Winding down

As I look to my last week in Kyoto - and Japan - it begins to dawn on me how many great people I will be leaving behind here.

Since starting Cycling Kyoto back in September 2012, I have met countless people who I not only consider acquaintances or riding partners, but also very good friends. I honestly couldn't ever have hoped to ride with a better bunch of people.

Although I have handed over control (mostly!) to two long-term members to ensure that the group will continue, hopefully for many years to come, Saturday saw what will probably be my last major group ride. We had a great turnout and it was a wonderful day of cycling. After finishing the ride, we all got lunch and chilled by the river with a couple of beers, before going home to prepare for the big farewell party in the evening.

Great riding, great food, great drink and seriously amazing friends. A perfect day all round.

I'm gonna miss these crazy people...

Strava Gran Fondo 3

After getting some disappointing news regarding a PhD application (a project that I REALLY wanted!) yesterday morning, I thought I'd ease the annoyance by spending the day riding 100 miles. As you do.

I chose a nice route, with a bunch of climbing in the first half (and a couple of nice descents to go with them), an easier, flatter second half, and some lovely scenery. Added to the weather forecast - a little chilly and overcast, but nothing extreme - it promised a cracking day on the bike.

The first half was magnificent. I felt great, the sun actually made itself known and I got to take in some wonderful mountain scenery.

The second half began with a solid bonk - I just flat ran out of energy. I stopped and ate a proper meal (a light rice pilaf) and had a Coke, which sorted that out. Heading down the final long descent - around the 90-100 km mark - I felt an uncomfortable rumbling from my stomach. Had I not found the very well-placed 7Eleven, I think I would have had a messy final 60 km. Ugh. No idea what caused this - I can only assume I ate something bad the day before, maybe? When I finally got to the final flat 60 km,  the weather changed on a dime and I got snow, hail, rain, cloud, sun and... wind. Oh god, the wind. No matter which direction I was headed in, I was always against it (funny how that happens...) and it was STRONG. Strong enough that at one point I just gave up and took a 15-minute nap. By the time I got home, I really had nothing left to give.

That said... it took my mind off other things!

Hieizan Descent

Beautiful day yesterday, so I took a spin up Hieizan with Alex. Seems like Spring is finally here - from 6 to 16 Celcius in 2 days!



Featuring one of my favourite roads in the Kyoto area...

)

Strava Gran Fondo 2

130 kilometres. Mud. Ice. Snow. Headwinds. Dead-ends. Roads that are apparently "highways" but are in fact single-lane forest roads featuring most of the aforementioned things. Steep climbs. Ripping descents. And the company of a great friend. It was even warm enough to wear shorts and a short-sleeve jersey (with a wind jacket for brisk descents).

Doesn't get much better than that!




The one slight downer was the terrible PM2.5 pollution China have so kindly sent our way. I feel like someone sandpapered my lungs. Thank you, China!

Atagosan: first puncture in 6+ months!

Nice ride with Alex and Kory today, along the Kamogawa and Katsuragawa rivers to Arashiyama (where ice-cream was consumed, naturally) before climbing Atagosan and descending to Kameoka before heading back to Kyoto.




On the way up out of Kameoka, I nailed what looked like a big fat carpentry staple and flatted. Honestly I think that's the first flat I've had in at least 6 months, which isn't bad going! Still, fixing that in the waning light wasn't much fun, and the tyre is a write-off. Ugh.

And another snow ride...

Beautiful, crisp day today - it would have been a shame to not go out and ride!

It was an awesome snowy ride up on a bike that was pretty unsuited to the environment - lots of fun fishtailing and skidding, but no crashes! A bit of walking on more solid ice here and there, but not much. Then I, uh, got lost on the way down, lost sight of the MTB trail and the tracks of the lucky bugger with a fat-bike, and ended up on the Daimonji hiking trail. Cue an awkward and frankly at times treacherous hike down steep, slippery mud and rocks while shouldering my CX bike. Fun for all the family!

The cold killed the GoPro on the summit, so no comedy scrambling video, but enjoy the ascent!

Snow ride

In retrospect, probably a poor idea. GoPro footage afforded some quality comedy, though.

Strava Gran Fondo 1

Needed to complete this one, so I set off this morning. In the rain. Which did not stop.

"Optimise for suffering"... I think I managed that!



