• Strine Sports

    Rustic Relaxation

    A weeklong festival of cycling drew to a close with series of unexpected bonuses: forecast rain failed to eventuate; an area usually only viewed while frenetically racing along on the jalopy turned out to be filled with delights; and Kangaeroo came to the realization that 100 kilometers is not an impossible distance to cover every day provided time and speed are not needed to be accounted for. The day was spent with a group of mates, riding through the hills of outer suburban Tokyo, stopping frequently to eat, drink or soak in the scenery. We each went our separate ways…

  • Strine Sports

    More Climbing

    Continuing on from yesterday, today was another day of climbing through the mountains on the beautiful Belladonna (a Cervelo R5 road bike). Kangaeroo is too exhausted from the energy-sapping ride and a rush to get out to go into much detail. But he is eternally grateful to cycling for giving these opportunities that have been unimaginable for most of his life, and to his wife for allowing him to pursue these dreams. And, of course, to his bikes for carrying him there, and the cycling mates who help and encourage him.

  • Strine Sports

    Climbing

    Kangaeroo loves cycling. He cycles a lot. And I mean a lot. The line between a moderately good rider and a strong rider can largely be drawn at climbing; specifically, how fast a cyclist can make it up the hills. The best cyclists are all good hill climbers. The key to strong climbing is having a good power to weight ratio, which basically means weighing little but still having lots of power. Look at most pro cyclists and they all look like skeletons with disproportionately huge legs. Unfortunately, the only thing disproportionally huge about Kanageroo is his belly. He has…

  • Strine Sports

    Tiptoeing through the Tulips

    Today was something of a landmark occasion: Kangaeroo made his first century ride on a recumbent bike. Owning and riding a recumbent has been a long-held dream for this blogger. And the dream finally became a reality earlier this year. But the dream turned into a bit of a nightmare as Kangaeroo discovered how difficult it is to ride these bikes. It took over a month of steady practice to learn how to ride. Even then, a sense of unease persists. Early plans to name the bike Lay Down Sally gave way to Death Machine. If nothing else, the recumbent…

  • Strine Sports

    Beating Jobsworths with Luck

    Waking early gave Kangaeroo a slice of luck this morning, enabling a visit to Yakushiike Park in Machida before the jobsworths arrived there and booted him out for bringing his bike. The park is a delight, unbelievably located in the Tokyo suburbs. It has some spectacular wisteria growing on trellises, with a huge pond (the ike of Yakushiike) surrounded by a picturesque garden currently flourishing with bright new leaves. The wisteria are yet to reach full bloom, so there may be another visit before we’re finished this year.

  • Strine Sports

    Sensational Sunrises

    There have been some sensational sunrises to greet me in recent days, though each weekend for the past six weeks has seen at least one day rain. This week it was Saturday and Kangaeroo spent the day on the Death Machine, riding only a short distance. Sunday, though, was a different matter, and we headed out on a 200-km under beautiful blue skies, but dogged by gale-force winds that proved energy sapping.

  • Strine Sports

    Riding Along the River

    Summer is not always the most pleasant season in Tokyo as it’s stinking hot, humid and frequently raining. Sometimes, though, nature turns on the charm and you get some delightful goodies. This week’s sunrises have been precisely that. Blessed (?) by a series of bicycle mechanical failures, Kangaeroo.com got a day to take it nice and slowly along the banks of the Tama River forming the boundary between Tokyo and Kanagawa Prefecture, resulting in these delightful pictures.

  • Strine - Strine Sports

    Aussie Kit Maker Perfuro Storming Onto the Scene

    Perfuro certainly blew a storm for me! And so it should have, considering the Latin word for storm is the name given to a great line of Aussie cycling gear from the Gold Coast that Kangaeroo.com was lucky enough to get to try out after being picked as a contest winner. Kangaeroo.com doesn’t win too much, so wanted to treat the kit with the reverence it deserved. Perfuro founder Martin Coleman contacted Kangaeroo.com in early June to notify him of the win. Then, 2020 hit again. Japan Post has halted air mail to Australia because of the COVID-19 pandemic, but…

  • Strine Sports

    Wild Horses Couldn’t Drag Me Away

    Horse-riding is an integral part of living for many in country Australia, where Kangaeroo spent the formative years of life. Incredibly, in spite of this, and despite a landmass 26 times greater and population only about 1/6th the size, Australian horse riding services are generally far more expensive than their Japanese counterparts. Provided you’re happy enough riding in a relatively confined space, it’s unbelievably accessible to ride horses in Japan, financially and in terms of getting to places to ride. Moreover, there’s far less red tape involved in riding in Japan, where helmets, high-viz and other rigmarole are not mandatory…