T-Minus 2,000 Kilometers, And Counting


Podelco marks 1,000 kilometers with a cold pivo at his favorite watering hole in Okoř.


I'm one-third of the way to my goal, and on target.

I was off on Monday and went out for a solo ride to (where else!?) Okoř, my default destination.

The ride put me over 1,000 kilometers for the year so far. My goal for 2007 is 3,000 kilometers.

I celebrated the milestone with (what else!?) a cold Pilsner Urquell in Okoř (30 CZK, or about $1.40), and then it was back in the saddle for the ride home.

It was a scorcher of a day, sunny and in the high 80s (around 30 Celsius). I was dragging a bit on the way home, but hitting the 1,000k mark kept me going.

Not a whole lot of interesting things to report about the ride itself, unfortunately.

I did see a picturesque pair of swans and their young (quick quiz: what's a baby swan called? answer below) paddling up the Vltava near Sedlec. And the rolling Czech countryside looked so nice from on the trail near Tuchoměřice that I just had a stop and drink it all in.

RIDE STATS
Length of ride: 44 kilometers
Average speed: 19.7 kph
Maximum speed: 51.1 kph
Time on the bike: 2.13.24
Distance ridden in 2007: 1,006 kilometers



Google Maps

I'm working on trying to add some maps of the trails I ride on this blog, using Google Maps. It's rather time-consuming, I've found, at least for a neophyte cartographer such as myself, but it's my intention to include maps of the most popular trails I write about on this blog.

If anyone has any tips, please pass them along.

I'm sure the first trail I add will be the path I take to Okoř.

Keep reading!


The lovely Czech countryside on a summer's day near Tuchoměřice.


A small lake in Okoř, just up from the Family Hotel Okor & Restaurant.

(Quiz Answer: Baby swans are called cygnets.)

Comments

Julia said…
Have you tried mapy.cz or viamichelin.org? Mapy definitely has better satellite maps of the Czech Republic than Google (much newer) and I am partial to viamichelin's map graphics.
Grant Podelco said…
Thanks for this. I'm fooling around with bikely.com at the moment, to see if I can get that to work.

I'm finding it all kinda tricky, to be honest! But I think it will be worth it if someone wants to actually bike some of these routes.
amidnightrider said…
My refrigerator is stocked with Pilsner and Peroni for those times when good friends visit.
I also keep some Budwiser for the times when someone I don't care for drops by.
Grant Podelco said…
I hope you're talking about the U.S. version of Budweiser! The original Czech version, Budvar (Budweiser in German), is very popular here and very, very good. There's no comparison. I'd say Pilsner Urquell is my favorite, followed closely by Budvar.
Anonymous said…
Grant,
Take a look at this page...
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/kml/episode.kml?episodePkValues=2259735

It was created from a handlebar mounted GPS/cyclocomputer (https://buy.garmin.com/shop/shop.do?cID=160&pID=6400). The data was uploaded to a PC then imported into Google Maps. It's really amazing what GPS can do.
Tyler said…
I also use a Garmin GPS system to record my rides and training. You can buy models for either wrist wearing or a bike adapted model. They are FANTASTIC units. the amount of data a options for exporting to other software is incredible. I have been using mine for a year or more and have hundreds of recorded routes in different countries, they can be overlaid on Google maps or my particular favourite Googleearth. if you would like to see a couple of examples, send me your email address to praguecentral@email.cz
Grant Podelco said…
Thanks, Dale and Tyler, for this information. I will definitely check our the Garmin unit. How much do they cost? They also record heartbeats, etc.?

I'll send you my e-mail, Tyler. I would love to see some more examples.

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