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Today Today - January, 2014

joewein

Maximum Pace
Oct 25, 2011
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I started the cycling year in style with Brian's Half-Fast Yamanote ride, the first time I was able to join this. That's 66 km for me (including the ride to and from Ebisu). Many pedestrians wished us "Happy New Year" in English as we passed.

25 of us gathered for the ride to take advantage of the near empty roads on this day. The weather was perfect, neither too warm nor too cold. We didn't have a single puncture. The food at both the lunch stop and the final beer stop was good.

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Twenty-five riders riding 50 km together around the Yamanote on 1st January made for an outstandingly half-fast start to 2014. Plenty of noodles, beer, sausages, and beer to be had too. Good times. Happy New Year everyone!
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Nobody's pointing at anything...

Too much beer?

...or not enough beer yet? That picture was taken before the lunch stop.

Ira unsuccessfully tried to get us to point at this poster:

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Started the New Year with a long run this morning - 21.2km in 1h50m45s. A half marathon is 21.0975km, so I would have come in a little over 1h50m. All helping towards the goals. Tomorrow I start the journey back to Tokyo, so the legs can rest on the plane
 
Saturday had our first team training meet with almost the whole men's squad and a few of the ladies. Did the Miura Hanto loop with a few riders peeling off as and when they needed based on their training programs.

Had some fun with one of the juniors baiting him out of the pace line then putting the hammer down on one of the long flat sections. Really pleased with the sustained power when climbing and this coupled with the weight loss means that my training is going to plan.

Peeled off the coast just before Enoshima and headed in land towards Yamato and finally home with 142km on the clock.
 
Hard crash at the end of a 60km ride. I had right of way going straight, BMW driver turned across traffic despite seeing me and making eye contact. Luckily the bike has only cosmetic damage. My favorite Pearl Izumi bibs are shot, and I've got some road rash on my right elbow and gross bruising and rash on the right hip. I was going 40kmh when I went down, completely speed limit legal, but the witch driving apparently has little regard for traffic laws or human life.

But all things said, my year is starting great. I'm alive, not in surgery or with fractured bones, my bike is mostly okay, the semester starts in two weeks and I'm really excited for my classes. Most of all, I'm happy to be dating a girl from my running club. I had a crush on her for two years. She's... Unfathomably beautiful. :D
 
I like to get my long ride of the month done the first weekend of the month if possible. So today was the time for January to ride over 160 km. It just so happened that Sal offered a 65 km Half-Fast ride in Miura, which I rather like for winter rides. So I decided to ride out to the meeting point (Keikyukurihama station) instead of taking the train and also ride back all the way from the finish. It went very well and I ended up with 203 km.

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I left home at 05:30 to give myself 4:30 for a relaxing ride before the 10:00 meeting at the station. Against the cold I wore home made shoe covers (a pair of free socks from an airline kit into which I cut holes for the cleats) and an extra underwear layer as well as a headscarf for my ears. That worked well. Except for the morning I didn't even need my full fingered gloves..

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On the way I passed an accident in Yokohama. A kei car had hit and toppled a van. The couple from the car were sitting by the road side waiting for an ambulance, while the driver of the van couldn't get out and was talking on his phone. I stayed around until the ambulance arrived.

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I arrived about 20 minutes early at Keikyukurihama station and got myself some coffee at a conbini. Soon everybody else arrived. There were 7 of us in total.

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Speeds varied, but Sal made sure slower riders could always catch up and rest a bit.

Later we had lunch at a seafood restaurant down at the tip of the peninsula:

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At Kamakura after a great ride:

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Sal decided to join me for the return ride to Tokyo. I enjoyed his company and we split who drafted who. I got home much sooner than expected.

Today's ride makes it 17 months in a row with a "century" ride (160+ km).

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Yesterday's ride was my longest Miura ride so far.

The first time I headed out there on 2011-11-12, I rode 57 km from YRP Nobi to Kamakura -- pretty much only the regular Half-Fast route.

The second time I started from Yamashita Koen in Yokohama for James' (@FarEast) LSD ride on 2012-02-05. I was too slow to keep up with the group beyond Yokosuka and continued on my own. I cycled as far as Machida and took the train home from there (129 km).

