Trying to get back into the saddle for my regular ngaruawahia 40 km rides. Today's posts leg was a strong head/cross which the thighs will attest to.
#cycling #pedaling2Prague

Seven years ago this was a road full of cars & trucks thundering along the Seine riverbank. Now it's a place of walkers, cyclists, joggers, food places - and busking horn ensembles!
Voie George Pompidou, Paris, June 13, 2023
#cycling #paris #pedaling2prague

Seeing as you asked here's a short vid of the inner courtyard where our bikes were stolen from (originally taken for insurance purposes).

It you're interested, check out the #pedaling2Prague hashtag for other earlier posts of our ride.

There's also a collection of our daily rides on this komoot link.
https://www.komoot.com/collection/2159998/-cph-prg-2023?ref=undefined

Seeing as you asked here's a short vid of the inner courtyard where our bikes were stolen from (originally taken for insurance purposes).

And it you're interested check out the #pedaling2Prague hashtag for other earlier posts of our ride.

Now two and a bit weeks later we’re back in Kirikiriroa in Aotearoa/NZ, looking back on the bike thefts & recovery saga from the other side of the planet & struggling to believe it even happened.
/end

#pedaling2Prague #cycling

There’s a whole other story to be told about two days of “Deutschland ticket”-induced madness on German trains to reach the French border, but that can wait.

Ditto our three days of cycling and train-hopping to get to Paris, and how to safely fly your bikes across the world without bike boxes (hint, bring your tools)

#pedaling2Prague #cycling

The rest of the afternoon was spent attending to the bikes. A good clean, chain lubes, and a find/replace for Callie’s rear rack. Next morning it was grateful farewells to the hotel Anette crew and a 3km ride through cobbled tramline hell to Prague's main railway station for a train to the border.
#pedaling2Prague #cycling

Almost by accident, as it happened.
Way over on the other side of the town, in Prague 6, a police patrol stopped a couple of dodgy characters engaged in drug-related activities.The cops noticed they were in possession of a couple of bikes that clearly didn’t belong to them.They called them in & advised they were stolen. Chucked them in the back of the police Skoda and there they were.The perps were known to the police. Now in custody, they faced a range of charges.
#pedaling2Prague #cycling

There’s a whole other story to be told about two days of “Deutschland ticket”-induced madness on German trains to reach the French border, but that can wait.

Ditto our three days of cycling and train-hopping to get to Paris, and how to safely fly your bikes across the world without bike boxes (hint, bring your tools)

#pedaling2Prague #cycling

Almost by accident, as it happened.
Way over on the other side of the town, in Prague 6, a police patrol stopped a couple of dodgy characters engaged in drug-related activities.The cops noticed they were in possession of a couple of bikes that clearly didn’t belong to them.They called them in & advised they were stolen. Chucked them in the back of the police Skoda and there they were.The perps were known to the police. Now in custody, they faced a range of charges.
#pedaling2Prague #cycling

I got to make another statement , thanking the Prague police for their incredible results-driven results. Another smothering the judge and the Czech legal system with praise. Then back downstairs to take possession of the bikes.
A good lookover and they were fine. Barely noticeable signs of trauma.Hand shaking.
Profuse thank yous. And a question from me.
How ever did you find them?

#pedaling2Prague #cycling

Something strange was going on here. Rules were definitely being..well...bent??...to ensure we got our bikes back asap. We’ll never know why, but Callie & I got VIP treatment. I mean, the cops could well have decided the Surlys were evidence.Good luck getting them back this side the trial, right?
#pedaling2Prague #cycling

Up a couple of flights of stairs and we’re in an office with a couple of new people. An interpreter for me. And a bloody judge!

The purpose of this meeting is for the judge to witness my statement, to ensure the paperwork is in order and our bikes can be released.

Lots of longhand reading, me nodding, translations offers, and pages signed.

Hang on. A senior cop? An interpreter? A bloody judge? For a couple of recovered stolen bikes?

#pedaling2Prague #cycling

Next morning the hotel manager advised us the bikes would be at the police station (literally over the road from the hotel) at 1pm.

I would be required to make a statement, & they would be handed over.

We rocked up. Buzzed in. Judging by the look for the old boy on the reception desk, we were expected

Sat in the waiting room for 15 minutes. A couple of people arrived & went out back.
A senior cop appeared. Would I accompany him to the interview room? Of course.

#pedaling2Prague #cycling

Morena Mastodon!
It's miserable drizzly day here in the south Pacific as I assemble my notes for the second part of our Prague bike theft & recovery tale.
Now where were we?

The Surlys had been recovered. They were the Prague police. Apparently, they would be delivered back into our hands that night,. Maybe at 10pm.
Maybe at midnight.
Just make sure we’re awake for the call.
Midnight passed. No-one called...
#pedaling2Prague #cycling

Everyone headed down the scene of the crime.“They cut through the chainlink fence here, and took your bikes. We have it on camera.They scoped the place out at 2am and returned at 5am & took the bikes.”Gulp.“We have called the Police. I will call your room when they arrive.”
#pedaling2Prague

Fast forward a bit to the next morning. We’d just come back from a lovely breakfast of souffled eggs benedict & espressos at Kavarna (just down the road). Honestly, the food & drink in Smichov really is fantastic. Great value too.Anyway, passing the hotel reception, the manager got our attention. “You are the people in room 24?”Yes.“I have some bad news. Your bicycles were stolen in the night.”WTF?
#pedaling2Prague

We were staying in the hotel Anette, a simple family-run place in Simchov in Prague’s 5th District. I’d booked it on the internet. Chose it for at least 3 reasons: it was in a cool unpretentious neighbourhood, it was very good value, and it had somewhere we could safely lock out bikes during our stay (slightly off topic ,but Prague is definitely NOT a city to cycle in.) 2/
#pedaling2Prague

Recently Callie & I went on a bit of a bike ride, from Copenhagen to Prague. It turned out to be a wonderful & very fulfilling adventure for many many reasons. If you’re thinking about doing something similar, I recommend you pursue it with alacrity.

Speaking of adventures, I’d like to tell you about something that happened to us in Prague. It was initially traumatic. It could have been a disaster. And yet somehow, miraculously, everything turned out fine.
To.
Be.
Continued...
#pedaling2Prague

#pedaling2Prague #cycling #cycletouring #France #Paris