Category: Cycling 2024
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New bikes, old walls: A winter training story
Ah, winter. That magical season when my cycling adventures primarily consist of staring at my walls while pedaling nowhere on an indoor trainer for 1-4 hours at a time. After a few thousand hours of this riveting entertainment, I can confidently map out every crack in my ceiling. But fear not, dear readers, there’s more…
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Blackout on two wheels
The grand finale of my epic ride arrived, but not without my sunscreen staging a coup, drenching both bag and gear. Thus, what began as an early morning quickly morphed into a mundane Friday. While on a fruitless quest for a breakfast that never was, I was intercepted by a fellow Slovenian cyclist. His brisk…
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Pedals, pooches and peaks
It finally happened, I got an early start before 8:00, aiming for some serene pedal time before the sun claimed the day. The morning was refreshingly cooler, but a new challenge trotted onto the scene: dogs. Apparently, in Croatia, letting guard dogs roam free to chase random cyclists is still in vogue. Throughout the day,…
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Gone with the windy
It seems my gut had a premonition this morning that the day would unfold like a beautifully written joke at my expense, though reality often crafts worse punchlines than any writer could conjure. Mounting the bicycle was an ordeal. It appeared I had finally tapped into some elusive rest, but alas, it was time to…
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Day 12: Twist and shout – The final leg
The night was full of dark and terrors, practically synonymous with rain and cold for me. Waking to the chilly air and a spread of food that would put any hotel breakfast buffet to shame, I sipped my coffee, savored my meal, and packed for the day ahead, the final stretch before my own bed…
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Day 11: Chasing highs and lows
It seemed like the weather had peeped at my schedule and decided to wait up for me. Waking up to wet streets bathed in almost sunshine, I decided not to take an extra day off and conquer the last formidable mountain. Deciding that was a stroke of genius. Beyond the initial stretch, gorgeous roads winding…
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Day 10: A series of unfortunate downpours
Never again. What a day. Woke up to rain and seriously considered becoming a hermit until the skies cleared. After obsessively checking the weather forecast and rain radar more times than I’d care to admit, I convinced myself to venture out. I spotted a three-hour break in the clouds, seemingly enough time to tackle the…
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Day 9: Cloudy with a chance of schnitzel
The morning kicked off dark and gloomy, only to be swiftly upstaged by a sun that couldn’t resist making a dramatic entrance. My enthusiasm resurfaced briefly. As soon as I hit Salzburg, a city that’s actually earned a spot on my shortlist of likes, the weather pulled a 180 (360 for those good with math).…
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Day 8: Sun, schnitzel and peaks
I got the latest start yet, but being a bit ahead in the schedule, it hardly mattered. It turns out, parting from family and a hearty breakfast is tougher than leaving a random hotel. From dawn, the sun was blazing, and I was roasting all day, slapping on sunscreen like basting a rotisserie chicken. Today’s…
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Day 7: Fast & Familial
A full week flew by in a flash. Today, the odometer hit a cool 1000 km. So, almost half of the total is done, yet it still feels like I’ve barely begun, like I’ve only posted about 2% of the total. On day 7, I spiced up the route with a few extra kilometers to…
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Day 6: Off-route adventures
Last night, I cozied up with a symphony of rain as my white noise, praying it would clock out by morning. As luck would have it, it did clock out but not without dropping a thick fog as its foggy farewell gift. As predicted, the sun burst through, busy clearing the foggy mess, so I…
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Day 5: Racing rain
Woke up early to wet windows and streets. The rain had finally caught up with me. Checking the weather, I realized I had enough time to reach my next destination before the skies opened up again. If everything had gone according to plan yesterday, I would’ve just dodged the rain. But now, I was just…