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Strava/Rapha Festive 500

bawbag

Maximum Pace
Mar 20, 2013
450
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Who's taking part this year, and for those who are, what are your plans?

I'm extending my commute from 40km to 65km a day, then capping it off with a 220km loop round Lake Biwa on the 30th. Looking forward to seeing how much festive spirit is in the air when I turn up at the shinkansen gates with my bike.
 
Doing it! Thinking about riding to Tokyo from my house if the weather holds. This will be good training for TOITO
 
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Signed up but as I'm at work until tomorrow I'll not be able to go out for a 'proper' session until Friday at the earliest. Might see just how far up the Arakawa I can get before having to turn round!


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I am signed up and at 189 kms after a ride to Yugawara past Odawara on the 24th and back on the 25th (with a stop at Keio SFC to teach my Wednesday afternoon class). So even with just normal commutes today and tomorrow, a short in-town ride to meet visiting friends at their hotel on the 28th, and a few decent rides on the 29th to 31st, I should get to 500.

Next year we should ask them to run an "Osho-gatsu 500" that covers the Japanese holiday schedule.
 
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Yano-san of Rapha Japan would be the best person to talk with - it's a good idea and I will post him an email suggesting it.
 
Yano-san of Rapha Japan would be the best person to talk with - it's a good idea and I will post him an email suggesting it.
Maybe still time for them to roll it out this year even ...
 
I sent him an email.
 
I have gotten off to a late start, but should be able to complete the distance by time expiry.
 
Thought I might dust this off.

Dubbed 3 rivers by someone once, last year I rode it a couple of times with a couple of people. It's easier with more as it's long and flat and can be windy.

 
A loop around the Izu Peninsula looks pretty doable too. Shinjuku to Odawara, Odawara to Atami, bikes as far as possible anticlockwise and back on the train as close to Odawara as you can get. Route
 
That would suck John. The coast road is crowded very narrow and a lot of tunnels and no siding riding. Particularly on the east coast. There are a lot of wonderful inland roads in Izu you should stick to them. West coast isn't so bad.
 
On the Izu coast road you're usually climbing or descending, but rarely on flat terrain. Even after discounting for the RWGPS exaggeration, total climbing on your proposed route is still over 4000 m. The 200 km brevet in West Izu I did in March had 3000 m of climbing, comparable to the 300 km Fuji brevet I did 2 months later.

And as theBlob says, Rt135 on the east coast can get very crowded.
 
Thought I might dust this off.

Dubbed 3 rivers by someone once, last year I rode it a couple of times with a couple of people. It's easier with more as it's long and flat and can be windy.

That's a good one. Pete used to call it a Super Loop. Usually 180 from FM to FM, cutting through on 6 I think from edogawa to arakawa. I went looking for a way avoid 6 and found a way via mostly the rivers connect edogawa and arakawa. That gave right at 200km FM to FM which I called a Super Duper Loop.

www.strava.com/activities/7893664

 
That would suck John. The coast road is crowded very narrow and a lot of tunnels and no siding riding. Particularly on the east coast. There are a lot of wonderful inland roads in Izu you should stick to them. West coast isn't so bad.

Understood. Do you know if the 414 is good for cycling?
 
It is just as busy. I would suggest down the west coast (if you really want coast), around the bottom to shimoda. back through the 15 to the west side then the white roads home. There are a ton of really beautiful roads, down there and the white ones are pretty empty.
 
Rode something very similar with Ludwig in 2010: http://positivo-espresso.blogspot.de/2010/02/saturride-full-story.html
I tend to agree, both, road 414 through the middle and road 135 on the East coast have alot of traffic. But perhaps it is OK on a weekday in December for the Festive500? Plus you have the chance to ride up or down the spiral on road 414:
http://positivo-espresso.blogspot.de/2008/08/shimoda-triology-in-four-parts-part-3.html Otherwise: West coast road or smaller roads, plenty of them.
 
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