Hello everyone and nice to have you back on our blog (again). Thursday evening marks the end of my exciting time in Brno with the dismantling of the “Transport Show” trade fair. Before I continue my journey, however, I first have to charge my toll device. Fortunately, I had already researched a suitable location at a petrol station a few days earlier where I could do this. This clears the way for my next stop: Slovakia.

 

Interesting road markings

On Friday morning, I set off for Púchov – 160 kilometers lie ahead of me. With no to-dos on my mind, I can concentrate fully on the ride and arrive relaxed in the afternoon. For the last hour, I only ride over land: the roads are narrow and the trees almost lean over onto the road, but the surroundings are something to behold. I find the road markings quite interesting: The roadway is marked with red paint for 150 meters. I took a picture of this for you.

 Interesting feature: red lane markings in Slovakia. Photo: Ronny Nittmann 

 

What exactly does that mean? It means that the next village is just around the corner. The entrance to the village is marked with a sign – just like in Germany – but it is not large and yellow like ours, but small and white. So it’s very difficult to recognize.

 

Sporty weekend in the small town

My first destination in Slovakia is the tire factory in Púchov, where I park my truck and then make my way to the hotel. And what a hotel! A real paradise for me as a sports enthusiast: a tennis court, a gym over three floors, a badminton court, a wellness area and a swimming pool. The “Vázska Cyklomagistrála” cycle path also runs to the left and right of the hotel. A 4.1 km long section completely separated from car traffic, a dream come true for every cycling fan. I grab my inline skates on Sunday, test out the cycle path and ride a whole 40 kilometers.

 

The weekend is definitely sporty. Either I do sport or I sleep – but what else am I supposed to do when I’m in a hotel like this? I wasn’t really able to do much sport during my time in the south of Europe, so I have to make up for it now.

 

Continental is everywhere

The town of Púchov is small, but has everything you need. In addition to the sporting activities, I visited the most important sights. These included the Conti plant, which is very close by. There’s not much going on during my exploration tour, but the surroundings are beautifully green and very quiet. And I see a lot of people cycling.

The Continental plant in Púchov. Photo: Ronny Nittmann

 

Another discovery I make: many of the cars in the residential area have Conti tires. The people here seem to be very loyal to their company. I suspect that many of them work at the Conti plant here. It’s also quite big. Continental is very present in the small town, even in front of and behind the village there is a Continental sign.

 

I am greeted by Continental right at the entrance to the village. Photo: Ronny Nittmann

 

The event and a red car

The first event in Slovakia starts on Tuesday: the plant has invited many customers and we will present our truck. Wednesday is the next event in Banská Bystrica. From my hotel I drive along mountain roads and through green woods. The second location is right next to my hotel – Congress Hotel DIXON – in the parking lot. So no long distances and I can go to bed quickly in the evening.

In the background you can see my hotel and in front the parking lot where we present our truck. Photo: Ronny Nittmann

 

A funny problem arises on site: someone hasn’t moved their car in time, even though the parking lot was marked early. So as not to disrupt our perfect black and yellow image, we quickly parked the car and put a black tent over it. The Czech colleagues thought my idea was great. But a red car in the middle of everything doesn’t look good either.

Here you can see the tent under which we hid the red car. Photo: Ronny Nittmann

 

Apart from that, the weather is really great, it’s almost 30 degrees. But it’s a bit uncomfortable for the tour in the trailer: the trailer heats up enormously and the appliances only emit warm air. Nevertheless, all customers are satisfied, although our mobile air conditioning units are reaching their limits.

After the event, we quickly put everything away, then I go to the cool hotel and watch the Germany game against Hungary. And before you ask: we of course uncovered the red car under the tent, but the owner didn’t show his face the whole time. The car has probably been in the parking lot for a while, because it has winter tires – from Conti, of course.

 

On the way to Prague

After breakfast on Thursday, I set off on a relaxed journey to Prague. I’m going to a trade fair there. Before that, I want to make a quick stop at a petrol station to get some Red Bull and snacks. I get a little surprise there: a power cut has plunged the store into complete darkness and the cashier has to add up the amounts manually. Luckily I have cash with me.

The next few days promise to be exciting. The event in Prague continues on Tuesday, and on June 27 I return to Hanover.

Until then – see you on the road,

your Ronny