Sports

You'd think you knew how to do this, but doing it effectively and efficiently is hard. So far the biggest cycling venture was the attempt to cycle from Helsinki to Hammerfest and back. Fortunately I had some help when the bike started to break from all the possible places :)

Currently I ride a narrow tired roadbike, Trek 2000, which is pretty much unusable for camping. It has no cargo holders on, and basically no fenders. I've been thinking of using it for travelling to work, but the lock I have weights more than the bike.

An ancient Karelian game of strength and skill - mostly skill.

It has something in common with Kyykkä but it's more approachable as you don't have to gather a team every time you want to play. It has the same, strong mental element, good technique is a must and being fit makes it a lot easier.

As a beginner my gear is not that sophisticated, but it gets the job done. I'm carrying or rolling along my beginner's set, Ram Concept 3G, and haven't really settled on any particular model for gloves, I've become somewhat used to Callaway HX-HOT balls and I found two pairs of well-fitting shoes by Callaway and Ecco.

The best way to spend a winter day is on skis, no doubt about that. Don't even try that snowboarding mumbogumbo with me, I know what I'm talking about :-)

Cross-country is the easiest ski-sport to do here in southern Finland, although the season is short. And when it snows, you have to get to the tracks fast, before the snow either melts or is shaved off with all the skiers rushing around.

I'm only in the beginning with this one. It's a very fascinating, and demanding sport. I tried for the first time for a few days at Levi, and I've been hooked ever since. I'm quite happy with my gear, Karhu Grizzly skis, Rottefella R8 bindings and Crispi CXP boots. Yeah, I'm color coordinated with red-white-black gear.

I think I'm done with this, as I've tried telemark and enjoyed it more than I should've.

I've had my share of slopes, I started at around when I was just starting school, and was taken to the local ski-club. I kept on practicing with varying results, my personal best was the overall 3rd in the EK-cup M18 in mid 90's (I still have the trophy somewhere). If I'm not completely mistaken, I never actually won a single cup race, but I was pretty consistent with my standings.

Walking is pretty easy, but I don't like jogging or running. Kayaking is a lot of fun, I hope to spend more time in a canoe this summer. Finnish baseball is an almost forgotten art among my peers, and petanque is more straining on the mind than the body.

Hiking is more of a life-style than sports, and I'm planning on getting out there soon again. It's now been way too long since the last time, I just wish somebody could make a good DSLR-lense set with large aperture, good optical quality and non-existent weight. At the moment I have essentially only one lens that passes my reasonably low bar for optical quality.