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Today Today - October 2013

Ill probably not race cross before Nobeyama. But once I do, I will physically bump into you, elbows and all. Only way to slow you down I guess
Hahaha, I noticed that Japanese cross style does not use much elbow so I was able to move to the front quickly (from the last place in the starting grid) just by cutting corners and other contact-less semi-aggressive riding tricks :)
 
Hahaha, I noticed that Japanese cross style does not use much elbow so I was able to move to the front quickly (from the last place in the starting grid) just by cutting corners and other contact-less semi-aggressive riding tricks :)

Wait till you move up the ranks - gets a bit more feisty.
 
He just did move up a rank!! that's why I want to give him a wide-armed welcome
 
4 PRs on Strava on the round trip to Roppongi for the Half-Fast Cycling meeting last night. Must be the new TCC kit I was wearing! ;)
 
Either that or the killer head wind I experienced yesterday was a killer tail wind for you :D

It was such a slog I was almost late for my rehabilitation!

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Spent the morning working on the computer, even though I was planning to head out to Wada later in the day. In the end it wasn't until after 15:00 that I was on the road, but I was happy with the work I got done first.

I knew I didn't have much time before sunset. The sun was low by the time I was near Hachioji. The sky was very colourful by the time I got to Rt521 that leads up Wada.

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It was completely dark by the time I reached the last village before the climb. There a woman standing next to a car approached me and asked if I was still going to climb to the top. I replied that yes, I would. She said, if I came across a man and an elementary school age girl, could I tell them she had come by car to pick them up. I thought that was a most unusual request from a Japanese to a stranger: Very unreserved. I asked for a description of what they were wearing and headed off. Indeed I came across them, maybe 2 km up the road. The father told me their mobile phone couldn't connect up on the mountain so they couldn't make arrangements. Mission accomplished :)

I cycled up the serpentine road, with the dynamo hub light flooding the road with light. I must admit, I rang my bell a lot, just in case there were bears around at night. I managed to set a new PR on the "521 Jinba complete" segment, even if only by 16 seconds out of close to an hour. On the "和田峠 3.6km" segment I beat my previous best by about half a minute out of about half an hour.

Before going for the ride I had done some shopping and found some cheap bananas: A bunch for 99 yen and I picked up two of them for the weekend. Then I saw they also had older ones discounted further, with a slightly spotted bunch going for 50 yen. That last bunch of 5 small bananas was what I put into my jersey pockets when I left at 15:00. I ate one roughly every hour, which is less than I normally eat on long rides, but did OK. Other than that I only drank a couple of bottles of water. 50 yen's worth of fuel for over 100 km isn't bad for fuel economy. I think my Prius (750 yen's worth of regular unleaded per 100 km) must be jealous...
 
Just got back from a great cyclocross session - nonstop riding for 01:21:33 and exactly 18km all off road with some very technical sections. I love where I live!

Wife also came home with a cross country ankle brace that prevents rolling of the ankle joint and doesn't restrict running or pedaling motions - stairs, steeples and other obstacles were a piece of cake with no strain on the ankle. Looking forward now to Ibaraki CX tomorrow!~
 
Seems like Wednesday will be the next typhoon day...
 
Went to my local Ys road today as I needed to get a new cable guide for the inside of my 105 shifter. The young guy serving me suddenly asked me "Are you a member of the TCC"? To which I answered "Yes". He told me that he was too. He then went on to tell me his dad was also a member. Turns out his dad is the one and only @joewein .
 
Went to my local Ys road today as I needed to get a new cable guide for the inside of my 105 shifter. The young guy serving me suddenly asked me "Are you a member of the TCC"? To which I answered "Yes". He told me that he was too. He then went on to tell me his dad was also a member. Turns out his dad is the one and only @joewein .

lol.

shintaro is at Ys now? which one?
 
I set out to Otsuki today. I was having second thoughts about going and doing something else as I was gonna be alone and I thought I might need a wheel for the trip. But I went anyway. Took ages to get there. about 2 hours on the train via Takao. I noticed there was some kind of express train running there also but wasn't sure I'd be allowed on that with a bike. Anyone know?

Exiting Otsuki I bought some water and a burrito. Then I was off. Straight away you get hit with a climb as you cross a bridge and go up the other side. I hadn't really examined the map before I left except that I knew to stay on 139 for quite a while. The incline turned out to be short and was followed by a rather rough road descent. Road was up down from there and then the climb started. I was dead set on pacing myself as it was gonna be a long ride but I was pretty happy with my climbing. I passed a guy on a mountain bike spinning a nice low gear at one point, said hello and he cycled into the ditch in shock. Oops. I shouted back sorry and told him to watch where he was going and kept going. That amused me for the next part. I was glad to finally make the top and relaxed and ate a bit.

The descent was chilly. I was glad I was wearing a long sleeved jersey. It was a fun little descent though. Next up was the .5. I couldn't remember how much climbing this was but I tried to keep a safe pace. The top bit was quite tough in my 39x25 but I got up and over. There was no place to stop so I descended to the bottom and found a wall to sit on just before the turn off onto 411. I had a bagel there.

