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22 Saturday: Short Ride

Wolfman

Speeding Up
Jul 31, 2007
631
19
On Saturday I plan to do a run up Kazahari Rindo.

I'll be cycling out but can meet people at Haijima station (around 7am) Musashi Itsukaichi (7:30-8am ish). From there, breakfast at the 7 Eleven, before beginning the ride.

Basically I'll just go to the top of the rindo, then turn back. If there's time then could also do Nokogiri rindo as well, but that depends a bit. After that I'll get on the train back to town.

Kazahari rindo is a bit more difficult than the main road to Tomin (it goes to something like 20% in places and averages something like 14% over the top 7km), but is closed to traffic so you can weave with pleasure. The early part of the ride is very nice as you follow a little river by the side of the road - this bit is not so steep and is rather gradual.

Speed: "Back in the Saddle", "Slow" "Fun Ride with Climbing Pain" compatible.

Itsukaichi-Kazahari-Itsukaichi Route
Distance: c46km
Climbing: c800m

Route: http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/27220530

Itsukaichi-Kazahari-Nokogiri-Itsukaichi
Distance: 65km
Climbing: 1500m
Route: http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/27220574

If you fancy a ride then please come along.

Lee
 
Hi Pete,
Sorry about that. I amended the settings - maps are visible now.
 
Great, no problems now. Regarding the ride, to the best of your knowledge, those two climbs are ice free at the moment?

I've been up Kazahari twice over the past two weeks and on both occasions it was perfect conditions. No ice.

With the second one, I'm not so sure as I haven't done it since the summer, it tends to be a bit of a damp road and is more shaded - it might be ok to climb the south side, the descent would probably be better on the north side towards Okutama/Ome- which tends to be dryer. However, I'm still not sure. Kazahari by itself is often enough.
 
Very tempting...

...If not a TAD on the early side!
For me to make it out there on time, I'd have to leave here by 4:30-ish.
That said, I might (in the very 50/50 sense of the word) be there:(
"Slow fun ride with climbing pain" is almost too good a description to pass up:D
Travis
 
I've been up Kazahari twice over the past two weeks and on both occasions it was perfect conditions.

So - got something to prove, have you Lee ?!

I'll try to join this up to Kazahari at least, then I will probably branch off into Okutama to try and get some brevet training miles in. But depends if I can get out early from a works function tonight.

If you're cycling out from Asagaya I'll join you, as long as it's at a slow fat-burning pace....

-- Steve
 
Travis - would be great if you're there. Give us a bell or text am if you can make it.

Steve - Yep, cycling out from Asagaya. I've sent you a mail to your gmail.

"Slow fun ride with climbing pain" - the next generation of sub-prime rides.
 
Full Report...

Early... My alarm clock went off at 3:50am. Of course, that's what time I had set it for, so I can't say I was really surprised. But it was still, early. I had a coffee and two slices of Vegemite (none of that Marmite crap) on toast, and headed out at exactly 4:45 - I would have to ride 70km in 2 & 3/4 hours, which the calculator told me would require an average speed of 25km/h.

I rolled through Shinjuku (22km) at 5:35, and continued straight down Koshu-kaido (Rte.20). Despite it being one of the busiest, Koshu-kaido is actually one of the faster roads in Tokyo, and I made pretty good time.
It was just after 6am when I passed the Rte.19 turn-off in Chofu that I would normally take to get onto Tamagawa. But at that time of morning, it was still pitch-dark, so I opted to stay on Rte.20 and continue heading west. Thankfully, that early in the morning, there was very little traffic, and I was soon rolling through Fuchu, and then Tachikawa.

It was around Tachikawa, however, that I noticed a definite drop in temperature, and my feet ... actually, my left foot, became uncomfortably cold - I vowed to buy an extra pair of socks once I arrived in Musashi-Itsukaichi. Somewhere between Tachikawa and Haijima, the sky lightened enough for me to turn off my flashers/lights. I could have cut across to the Tamagawa CR, but I was almost at the Rte.7 turn-off anyway, so it wasn't worth it - Of the dozen or so times I have ridden out to Itsukaichi over the years, today was the first time ever I had done it "river-less".

I arrived at Musashi-Itsukaichi station at 7:18, with an average of 28.3km/h - Just a fraction over 2 1/2 hours, non-stop. I put my backpack in the coin-locker, and then rode the 3km to the 7-11, where I hoped Lee & Steve would be waiting. I was (what I thought was) right on time, arriving at 7:30. Even in the short ride from the station to the 7-11, the temperature seemed to have dropped a further 3 degrees - It was FREEZING! I also noticed a few small patches of ice on the side of the road, and was starting to worry about whether we'd actually be able to do the climb.

I had a gel, an onigiri, and a chocolate eclair (not a mix I'd recommend if you weren't riding a bike ;)) and waited for Lee & Steve to arrive. At around 7:50, I was wondering if was at the right convenience-store, or if they had slept in, or had a puncture. The lazy (dominant?) side of my brain was thinking, "Yay! If they don't turn up by 8:00, you can have a long sleep on a nice warm train"...

