XL-Network's blog

Na zdrowie

Last Pentecost it was already the tenth time the hitchhiking contest of improvisation club Ulteam was held. The previous editions took us to Berlin, Bruges, Trier, Lille, Århus, Brussels, Cologne, Gent and Heidelberg. Where we end up this year was to be revealed Thursday night at midnight during the traditional hitchhike drink in the local cafe. The organizer of the weekend, Liesje Lift, couldn't make it. But Marco and Anneke, her helpers, were present. After a exciting quiz this year's destination was guessed correctly. We were going to Poznań (Poland)!

'The big project'

I mentioned a big box and darkness before for 'the big project'. Last weekend it was finally time to finish it all. I've already bought six pieces of two meter long cable conduit and I've made an appointment with my parents (my dad is a construction worker) on Sunday. If you haven't noticed, 'the big project' is a home theater projection.

First we started to hang the screen. That starts with defining the exact place of the mounts.

Let there be darkness

In preparation for the big project I went to the hardware store last Wednesday evening to get some roller-blinds. My mother brought it to my attention that I should visit Praxis because they had a 25% discount on all window decorations.

Big box

Yesterday I placed a large order at a later to mention webshop. I'm busy doing a new project which you will hear of in about 2 to 3 weeks. Large orders come in large boxes. The thing is, I have a small car.

A trip down memory lane (part 2)

Some 3,5 years ago I wrote a message (Dutch) on my blog containing a number of photo's and a 'game' which my co-workers made in my honor. There was one more, but we couldn't find the digital version. Until a collegue found a image titled 'schiermonnikoog.jpg' whilst browsing some old folders on his computer. The story behind the image is for you and your imagionation to decide...

Body parts

Today a post about different body parts. Like feet, knees, fingers and head. Let me begin at the beginning. Yesterday we should be rowing, but because of the ice on parts of the canal that wasn't possible. That's why we 'enjoyed' some 40 minutes of time on the ergometer. Because of this I was home early that day because I also could not coach because of the weather. The chain on Ocho, my velomobile was making a bit more noise lately, so I decided to lubricate it after a bit more than 2600 kilometers. That also gave me the opportunity to slide the pedals a bit forward.

Curb edge (the sequel)

Yesterday Ocho had another flat tire. I'm getting a bit fed up with it lately. Fortunately the cause was quickly identified. The side wall of the outer tire, a Schwalbe Durano, was damaged.

Ice velomobile safari

Friday night just before 11:00 PM I received a email that the Northern Velomobile Ride 2013 of Sunday was canceled because of black ice. I have a rear wheel with spikes so I thought I'd manage. So I thought. David, where the ride was supposed to start, was a bit surprised. He called for a: Now or never, at your own risk, not scared of weathermen, ice velomobile safari. Together with Georg, Anton and Hans we were planning to cycle to Assen. But we agreed to contact each other Sunday morning at 8 AM to check if it was safe to go. And like a true Frisian ice master it sounded: It giet oan.

Cycling with snow goggles

The thing is in my closet for several years. A long time ago I went to a nice ski resort in Austria, but I never needed it. Until I realized that it could come in handy to wear snow goggles whilst cycling in these cold circumstances. So that's what I did this morning. And I have to say, it's a bit getting used to, but I love it. The view is good, nice warm and dry and no trouble with snow. I should have done this a long time ago. The only downside I can think of is that I have the feeling that my normal glasses are sliding down my nose.

The trick with the warm bottle

After my cold adventure of last Monday I didn't want to get frozen fingers again. That's why I had a brilliant idea. I was planning to make the bike a bit more winter resistant by mounting the Schwalbe Marathon Winter rear tire again. It has thick nobs and spikes which keep you from getting stuck on slippery surfaces, like snow and ice. I also removed a lot of snow from the wheel arches and pressurized all the tires.