I was quite happy with how I was doing and was thinking positive about the planned 3.5. The next hill though really did me in. It just went on and on and never relented really. I was never so happy as when I saw a car crest the hill in my direction and I knew I'd more than likely reached the top. There was a nice viewing area for Fuji there and I rested quite a while. I was shivering with the cold though and no length of staying in the sun was keeping me warm. I tried to eat some food from my pocket and drink what I could water wise. Too cold though. Finally I noticed a vending machine with hot drinks so I bought a hot cocoa. It helped some, but I decided it was just best to descend back to warmer turf. I shoved a plastic bag between my skin and the jersey to work as a wind buffer and headed down. The descent was really nice (apart from the cold).

Legs were burning though after my earlier efforts so I decided to bail and skip the last climb. I was pretty happy with all the climbing I'd done. I'm looking forward to a lower gear though. Those low cadence climbs just eat into me.

Hard to dress for this weather though isn't it. On the way up it's damn hot still and you'd die in something warmer. Then once you are up, you're dying for the lack of something warmer.
 
I passed a guy on a mountain bike spinning a nice low gear at one point, [and] said hello
That would piss me off greatly.
I think saying hi to people going the opposite direction is fine, but someone you've passed going the same way? And who is going up a big hill?

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But congrats on the route - I'm planning to do some of it tomo in the opposite direction.
 
Congrats on your Otsuki 2.5, Tom (@wexford)!

I noticed there was some kind of express train running there also but wasn't sure I'd be allowed on that with a bike. Anyone know?

Yes, as long as your bike is inside a rinko bag you're fine on any train, including shinkansen. We used express trains for going to Norikura. It's really not an issue. On the long distance trains it's best to put the bikes behind the backrests of the seats at the ends of the carriages. Sometimes you can turn the benches around 180 degrees.

Hard to dress for this weather though isn't it. On the way up it's damn hot still and you'd die in something warmer. Then once you are up, you're dying for the lack of something warmer.

The trick is layering. I recommend taking a wind breaker and wearing it only when you need to. I never head into the mountains without one, except in the peak of summer in fine weather. The GS Astuto one that I have folds up nicely and fits into a jersey pocket. Or you can just bundle it up and strap it to the back of your seatpost or seat rails, the way people sometimes keep a spare tube. When we did the Otsuki 4.5 in June, Tim was also struggling with the cold and I was glad I could lend him the wind breaker he had sold me! :)

Another old cycling trick is newspaper. A sheet of it folded up is not heavy, but stuffed under your jersey it can make a big difference on cold descents. Tim used that on an Okutama ride in February 2012 and it was recommended to me at the 600 km brevet three weeks ago.
 
LOL. Yeah perhaps you are right but I've had some really nice conversations with folks because of this. For example the guy I passed about 2km before the summit of the 1st climb (different guy) and said hi to, came over to chat. Likewise a guy I passed just after joining the 411 reached the summit shortly after I did also and we sat together enjoying the view, took photos for each other and he shared some food with me also. That's not to say that I wasn't passed either because I was. However if I have any breath at all, I usually say hello also as they pass and leave me. Just can't help but meet folks on the bike.

Anyway - I don't think you have to worry about me passing you any time soon;)

Have a great ride tomorrow!

That would piss me off greatly.
I think saying hi to people going the opposite direction is fine, but someone you've passed going the same way? And who is going up a big hill?

[edit]
But congrats on the route - I'm planning to do some of it tomo in the opposite direction.
 
That would piss me off greatly.
I think saying hi to people going the opposite direction is fine, but someone you've passed going the same way? And who is going up a big hill?

Actually at brevets it's considered good manners to say something to a person you pass, at least within the fellow participants, whether it's a greeting or some form of encouragement.
 
Actually at brevets it's considered good manners to say something to a person you pass, at least within the fellow participants, whether it's a greeting or some form of encouragement.
Brevettiquette?

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Changing the subject: there will soon be a return of Half-Fast Mike to the cycling arena. Lock up your daughters aaaight?
 
Actually at brevets it's considered good manners to say something to a person you pass, at least within the fellow participants, whether it's a greeting or some form of encouragement.
Somebody did that to me on the Arakawa CR this morning (wearing a white Castelli jersey w/ black & red stripe down the middle). Wasn't expecting it and said "Ohayo gozaimasu" in return. It was only then that I realised he wasn't Japanese. If it was anyone on here, sorry mate!
 
Brevettiquette?

They reminded us of it on every pre-ride briefing I attended.

there will soon be a return of Half-Fast Mike to the cycling arena.

I am happy to hear that. Hope you will soon be able to pick up where you left.

I rode to the palace today, only 50 km total and taking it really easy, as I still felt my legs from the Wada trip the night before.

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On the first loop around it, I passed a group of three cyclists, two of them on folding bikes. One was a Brompton, quite a common sight in Japan. As I passed the lead man, I called out "Bike Friday!" as that was what he rode too. So we started talking and then pulled over onto the side walk to be out of the way of traffic. They were on their way to a Y's road together. They asked questions about the dynamo hub and other details. We discussed bikes and brevet rides. A very enjoyable encounter :)

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