Lee called me as I was putting on my newly acquired second pair of socks - They would be there soon!
I hadn't seen either of them in ages! It was good to finally catch up with you both! After they had also had something to eat, and filled their water bottles, the three of us set out towards the start of Kazahari-rindo. It was my first time on one these "acid" rides, and there was some miscommunication as to how fast/slow "LSD" was supposed to be - We finally settled into a psychedelic pace where we could all talk simultaneously, whilst the other two listened intently to every word, as we comprehended each others' thoughts with a clarity never before experienced in this dimension .... Actually, the three of us just rode side-by-side as we chatted and laughed, and generally caught up with all the recent gossip.

When we arrived at the start, we stopped to take a photo, and then we set off up the hill. The road was clear of ice, but they are STILL cutting down trees up near the summit - We had to walk our bikes over the piles of sawdust, and around the bulldozer up there. Once we had regrouped at the top, we had to decide whether to head back down the way we had come, or risk going down past Tomin-no-mori. We had no idea if there would be ice on the road, so we had to take it fairly easy, especially up near the top.
Only once we had gotten down to the lower sections, near Hinohara-mura, where the temperature was noticeably warmer, did we dare let go of the brake-levers for any length of time. It was down at the turn-off, where we said goodbye to Steve - He would be climbing up to Kobu-tunnel, and from there, head towards Yabitsu-toge, all in the name of getting in some "training miles" for an upcoming 300km brevet. I hope you made it all right, Steve!

Lee & I continued straight back towards Musashi-Itsukaichi. The only slight mishap being that Lee discovered a slow leak in his front tyre - We had to pump it up once in order to make it back to the station, and we only just made it before it had deflated again.
All in all, 128km with 1,200m of climbing. Nothing spectacular, but pretty good for a January ride - Thank you, Global Warming!

Thanks Lee, for suggesting the ride! It was great seeing you and Steve again. See you next time!

Travis
 
Excellent report Travis, as always. Really good too see you yesterday, and I apologise again for us turning up a bit late there. I guess you must have been waiting quite a while, seeing as you'd already moved on to the more "specialised" publications in the 7-11 magazine rack when we walked in ...;)

I did indeed make it to Yabitsu - phenomenally beautiful and quiet, with barely any cars seen on the whole climb. I think the Kazahari rindo climb had made it's mark though, as the legs had turned to jelly by the time I got to the top. Descended to Rt 246 and as I debated whether I should then loop back up to Takao, to add some miles, I got a call from the missus saying she wanted to go out that night. Phew! So I could hop on a train at Hadano, guilt-free.

158km with 2600m climbing for the day. Next time I think I'll cut down the climbing and up the distance. But I just can't resist ...

-- Steve
 
Saw you there taking pictures:D

Excellent report Travis, as always. Really good too see you yesterday, and I apologise again for us turning up a bit late there. I guess you must have been waiting quite a while, seeing as you'd already moved on to the more "specialised" publications in the 7-11 magazine rack when we walked in ...;)

I did indeed make it to Yabitsu - phenomenally beautiful and quiet, with barely any cars seen on the whole climb. I think the Kazahari rindo climb had made it's mark though, as the legs had turned to jelly by the time I got to the top. Descended to Rt 246 and as I debated whether I should then loop back up to Takao, to add some miles, I got a call from the missus saying she wanted to go out that night. Phew! So I could hop on a train at Hadano, guilt-free.

158km with 2600m climbing for the day. Next time I think I'll cut down the climbing and up the distance. But I just can't resist ...

-- Steve
 
Descended to Rt 246 and as I debated whether I should then loop back up to Takao, to add some miles, I got a call from the missus saying she wanted to go out that night. Phew! So I could hop on a train at Hadano, guilt-free.

No excuse required! You don't want to do route 246 back to/towards Tokyo. There are some alternatives, but you really have to know the roads and plan well, and in any case these alternatives are not a straight line back either.
 
Hi Ludwig,
Yes, 246 is a nightmare ! What I sometimes do is right after the coming out from the trees (where the "donut" road ends, about 2/3 down on the descent) I turn left onto a small rindo (the entrance is opposite the small toilet and bus stop on the right) - this eventually takes me to the bottom of Oyama jinja. From there I work my way towards Rt 64, once on Rt 64 head north about 15km and then take another rindo on the right where I join the 412 to Tsukui-ko (and then the usual Rt 20 to Takao). But I'm pretty bored of the 64 & 412, so if there's an alternative route that takes me in the general direction of Takao I'd love to hear about it !

-- Steve
 
Ah, you know that rindo and the Atsugi backroads already!

Well, I might not be King of the Rindo, but I do consider myself part of the rindo "royalty"... remind me who it was who showed you the way to Ireyama Toge last year ... :D

Anyway, thanks for the route ideas Ludwig - that's great. I'll upload to Google maps to get a proper look later and will definitely try one of them asap.

Cheers!
Steve
 
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