Roads exceptionally good. A view road works with loos gravel or potholes. A steep climb n the morning (up to 20%) and several smaller thereafter. However the afternoon after lunch easy on the plain with favorable wind.
The reincarnation of a cyclist, after a 6 days knock-out.
I knew, it wouldn’t be easy for me after my energy taking sickness. Riding most of the day with my mask, made breathing not a pleasure, especially when temperatures raise into the upper 30th °C. However I badly wanted to be back on my bike and ride. The van is no option; and my fellow cyclists and staff wanted to see me back cycling, too. So I started with Eric as the last out from Yogya. A quick 12 km through town, then we separated and I sent Eric ahead on his faster mission. At 13 km the steep ascent to 400m started. I was remarkably strong and already passed the first riders walking their bikes, and had left much earlier. There were many local cyclist on the road, too. This must be a popular cycling track. I could feel, that I was strong, but far from the strength I had before. I therefore took it slow, stopped a few times for photos. I even added an extra activity stop (more in the ‘Over the Edge’ post) which delayed me for another 30 minutes or more, but was worth it. The emptiness in my stomach increased and power level decreased in the starting midday heat. Lunch was a few kilometers before the last short & steep climb of the day. I let it last very long, until today’s ‘sweeper’ arrived, but ate with more appetite and rested before I left for the 2nd part. The final climb was consuming my last power level, but the immediate downhill helped me recharge a bit. The final flat 40 km were simply a matter of not giving up. Should I save energy for the next day or shall I go and ride the whole day? Favorable wind and my will to complete the day, carried me into the Iris Hotel in Solo, where I had a hot shower and a nice intermediate meal to bridge the time to dinner and compensate for not eating (much) for the last 5 days. Hope I get the carbs loaded quick!
Cool in the morning, afternoon hot. A ‘dirty’ climb out of town in the awful morning traffic. After 20 km a fast and very scenic 40 km downhill to conserve energy for the afternoon section which is totally on bad roads with short but steep climbs.
By no means do the shorter weeks become easier. To avoid the flat but busy and polluted roads the tour stays in the mountainous regions of central Java. I had a lazy start after the rest day and took it easy as the stage seemed to be easy and fast from the data we got the night before. The little climb after km 7 was just right to warm-up in the cool morning air. The 40 km downhill on perfect pavement a real treat and good for many photo stops. The deviation from the main road changed things. Not only cycling got tougher but only my physical condition all of a sudden degraded in the hotter temps and rougher roads. I got air in my stomach and soon felt that I had to throw up sometimes soon. My lower body seemed to play wrong with me … I managed the final steep 200m climb on a divided plastered forest track to the lunch spot, where I had to throw up the first time. Even after 2 hours of rest it did not improve and I finally had to give up the second part of the day and use the van. My body was on strike (See ‘All Plugs Pulled’).
Although it seemed an easy, mostly downhill ride that could be done even exhausted the ride in the van proved different. 2:15h for 50 km in the van on bumpy, almost not existing roads would have made cycling for me under my condition very risky. So it was the right decision to quit here, as the following ‘recovery’ days will show.
This was the supposed to be toughest climbing day of all my tours so far; with an average grade of 6% for the whole day. The section from 32 km to 44 km averaged at about 10%, with maximum grade of 20%. It was warmer than assumed, and no wind at all for the most parts. Lunch at 46 km was in the clouds. Very scenic – mind and body blowing.
