Monday 22 July 2013

Riding Sakurajima

So this morning I eschewed the IAVCEI organised field trip and instead rented a mountain bike, jumped on the ferry to Sakurajima and made my own adventure.




I won't write any more; rather, I'll let the photos do the talking. I think they should convey the story pretty well. Needless to say, it turned out to be one of the more unusual rides I've ever done...














Saturday 20 July 2013

IAVCEI 2013: Ash & Ribs

A couple of gems from the IAVCEI 2013 conference in Kagoshima.

Firstly, volcanic ash fall is so common in the city that where most cities have trash collection points, the government here has also set up ASH collection points. Residents bag ash on their property and leave it here to be taken away. Ash is prevelant everywhere, staining the roofs of people's cars and in all the little nooks and crannies on the streets.

Ash collection point on the main street

Kagoshima is famous not only for its resident volcano, but also for black pork, beef and sweet potatoes. I visited a steakhouse and paid for the Kagoshima Black Pork Spare Ribs. Some meals are special; this was utterly transcendent. Without a doubt one of the top 3 meals I've ever eaten.

Also, and somewhat hilariously, a 'medium' beer turned out to be 800ml.

I was hungry after a day of working registration at IAVCEI. No more!

The Japanese know ribs!

I realise I haven't mentioned the conference at all, but that's because I'm helping out with the organisation at the moment (and again tomorrow). Aside from running into several people I know from years past, not much has happened. I'll be engaging in the symposiums on 23rd and 24th, so that's when the real action will happen.

More to come soon!

Thursday 18 July 2013

Rapha Rising: La Fin




That's it. It's all over.

7869 metres climbed in 5 days (and 3 rides) takes me to 108% completion. Very happy!



Nothing hugely exciting today but some good varied climbing with Ross to get my final metres in before I head to Kagoshima for the IAVCEI 2013 conference tomorrow. I'm gonna miss my bike but a few rest days will be nice!

Wednesday 17 July 2013

Seven Summits Challenge: Rapha Rising 91% Complete

Been wanting to try this for some time; this seemed like an opportune period (Rapha Rising and all).

I tried and easier version of this back a few months ago (and failed it due to weather). I wasn't convinced that I would manage it this time around, especially since I made it harder (added the heinous Hanase Omote and Atagosan climbs), and, well...








I didn't finish it. I did manage 5 out of the 7, though, including Hanase Omote - definitely happy with that!

The idea was to climb all of the big climbs in northern Kyoto (reasonably possible with a road bike), in order, from east to west. Start all of them from the Kyoto side (i.e. no loops). They are, in order:

1 - Hieizan (to Hieizan Driveway turning)
2 - Ebumi Pass (East)
3 - Hanase Omote
4 - Kumogahata & Mochikoshi Pass (East)
5 - Kyoumi Touge
6 - Climb to Takao
7 - Climb up Atagosan from Hozukyō

In bold are the ones I managed to complete. Having to deal with Atagosan at the end is really, really harsh (it's more or less another Hanase Omote) but I think in cooler temperatures, with a full day, it's definitely doable if you're fit enough. I'll probably try it again in a few months.

Photos from the five summits:

1 - Hieizan
2 - Ebumi Pass (East)
3 - Hanase Omote
4 - Mochikoshi Pass (East)
5 - Kyoumi Touge

All in all, this brings me to 91% completion on Rapha Rising. I'm so close I can practically smell it... even if it is clouded by the smell of my shoes and bib shorts...

Monday 15 July 2013

Kuta Loop: Rapha Rising 44% Complete

Really, really humid day today, but nonetheless I set off with Steve this morning for this beautiful little route...



Got back just in time to avoid a very, very intense thunderstorm that rolled in in the early afternoon - lots of lightning, really heavy rain and a level 2 tornado warning would probably have complicated matters there...

Quite a sky!

Finished off my day with a well-earned cold beer while watching Froome absolutely wreck everyone up Mt. Ventoux in Le Tour. Amazing performance. Definitely ready for bed now!

Anyway, that all gives me 44% completion on the Rapha Rising challenge already. Tomorrow will be a rest day and Tuesday potentially a big ride (lots of elevation), depending on how I'm feeling (I have a little knee niggle which I'm hoping will go away). I head off to Kagoshima for the IAVCEI 2013 conference on Friday so I need to be done before then, anyway!

And so, up we go...

Tuesday 9 July 2013

Rapha Women's 100

Yesterday saw the first Rapha Women's 100. I was tasked with planning the route for, and leading along with Peter, the Cycling Kyoto group ride. Grecia did most of the organisation for this but sadly could not come because she was in Beijing (can't say I particularly envy her there, given most of what she's told me...).

