Veerle's Sidenotes A collection of thoughts on subjects of my interest.
2023 In Numbers
This might sound contradictory. You see, I'm not particularly fond of lists, rankings and such. I’m more of a numbers, data, statistics person. Numbers, in particular, captivate my attention during walks and bike rides. During my walks I usually listen to podcasts, but when cycling, my focus remains on the road. I frequently challenge myself with small estimations, such as predicting the precise time of arrival or estimating distances between points A and B. During walks, I might estimate the number of 'macadams' when approaching the 30 km sign in the village or a specific intersection—quirky things like that.
As mentioned, statistics are always enjoyable, and here's what Strava has compiled for my 'Year In Sport 2023.' Inspired by the captivating article by Scott Boms, I decided to craft my own illustration:
Ever since I own an Apple Watch, my focus has been on completing my activity rings, which entails engaging in at least 20 minutes of exercise each day, burning 560 calories daily, and standing up for a few minutes every hour. Personally, the daily stand goal holds particular significance for me, especially since I spend extended periods sitting while working. The watch prompts me to stand up if I haven't done so within the hour, a health-conscious feature in my opinion. I strive to meet the other goals daily for overall well-being. According to my Apple Watch, I have successfully closed all rings for the past 543 days. However, there was one day I recall when I forgot to charge my watch properly 🤦🏼♀️, disrupting the counting as certain rings remained unclosed on that day.
I'm thrilled to have achieved the set goal of riding 12,000 km again. However, we faced some challenges during the Summer and early Fall, with periods when we couldn't go for bike rides due to ongoing construction and installations around the house. Instead of being ahead of our usual schedule, we found ourselves behind when the wet and windy Fall weather set in. Since around mid-October, the weather has been consistently dreadful, with an unprecedented number of wet, windy, and grey days in 2023. Despite the challenges, we persevered. After each ride, we had to clean our bikes. Fortunately, the fenders provided substantial protection for both the bike and our apparel, but even with them, the bike ended up dirty after every single ride.
Photo of some of the many flooded meadows in Wontergem, a place nearby home
Fingers crossed for better weather in 2024 🤞🏼. Unfortunately, the first few days of this new year haven't been promising, with a few storms and heavy rain, even posing a flooding threat in our nearby neighborhood. However, next week I see some dry days with periods of sunshine showing up in the forecast, along with freezing temperatures. It’ll be cold for sure to ride my bike, but I don't mind as long as there's sunshine.
Tall Swedish Wooden Wind Turbine
The world's tallest wooden turbine, recently activated by the Swedish startup Modvion near Gothenburg, reaches a height of 150 meters (492 feet) from the ground to the tip of its highest blade. At its summit, a 2-Megawatt generator is now in operation, contributing electricity to the Swedish grid and powering around 400 homes.
Modvion’s first commercial wooden wind turbine tower has been built just outside Skara, Sweden.
Externally, the Modvion wooden turbine closely resembles its steel counterparts, with both featuring a robust white coating for weather protection. Additionally, they share blades primarily composed of fibreglass, linked to a generator that generates electricity as the blades rotate. However, it is only upon entering the tower that the distinctions become apparent, notably in the form of walls adorned with a curved raw wood finish.
The robustness of the tower emanates from the 144 layers of laminated veneer lumber (LVL) comprising its thick walls. Modvion has adeptly manipulated the strength and flexibility of the walls by altering the grain of each 3mm-thick layer of spruce. The company's co-founder refers to this technique as their "secret recipe".
In the outskirts of Gothenburg, at the factory, the slender layers of wood undergo a process of bonding (glued) and compression to create the curved sections. These assembled pieces are transported to the site, where they are adhered together to form cylinders, subsequently stacked on one another to construct the tower.
Through the utilization of wood and adhesive, it becomes feasible to construct towers in smaller, more conveniently transported modules. This approach, they assert, will significantly simplify the construction of exceptionally tall towers and facilitate the transportation of components to challenging locations. Modvion has a patented solution, which enables transport on ordinary roads, with ordinary trucks.
Wood enables building higher towers at a lower cost, which makes wind power more efficient since winds are stronger and more stable higher up. That gives you more electricity from each permit to build wind turbines.
The wooden turbine from Modvion not only provides a sustainable alternative but also touts a carbon footprint that is negative in comparison to its steel counterparts. Modvion asserts that opting for wood over steel eradicates the carbon footprint of wind turbines entirely, turning them carbon negative. This is due to trees extracting carbon dioxide from the atmosphere while alive, and when felled, the carbon becomes stored in the wood. The crucial point is that as long as the wood avoids rotting or combustion, the stored carbon remains sequestered. Modvion's tower, crafted from approximately 200 sustainably farmed spruce trees, underscores a dedication to responsible forestry practices.
In the future, Modvion envisions constructing even taller turbines and strives to establish a facility manufacturing 100 wooden modular turbines annually by 2027. Their ambitious goals, including a vision for 10% of global turbines to be wooden within a decade, align with the industry's increasing dedication to sustainable energy solutions.
Photos by Modvion
Polestar 2
The conclusion of my Polestar 2 lease is approaching fast. Reflecting on the past three years of driving electric, I ponder the overall experience. What has ownership been like, and do I plan to retain it?
