Sarah Gigante wins the Tour Down Under

Sarah Gigante flashes a wide, transparent grin while on a training ride up Doshi Michi
July 21, 2021, at the Tokyo Olympics. Obviously, she is enjoying just being there.

Today, Australian cyclist Sarah Gigante won the Women's version of the Tour Down Under, a major World Tour Title.

Gigante hit the cycling scene with a splash five years ago -- with a victory in the Australian national time trial at age 18, repeated at 19 -- and launched a professional career that included a stint with a local Australian team then several years with Movistar, all by age 23. 

In 2021, in her first pro season in Europe, she had a bad crash, only 4 months before the Tokyo Olympics. She nonetheless made the  Olympic team selection and placed 11th in the time trial, 40th in the road race. After more health issues and two disastrous seasons at Movistar -- the most recent of which saw her race only a few days -- she has moved on to AG Insurance-Soudal Quickstep. 

Gigante gives the thumbs up!

And now, she's back! In her first significant race with the new team ... she won the Tour Down Under with a dramatic, decisive victory in the last stage. You can watch the last few minutes of her climb to victory up Willunga Hill here.  And then you can see her interview at the finish line -- half of what spills out of her mouth seems gibberish, she is so overjoyed and excited at winning that her words trip over themselves.

Why is this of interest to me, other than the pleasure of watching someone who is so happy, especially after overcoming a period of difficulties?  Well, that day in 2021 when I rode up to Yamanakako looking for Olympians doing training rides. I had the best luck as I headed down Doshi-michi. I saw groups from Australia, Denmark, Japan, Israel, among others. (The mighty Slovenians I had seen for a few milliseconds as they descended south from Kagozaka toward Subashiri earlier. The Brits - G Thomas - I saw as I descended from north Kagozaka to Yamanakako). 

But the only Olympian who really acknowledged me, who smiled and made eye contact, was Sarah Gigante. Indeed, as she saw that I had pulled off Doshimichi and was going to take a photo with my iPhone ... she gave me the thumbs up!  

Thumbs up!

Maybe a close-up would be better!

Sarah -- Best wishes for your success over the rest of 2024 and beyond!

Saitama Audax 300km -- October 16, postponed from March 20.

After a 9-day trip to the USA for family events and visits that included two empty international long-haul and three domestic spam-in-a-full-can shorter flights, plus a 14 day quarantine at home upon my return, I was feeling very much overweight, undertrained, and in serious need of a bicycle ride.

So I was delighted that upon my return to Tokyo, I had an envelope from Saitama Audax with a brevet card, return envelope, and a note that the March 20 300km event I had planned to do to prepare for the Okayama 1200 had been rescheduled for October 17 -- the first weekend after my quarantine end date. Even better, the event would be a held as an "N2" brevet, which means that no staff are at the start or finish, and the rider can select their own start date and time within 2 weeks before or after the official event date. The weather forecast for October 17 looked very wet and nasty, so I submitted an October 16 7AM start date and time.

After 2 x 200km easy events in January, my 2 x 300km preparatory rides in March and early April had both been cancelled/postponed, I rode only the first full day of the Okayama 1200, and a partial second day, a very short 3rd day back to Onomichi, nowhere near the stamina or speed needed to complete that event. And I have been riding relatively little since, much of it with the recumbent rather than on a road bike. My physical exam in September showed me near my "peak" weight of recent years, not at all where I should be at the end of summer. And so I had a lot invested emotionally in just managing to get through a 300km event, in avoiding another DNF after PBP and Okayama. (I did not care about an official completion, so long as I did the full ride. The brevet card in the mailbox was just the perfect excuse to try now).

A worthy course, but with pretty heavy traffic on a Saturday, except for
sections ridden early morning or late evening.

Jerome came along for the exercise and to offer moral support. 

From the start next to the Irumagawa in Saitama, I felt sluggish and went slowly. The course wound through SW Saitama, then Okutama, then Sagamihara, to reach the foot of Doshi Michi and climb to Yamanakako.  

At the start - Irumagawa

Ready to ride.

An early forced stop -- there goes the 300km record attempt!

