Edogawakikkoman
Maximum Pace
- Jan 14, 2007
- 2,549
- 251
8 of us took to the hills today:
6:30 Nagarayama:
9:30 Okutama (base).
4p.m back to the car.
6 pm home.
We started just up past the 7/11 that TCC uses as it's last refill station as there is a car park near the base of a walking/MTB track.
At first we headed towards Tomin-no-mori by road and the sight of snow everywhere was a little worriesome.
My tyres were a little flat so the climb up was extra hard. About 3 or 4km before the Tomin-no-mori toll we started walking up a goat track (on the right hand side of the road). It was steep and it took us over an hour of carrying our bikes on our shoulders up one of the steepest climbs I've ever done. The snow beneath the forest was crunchy... My MTB is a heavy mother too... heck, I'm a heavy mother as well so I take extra pity on me... boo hoo. Signs ot be ware of the bears didn't scare us away. (they should have had signs of death by MTBs).
Once at the summit out came the lunch bags. 2 guys brought gas burners and enough water for us all to have a hot cocoa or two. We talked for a while, put on extra jackets for the descent and tried to imagine what would be ahead.
My thighs were already worn out from the walk up, but now it was time to go down....down, down...some up, up, up and down up downs...
The scary part was the riding path was 90% covered in icy snow. (I realised before this that there were almost no other riders around and I knew we were crazy to try this).
We were having fun and taking it easy, walking the more dangerous cliff edges.
Stopping and waiting for the tail. (usually me).
The crash. Yes, I was the first to go down and it was a big one. Nothing to do with the snow either. We were going along a fairly steep section and then a steeper 5 m section when my back wheel hit a tree root and as I must have had both brakes on the only one that had ground contact now was the front one. I could see the seat of my bike above my head as I was sailing into my tuck position. Luckily I fell to my right whcih is the way I like to crash. The cliff to my right though was about a 100m drop. Luckily there was a fallen tree lying parallel to the path and my right elbow rolled first then my legs came crashing over the trunk dangling over the cliff. My trusty left hand was still holding onto the bike as it 1st slammed on to my right shin bone almost cracking it in half then dangling down over the cliff.
For a 2 second brain/body scan I realised my elbow and leg were probably not broken and I'd be alright as soon as somebody came to help me get my bike back over the edge.
I was fine and the adrenalin rush made the rest of the day much easier.
I had lowered my seat at the top but after this I lowered it to the very bottom. At the top somebody had also decided my tyres were too flat so they pumped them up. I now let some air out to make my bike less bouncy as well.
During the crash my last water bottle must have gone over the edge as it was nowhere to be found.
Out of the 8 of us there were about 4 or 5 spills. None as masterful as mine of course and we all arrived back with no injuries.
There was a rocky river bed section as well that was very hairy.
I imagine the course is 1000 times easier without a luge course to navigate so I look forward to going there in the spring or summer. The hard ice sometimes would throw us off course and the narrow sections on the cliff edges were not nice.
I only did 63km but it feels like I did 300.
Do any of you know this MTB path? A part of 7 hills?
I feel like I've been on one of those army training camps...hot bath and to bed...:beer: after my beer.
Road bikes are safer...
6:30 Nagarayama:
9:30 Okutama (base).
4p.m back to the car.
6 pm home.
We started just up past the 7/11 that TCC uses as it's last refill station as there is a car park near the base of a walking/MTB track.
At first we headed towards Tomin-no-mori by road and the sight of snow everywhere was a little worriesome.
My tyres were a little flat so the climb up was extra hard. About 3 or 4km before the Tomin-no-mori toll we started walking up a goat track (on the right hand side of the road). It was steep and it took us over an hour of carrying our bikes on our shoulders up one of the steepest climbs I've ever done. The snow beneath the forest was crunchy... My MTB is a heavy mother too... heck, I'm a heavy mother as well so I take extra pity on me... boo hoo. Signs ot be ware of the bears didn't scare us away. (they should have had signs of death by MTBs).
Once at the summit out came the lunch bags. 2 guys brought gas burners and enough water for us all to have a hot cocoa or two. We talked for a while, put on extra jackets for the descent and tried to imagine what would be ahead.
My thighs were already worn out from the walk up, but now it was time to go down....down, down...some up, up, up and down up downs...
The scary part was the riding path was 90% covered in icy snow. (I realised before this that there were almost no other riders around and I knew we were crazy to try this).
We were having fun and taking it easy, walking the more dangerous cliff edges.
Stopping and waiting for the tail. (usually me).
The crash. Yes, I was the first to go down and it was a big one. Nothing to do with the snow either. We were going along a fairly steep section and then a steeper 5 m section when my back wheel hit a tree root and as I must have had both brakes on the only one that had ground contact now was the front one. I could see the seat of my bike above my head as I was sailing into my tuck position. Luckily I fell to my right whcih is the way I like to crash. The cliff to my right though was about a 100m drop. Luckily there was a fallen tree lying parallel to the path and my right elbow rolled first then my legs came crashing over the trunk dangling over the cliff. My trusty left hand was still holding onto the bike as it 1st slammed on to my right shin bone almost cracking it in half then dangling down over the cliff.
For a 2 second brain/body scan I realised my elbow and leg were probably not broken and I'd be alright as soon as somebody came to help me get my bike back over the edge.
I was fine and the adrenalin rush made the rest of the day much easier.
I had lowered my seat at the top but after this I lowered it to the very bottom. At the top somebody had also decided my tyres were too flat so they pumped them up. I now let some air out to make my bike less bouncy as well.
During the crash my last water bottle must have gone over the edge as it was nowhere to be found.
Out of the 8 of us there were about 4 or 5 spills. None as masterful as mine of course and we all arrived back with no injuries.
There was a rocky river bed section as well that was very hairy.
I imagine the course is 1000 times easier without a luge course to navigate so I look forward to going there in the spring or summer. The hard ice sometimes would throw us off course and the narrow sections on the cliff edges were not nice.
I only did 63km but it feels like I did 300.
Do any of you know this MTB path? A part of 7 hills?
I feel like I've been on one of those army training camps...hot bath and to bed...:beer: after my beer.
Road bikes are safer...