For my third ride on 2012-02-11 I started from Tokyo, joined the Half-Fast crew at Keikyukurihama and rode as far as Yamato with Jose (@Jayves), for 155 km total.

My fourth trip on 2012-12-08 was the first one without rinko bag. I started from Tokyo and returned all the way to Tokyo. This one also had a Half-Fast ride at the centre. Total: 171 km.

I don't think I'll stretch the Miura loop any further beyond 203 km, but I'll still work on speed.
 
Had to miss the HF Miura loop ride yesterday due to friends visiting, but still managed to get out for a couple of hours in the morning on the Arakawa. Determined to find if there was a way round the majority of earthworks, I headed up-river from the usual HF start point. 55km, but two layers felt a little on the cold side.
Quietly confident now, I've figured out which two bridges I need to cross to allow a complete top to bottom run avoiding having to come off the river path. I'll lead a 100km HF ride along it one of the days next weekend, if there's a slot
 
Still full of cold & my years total stands at a massive 0km though I did do a turbo session on NYD. Desperate to get out now no matter what the conditions but I think my club's turbo session on Weds is probably the earliest I dare. Weather here consistantly very windy & wet since just before Christmas. I havent chosen the best winter to ride without mudguards. Very jealous of everyones photos of recent rides.
 
Still full of cold & my years total stands at a massive 0km though I did do a turbo session on NYD. Desperate to get out now no matter what the conditions but I think my club's turbo session on Weds is probably the earliest I dare. Weather here consistantly very windy & wet since just before Christmas. I havent chosen the best winter to ride without mudguards. Very jealous of everyones photos of recent rides.

Kind of the same, but more (short) trainers sessions, plus one actual ride.

Could've gone out today, but opted to cruise with the dog instead.
 
For a brief moment there were two pairs of Bar Mitts side-by-side in Kawasaki, as I stalked @Jayves up on our respective commutes.

Not something you see every day. In fact it's probably as rare as the phrase "Oh you have a Microsoft Zune. Me too."

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Could've gone out today, but opted to cruise with the dog instead.

First thing I did when I adopted my radioactive beagle (long story) is teach him to run beside/just behind or just in front of the bike, he's now my best CX and XC training buddy (Just make sure you mark which water bottle belongs to the dog!)

Oh and make sure you can bring a dirty Dog/Bike/human in for cleaning ;)
 
I have taken some time away from Japan and have been enjoying a leisurely Australian Summer holiday. My dad had lined me up a bike so I could do a few rides while away. Beautiful coastal riding, unfortunately the bike was a bit of a disaster, old lugged steel frame beast with bent detailers and crank arms. A few Cm short for me on seat height, anyway good times never the less.

I ride with the local lads of the triathlon club a bit when I can and yesterday one of them gave me a different bike to loan for the rest of my trip. A beautiful late 70s early 80s willo (local maker Carl Wilson from back in the day). Chrome molly frame, Shimano 600 group set. And best of all it fits me. So the trip has just got a lot better as of this morning. The frame is in beautiful condition apparently it has sat in some old guys (78years old) garage since new and hardly ridden. He cracked his hip and gave it to the local bike shop to keep in shape on the proviso that they can't sell it.

Anyway I gave it some hammer this morning and it is a very nice ride, nice and responsive, has the shifters on the frame so you have to decide what gear you want to be in before the hill starts, its a full size crank and looks like a 12-18 or something 6 speed cassette, so its a bit of a grind up the hills. I'll get some photos and post em up later when i get back from the beach. Oh yeah, average ride temps of about 27degreesC. Perfect.
 
Pretty quiet here...

Out for 2-1/2 hrs yesterday, only a little drizzle. Plus 50 laps.

Nothing today, but I did cook dinner--baked chicken with some broc & rice on the side.
 
have you ever thought of just buying some proper winter kit? I was out on the bike at 05:30am with no need of those kind of things.

btw - I recommend two things..... Ski gloves and neoprene socks that can be bought at your local hardware store - get a short pair and long pair (the longer 2 sizes too big) the long pair cut cleat holes and use as shoe covers - far better than many of the products that are apparently specifically designed for cycling and will probably cost you about the same as one of those chemical hand warmers.
 
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