliant scheme to justify the rising prices for their shiny iPhones and others.

Applause!

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Tre Valli Varesine 2017 details or sort of and iTunes 12.7 scheme]の続きを読む

1. 2017/09/13(水) 21:45:16|
2. Bike Races in Italy
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