Hanko Hop, Saturday 12th July 2014

It really happened!

A wonderfully tiring night ride from Helsinki to Hanko.

Next year, even bigger...

Ex tempore sub-24...

... on Friday June 27th.

Bemböle 17:30, riding northwards with an open mind.

Legs saved for Hanko Hop but Finnish wilderness enjoyed nonetheless.

...

Two English gents made friends with five lovely Finns by sharing a hard-to-find laavu. Mosquitoes mainly stayed away but the mud was debilitating...

A hop to Hanko

And hop we go, towards Hanko.

All details here

The May Sub-24...

was quite enjoyable! More about it soon.

For now, I wanted to advertise the forest route from Nuuksio to Bemböle. I returned home that way this morning, riding only a couple of kilometers on asphalt along Nuuksiontie and then the rest on well-maintained gravel paths from Solvalla through quite changing terrain. There were many short, steep hills (I needed to walk up a couple) and the overall distance is a bit longer than the direct road route, but it was seriously rewarding!

Sign posts were present at every turn and there were several maps along the route too. From Solvalla, follow signs for Pirttimäki, Oittaa and, finally, Bemböle. You won't regret it...

-- Lee.

Sub24 May, delayed by one week to accommodate everyone's schedule as much as possible, saw a good turnout of 11 people, representing England, France, Switzerland, Germany and Finland. Meeting up at the regular spot in Bemböle under mixed weather, we all took the most traveled Nupurintie before heading towards the hills of Nuuksiontie. Emile, carrying his young daughter and most of the camping gear in a trailer, deserves an award for producing a major effort dragging everything up there! Passing by "le col de l'Aigle" I could not help but sparing a thought or two of Charles' times as Sub24 charismatic leader.








Reaching Haukkalampi as intended, we realized quickly enough that the amount of outdoor enthusiasts by the fire would not allow us any spots for all our tents. Changing direction towards Mustalampi, we established our camp up a hill needing quite an effort to reach the top.



While setting up my tent some distance away from the fire I heard a big "bang" and I thought for half a second that someone was hunting in the area. Heading to the lake for a refreshing swim (early in the season the surface warms up fast, but the bottom stays bitterly cold), Emile told me his tire just exploded! Not just a regular puncture, but the whole structure of the tire apparently gave up after the last uphill. Sub24 is no stranger to puncture, but a teared up tire is definitely a first.

While pondering how Emile, Nathalie and their daughter would come back home the next day with just one bike operational, we decided to proceed to the cooking and dinner. It's a common knowledge that one thinks wiser with a full stomach. Olivier raised some eyebrows (mainly on the British side of the crowd) with his Italian dry sausage, and the debate was raging around the fire whether "everything" burns. We left off with the agreement that except water everything burns. Eventually. I hope you're happy Lee.

After dinner it was time for serious business and studying the options for Emile, Nathalie and their daughter to have a safe return home. I'll spare you the details, but we came up with the following outcome: Mounting one of Nathalie's bike tire on Emile's bike, dismounting the wheels of Nathalie's bike and attaching the frame and wheels with bungee cords to the trailer carried by Emile's bike.Later tomorrow Emile would cycle home with trailer, his daughter in it and 2 wheels attached to it, and Nathalie would take the bus carrying her bike frame. High five if you understood the whole set up. Thanks everyone involved in the rescue operation!




With the short nights of Finnish summer, one might easily forget about time, and it was 1 am before I realized it. A good night under the trees would follow, the sound of birds making for a pleasant mood.. After a very late wake up (10 am!) I noticed Robin and Lee had come home already and Christopher was just about to.

With the set up agreed the night before, a strange line of cyclists was soon to leave Nuuksio, Emile's trailer looking like a rickshaw with its wheels strapped to it. Natahlie took the bus holding her bike frame as planned, and Emile returned home safely carrying the rest of the equipment.
Sub24 has a new statement: "leave no man (nor woman) behind!"

Thank you all for the great times!


 -- Florian.

April edition - Porkkala

Our annual trip to Porkkala took place last weekend. We have enjoyed autumnal visits there in the last couple of years, but this time spring was in the air.

Groups from Bemböle and Helsinki merged at Kirkkonummi station to enjoy the excellent roads down to Porkkala. 

The fields were ploughed and the trees were showing the beginnings of leaves as we sped down the country lanes to the end of the peninsular. 


Several times our ride was interrupted by deer and even some young elk. 

We arrived as the sun was starting to set over the water and discovered a new and very stylish cooking shelter waiting for us. 

Luxuries were enjoyed and stories told, but the kilometers in our legs sent us easily off to sleep at a reasonable hour. 









The sun was shining beautifully in the morning and after a fried breakfast, tents were demolished and bags packed. 

On the way out of the forest, we stopped to collect our thoughts at the burial mound. 
















Good weather, good food and good company - the reasons we scrape ourselves off of our sofas.

The trip in numbers...

Riders: 6
Women: 1
Round-trip from Bemböle: 80
Total time in the saddle: 5 hours
Flat tyres: 0
Sausages eaten: 8


Advance warning: The last Friday of June will be a special edition of sub-24... The Hanko Hop!

We will leave Helsinki in the evening and ride through the night along Kuninkaantie all the way to Hanko. 

Have a look here.

See you next month!

Sub24 March edition - Kattilajärvi under the sun.

Four bikers met in Bemböle 28th March by a very sunny Friday. We headed to Kattilajärvi that we found without too much detours. It is quite a funny place, very uphill in a sort of creepy neighbourhood. Despite the strong sun, the air was very cold there and the lake still hard frozen. We found the construction site of the camping ground-to-be and we decide to be very early visitors. A nice fireplace was assembled and few seats arranged with big logs and we could start a task that would take a lot of energy for the following hour: starting the fire and keeping it alive. The wood was humid and nothing could help: if not ventilated, it was dying in no time. We put there fire starter, candle wax, sinol, nothing helped despite the nice fireballs(-that-you-should-never-try-yourself). The solution came from the very dry wood from some pellets that were abandoned on the site. After that, we had a roaring fire to keep our front side warm.

During the evening, a sub24-er came for short while, distributing sausages and many beers (big thanks!). The Beast managed to join us quite late since he had a work thing in the evening. How motivated one can be! A work week, followed by some socializing and food in the evening at work, 50 km of commuting, jumping on the bike and bike 30 km in pitch darkness not to miss the sub24!

We woke up by the smell of grilled bacon and had a merry breakfast. Bikers started to head home more or less early. The way back was again extremely sunny. I have to say it felt incredibly good to have a day of warm sun. Memory of the winter were still around and I noticed that the ice of Pitkäjärvi was making a symphony of cracking sounds. That was for the lyric minute of the ride. Looking forward April edition! Olivier