All-in-all, the ride turned out to be quite the adventure...




A summary of the day's events:

 - Peter and I each rode a total of about 140-150 km including trips to and from Arashiyama
 - The ladies each rode about 108 km (the route itself)
 - Three girls turned up, the oldest being 62 years old (incredible!)
 - We lost a girl in a pretty serious crash about 10 km into the ride, involving inadequate breaking and a very luckily-placed crash barrier - the result was probably a cracked rib, and a ride home - such a shame!
 - LESSON: The climb up Atagosan is a killer in the heat
 - Peter and I held a short fly-collecting competition on our legs - no clear winner...
 - One frog attempted (and succeeded at) death by front derailleur
 - Much ice cream was enjoyed
 - Much meat was eaten
 - Much VAAM was consumed
 - Much water was dumped over my head and neck
 - Our navigation was flawless, thank you...
 - LESSON: KEEP DRINKING!
 - It was a very, very long day indeed

A selection of photos which I will by-and-large be too lazy to caption:



In good spirits despite crashing!


Collecting flies on the Atagosan climb

Suicide by derailleur


Weirdest (and probably raddest) bike I've ever seen...


Monday 8 July 2013

Dripping

I led the Rapha Women's 100 ride yesterday. It was a very, very long day - and rather eventful - and VERY warm. I'll write it up soon.

It was, however, slightly less warm than today.



Good god, Kyoto...

Thursday 4 July 2013

Hanase Omote or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Climb

Had a quick pre-work blast up Hanase Omote this morning. I hate that climb. It's an absolute ass-kicker and every time I do it, I get psyched out... doubly so if I do it solo. Horrid.

This morning I tried to keep my heart rate down in Zone 4 for as long as possible, to better pace myself. I also tried to breathe regularly, and from the diaphragm rather than the chest. Both seemed to help - it wasn't the fastest I've done it (far from it), but I felt comparatively fresh at the top, where I usually feel like my heart is going to explode out of my chest, Alien-style.





The weather was moody - it had just rained and it was HUMID as hell - which gave some amazing views on the way up and down. I stopped a few times on the descent for photos. Lots of mist and low cloud: very atmospheric.

Of course it started to rain very, very heavily when I got down (luckily not while I was descending...) and I got an absolute soaking on the way home. Oh well, such is life. A good little training ride anyway.

At the top, taking a well-earned few minutes rest.

My favourite switchback - absolutely stunning this morning, in the mist!

I hated that climb. No more? We'll see...

Rapha Gentleman's Race 2013 NE USA

If this doesn't make you want to get out and ride, you must be dead (or not a cyclist)...

(I highly recommend watching full-screen and in HD)

Wednesday 3 July 2013

Women's 100 route check

I've been given the task of leading the Kyoto ride for Rapha's Women's 100, along with Grecia and Peter, which I'm really looking forward to. Last Sunday we set off to check the provisional route... and it turned out to be considerably harder than we imagined!





Even Peter, who races cyclocross at Masters 1 level, was left pretty wrecked by the route! A lot of climbing, with lots of steep sections and plenty of relentless rollers in between.

Strava reckoned the ride was 'Epic'...

5750 kcal burned and a cap so crusted with sweat it went from black to white - a hard ride!

Wasn't a boring route, either. Lovely scenery and plenty of excitement: wood-fired pizza at the halfway point, two flat tyres (one each between myself and Peter) and... a snapped spoke on my rear wheel. Crap.


Beautiful road!

Puncture 1 (Peter's)

Puncture 2 (mine)

The snapped spoke is going to take 2-4 weeks to replace, apparently, and I want to rebuild the whole wheel to make sure the spokes are all tensioned evenly. Meanwhile, the wheel is basically totally unrideable (lucky the failure happened 5 km from home on a 125 km ride!), so I've had to pick up a set of NOS Shimano Ultegra 6700 wheels (the 6800s are out soon so my LBS is trying to clear his stock of last-generation stuff). They seem like great wheels, and when I've rebuilt the Planet X rear I'll have to make a decision on which set to keep, I think.

New wheels - much more classic look, but I like my deep carbon!

Anyway, owing to the difficulty, we've altered the route for Sunday's ride - it's now the Hiyoshi dam route from a week or so ago, extended with a detour into Keihoku to the pizza place and with the easier side of Mochikoshi Pass added towards the end. Should be a nice route that will please everybody, and not too difficult.