Jun
16
Across America in a velomobile
Submitted by XL-Network on Thu, 2011-06-16 18:51
Me and my velomobile have been spotted in two newspapers (local and national) before but this time it's about Roll over America. It turned out to be a nice one third page piece asking me questions about what a velomobile is, how I got involved, what is the goal of this journey, what's the most fun part et cetera.
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Jun
14
Two medals and a souvenir
Submitted by XL-Network on Tue, 2011-06-14 19:54
Last Saturday I competed in the International Pentecost Rowing competition in Delfzijl. A fun competition where anything goes. There are a number of mixed fields where men an women are together in the same boat. Usually that is uncommon in competitions, but in Delfzijl that's no problem. In the first heat I rowed with four women (and of course three men) in a Mix8+. After that I steered a 8+ which I have never done before (I have my steering degrees, but it hasn't home to it yet).
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Jun
5
My bike is gone
Submitted by XL-Network on Sun, 2011-06-05 12:30
Last Thursday a couple of velonauts came to visit and do some bike riding the next day. It was going to be our last ROAM weekend. Earlier I had done Bennekom and Roermond and the final weekend was in Groningen. Coincidence? No, yesterday we had to deliver our bikes to be shipped to America. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
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May
30
Help against Neuroblastoma
Submitted by XL-Network on Mon, 2011-05-30 13:13
My co-workers niece has a Neuroblastoma, a bad form of cancer that effects only young children. In The Netherlands each year about 25 children get this disease and 20 of them die. To help her and children like here I decided to support them with my ride through America. I'm raising money for Villa Joep that helps 100% of the money get to research. If you want to help, please fill in this form. You can also add a banner to you own website.
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May
29
Man down
Submitted by XL-Network on Sun, 2011-05-29 21:33
Just like last week I wanted to cycle a bit with the Huneliggers. A week ago there were only two cyclists (me and Marjon) but today that number would double. We were accompanied by Georg and Anton. We had agreed to meet at 11 AM near the little church in Noorddijk (to the upper right of Groningen). But before I got there something went wrong. I just left home about 5 minutes ago when a group of cyclist were coming my way on the cycle path next to the Van Starkenborghkanaal (which is not unusual on a Sunday morning). Just...
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May
29
See you in eight weeks...
Submitted by XL-Network on Sun, 2011-05-29 16:51
This Saturday I went to the Ligfietsgarage Groningen for some last maintenance which the didn't have the time to do last time. First the head lights had to be adjusted. When I'm driving on bad surface it makes a lot of noise. By placing the lights a bit different the noise has been reduced. Also the brake cable that was holding the steer up started to unwind (because of the maintenance). I replaced it by a new one. A piece of Velcro on the foam part on the 'hump' of the bike started to come loose.
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May
24
ROAM t-shirts and more
Submitted by XL-Network on Tue, 2011-05-24 20:47
I'll start with the t-shirts... they have arrived. I've ordered some 26 t-shirts for the Dutch delegation of 9 people who are going to America to cycle 5000 kilometers. It all arrived in one big box. Below you can see what a big pile it is and how the front and back look. On the back you can see a image of the route we are taking and which cities we'll be visiting.
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May
20
Anticipate and keep going
Submitted by XL-Network on Fri, 2011-05-20 23:08
Another set of movies. In the first you can see a situation where I'm not very visible because of the bush on the left. I anticipate this and always expect a car to pull out of the side street or the main road. The second movie is less shocking, but it happens to me quite a lot. I don't have the right of way, but still receive it. Because I cannot see if the other person has seen me (especially car drivers) I stop. Resulting in... both of us standing still.
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May
19
Dude!
Submitted by XL-Network on Thu, 2011-05-19 08:23
... use your indicators! That makes the situation a whole lot clearer for everyone. At first I thought he was going to pull over at the bus stop and I could overtake him. But suddenly he turns left without signaling.
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May
14
Pre-ROAM check-up and almost run over
Submitted by XL-Network on Sat, 2011-05-14 22:42
This morning I took my velomobile to the Ligfietsgarage Groningen for a pre-ROAM check-up. Because America has some mountains (like the Rocky's) it seemed a good idea to put in a smaller gear in the middle of the bike. Also, a number of components were checked, lubricated and replaced. The rear chain for instance has been replaced. That being said, it lasted for some 10.686 kilometers. Also the steering block has been replaced because it had a little to much play when I'm speeding down the mountain with 70+ km/h. The last part they have replaced was the bell.
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