japanviking
Speeding Up
- Jul 13, 2010
- 279
- 6
Hi (Andreas):
Just to confirm ... I do not see any no changes from what was posted on the organizer site ( http://blog.livedoor.jp/tokyoitoigawa/ ) on April 1, correct? Nothing new in the past 6 weeks, right?
You added the checkpoints to that track?
It looks like the only tricky points are:
(1) don't miss the left turn just before Lake Suwa ... or you will go the long way around as numerous folks have from time to time during the event (Tom) or in practice (Mikey),
(2) did they change part of the climb after Lake Suwa up to Shiojiri Pass -- I think some years at least there has been an intermediate left turn after Okaya, up a sharp hill along Pref. Route 254 ... but this year you go straight all the way to National Route 20, then turn left (which I remember from the first time I did TOITO back in 2008). A more gradual and longer route.
I don't know if any of the turns are easy to miss around Nagano-shi/Nagano Station area ... but it looks as if, as usual, they chose "National" instead of "Prefectural" roads, and the most easily navigated, unimaginative and heavily traveled routes possible ... just without the Hakuba-Itoigawa tunnels and with the last 50 kms along the coast road.
The weather forecast for Saturday looks very nice throughout Yamanashi/Nagano/Niigata, a bit hot around mid-day ... but need to watch for wind direction and save something in the tank in case of the headwinds along the coast.
Thanks,
David L.
David,
You are correct about the changes being made 6weeks ago. I just wanted to make the correction to the RideWithGPS route I posted back in February.
I Manually added the checkpoints to the Route from the information on the webpage. Feel free to double check the accuracy of the checkpoints.
I think I will write down the expected turns and their exact distance from the start on a piece of paper. I will also try to hook up a bigger battery to my Garmin 800. I want to use it for navigating without being nervous about the battery life.
So,
How many will be riding and when are you all starting?
I am scheduled for a 5:15 take off myself :bike: