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Day 7 – Bonn to Koeln. Easy ride. No Sun


Location: Koeln
Distance since last post: 15km
Weather: Brightening. Still 100% cloud

As I was leaving Bonn this morning I passed a trio of mountain bike riders. They where looking closely at one of the bikes and I heard them say ‘I think the gear has broken.’ My army-pattern bike might be heavy but its as solid as a rock!

Journey today was rather short and uneventful. There was little traffic on the paths apart from the  occasional animal and a rather stupid (and probably deaf) old man that cut across me to turn into a side path. You do NOT want to be hit by my bike! Fortunately we passed each other safely and gave each other a friendly wave (sort of!)

 

I didn’t get more than about 10 minutes computing power from the sun today. It was hopeless even stopping to try! Tomorrow is the last day for collecting solar energy and I am praying praying praying for just a few hours of sun to take me through to the finish line in Duesseldorf at midday on Monday.

I have updated the route map with a few more images. Hope you enjoy them.


Crossing the Rhein on a tiny Ferry (below)

Berta the Blue Bakers Bike


Distance since last post: 15km
Weather: Clouds thinning
Notes: I don’t have much faith in the lead-acid battery. The Li-Ion battery seems to be charging much more reliably.

Another day completed and I feel like I’m getting into a better rhythm. Checking emails and RSS on the mobile phone and creating rich journal updates with the Q1b. I only wish I had a  mind recorder because I’m thinking of some great ideas while I cycle but forgetting them when I get to a point where I could write them down!

The bike, which I’ve decided to call Berta (the Blue Bakers Bike) is performing fantastically well. I was a bit worried about having no gears but the fixed gear ratio is perfect for around 22km/h which, with 65KG of pack on a 25KG bike is just perfect. The thick tyres help to soak up bumps and now that I’ve pumped up the pressure a bit more, seem to roll without too much resistance. I even clocked 34kn/h on a straight today . Wohoo! Berta is Berta

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Day 1 starts well


Location: Speyer.
Distance since last post. Approx 30km
Temp. 25 C
Weather. Blue skies!

Awake at 0730 after a really good sleep and a horrible dream that when I got out of my tent I was in an empty campsite…with no bike. Packing up camp took a bit longer then expected mainly due to the dampness of everything and the fact that I usually get up at 0900 and not 0730. I also had to deal with about 10 mosquito bites. Damn they are annoying. On the road at about 0915.

At 10:45 this morning I pulled off the path and set up the solar panel for the first time. I haven’t actually tested it with the frame yet because I only finished building the frame a day before the tour but with a few strips of velcro it folds back on itself nicely and stays well in place. Its a pain to be getting things out of the panniers all the time though.

There are literally hundreds of bikes out today. The route is well ridden and of course, its Sunday. Everyone seems happy and friendly. I chatted to a couple of bikers at a train crossing and then, 30 minutes later they passed me in the opposite direction waving and wishing me a happy journey. That really helps make it more enjoyable.

I’m riding at about 20km/h on the bike which is a steady, but certainly not fast pace. Taking into account stops I think I must average about 15km/h while riding which means 3-3.5hours riding per day. I think that will fit nicely into the plan of a morning and late afternoon ride.

The Q1b is working well here on a table in a biergarten. I was worried about the screen not being bright enough but in there shade there’s no problem.

Now its time to catch up on emails, RSS feeds. See you at the next campsite.

Mobile Office UMPC Table


I have been looking all over for a lightweight table that I can use on the Solar UMPC tour (which is at risk of being pushed back by another week due to weather and PR organizational activities unfortunately) but I realised at the weekend that I already have a table.

Its a heavy bike but it has its uses! Since taking these pictures I’ve fitted a center stand to the bike so that it stays level. All I need to do now is to find a stool. I’ve tried a few three-legged walking stools but they’re not comfortable. I’ll try and get a folding camping stool sorted out.

Now all I need is a little beer bottle holder on the side and I’m all set!

