SUNDAY JAN 27 RIDE

SEKIDOBASHI @ 9:00 IS PERFECT FOR ME MICHAEL

Did the Kobu Tunnel today...climbing up there was great; descent was a different story....most of road is in the shadow and I tell you with these temperatures, it is scary!! Snow and ice everywhere! I imagine Suzugane Touge will be the same: going up fine...going down eisbahn! But we can always try! See you tomorrow. Tom.

PS: I will be very slow...got tortured by NFCC's Young Hopes today!

MOB : OK, I will be there at 09.00 at Sekidobashi with my new yellow Assos Fugu jacket and my old bike,

TOM: ALRIGHTY!

HEY BTW, WHO ARE THOSE PUNKS IN RANDOM PHOTOS?

mob : So we met at Sekidobashi at 9 AM and tried to move quickly against the headwind to Itsukaichi. After the break at the 7-Eleven we then rode along the road to Honjuku and further in direction Kazahari before we made a turn to the left and approached Kobu Tunnel. The road was much in the shade with some patches of ice so we moved very carefully. After that we rode to Fujino and down at the Uenohara CC to Route 20. This is not my favourite area really, I don't know why but Uenohara makes me always so tired.

We then went over Otarumi from the Sagamiko side, none of us clocking the time as we were already pretty tired. Nevertheless Tom speeded up and I secretely looked on my watch but the time was not worth mentioning.

We went down the other side and gad a good lunch of Tororo Soba at a place close to Takaosanguchi station. Tom rode home by bike, I biked up my son from an insect hunting excursion. He and me were in luck first - he finished already at 2 PM and I was there at 2 PM despite the time set for 3 PM so we made an early start for home.

The trip home was a disaster. I mean in the train. We made it to Fuchu when someone in the station decided to commit suicide and jumped in front of our train. We couldn't see anything as we were in one of the last cars, but as the train has not fully moved into the station when it came to a stop, the doors couldn't be opened. we had to wait for 30 minutes, then finally could move out, took a bus to Kokubunji and a train to Shinjuku - finally we were home by 6.30 PM.

Nevertheless a very nice ride and it is good to add a lot of kms in the mountains this early in the season. Thanks Tom.

I also bought two maps at Takaosanguchi for the Takao and Okutama area to plan the next tours.

Tom: Thanks Michael...the ride was just what I needed to take up the slack after I got broken on the wheel on Saturday. Sorry to hear about the Fuchu accident and the long way back to home. Let's go again when we have splendid weather again like yesterday.