I like summer. Although I don't like the heat, I do like it that it stays light until late in the evening here in the Netherlands. This make it possible to go for bicycle rides in the evening when the temperatures have dropped a bit and the sun isn't too strong anymore.
So I did last Sunday.

Wind

After a couple of very warm days the wind picked up a bit on Sunday. I always plan my trip ahead and especially when it is windy. I use the website windfinder.com for this.

Windfinder showed me the wind had a speed of 28km/h and came from the south/west.
Since riding against the wind takes more strength and endurance than riding with it, I always start with a headwind. That way you can enjoy the tailwind in the second half. If you don't you might be unpleasantly surprised how strong the wind is when you are halfway and return home.
It also feels better mentally: finishing with a headwind is a more pleasant finish.
So I headed towards the south/west first and headed into the direction of Zoetermeer.

The polder

The area between the cities of Leiden and Zoetermeer mainly exist of polders. A lot of farm land and nice small bicycle paths in between them. Because the area is so open, you cannot hide from the wind anywhere.

It was sunny and a bit cloudy. When cycling along a canal I had a beautiful view. I noticed something that looked like a tiny part of a rainbow just a bit to the right of the sun. Which is funny because it wasn't raining 🤔

When I was close to Zoetermeer I could see the skyline of The Hague in the distance. The Hague is quite in the picture this week. Later this week the NATO summit will be hosted there.
You probably haven’t noticed much of it, but over here many roads are closed, anti-aircraft guns have been placed in the area and navy ships are stationed off the coast. Security is definitely well taken care of.

In Zoetermeer there is a giant indoor ski slope. Since we're lacking mountains in the Netherlands we had to create an artificial slope. I've been there twice, but despite the size of the slope (a height of about 65m and a length of 300 m) it is nothing compared to a real mountain.

Cycling infrastructure

A bit further on the route I discovered some object that were integrated into the bicycle path. When I stopped I noticed it were lights and a solar panel. I have seen solar panel lamp posts alongside a bicycle path, but I hadn't seen these ones before. I would love to see these at night. Unfortunately it is a bit far from my home and I don't like to go cycling in the dark.

It was getting quite late already. I had planned for a ride of just over 50 kilometers, but because I had stopped a few times to take a photo, the blue hour was already setting in. It did result in some beautiful views from which I had to take another photo 😂

I keep on bragging about the perfect cycling infrastructure in The Netherlands, but just check this dedicated bicycle path. Long, straight and smooth asphalt ❤️
What does a cyclist want more?

At the end of the route it was already past 9:30 PM, so I had to rush a bit to be home before it became to dark. But not before taking this lovely shot. This is one of the things that makes cycling so enjoyable!

The stats of the ride

I track my stats with my Garmin navitation. I finally replaced the battery of my heart rate band, so I can keep an eye on that as well.
The average speed is a bit lower because I stopped quite a few times to take some photographs.
I finished the ride in just under two ours.

My 2025 goal and stats

As you might have seen in my previous cyclin posts, I've also set a yearly cycling goal, which is to cover at least 5000 kilometers this year. As you can see in the table below, I'm only 37% of the way towards my 2025 goal. The main reason for this is that I've had quite a serious groin injury what kept me from cycling for a while.

So, 37% of my goal, while almost 50% of the year has already passed 🤔. Well there are still 192 days left to complete the goal. How epic would it be when I still manage to reach the goal despite having had the injury. I'll just go for it 💪🚴
And I'm picking it up again nicely lately. I feel I'm getting fitter and stronger again.
June has been a very good month with a lot of rides, both communing as weekend rides.
What also helps are the badges you can earn with Garmin. Gamification really can help. As you can see by the badges below, I already made 400km on my bicycle in June. And there is still a full week left to make it even more. I've spent 18,5 hours on my bicycle in June and I will surely comlete the 20 hours this week too.

So, this was my long update about my Sunday evening ride and my yearly stats!
I hope you enjoyed reading it.
If you have any questions of comments. Feel free to contact me in the comment section. Or in the Hive Cycling Community Discord Server

Friendlymoose

I'm an amateur photographer with a love for indoor gardening, craft beer, and cycling. As the owner of the Cycling Community and the creator of the Topcomment initiative, I focus on fostering engagement and bringing like-minded people together.
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