Most of you probably know that there is a fine line between genius and insanity. I think there’s probably no place that reflects this fact better than the small village of Maria Gugging, right outside of Vienna. Today, I did a very light climbing training and passed this town, which used to be the home of a mental hospital, but today the Institute of Science and Technology, which is an institute of basic research (sometimes referred to as “elite university” by the Austrians) that tries to hire the best scientist from all over the world, is located right at the same place. Unfortunately, my eTrex ran out of battery pretty exactly at the spot of maximum altitude of this tour. This is why the GPX file about this trip was recorded with my Forerunner. Before I started, I added another centimeter of height to my saddle’s position, following Alex Kolar‘s advice. I didn’t feel much difference, but since he’s the expert, it was probably a good decision. Maybe I’ll have to do more adjustments in the future. When I went out on the street with my bike, the first thing I realised was a pretty heavy wind. Also, the sky was rather cloudy and everything felt like an upcoming shower. I first wasn’t sure if I should start at all, but then, what’s the price for freedom? So I went for the trip nonetheless, and I actually enjoyed it very much because the temperature was quite comfortable and even when the wind became extremely strong from time to time, it was not as bad as I had feared. I returned home rather late and I was quite thankful for my decision to put a basic illumination to my bike.
The usual numbers:
| Total distance | 49.0 km |
|---|---|
| Average speed | 25.8 km/h |
| Maximum speed | 54.4 km/h |
| Total climb | n/a (eTrex failed) |
| Average heart rate | 163 bpm |
| Maximum heart rate | 191 bpm |
| Time active | 01:53:55 |
| Time resting | 00:11:05 |
| Energy consumed | 1940 kcal |
Note: The amount of energy consumed was calculated from the measured heart rate and physiological parameters.
The GPX file recorded with my Forerunner can be found here.
p.s. If you don’t have an offline GPX viewer, you can view the file here. Caution: The tool used on this site is not 100% free because using it on commercial sites requires the author’s permission (see here (German) for the legal details). Unfortunately, it also defaults to use Google Maps, but you can switch to OSM, which I recommend.