We had already climbed over 600 meters by the time we got onto Doshi Michi, if memory serves. Jerome went way ahead the entire first half of the event, waiting for me each our or so. I did not realize Jerome had stopped to wait at the 7-11 on lower Doshi, and ended up passing him. He caught me at the spring where I was refilling my bottles and went ahead to the Michi-no-eki, where we both rested a bit. He waited again at the tunnel at the top.

On Doshi Michi -- the Olympic RR course, lest we forget

At the Doshi Michi Michi-no-Eki

It had rained a bit at the start, but the road was dry and the rain stopped, until Yamanakako. There the rain restarted in earnest. On the descent from Kagozaka Pass to Subashiri was the only part of the event that was actually cold, heavy rain, our own wind from descending, and the elevation all contributing.  We stopped at an eat-in convenience store in Gotemba, refueled and warmed up a bit before continuing onto the next significant climb, around 375m elevation gain up to the entrance to Fuji Safari Park.

The rain stopped on the LONG descent from 875m elevation down to sea level, and by the time we got to Suruga Bay area we were riding on dry pavement and even got a bit of late afternoon sunlight. 

Jerome struggles with zip ties and a failing light bracket.

Looking from Numazu toward Izu.

Finally some lovely late afternoon weather around Numazu. Fuji visible, barely.

We slogged through heavy traffic around Mishima and onto the gradual climb up to Gotemba. This takes more than 25kms to climb up to 460m elevation, much of the climb at a 2-3% grade. The middle part of the climb was on a quiet road, and as we switched back to a main highway further up, the traffic had died down. We rode in fog and mist for awhile, but that cleared away near the top and for the descent down the East side of the hill toward Matsuda and Hadano.

Late night in Sagamihara after 270 kms or so.

After a somewhat unpleasant stretch on Route 246 alongside trucks still running on Saturday evening, I got to the last PC quiz point in Isehara and turned north onto local roads. Another 60kms of riding in the dark, quiet night, and it was back to the finish. The last 10+ kms from Oume/Hanno area back to Iruma seemed remarkably easy. Indeed, it was mostly a gradual downhill. Perhaps that helps explain my slow start, in the opposite direction?

Done just before 2AM.  ... I would be happier if we had finished around Midnight,
but was glad to at least finish, within the time limit.

Instead of the usual convenience store receipts, Saitama Audax used "quiz points" based upon mostly postboxes along the route. 

Quiz at Yamanakako - what time are weekday mail pickups? 

I reached the Yamanakako quiz point only 30 minutes before the cut off, thanks to my creeping start and climb up Doshi.  The subsequent checkpoints were only a little better, and eventually I finished with 1 hr and 7 minutes to the cutoff. This was the slowest I have ever done a 300km brevet. True, the course was not easy with plenty of climbing, and the rain slowed the pace a bit. 

Elevation profile. Lots of climbing in the first half especially. 3700m total logged
(vs 4800m elevation gain predicted via RidewithGPS)

But in truth, it was mostly not too hot nor too cold, and I did not suffer any serious mechanical issues. Not a single flat tire/tube. Once I re-lubed my dry chain after the rain stopped, I had no drivetrain issues. My brake pads were worn from the long, wet descents, but lasted to the finish. My lights worked. And I am sure that alone Jerome could have done the entire ride at least 3 hours faster than I managed. 

The Okayama 1200 and this, my only subsequent Audax event yet this year, prove that I have a long way to go to get back into ultra-endurance riding condition, to have any reasonable hope of again completing 1200km events. But it was a start. At least I could get through a 300km with no "significant" issues. Nothing hurt, not back nor neck nor butt nor feet nor hands. My only physical complaint was indigestion and some accompanying lower back (kidney?) pain, until a toilet break well into the ride (Gotemba?).

PBP is my goal for 2023, and I now need to set some interim goals for 2022, and plan enough brevets to help me get back some of the speed I had doing these only a few years ago. There is hope.

Cycling Amenities Growing in Japan ... Fuji Cyclegate at Suruga Oyama Station

Yesterday, as I did an "Olympic road racers recon ride" (they were doing recon for the race, I was doing recon to catch a glimpse of some of them) ... I was impressed by how much the selection of Doshi Michi and Mt. Fuji area as the site of the Tokyo 2020 (err 2021) road race seems to have made the region wake up and realize that they have lots and lots of people cycling there on weekends, and they ought to offer a bit of a welcome and acknowledgement.