EV Driving
I've been immersed in the world of electric driving for even longer if we take my previous Volvo V60 T8 into account. However, that car introduced some *real* range anxiety, boasting only a 42 km all-electric range in optimal conditions. In a peculiar incident, the car even declined to operate in all-electric mode, displaying a warning on the dashboard: "Aged fuel. Start engine to consume fuel." I had to deplete the fuel reservoir before I could resume electric driving. Nevertheless, let's return to the discussion about the Polestar and the rationale behind choosing this car.
Why Polestar?
The primary factor influencing my decision was the company itself, particularly its leadership by a designer. What sealed the deal for me was the way it positions itself in the market, emphasizing transparent and open communication about its climate ambitions. The second compelling reason was its aesthetic appeal. The moment I saw the announcement, I was convinced that this would be our next car. All of this was decided well before I even had the chance to take it for a test drive.
How Was the Ownership Experience?
My initial experience behind the wheel was at a Polestar event in Kortrijk, and fortunately, it exceeded all expectations. This car is truly fantastic to drive, boasting excellent build quality. It's a Magnesium variant equipped with a dual motor, delivering 300 kW / 408 hp. The acceleration is impressively fast, taking just 4.7 seconds to reach 100 km/h. The Polestar 2 cabin is quiet, especially so on winter tires. Pilot Assist works great and is trustworthy. Geert even uses it on all roads. It's the type of car that you eagerly anticipate driving every time you step into it.
The ownership experience had its share of hiccups, particularly in the initial stages. The TCAM Module exhibited erratic behavior, leading to an unstable internet connection and, at times, a complete lack of data—quite problematic given the car's reliance on it. Fortunately, the module was replaced a couple of times, all covered under warranty. The resolution to these issues came when there was an improvement in network coverage, ultimately addressing the connectivity issues.
I encountered one significant problem when the car abruptly refused to function, leaving me stranded in the middle of an intersection. Subsequently, the car had to be towed to the garage, where it was determined that the issue lay with the printed circuit board. In each of these instances, I was provided with a replacement car. My trust in the brand remained steadfast, largely owing to the exceptional service and customer support from ACG Polestar Ghent. The service there is truly top-notch, with incredibly helpful staff. I never experienced frustration when reaching out or visiting, thanks to Isabel Vanhulle and her excellent team! They now also have Polestar spaces.
Overal the experience these past 3 years has been lovely with some room for improvement on the phone part. Just remember that I was an early adopter.
Software
Let's delve into the software, a crucial aspect of the ownership experience. The system operates on Android Automotive, and the current state of the car is vastly different from its 2020 counterpart. Over time, I've received numerous 'over the air updates' that have not only refined the car but also introduced new features. The most significant improvement has been the enhanced efficiency of the car, achieved through meticulous tuning of the motors. In the early stages of ownership, most of my rides consumed 25 kWh/100 km or more, considering the car's 19" tires. Nowadays, it's not uncommon for me to achieve 17 kWh/100 km, marking a notable improvement in overall efficiency throughout my ownership. Overal efficiency the last 5000km has been around 19 kWh/100 km.
Polestar homescreen on Android Automotive.
Another crucial aspect of owning an electric vehicle is the software that manages predictions about your range when inputting a destination into the navigation system. The mapping itself is powered by Google, ensuring a top-tier experience. The battery management is notably reliable, consistently providing slightly conservative estimates, usually a few percentage points below the actual capacity. I have complete trust in the system and am comfortable pushing the charge level to around 10% or even lower.
In cases where the remaining charge isn't sufficient to reach the destination, the car suggests suitable charging stops, providing information on available stalls and the required charging time. These are insights gained through experience. Those who express concerns about spending two hours charging likely haven't had much EV experience. Charging the car to 100% is uncommon because the process slows down significantly from 80% onwards. Personally, I typically charge to 60%, 70%, or 80%, depending on the destination.
With an EV, your approach to travel planning evolves. Stops align with natural breaks for activities like using the restroom, relaxing, eating, or grabbing a drink. Most of the time, you end up needing to hurry to prevent overcharging. It's surprising how quickly 30 minutes pass, and the gained range is often more than enough.
Charging destination to Polestar Sweden.
The Phone Application
One aspect that didn't quite meet expectations was the phone application. Its functionality was severely limited, often leading to frustrating experiences. For instance, when the car was charging in the village on a discounted tariff, attempting to check the remaining charging time resulted in the app failing to refresh correctly. It displayed inaccurate charge levels or timed out. No way to get a notification when charging was done. Another instance was with pre-conditioning the car, where clicking would lead to multiple timeouts before actually working. After nearly three years, they've finally launched version 4 of the app recently, a complete rebuild that now operates seamlessly and as anticipated. It's almost amusing when they announce the release of a phone that seems so unnecessary and doesn't align with their environmental goals when they need that long to get an app running as it should. We don’t need more, we need less!
Version 4 homescreen of the iPhone application.
Will I Stay with Polestar?
I had hoped for the Polestar 4 to be a smaller car, but unfortunately, that's not the case. In my sincere opinion, Polestar's inclination towards larger cars seems somewhat at odds with their environmental aspirations. I understand that people love BIG SUV’s but sometimes you have to be brave and be a leader and steer people in a different direction with a well thought out offering. So no I not will extend my lease.
I'm returning to Volvo! My upcoming car will be an EX30—the smallest Volvo yet and at an affordable price. Similar to my approach with the Polestar 2, I placed the order without seeing it in person or test driving it. It should be in my hands by April. Will test drive it in January.
