Tempted by the rice paddies, which now look like mirrors as they are filled with water and the stems planted, I rode through western Tokyo along the Tama and Aki rivers into Itsukaichi to climb and take beautiful photos.
It’s been a while since I have ridden in the mountains, but the stars aligned today and I decided I’d try to see whether I could still do it.
I’m about 30 kilograms heavier than the last time I rode higher than 400 meters in elevation, which I reckon was about four years ago.
And now I’ve just remembered that I rode a climb earlier this year, so I am lying.
Anyway, rather than let the truth get in the way of a good story, I’ll carry on. I rode my bike along the glorious Bonbori Rindo, headed for Iriyama Pass and hopefully back down to home.
I got over the pass, but a couple of kilometers down the road a group of loggers were chainsawing felled trees and gently asked me to turn back.
Reluctantly, I got on the Big Red, who while pretty is also pretty hefty and climbs as ineptly as I do, and headed back to Iriyama Pass, where there was another alternative to the road I’d taken.
Big Red’s A Ripper!
It was a bush track that ended in a dead end, making the hike-a-bike I’d done to get there a pain, but I appreciated the opportunity to test the Big Red’s all-terrain adventure abilities and she came up tremendously! Her 43 mm tires are beauties, both visually and for performance. I was impressed and may yet become a gravel bike fan.
Not keen, I headed back down the way I’d came. I clumsily tried to video the descent, and stopped a few times on the way to take photos, making the silly decision to carry a heavy DSLR up the mountain a little less of a folly.
What I should have been doing was focusing on the road, considering this ride was supposed to be a test of my braking ability with disc brakes and spreading arthritis. I got the best results when I released my hands. The thick tires provided stability and braking was generally OK, but I wouldn’t want to come across an emergency.
Rather than travel the same road home, I went through the backwoods of Hachioji, then into Takao and along the Asakawa Cycling Road.
It was nice, and the weather was almost perfect: only a blustering wind hampered the day.
Rides like these used to be an almost daily occurrence for me, and it was good to know that they’re still accessible, even if at a much more sedate pace (which is not to say I was ripping up the hills when I used to ride them years ago. I continue to be fat and lazy!)