'Epic' is a word that gets thrown around too much, but I think this ride was getting there. I had a bit of a crisis point at about the 50 km mark where I literally couldn't feel my fingers, to the point where I couldn't brake or shift properly. I had to duck into a convenience store and buy some nylon liner gloves, which I wore under my other gloves - that did the trick and I was fine from then on.

So, it rained for a solid 130 km. It was cold and at times windy. Everything - clothes, bike, face... is both soaked through and absolutely filthy, plastered with road grime and oil. Rules 5 and 9 were firmly in effect today...

Rule #5: Harden The F*** Up

Rule #9: If you are out riding in bad weather, it means you are a badass. Period. 

Fair-weather riding is a luxury reserved for Sunday afternoons and wide boulevards. Those who ride in foul weather - be it cold, wet, or inordinately hot - are members of a special club of riders who, on the morning of a ride, pull back the curtain to check the weather and, upon seeing rain falling from the skies, allow a wry smile to spread across their face. This is a rider who loves the work.

Rain makes for some beautiful views, though!

Warmth break 1: endless hot tea and organic chocolate cheesecake in my favourite cake shop

Warmth break 2: Hot cocoa with cream and sprinkles. Sprinkles are totally acceptable in this situation.

Back in Kyoto

This morning I headed out for my first ride since I got back to Kyoto. The weather forecast was wrong - it rained pretty much the whole way, and it was truly Baltic on the way down. Mud, snow and ice abounded. Good fun!

Getting ready for my thesis defence on 4th February, so the break was quite welcome. But not long to go now! And then... six weeks of freedom, in which I can ride endlessly. Should be amazing.

Sunset Sakurajima

Timed my ride just right this afternoon. There are some absurdly beautiful views to be had here! I was lucky enough to get just the right combination of light and an eruption at two different spots on opposite sides of the volcano...

How's that for a slice of fried gold?

Bringin' in 2014

2013 - A year in summary (according to Strava):

Distance: 7,512.0 km
Time: 413h 52m
Elev Gain: 148,887 m
Rides: 146

The last 2-3 months I got almost no riding done (and physically I sure do know it!) but I managed to get one last one in to bring in the new year. Since I'm in Kagoshima for the next few weeks, there was really only one choice...



I rode around Sakurajima - an active volcano - in pitch darkness. Nearly nailed a wild boar at speed on a descent and rode through a cloud of volcanic ash (that I couldn't see until I was in it because it was dark). Then picked up a couple of beers and some fried chicken (at least half of which got fed to stray cats), sat by the bay and watched the fireworks and listened to the ships sound their horns at midnight. Good times all round.

Happy new year, everyone!

A series of unfortunate events

After sleeping an absolute ton yesterday, I actually woke up feeling pretty good early this morning. My desire to go and ride somewhere - anywhere - got the better of me and I set out on a nice flat route to see how I really felt. You know... maybe I can complete Festive 500 after all!

Winter treats: hot canned cappuccino and corn soup

I think the 'story' of this ride is best told by detailing what I was thinking at each stage. So, with approximate distances, here is the series of thoughts and realisations that led me through this morning's fun-fest:

• 0 km - "Man, it's cold out here!"
• 5 km - "I feel pretty good! This should be a fun ride."
• 10 km - "Fat, knobby cyclocross tyres were probably a bad idea."
• 20 km - "I'm already attempting to sing along, out loud, to 80s power ballads. I do not care."
• 30 km - "These new winter bibs are giving me a wicked chamois wedgie."
• 40 km - "My legs are far more tired than is reasonable for this distance..."
• 45 km - "Canned sweetcorn soup is the worst thing. Also, I don't feel that great."
• 50 km - "Is it possible to simultaneously vomit and crap oneself while riding a bike? Because I feel like that's a distinct possibility."
• 60 km - "It is beginning to rain. I don't really care."
• 70 km - "Emergency time: I need to scarf down an energy gel to get me home."
• 71 km - "There is remarkably little difference between gels flavoured 'Tropical Fruit' and 'Dog Shit'."
• 80 km - "10 km on, I can still taste that gel..."
• 85 km - "That ride was the worst idea. How did I survive?"

LESSON LEARNED: Don't ride when you have a cold.

India, Part 5: Jaipur & Agra

This will be the last update - part five of five. I hope you've enjoyed the photos and stories. The trip was absolutely crazy, right up until the end - a true experience and a real adventure.

