Meet the Mule of Choice for this Adventure

The Bülk Urban

Last year I used a brand new super hyped velomobile, allegedly the fastest ever; the mythical W9. While it definitely was a fast velomobile and survived the horrific trail conditions it was subjected to, it had some issues. Namely, the enormous impractical turning circle that made an awful lot of turns impossible and left me stranded in the road on one occasion. Then there was also that little matter of the rear idler rubbing on the seat after a visit to the designer of the velomobile, an event I’d rather not revisit at length. This year I have made a much more educated and strategic selection for my mule of choice: the Bülk Urban.

The Urban is also a brand new model, and while that didn’t work out quite so well last time sue to those unexpected “features”, this time I’m more confident of making a good choice. First, the Urban is largely based off the rather popular Bülk MK1, a model which I’ve put over 5,600 miles on. Second, I already own an Urban. In fact, I own serial #1 and will have 2-3 weeks riding with it before the tour. I got my first ride in the Urban at the Romanian factory right after it finished production, and the one being prepared for my tour will be at least serial #2. I’m honored to be the primary consumer support system for the new Bülk Urban :)

Besides having at least ridden this new model and put a lot of miles on the model it is based off of, the Urban also has one very beneficial feature: open front wheel wells. This means the turning circle will be approximately half of what I had with the W9. This is critical for navigating bike trails, my preferred riding infrastructure for touring. The open wells should also give a bit better cooling of the drum brakes, a critical factor for the longer descents I’ll encounter. The other big issue I had with the W9 was the lack of adjustability with the seat. The seat in the Urban takes a couple seconds to reposition. I look forward to being able to actually see over the hood this year as well. The final critical point is I will take the extra time to pick it up from a dealer colleague of mine. Access to proper tools will make setup a lot simpler and quicker.

The final big change for this year, besides being better about training, is that I made sure to not route myself on any extended gravel stretches. What little gravel there is happens on major signed bike routes and should be more crushed limestone than rough agricultural road gravel. That will speed up my progress and hopefully avoid the delays that happened last year with the terrible road surfaces.

Planning is half the battle. I’m hopeful I learned from the mistakes of last year and can be more successful in achieving my daily riding goals. I’ve attempted to be mindful of the elevation profile and risk g conditions when planning each day. The rest is me being better about not stopping all the time and patronizing every bakery along the way.

A top a mountain in Romania near the factory

At sunset. We hauled them up there with a trailer, the proper way to get to the top of a mountain with a velomobile.

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Rich FrasierHi Ben - You’ve probably already figured this out, but based on our experience in 2022, I would try to avoid the stretch of bike path between Glurns and Meran. My memory is a bit hazy at this point, but I remember it as being very much a “trail”. The surfaces were difficult (think dirt and mud) and the bridge entrances sat pretty high up over the trail. So there were large steps up to each bridge and again down off the bridge. We broke a rear hub on our tandem in there. At least until Göflan, I’d stay on the road to preserve your velomobile. HTH
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6 months ago

Ben ParkeTo Rich FrasierGlurns to Meran is a long stretch. I rode it back in 2021 was it? I only recall two spots with any gravel. One I have already found a route around. The other passes right along the river through a nature preserve. I don't recall it being as bad as you're describing. Are you sure you were on the signed Radweg? It's the stretch between Laas and Goeflan. I don't want to be on the main road and the only other road around goes 750ft up over 1.6 miles. I'd rather get out and push my velomobile. I'll have come up the Reschen pass earlier in the day. Good warning to have though. It looks like there's been a lot of rain and more forecasted, so I guess that stretch could be highly unpleasant. I'll give it some more thought.
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6 months ago

Rich FrasierHi Ben - I’m pretty sure we were on the right route but I’m never 100 percent sure about anything. Here’s a link to our journal entry for that day. https://www.cycleblaze.com/journals/courageuxalps/day-7-glurns-to-meran-abandon-at-goflan/

The part of the path I’m referring to is at the end of the ridewithgps map. We walked and coasted the last few km with a broken rear hub.

I’ll let you judge how best to take our experience into account.
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6 months ago

Ben ParkeTo Rich FrasierYes. So the section between Laas and Goeflan. Pretty spot. I went through there both coming and going a couple years ago. Conditions must vary based on rainfall. It wasn't bad when I went through. I've ridden much worse spots. For instance some of the designated trail north of Brixen which was hike-a-bike quality trail. Your bearings/hub may have been on their last legs. MTBs take awfully hard hits and keep on ticking. Unless the parts spec'ed in your tandem were awfully cheap parts, a step down like that shouldn't have broken anything. Due to ground clearance I end up picking up the velo over transitions like that. Thanks for the warning. I'll be extra careful in that section, assuming it is passable after all the projected rain.
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5 months ago

Kelly IniguezBen,

I look forward to following along with you. We rode in Europe for the first time last summer, Spain/Portugal. Our plan is to return and try other regions. I am interested in your mention of paved bike paths in northern Italy. Please include daily maps if at all possible, for those of us who would like to ride in your tracks! I ride an eight foot long Phoenix recumbent - I get the flavor of your mobility issues. But, the ride is so sweet!
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5 months ago

Ben ParkeTo Kelly IniguezI may have to wait until I get home to post maps. I don’t think I can link those using my phone. I travel ultralight and won’t have a computer with me. When I was in Südtirol a couple years ago I used the Bikeline Südtirol guidebook to help with route planning. The area from Reschen See to Bozen, down beyond Trento, up to the Brenner Pass, and over to Lienz in Austria is all excellent cycle path. From Brixen to Toblach is largely an uphill battle, but Toblach to Lienz involved almost no pedaling. I do not recommend der Langen Weg der Dolomiten with a recumbent. The dirt trail was sketchy. Everyone else was wisely riding a mountain bike. The main Radwegs are the Etsch and Eisack Radwegs. Paved Converter rail trails. Great riding.
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5 months ago