Jogging and Cycling in Towns and Villages Respectively

Having taken up jogging in Bulgaria over the last month, there are many reasons behind this. Before starting can I mention that normally I am an avid cyclist, if ever a few kilograms wanted to be lost from a fit, but aging man, a couple of weeks cycling over long distances usually did the job. I just love cycling, even in mid-winter in sub-zero temperatures (see 365 Bulgarian Adventures.) So why jog instead of cycle?

During the week I am in Yambol and the many cyclists that wheel and hobble along the cobblestone street is a refreshing sight. Every cycle I see my mind says 'one less car', but the cycling is down more to cost than environmental conscience. Most of the bicycles I see are not roadworthy and those that are ride the wrong way up roads, on pavements and carry vast amounts of luggage making the bicycle too unstable to ride so it is pushed. The average speed limit to cyclists in Yambol is just generally just slightly faster than walking pace. If yo add the horrendous potholes that have really got worse and worse this winter as each day goes by, going any faster, without brakes on their bikes, makes absolute sense.(see Roma Riders)

With all this in mind, my bikes is sitting in the garage as my style of cycling is very different from Bulgarian cycling. First and foremost I do it for pleasure and health, I don't think this aspect is even consider for one moment by most Bulgarians. Riding a bike is done only because a car can't be afforded! I cycle like I am on a time trial most of the time, this can't be done in Yambol, nowadays there is too much traffic, too many bad roads making it far too dangerous to travel at speed in such environments. If I have a hybrid mountain bike it would be fine but I have a light and fast touring bike designed for speed on good roads, I can't do that here. I have another bike, a pure road bike in Skalitsa as the road there are excellent for touring and road riding, this is where my cycling usually takes place.

So, the jogging has taken over form cycling in Yambol. I once competed the London Marathon a long time ago, but that is ancient history now as I tramp the back roads of Yambol. Even on the road it is like a cross country event with the torn and uneven road surfaces. I think I must be the only person in Yambol who goes out jogging. I have never seen anyone jogging here since I been here, even in the warmer months. Bulgarian drivers just don't know how to react when passing a jogger, they always pause as they are not sure whether to give me a wide berth or run me over - they certainly have been close to that. Yet if I was on a bike they would give the greatest respect when passing.

Dogs haven't a clue what to do when I pass them. The ones that are chained up bark to the hilt, well that's what they are there for. The wild, free dogs bark when I approach but that stops suddenly when I pass, they also have not seen anything like this going on. It's almost if they are saying that it's their job to run on Yambol roads not mine!

Loosing weight is my prime objective here, plus I've had a few warning signs from my heart telling me to work it a bit more. Also in view of reading Malcolm and Ciejay's Blog, it probably makes me even more determined to keep it up.

Galia did a half marathon here in Yambol quite a few years ago, it was a one off event for charity so she tells me. Pity it's not an annual event, but then jogging is not at all a Bulgarian thing!

Bulgarian Cart Wheels

The invention of the wheel has had a major impact in Bulgaria without the wheel Bulgaria would come to a standstill. Can you imagine Bulgaria without their carts?

Everywhere you look there is a wheel turning but not necessarily a round wheel. The come in all shapes and sizes circular in the main but can come in many varieties of oval and the occasional rectangle but these are generally gypsy owned and stationary.

Car and engine driven traffic aside, the wheel is the most practical means of transporting goods and personnel around, it always has been here. Carts, trolleys, bicycles all are used extensively and in the most practical way in Bulgaria.

You can find wheels on horse drawn carts here of all ages, some going back 100 years. The Bulgarian carts are the most useful means of transport and in most villages this is the only means of transport that still has its use. Many will still be working 20 or 30 years down the line, it's all down to cost, hardly anything other than donkey or horse feed and that's generally free if you cut your own.

I have a cart myself a fine specimen and also three old spare wooden wheels in my barn, one I gave a way to a neighbour who had a three wheeled cart with wheels roughly the same age. These are the wheels you see are put into posh gardens as a bit of garden furniture, very nice. There are no rubber tyres as the wheels that made with wood have a metal tread. There is less friction on these wheels and therefore less effort to pull by the donkey and horses. Yes, the ride is a bit rougher but less energy is used and that is always preferable to Bulgarians.

Many now use old car wheels on their carts, with pneumatic tyres, these are hard work to pull. Some carts have smaller a smaller diameter metal plate wheel with solid rubber tyres like those on young children’s bicycles these are perfect for riding through mud and a good alternative to the wooden wheel.

It is a shame that the old wheels are now fading fast and the makers of these wheels now almost extinct. I just hope the one-day they come back into fashion but they won't. The reason being that there are too many cars on the road now and car wheel will become even more plentiful. The age of the wooden handmade wheel will continue in a downward trend, pity, as they are so practical and efficient as well.