Category Archives: Stage Details

Stage 09: Sumatra

Francs Hotel to  Mukomuko
Date: 28-08-2014 Time: 06:00 h Temp: 21/41 °C
Distance: 142 km Σ km: 962 km To Go: nnnnn km
Up: 859 m Σ Up: 11350 m Calories: 2716 kcal
Down: 855 m Σ Down: 11589 m Σ kcal: 25208 kcal
Conditions: Another hot and long day on the road. In the morning we made a short detour thru urban villages away from the main road. Then back to main road away from the coast. The day was very hot and water consumption high.

Again I spent a lot of my time with stops next to the road. The people are so inviting that I can’t just greet an continue. A motor cycle group passed me and greeted me as if I was also riding a Harley and wearing a leather jacket. A later met them again at a stop and a had a nice session with them. The highlight of the day was young Lisa at a shop 25 km away from camp. She was very good in English and a nice conversation developed. I’ll will post photos in another blog.

 

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Stage 08: Sumatra

Padang to  Francs Hotel
Date: 27-08-2014 Time: 05:30 h Temp: 15/38 °C
Distance: 119 km Σ km: 962 km To Go: nnnnn km
Up: 841 m Σ Up: 10491 m Calories: 1875 kcal
Down: 860 m Σ Down: 10734 m Σ kcal: 22492 kcal
Conditions: Make a short riding day, a long one!
Hot, quiet and remarkable good. Many stops and exceptional contacts

This was elapsed time wise one of the longer rides today. First of all, we were told that the next place to sleep at is very, very, very basic. Thus I decided to not arrive prior to sunset, to not see the rooms at daylight. And second, simply because I enjoyed it so much that I had to stop more often then on other days. I have several highlights to report on in separate posts. Keep your tension and be patient.

 

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Stage 07: Sumatra

Bukittinggi to  Padang
Date: 26-08-2014 Time: 05:01h Temp: 15/38 °C
Distance: 119 km Σ km: 844 km To Go: nnnnn km
Up: 686 m Σ Up: 9650 m Calories: 2271 kcal
Down: 1788 m Σ Down: 9874 m Σ kcal: 20617 kcal
Conditions: A short riding day, awarded with an arrival at the Indian Ocean.

A hot, but enjoyable day. A huge drop from 1150 m to sea level made the ride fast and scenic. At the end, the streets get very busy and air turns bad from smoke and exhausts. The bypass wasn’t probably really faster or less frequented than the main road.

 

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Stage 06: Sumatra

Kota Nopan to  Bukit Tinggi
Date: 24-08-2014 Time: 08:48h Temp: 17/37 °C
Distance: 178 km Σ km: 547 km To Go: nnnnn km
Up: 2408 m Σ Up: 9196 m Calories: 3792 kcal
Down: 1703 m Σ Down: 8039 m Σ kcal: 18346 kcal
Conditions: A long and demanding ride. The distance was actually a bid shorter than given the night before, however not with a ‘penalty’: 530 extra meters to climb.

The moderate early morning temperature constantly increased to their max. at 37°C, until the heavy afternoon rain set in. This time there was no buffer to seek shelter without risking to ride into darkness. At kilometer 123 we crossed the Equator into the southern hemisphere. Now things will change:

  • headwind becomes tailwind
  • climbs become descents
  • dirt becomes tar
  • water supply becomes beer
  • Muslim prayers become lullabies

and therefore we all can sleep 2 hours longer than usual Smile

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Stage 05: Sumatra

Padang Sidempuan to Kota Nopan
Date: 23-08-2014 Time: 05:09h Temp: 21/35 °C
Distance: 110 km Σ km: 547 km To Go: nnnnn km
Up: 943 m Σ Up: 6788 m Calories: 2572 kcal
Down: 841 m Σ Down: 6336 m Σ kcal: 14554 kcal
Conditions: A fabulous ride. The best so far. We took a back road away from the main road, thru little villages in the forest and green fields. Spectacular views and amazing contacts with the locals which over-compensated for the bad road.

Stay tuned to find some videos and photos later today or on Monday during our rest day. Tomorrow will be a tough day: 183 km & 1880 m climbs. Weather is said to ‘rain all day’

 

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Stage 04: Sumatra

Tarutong to Padang Sidempuan
Date: 22-08-2014 Time: 05:19h Temp: 15/32 °C
Distance: 108 km Σ km: 437 km To Go: nnnnn km
Up: 1495 m Σ Up: 5845  m Calories: 2487 kcal
Down: 2033 m Σ Down: 5495 m Σ kcal: 11982 kcal
Conditions: Another day with a huge climb and a long rewarding descent. The climb felt harder than yesterday.

The rewards seem to continue. It was a ‘short’ riding day. I arrived at the hotel at about 1 pm, and almost missed it as I was cruising through town. It is one of the days you don’t want to stop riding, because you think you gonna miss something Winking smile

 

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Stage 03: Sumatra

Tuk Tuk to Tarutong
Date: 21-08-2014 Time: 08:59h Temp: 14/31 °C
Distance: 155 km Σ km: 329 km To Go: nnnnn km
Up: 1618 m Σ Up: 4350  m Calories: 4140 kcal
Down: 1547 m Σ Down: 3462 m Σ kcal: 9495 kcal
Conditions: A rewarding climb. Rain in the morning and afternoon. Climb stunning.

tbd

 

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Stage 02: Sumatra

Berastagi to Tuk Tuk
Date: 19-08-2014 Time: 05:35 h Temp: 15/31 °C
Distance: 119 km Σ km: 174 km To Go: nnnnn km
Up: 1232 m Σ Up: 2732  m Calories: 2661 kcal
Down: 1718 m Σ Down: 1915 m Σ kcal: 5355 kcal
Conditions: perfect cycling weather. Not too hot, not too cold, just right. Road perfect, traffic low.

It was a very scenic ride. First smoking Mt. Sinabung, then the ride through fertile fields and plantations and along the ridge of Lake Tabo caldera.

 

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Stage 01: Sumatra

Medan to  Berastagi
Date: 18-08-2014 Time: 04:24 h Temp: 22/28 °C
Distance: 55 km Σ km: 55 km To Go: 10987 km
Up: 1500 m Σ Up: 1500 m Calories: 2694 kcal
Down: 197 m Σ Down: 197 m Σ kcal: 2694
Conditions:

warm, humid, road partially bad in the beginning

A typical Cristiano ‘first day out of the camp’ ride: “Ascent to heaven”. A constant climb from the first kick. Air temperature was good, but humidity at 100% after the drizzles stopped. The road on the first km had seen much better days, but is still considered paved in TdA terms. Getting on the main road the long climb started. Traffic was dense but most of the cars and trucks did not take too much risk to save a few seconds …

 

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