March 29, 2018
Day 3: Amsterdam to Apeldoorn
Even though our little hotel room seemed very costly for what you get, there was an included breakfast and that was very generous. We stepped out into the narrow street in front of the hotel and I wondered aloud if cars were allowed on it, since none were to be seen. We decided that cars were permitted but that drivers would not generally subject themselves to the tight conditions. Yes, but we still have to watch out for bicycles, I said, looking up to see a six foot plus blond lady bearing down on me at high speed on a typical giant Dutch bike. "Yikes!". I jumped sideways.
Suitably awake now, we made our way back to the station.
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About €16 each bought us tickets to Apeldoorn and we presented ourselves to the appointed platform for the train leaving in a few minutes. The screens and information at the platform were not at all clear, but we came to understand that our train had been cancelled. We can only hope this happened in the five minutes between when the man in the ticket office sold us the tickets and when we arrived at the platform.
Hoping that we were right about the cancelled train, we left the platform and went to find out what to do next. The answer was to take a train maybe slightly out of the way, to Utrecht, and from there to strike out for Apeldoorn. As for whether the tickets we had would work to get us into these other trains, it was explained to us that once we had a ticket we could pretty much get on any train in the country. This was obviously true because no one asked to see our tickets at all. The only time our ticket was checked in some way was when we first entered the platform area in Amsterdam and had it scanned by a gate machine. The Dutch, like the French, are just not too hung up on tickets.
The two trains we used to get to Apeldoorn were comfortable and fast and frequent. As usual, we lamented not having a service like this at home. People there are just seemingly doomed to forever sit in traffic jams on multi-lane highways.
After being hit by the car at Apeldoorn last Fall, we spent a week recovering in the Bastion hotel. It's a great place with huge rooms, a pool, and very friendly staff. When we walked back in the door it was like a homecoming, and in fact staff remembered us and asked where we were cycling to now. That felt really good.
We stashed our bags and set off walking to the bike shop - Profile Janssen. The quiet streets of Apeldoorn near the hotel were totally familiar to us, and we asked ourselves again what it would be like to live in one of the doll's house like buildings in this totally clean totally quiet place. Would it make us crazy?
We soon came to the major "bustling" street that contains our bike shop. It is called Koninginnelaan which means Princess Street". We had fun as always, trying to pronounce it. In through the door of the bike shop and it was total Toyland. Bikes of many makes and styles densely filled the floor, and we knew there was another level upstairs. The thing about all these bikes was that they are all ebikes. Ebikes have just totally grabbed the market in Europe, though upstairs some lonely regular bikes remained.
Just for the record, every last one of these is a no throttle torque sensor pedal assist "Class 1" model. After being greeted by "Remco", the friendly and efficient son of the owner (we think), and offered coffee and hot chocolate, we were ready for the big reveal of the bikes we had ordered some months before. But first, following up on that "Class 1" thing, I asked Remco if he had any "cadence sensor" pedal assist bikes, which are the type made in North America. Remco snorted (actually, Remco would never be so rude as to snort) that bikes like that used to be here in the old days, before anyone knew what they were doing. Now these crude contraptions are nowhere to be seen, at least not in this shop!
Now our bikes came out and you know, we love all bikes. But these specific ones were so refined for their intended use it was terrific. And Remco had accurately filled all our requests and specifications. That is why we came back here. These people and these bikes are serious!
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My bike is really really good, but somehow Dodie's with its 26" wheels and shiny black finish, and with its tail lights built into the rear rack is just that much cuter. I am not jealous though, because the bikes are the same make and really very close to each other.
Well set up as they were at the shop, the bikes of course were nowhere near ready to pedal away toward Germany. Instead we slunk back to the Bastion and spent the next five hours adding: panniers, GPS mount, compass bells, mounted water bottles, trunk bags, auxiliary front and rear lights, rear view mirrors, our preferred seats from home, a thermometer to know how freezing or broiling we will be, and of course, mounted coffee and hot chocolate thermoses. Then we unpacked our cycling clothes and gear and loaded the bikes.
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This still does not mean we will cycle off tomorrow. Instead we will test ride around Apeldoorn and see what else we can bug Remco for before setting off. The kinds of things we will still get are spare tubes, lube, and some tools - like the torx key used to adjust the hydraulic brakes. I am also buying a new helmet, made by Abus. It is blue!
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6 years ago
Enjoy your new rides! I’m anxious to hear how they work for you.
6 years ago
6 years ago
We enjoyed reading about your trip to Eugene. New bikes, any kind, are always so much fun. But the folks at Green Gear are specially nice to visit.
I should be able to jump back into the fray with a Bike Friday story when we get back from France. That's because we had the Eugene people straighten and rebuild Dodie's wrecked frame. I will reassemble the bike - this time with red cable housings! Then I hope to post a triumphant resurrection photo into last year's account of the road accident .
Did you ever read my article about buying a Bike Friday? It will be a little dated now, but could be fun to compare with your experience.
We hope to take the Fridays back to Yucatan next Winter, but there is a good chance Dodie will be not yet recovered from knee surgery. I could put e-assist on the Friday - Eugene is quite into it now - but we would want to struggle to make it torque sensing no throttle and even Green Gear are not quite that advanced yet.
6 years ago
Yes, sadly a harsh and fundamentalist culture overwhelmed Crazyguyonabike and part of that was an unwelcoming approach to ebike touring. Lots of authors now on Cycleblaze moved here to find a more respectful and inclusive environment. There are so many forms of bicycle touring and methods - ultralight bikes, trikes, bikes with kids, assisted groups, tandems, wild camping/camping/warm showers/hotels, etc. etc. that only an inclusive approach feels comfortable to us.
In ebikes specifically there are hundreds of models and many technical twists and classifications. But only a select few of the styles and technologies are actually adapted to or ever used for touring. Here in Europe the touring ebike is a well established and developed category, and with it pedal power remains what it is all about. You do not really have to think about it. The shops know very well what is appropriate so there is no worry about going wrong
6 years ago
6 years ago