At first my ride home was a little foggy, but then it got REALLY foggy.

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Same spot as yesterday, but this time facing the opposite direction to see the sun set.

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Not the lake shore but close-by
Look back at the immanent sunrise above rain soaked meadows. Little whips of fog linger between the still lit street lights. What a time to be out riding a bicycle.

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Morning commute
With the shift to winter time dawn is again close to my departure time.

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Vineyards on Reichenau Island facing Switzerland where the Rhine river separates from Lake Constance.


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Early bird ride
Lately cycling to work means starting before dawn. Last night there was a cloudless sky and you could see plenty of stars. But it was also cold AF. My cycling computer registered an average temperature of mere 3⁰C.
The sun was out all day and it was fairly warm. But as soon as you were out of the sun, you could feel the temperature plummet.
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You can't select the weather for when you're riding, especially when you're commuting. But sometimes you can find a gap between showers.

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to increase visibility
With autumn and winter around the bend, I took steps to be better seen in the dark hours while commuting to work. Being seen is being safe(ish) in traffic. The sooner you are spotted in the dark, the better drivers can react to you.
Avoid dark clothing, they reflect not enough light to make you stand out from the darkness all around. Dark clothing at night is like camouflage.
Use reflectors on your bike and clothing at the very least. From the first picture you can see, how little light is reflected from the backpack as compared to the hi-vis-strips.
Lights improve being spotted immensely. Not to mention you yourself can see the road better. With the current generation of LED lights, battery power or dynamo hubs, there is really no excuse left not to use them.
Don't assume street lights are enough make you visible!

Anyhow, I butchered a hi-vis vest to fix the reflective strips on the compression straps on my back pack. Now those straps on the front of my backpack are special, since they are meant to carry a snowboard, but I'm pretty sure this concept will work for any backpack with compression straps on the side.
My cutting and sewing is not the most sophisticated work, but it turned out well enough. All I did was cut the reflective strips with enough of the yellow fabric to fold it over on it's own and then sew the length together to form a long tube. Turn it inside out, so the seam is hidden inside and that's it.
For compression straps two simple cuts would do to thread the straps through the tube.
Check whether you got the reflective bits on the outside, before mounting it though, because I messed this up for one strip.


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Shiny
I could use a second pair and they are currently on sale at bike-discount.de.
This is the narrow version of the Shimano SH-XC502 and you best pick them one size bigger than normal.

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We ride at dawn
Cycling along the causeway from Reichenau Island on my way to work. There was a heron flying overhead and it was quite a chilly morning.

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Back to clip-in pedals
After 12 years exclusively riding flats I'm back to clip-in pedals - at least of my gravel bike. I've used the Pedaling Innovations Catalyst 1 pedals since March 2019. I even bought two pairs back then, but I only purchased one rebuild kit with them through a retailer in the UK, but I used that for the pedals on my MTB. Since then Brexit happened and with the tariffs on US products the rebuild kit costs more than double of what it used to.
A good time to look for alternatives for my worn Catalysts. Enter Shimano's PD-ME700. I shortly considered Hopes Union TC, but as I am not sure I'm will stick with clip-in pedals I chose the more affordable option for now. I prefer the little bit of extra platform, even though the main power transmission is thought the cleats. Also that cage will hopefully provide enough support for a quick ride to the bakery on the weekends with "normal" shoes.
The pedals are complemented by the Northwave Escape Evo 2 shoes. Basically the cheapest pair I could find in my size. They are noticeably stiffer than shoes for flats and the sole doesn't provide too much traction of smooth supermarket floors, but is grippy enough anywhere else.
I'm still figuring out the best cleats position, but the old instincts of clipping out when stopping were back immediately.

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Tires issues again
Well, that was underwhelming. The Onza Grava barely lastet 1200km on the rear. I didn't skid the rear tire, actually only once braked hard as someone took my right of way. I guess the little nobs aren't ment for use on tarmac.
On the front wheel the tire looked a bit better, but still a far cry from doing 2000km. Shame for they rolled well ,smooth and straight, had very good grip in loose ground and were easy to setup tubeless.
One unexpected benefit of white tires is that they reflect the light of my bike lamp better and thereby increase visibility from the sides.
Anyhow for my third new set of tires this year I picked the Hutchinson Caracal 40mm for the rear and the Caracal Race 45mm on the front. They have a solid strip of rubber on the center, which should make for low rolling resistance and low wear. They are well suited for dry and hard packed grounds and pavement. There are some small nobs on the sides for good cornering grip, when you lean the bike over. Bummer they don't come in white.

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