It’s always a challenge to know what to do on our last morning when we can’t afford to miss our ferry home. This morning’s adventure was a visit to the Gazelle e-bike Test Centre in Waalwijk. A short detour off our route with a conveniently timed free appointment.
But first, our final room was on the first floor of a very smart hotel however we have chosen to use the lift because Dutch stairs are terrifying
We’ve been talking about e-bikes for a while and, each time we cross the channel, there are more of them around. We’ve barely done any cycling in the last couple of years and wonder if we would do more, go further and Kim didn’t whine each time she saw a hill. Whatever the final decision, a chance to try out a genuine Dutch bike seemed too good an opportunity to miss. Gazelle have been making bikes in Holland since 1892 and they are all still made in the Dutch factory.
The Test Centre is purely that! All e-bike ranges were on display with one in every size and colour available for demonstration. You buy from a dealer so there is no hard sell, simply a desire to help you find the right bike and understand how to get the best from it. Kim was very taken with the comfortable upright riding position. Even John found the idea of an upright, step through bike acceptable! Could we get to Diane in Stopsley on an e-bike? What about Cambridge?
Anyway, while we ponder this life changing decision, here are our final thoughts.
We would go back to Pertisau and Hotel Wiesenhof. It was so quiet, the food was incredible and there’s plenty more walking to do. There are also more museums on route – the other Technik site in Sinsheim, a Plagiarism museum in Solingen and BMW in Munich to name a few.
Of course, we’d never get e-bikes in the back of the Skoda, which has been economical and obliging despite its uncomfortable seats. John could be on the hunt for ‘something interesting with a tow bar’ but he doesn’t need an e-bike as an excuse for that.
That’s it from this trip, however BraysAbroad will be back next week when Kim flies out to Tokyo to join Matt on his Japanese adventure.