Blue Bike Baggage test


Encouraged by yesterdays progress with the solar kit, I spent most of today finishing off the wiring and packing it all into a plastic box. I then paired down my kit list somewhat (out goes the Nokia N800 and spare mobile phone, two pairs of underwear, one of the t-shirts, the multimeter and a pair of trousers) and loaded everything up on the bike to see what sort of weight I was dealing with. The total wight of the bike and kit together (that’s biking, camping and computing gear) comes to 55KG. I have some food and bits and pieces to add to that so lets call it 60KG. Considering the bike weighs 25Kg that means I’m going to be carrying a 35Kg office. I took the bike for a ride and it seems pretty stable although I am a little worried about brake failure. I only have a back-pedal brake and while its very good I’m in serious trouble if it fails. I’m thinking about getting front brakes fitted this week. I also notice a small S in the back wheel. Its out of alignment and I hope that it can be brought true again by a local bike shop. If not, I’m probably in trouble and might have to switch bikes. I don’t want to do that as I really like FK398. Its been a work horse for 4 years and it deserves to be in the tour. It also looks great. I love the retro style.

 
About 90% loaded. The Kronan feels OK to ride with 35KG on it.

Another problem I really need to think about is the positioning of the solar panel on the bike. I can easily deploy 50% of it across the rear baggage but that’s not really going to be enough. I should have tried to find two separate 12W panels and mounted them front and rear but its too late for that now and I’ll have to work round it. In this part of the world, the sun gives you about 4 full-power hours per day. With a 50% deployment of the panel, that’s only 48W/hrs. Short of the 60W/hrs I think I need per day. However, what I could do (and I really like the sound of this idea) is take a 2 hours working break between 12 and 2. This should give me close to 50W/hr of energy assuming the sun is shining. Outside these hours I might pick up another 10-20 w/hr so that’s 70W/hr of energy from the panel in a day. It looks like its possible and I will test the theory this week.


Under the seat is the battery and electrical kit. It weighs something like 5KG but packs an 80W/hr lead-acid battery and a 56W/hr Li-Ion battery. Enough to take a full days energy from the solar panel. 


There’s about 5KG going on the front rack. Its not attached to the forks so doesn’t affect steering as much as panniers would. I’m thinking of using it as a computer table in the evening but I can’t find a good enough stool. 

 

Mounted on the front handlebar are the Garmin Etrex GPS logger and a Plexiglas map holder. I will get some rain covers and more straps for the equipment. The Q1b UMPC sits in the right hand pannier its its organizer case and wrapped in clothes. I will have to be careful about making sure the device is in hibernation before I ride. If its in standby and then goes into hibernation it will have to start-up the disk. I don’t want that to happen while I’m riding as it could be fatal.

 

An evening outside with a Samsung Q1b.


The new tent has arrived, the bike baggage, and finally, some warmer weather so I’m taking the chance to test things out in the garden. My daughter is nearly asleep in the tent and I’m perched outside with the Samsung Q1b and organizer pack resting on one of my panniers, a clip-on LED lamp a paraffin lamp and a bottle of Germanys best beer!

This is the perfect time to be writing because its dark and you only need the minimum of backlight on the UMPC. As I write this with WiFi on, I’m taking between 6.5 and 8.5W on the UMPC. Its also wonderfully quiet.

Behind me, in the spare bedroom, I have started to lay out everything I need for the tour. I’ve written the pack list and there are only a few more things to buy before I’m ready to go. I hope it all fits into the panniers I bought for the bike which, incidentally, is going to be the blue Kronan.

A few things that haven’t turned up yet are the Lead-Acid battery and the solar panel. They should be here on Monday which will allow me to build the frame that the panel and battery will sit in on the back of the bike. I’ve ordered a could of panel meters too because I want to see what sort of drain each component puts on the panel.

One thing I was a little disappointed to find out tonight is that in theory, DC-DC conversion will cost at least 25% of my energy. That’s rather a lot to be wasting just to transfer energy, especially if I charge the Li-Ion battery from the 12V lead acid battery. I could lose an hours computing time just in that process.

I’ll finalise the packlist (V1.0) in the next few days and post it up. I’m also planning to do a video overview of all the equipment I’m taking, a picture-set of the bike and the charging setup and as many other images as I have time to take. The 9-day forecast is looking OK (not perfect, but OK) and so I’m quite confident that the tour will start at some point next weekend.

Solar testing on hold.


Isnt it typical? Just hours after starting the solar panel testing last week it started to get cloudy. You can even see the first clouds appearing on the sun power graph that I used on the first test.

Ever since then the weather has been bad. Look at the last three days below. With weather like that I would have no chance of charging anything. The forecast for the next 6 days is the same too.

The only good thing about the rain was that I was able to re-test my old tent. I suspected it wasn’t going to be water resistant any more and I was right!