We had only 300 m flat after the campsite, thereafter a 46 km climb into the central Java mountains started. It was a nice change of the landscape after being at the coast for the last couple of days. First going through rice fields and ending in the tea plantations at about 1800m. The views were stunning, rice terraces, rivers, steep valleys, nice settlements and potentially beautiful waterfalls (during rainy seasons) showed up around every corner. However, with TdA you have to ‘pay a penalty’ for these changes. This time it came with a brutal climb. The first 500 vertical meters were quite smooth. Thereafter the steep climbs with grades up to 20% started. The average grade from km 32 to 44 was at about 10%. It took me about 4 hours to climb to the first summit and lunch. In the beginning I had the energy to stop once in a while to get my DLR and shoot a photo, whereas later it was always a silent negotiation with myself, if it is worth to stop and use extra energy for a photo. After lunch there were 3 ‘rollers’ thru the tea fields, thereafter a long descend to our hotel. The city is quite busy, loud and polluted. The dinner was exceptional. Nice ambience, table cloth, and a 3 course menu with a selection of good food to regain strength for another day of huge climbs before we complete this week’s 6 stages and have a well deserved rest day.
A tough one. It was said that the road conditions weren’t good, which turned out to be the case for a major part of the day. But what made it more difficult was the strong blowing headwind, all day long.
The all day blowing headwind from east and the mostly bad road conditions made it a long riding day. However very quiet and scenic once we left the main road and turned into the coconut and gum tree fields. The temperatures felt really comfortable. From km 40 to 105 the road was really bad; loose gravel and rocks required full concentration at every second. However I could play out my ‘joker card’, the full suspension mode of my MTB made me ride the rocks like a Cadillac. I really enjoyed the roughness and difficulty of the ride. Cristiano wasn’t wrong when he announced the bad road conditions during the briefing, the night before. What he did not mention was, that we are riding eastwards and the wind is constantly blowing into our faces. This slowed down progress dramatically and made riding an all day and exhausting fight. Only a few of us made it to the next camp.
Lunch was setup at a nice place in the woods, where a local was boiling palm zap to make sugar and serving us fresh coconuts.
Tomorrow is another ‘killer’ stage: just 71 km, but a constant climb to 1800 m from sea level. I hope that the rest day that we have on Sep 14., will give me enough time to post photos and special reports.
Another joy ride. Roads good. Climb long but never steep, easy to find a pace to make it to the top effortless. Temperatures moderate. Head wind in the afternoon turning back to sea.
Another enjoyable cycling day. The morning climb after 15 km on the main road from sea level to almost 800 m was a ‘piece of cake’. Easy to find the right gear and pace to finish the 20 km gradual slope in one turn. Thereafter all day long downhill. That is how it should be. The vegetation and landscape changed. Hilly with endless tea plantations, with tea pickers at work. I stopped to ‘chat’ with some of the tea pickers – great fun. Another stop at a school where girls and boys were playing soccer together in heir school uniforms. I ‘crashed’ another school lesson and turned it into a ‘the stranger entertaining the kids’ lesson. At the end the kids formed a quire and sang an Indonesian song for me. The day ended at the Turtle Beach Hotel – nice, spacey and clean. Unfortunately someone must have told them that we must all be Germans! Only Beer at the bar, no soft drinks. We were told that the turtles usually come to the beach at around 8/9pm, so we will have a chance to see them tonight.
Road bad to very bad. A hot day, 2 steep climbs but very scenic.
I would call it a perfect mix of everything. A tough cycling stage considering the day temperatures, the road conditions and the very steep climbing sections, but awarded with scenic views and similar amount of fast downhills to relax the legs. We had to leave the coast line and climb over two ridges to get back to the sea. The hotel is excellent, both from accommodation and food. Beach is a short walk away, but not for swimming. It is a surfer paradise.
Again quick 33 km after leaving campsite. Rather flat with good tailwind. However the smog is still bad – my new mask gave some relief. Turning inland we ‘climbed’ a bit into the green fields. Road mostly good. Turning back to the sea, the wind was blowing strong into our faces.
This was the right starter after the rest day. Time and distance wise short and doable. Very scenic ride after leaving the coast line. The air also turned more consumable after leaving the busy main road. We climbed a bit, but not very steep and long. Ended up in fields of banana and coconut trees and rice. Timber is also a big business. The sawing mills are everywhere and piles of wood waiting to be turned into boards. The people are very friendly but reserved. I stopped at a house with a big satellite dish and was invited to have shade on the veranda with the owner family. The kids were wearing European soccer team jerseys – as so many in the country. So I ended up playing soccer with little Messi and Benzema.