I thought it might also be useful to show a map of where, exactly, we went. India is mind-bogglingly huge: consider that it took us 17 hours by train from Delhi to Kolkata, for example.

I hope I can return to this amazing country sometime soon.

And so, to the final instalment...


Jaipur: Jaipur City, Amber Fort

Back in Pushkar I purchased an Indian-style shirt from a street stall. I put it on for the first time in Jaipur. I'm not quite sure how well it fits in with international fashion conventions, but let me just say: the Indians know how to dress in hot desert climates. That loose, long, light cotton shirt is probably one of the most comfortable things I have ever worn.

Agra: Taj Mahal

The trip back from Agra to Kolkata could probably have gone smoother. The plan was thus:
 - Drive from Agra to Delhi
 - Catch flight from Delhi to Kolkata
 - Arrive in Kolkata the same evening

However, the actual journey went something like this:
 - Drive from Agra to Delhi
 - Arrive late due to an incompetent driver
 - Rush across Delhi using the Metro
 - Miss our flight
 - Spend 3 hours attempting to 1) not get crushed to death in New Delhi train station; 2) buy tickets
 - Fail; buy tickets for the following day from black-market vendor instead
 - Try to check into a hotel in Delhi
 - Realise your passport is on its way to Kolkata with the one person who did catch a flight
 - Be refused check-in at said hotel due to the aforementioned passport situation
 - Be transferred between two police stations in an attempt to get an official statement
 - Ride three-on-a-bike through the streets of Delhi with a drunken cop who reeks of alcohol, who simply signs the hotel ledger then wanders off
 - Successfully check into hotel
 - Enjoy dinner in the only restaurant open at that time, which happens to be run by a hyperactive 5ft tall Nepali man with a ponytail
 - Acquire tickets from our black market vendor 30 minutes before the train departs
 - Catch the train, only to find our tickets for the coming 17 hour journey do not include bunks
 - Bribe the train conductor 200 Rupees to arrange bunks for us
 - Finally arrive in Kolkata... two days late

India, Part 4: Pushkar

Pushkar: 'Special lassi', Camel Fair

I'm a firm believer that in order to fully experience a country and its culture, you should make an effort to eat what the locals eat. Within reason, of course - I'm looking at you, Iceland...

Lassi is a yoghurt-based drink and can be either savoury (with cumin and other spices) or sweet (with various fruits, sugar, etc - for example, mint and mango are popular flavours). It is very tasty indeed and also serves the purpose of cooling down one's mouth after a particularly spicy meal. So when we got to the holy town of Pushkar, sat down for dinner and saw that the restaurant was proudly offering their 'Special Lassi', what else was there to do but order it?

It arrived, piled high with shredded coconut. The waiter, grinning from ear to ear, set it down on the table and disappeared off to get the rest of our food. Delicious (intensely coconutty!) and very drinkable, we each polished off our lassi in short order.

I think it was about halfway through the meal that the room started to spin. We all noticed this at around the same time. Then, as various other effects began to kick in, I think we began to realise that there was something other than just coconut in our lassis.

Yes, it turns out that in Pushkar - a holy town, like I said - there is quite the market for products that aid in meditation and enlightenment. This is completely legal, to the point where it's on restaurant menus... it's just not actually named.

The rest of the night could best be described as 'interesting' and also, unfortunately, 'largely forgotten'. Still, it's these unexpected experiences that make traveling so fun and rewarding... even if those experiences do come in the form of hallucinogenic yoghurt drinks.

Frankly I'm not sure quite how we managed to make it to the camel fair the following day, but I'm glad we did. I think I'll let the photos do the talking there, though!

India, Part 3: Udaipur

Udaipur: Jagdish Temple, City Palace, Saheliyon Ki Baadi 

Udaipur was a city of contrasts. During the day we wandered barefoot around Jagdish temple, with it's incredible towering carved walls, and navigated crowded streets by auto-rickshaw - dodging the occasional elephant in the process. In the evening we strolled around Saheliyon Ki Baadi garden with its extravagant water-features, then spent an hour in a dusty backstreet 'school' doing yoga with an old guru who defied his age. Then at night we retired to a suite in the city palace - still the residence of the Maharaja - to watch a stunning sunset from a private terrace, surrounded by by unbelievable opulence.

Only in India, I think, could you experience such diversity in only a few hours.