As for the bike, i’m really thinking of doing it on the Kronan bike now. Its a solid machine and the seat is really comfortable. I’m going to order a couple of new tyres and some spares this weekend and get it back up to match fitness.

The first of my planned start dates is approaching. I was hoping to start on the 21st May but thats just over a week away. Its not looking good. I am looking at a second date now (10-19th June.) just in case the outlook dosn’t improve in the next week.

Solar UMPC ToDo list.


I’ve been making another list! Its the big one. What do I need to do to prepare for the Solar UMPC tour which could start in under 4 weeks if all goes well. Below you’ll find a summary of the things I need to sort out before I go. I’ll be going into detail on each of these topics over the coming weeks.

UMPC. I already have a very shortlist of UMPCs. I’ve chosen VIA as the platform (who are now my sponsors) and at the top of the list of devices is the Samsung Q1b HSDPA. Luckily this is available in Germany now. I am also considering the OQO Model 02 but I will definitely need a full keyboard in addition which negates the advantage of the thumbboard on the OQO. Amtek T770 is also in the running.  There’s a question of extended batteries and I also have to take availability and price into the equation. What about ruggedness too. Hard drives can fail and I’ve already experienced that. I’m also thinking about a backup solution if the UMPC fails. N800 could be well suited as its got no moving parts.  I need to sort this out as a priority and while I’ve been writing this I’ve been talking to TheTabletStore in Munich who might be able to get hold of the Q1b HSDPA for me. Fingers crossed.

Solar equipment. At the moment I’m looking at a number of rollable solar panels ranging from 6W to 24W. I have been recommended a P3 Solar panel because of its ability to drive 19v – the native voltage for my battery pack and the Q1. Voltage conversions cost energy an require extra components which can go wrong so simplicity is the key. I will be looking at various connectivity methods, charging methods and need to add up the average daily power budget to decide on how much solar power I will need. I will probably be getting a P3 rollable solar panel from SelectSolar to test in the next few days.

Power storage. I already have the TabletKiosk MP3400 battery pack which has worked well in the past and so I would like to continue to use it. If it fails, I’ll have to fall back to the other power storage method – storing in the UMPC and driving other devices through the USB port. Very inefficient but a possible last-resort solution.

Mobile phone/Cellular Internet connectivity. If I get the Samsung Q1b HSDPA then Internet connectivity is going to be a breeze. The only thing I’ll have to do is get a second SIM card so that I can take/make voice calls on my mobile phone. If I don’t get a UMPC with built-in HSDPA, I’ll use my Nokia 6280 as a modem via Bluetooth or USB,. Its only 3G but having used it for 5 days at CeBIT, I know its going to be enough for my needs.

Keyboard solution. I don’t want to use a Bluetooth solution as, again, its got too many things in it to go wrong. USB keyboard will be fine. If I go for the Q1b, the organiser pack makes a perfect solution to this problem.

Bike. I don’t have a bike yet. Well, actually, I do have a bike. In fact I have three here to choose from but I don’t fancy doing 8 days on either a mountain bike, a Dutch shopper or a Finnish army bike. I need something stable for sure and will need to think carefully about panniers and loading. All my camping equipment needs to go on it. I hate suspension on bikes and as I’ll be on flat asphalt all the way, there’s no need to waste money and energy (those things sap energy from the bike) on it.

Tent + Camping equipment. This one is a list in itself! I have most stuff but I found out last year that my little 2-man tent has finally given up and started letting the elements in. That means I need a new tent. Damn. I’m wondering whether it needs to be a one man or two man tent. A one man tent will be smaller and lighter but if it rains, I need to store my equipment so a two-man tent is a better option. Will test some solutions out soon. As for the other camping stuff. I’ll make another list for that!

Logistics. I have a rough idea of the route now. Its probably going to start from Strasbourg on the French border. I’ll take the Rhein Radweg north and hopefully make it back to Bonn. The main problem though is weather. I will need to make a final decision as near as 48 hours before the start of the journey in order to get an idea of the weather for the next week. This means I cant book a train down there and can’t tell friends to meet me on the way. Annoying but necessary.

There are are a lot of different little things to sort out too. Bike clothes, shoes, rechargeable batteries, blogging plan, PR work, website preparation, and, oh, one more big thing.

Fitness. Fortunately, I’ve got an in house personal trainer. My wife’s company, Power-Balance, will get a training plan together and I’ll start it this weekend. Running, biking and arm exercises are the order of the day. This is the bit I’m not looking forward too!

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