I am still riding with fever and coughing. Temperature control is still not calibrated. I am shivering at 35°C. Hope this will improve within the next few days.
A quick 30 km to the ferry mostly on a nice parallel road to the highway. On Java a complex navigation through the port city of Merak, before we turned into a more rural area.
We had to circumvent Gunung Rajabasa in the morning to get to the ferry port. Boarding was easy; pay 21000 Rupias (1.5€) and get on the large bark. The ride was fast and smooth, unfortunately we had to wait a long time in a park position before we could anchor and unload. So lunch at 45 km was at 12:45h, with still 82 km to go. The ride in Java is mostly unnoticed by the local people. Only rare ‘Hello Mister’ could be heard, unless you started to wave a hello to the people. We had to cycle along the slopes of the first volcanoes on Java. The day finished with a long 25 km downhill to Carita and the large hotel complex at the beach.
I felt better on the bike than yesterday, but now the fever is back, as I am resting in the large bungalow, that I share with 7 other riders. I may skip the day trip to Krakatau in favor to improve my health situation.
Sumatra Highway, all day long. Lungs are fully tarred now – feels like being a chain smoker for a life time. Got a mask now.
After the scenic rides of the past days, this is one to file under ”We don’t need more of these” . Although we were awarded with a long downhill, the ride as such was a ‘dirty’ and ‘hectic’ one. All day between a million trucks and motorcycles, blowing their exhausts into our lungs. I guess the Indonesians are being paid for burning their ‘gas’ (bensin solar) instead of having to pay for the fuel. I don’t know what they are doing on the roads all day?! Sure bringing kids to school in the morning and picking them up in the afternoon and carrying goods from here to there. But there is no rest in between. Roads are always busy. A few traders with goods on the bike, but others just youngsters cruising around … We had a small detour in the first larger town. However these attempts to bypass major traffic routes are often more difficult and dangerous to ride then staying on the main road, as the road conditions can get really bad on the secondary’s. Unfortunately another crash on a downhill of one of the fellow riders. 6 stiches in the local hospital and back on track!
You can sense, that your body is going weird, when you are wearing 3 layers of cycling functional wear (incl. wind stopper), but you still feel cold at air temperature of 40°C. I hope the rest day in Carita (after tomorrow’s 112k m) will get my body back in sync with my riding plans …
Overcast and cool in the morning. The afternoon sun burnt away the clouds and temperatures raised to upper 30th. Roads were good, but busy. Many trucks. The National Park was very scenic. Little time for photos, as time and energy was a constraint.
Another tough one. Longer and with two steep climbs compared to yesterday. The final climb, starting at km 137, was consuming the last energy reserves. I am developing a cold – a result of the temperature changes, riding in sweaty wet clothes all day, A/C in some places, fans in other, cold showers, exhaustion, … therefore I set myself a moderate pace of 22 km/h for the flat parts of the day, targeting a 4 pm arrival. A few photo and Coke stops in the afternoon, after passing the first summit added extra time to my result. The steep uphill (max. 18%) of the first climb through the National Park was followed by an identical steep downhill. Those with normal rim-breaks had problems with overheating the rims and needed to stop several times to cool down the rims again. With my disk breaks I didn’t have overheating problems and could race down the hill. However I stopped for a few photos. The Indomarets (super market) were good on stock with real cold Coke and chocolate, so bottles could be refilled infinitely. Our hotel is on top of the last climb. Temperatures are down to a comfortable level. 3 mosques are surrounding our hotel, and they seem to be competing each other with their prayers and volumes.
Tomorrow is another 140 km day. Establishing my health is first priority now –> early bed time … The next rest day is two days ahead.
