Hyvinkää – Cilurni Rides

Kalkkivuori 2

This could be my last ride of the season, so I decided to have assured fun going to Kalkkivuori again. This is definitely my favourite area so far. I went to the same paths again, so rather than describe the route I’m going to highlight the best paths and spots.

It had been raining heavily the day before, so the soil was soft and muddy even though it looked dry. Thanks to proper tires and my growing experience I drove more confident than ever, beginning to accelerate in curves, controlling some occasional slides. I didn’t fall a single time. The bike doesn’t feel so heavy after driving it fully loaded in Iceland. It was my best day in Finland.

The “U” formed by Mukulamäentie and Suurniityntie is really a great area for off-road motorcycling. These roads are nice forest paths with some gravel and good views. I took another picture of the spot with rocks covered with moss, that you can see below.

The best part of this area is not Mukulamäentie and Suurniityntie, but the multiple semi-abandoned paths that start from them and are not in Google Maps. Check out the screenshot of Geo Tracker below.

For example, the picture below was taken in this location and shows a path with grown vegetation including branches, which was also muddy and slippery in some parts.

Forest path near Suurniityntie (Hyvinkää)

The best path was actually the one that starts in this location. It was covered with vegetation, sometimes slippery and so uneven I even hit the ground with my skid plate. It was long and I could have continued further; but I turned around because I was going deep in the forest and I got worried of getting stuck. Unfortunately I was so excited and concentrated with the driving that I forgot to take a picture of the best part, but here is the beginning:

Forest path near Mukulamäentie (Hyvinkää)

I went through Iso-Kairintie again. It’s really a great curly road to push the limits with some controlled sliding. This time the vegetation was so grown that I could hardly see the lake.

As mentioned, I think this was a perfect ending for the season. I will soon store my bike and hopefully I will have the time to start telling you about Iceland before I forget too many details.

Loppi

For this day trip I looked at Google Earth again and decided to go west of Hyvinkää, not remembering that I have been there before. You may notice the lower quality of the pictures, taken with my old Samsung Galaxy S3 because my Nexus 5X was being repaired.

I took the E12 north to Hyvinkää and then 1361 west. The first gravel roads that I tried were the beginnig of Jauholammintie and Piilolammintie. They are the typical hard-soil and gravel roads, in this case narrow and with poor curve visibility due to the vegetation. Not worthy.

I continued west in the 1361 and tried Kenkiäntie. Without pretending it, I was again in the road where I had the fall. I have come to hate these roads of gravel over hard soil, it’s like going over marbles. Treacherous and not fun.

I went west in Hirvijärventie. Until Rantala it is paved and with many houses by the road, then it’s again a gravel road and still many houses.

I went up and down Pitkäjärventie. This a more interesting forest track with some stones and grass, only too short.

I took Hirsmäentie and Nyynäistentie north until road 54. They didn’t have so many houses as Hirvijärventie but they were the same kind of roads.

I took 54 west (which is an asphalt road) and then Kaakkomäentie and Ourajoentie north. Same again, hard soil, gravel, few houses.

I went back to 54 and tried Kalamajantie south and Niitymäentie north. (You can go all this way despite not being connected in Google Maps). Same thing as before, except for this part which is a forest track similar to Pitkäjärventie. I took the picture below in this location.

There are some hunting posts that I used to place my camera and take videos of myself passing by. In this location the forest was covered with moss and I could take the nice picture below.

I continued south on Hirsijärventie and then north-west on Eräläntie. Hard gravel roads again, with some nice views of forests and lakes.

I took Takalammentie east and the track that goes to Kurtlammi lake. Takalammentie is still hard soil, but the other is a short forest track with stones and grass similar to Pitkäjärventie, as you can see in the picture below.

South of Takalammentie there is another nice short track that doesn’t exist in Google Maps. In this location I took a picture of it that you can see below.

I decided to call it a day so I took roads 2832, 132 and E12 back to Helsinki. I must say that, if you like asphalt, 2832 is a nice slightly curvy and hilly road with good pavement and little traffic.

So, not a good area for off-road driving. The few nice tracks were too short. At least, I know where not to waste my time again. The season is coming to an end, so next time I will probably repeat Ylimmäinen or Kalkkivuori.

My first fall off the bike

After 10 years and several thousand kilometers, I have to stop saying I never fell off the bike. Yes, I dropped it many times, I even landed on the floor myself; but I was going so slow that it didn’t have many consequences. Like this:

It happened the first day I could go on a trip this season. I decided to explore the area west from Hyvinkää. I guess I was too excited, because I fell on the first unpaved road I found, Kenkiäntie. Right here.

Fell off the bike in Kenkiäntie (Hyvinkää)

As you can see in the picture, the road is wide and with gentle curves and I probably didn’t account for the amount of loose gravel on it. I arrived to this curve too fast and I tried to break. Then it happened so fast that I don’t remember exactly, but my next mistake was probably touching the front brake. The front wheel slided and the bike landed on the left side. I fell face down and the bike and me slided out of the road.

At first I didn’t notice anything wrong in me, so I removed my helmet. It was full of sand and gravel, like the front of my clothes. I can’t understand how much sand got inside the anti-fog layer of the visor. It was a sad view of a brand-new helmet.

My motorcycle leaks fuel in the horizontal position, so I went into picking it. At first I couldn’t due to the uneven floor. I managed to drag it around by pulling from the rear and finally I was able to pick it. I’m relieved I always succeeded after learning the technique. I took some time to rest and calm down while I checked the status of the bike. The front fairing was broken and twisted; the left side full of dirt and scratches; the rear indicator twisted. I noticed I couldn’t turn the handlebar right because it was hitting the bar that holds the indicator. I fixed that by forcing it. I was able to start the bike and all the lights and dashboard were working.

As I relaxed and cooled down, I started noticing pain in my left hand. I considered calling for help but since the bike was working and I was able to ride it, I thought I better went on my own. As a precaution I avoided the motorway and drove rather slow. It took me a long hour to arrive home. I took a shower to get rid of the dirt and a friend took me to the Emergency Department of a hospital. X-ray showed that I had a partial fracture of the triquetal bone, so I got a plaster that I must wear for four weeks.

Fortunately, I have time to recover and fix the bike for my Iceland trip. I will try to fix the bike myself, it seems a matter of straightening some bars with a hammer and taping the fairing cracks. Now I understand why Boano’s Rally Fairing is so narrow. This could be a good excuse to get it, some day.

The biggest material loss is the helmet. Arai’s Tour-X 4 isn’t cheap, and it was the first time I used it. It’s not easy to tell wether it is still safe to use, but I’m not buying another unless one of my insurances covers it. My motorcycle insurance didn’t, so I extended it for the next time this happens. I wonder if expending so much in the helmet was a good idea.

At least, it did its job. By all means, always wear a full face helmet. The most vivid memory I have of the fall is hitting the ground with the front of my helmet and then dragging it on the floor. The dirt and scratches clearly showed that. If I had a 3/4 helmet, the consequences would be worse than a broken nose and bruised face. I have a friend in the Emergency Services that has seen a few broken jaws.

The psychological effects will last longer, but are probably good. I must admit that my long history without serious incidents made me overconfident. It is good that I got this reminder that things can happen and have consequences, while it didn’t spoil my trip plans.