I planned to hop the shinkansen to Odawara (634am departure/700am arrival) and go from there, ... but it was a beastly hot day yesterday, so I looked for a way to avoid slogging from Odawara up to Oyama. After I exited the shinkansen, I walked up the steps to the Odakyu Line. ... There was a 708am express (急行) leaving toward Shinjuku in a few minutes that would stop at Kaisei and Shin-Matsuda, saving me 10km of sea level riding by about 10 minutes on the train. I hopped on and got off at Shin-Matsuda ... and walked across the street to the JR station ... there was a 723am local heading in Gotemba/Numasu direction ... I had to fight through a crowd walking the other direction on the platform, but made it onto that train and got off at Suruga-oyama station (駿河小山駅) just after 740AM. The stop looked a bit closer to my destination, if lower, than the next one (Ashigara), and I have been through Ashigara several times so through I would try it.  This starting point put me at 275m elevation, ahead of the heat all morning heading toward 1130m elev, with the climb through field and forest via Oyama toward Subashiri. It also avoided the need to ride a few lower stretches on the shoulder of Route 246.

As I took my bike out of the rinko bag and put the wheels back on, a gentleman approached and introduced himself. He said he was from the local tourist association and pointed to a nice new wooden building across the street. He welcomed me and handed me a pin. He said "these are for cyclists who come here via train to ride". Indeed, the pin read "駿河小山駅輪行記念" -- Suruga Oyama Station Rinko Commemorative!!!  A badge designed just for me. Wow. I thanked him, completed the bike assembly, and headed out. As the only cyclist to exit the station that morning, I had mixed emotions. As I passed the empty building from which he had emerged, I could see it had a cycling theme and what looked like some kids bikes and mamacharis on display, as well as bike racks in front. It is the Fuji Cyclegate. Next time, I will check it out thoroughly. (There is apparently a direct train from Shinjuku to Gotemba that would stop here, for those of you not near Shinagawa).

Suruga Oyama Tourist Association Welcomes Rinko Cyclists!

Up at Yamanakako, and on Doshi Michi, of course, there are now cycling themed cafes, sculpture work, every restaurant or store has at least one cycle rack ... and they will sorely miss the crowds that they expected for the actual Olympic events this weekend. 

At Yamanakako - end of Doshimichi

The bike's too small for him, ... and the seat looks a bit painful!

As I descended upper Doshimichi, I passed a small grassy area beside the road on the left side which had at least 20 wooden cycle racks in a few lines ... places for the spectators to park their bikes as they watched the race. ...  the empty racks a sad reminder of a no-spectator event. I hope those racks will get repurposed and donated to parks, stores, and cafes nearby. 

A newly opened establishment on Doshimichi, just a km below the Michi-no-eki.
It had VERY minimal food offerings and coffees, but a large section of frozen food cases with meat for a massive BBQ party. ... I hope that they up their game a bit so it is worth a food stop.

Postscript: I went back later in the week and rode in the opposite direction up Doshimichi, over Mikuni Pass (the easy side) and down to the Odakyu Line. I stopped again at Suruga Oyama to actually check out the rinko-rider facility. They have lockers to stow a change of clothes and free showers (available 8Am to 6PM), and even sell spare tubes for road bikes in their vending machine outside ... accessible 24-7 should you need one. And if you are a non-cyclist, they also have some rental bikes, helmets, etc. 

A good jumping-off point for riding near Ashigara or Gotemba. 

Just a beautiful day on the bicycle

I'm back. Back on the bike. Back into the countryside! 

More than three months since my collarbone break, on December 24 my Japanese orthopedist declared the break "80% healed". It took long enough -- I opted for the no surgery option, and some overuse too soon doubtless is behind the delay, in addition to my "advanced" upper 50's age. But 80% was good enough for me to transition from riding on the trainer indoors and running a few errands in town to ... riding the Rapha Festive 500! 

And, I thought, if I can do the #Festive500, I should be ready for some Randonneurs-Tokyo 200km brevets in January. I will do at least one and, I hope, two.

I am looking forward to 2021 as a year of renewal, of healing, of freedom to ride -- to go when and where I want on the bicycle in this cycling paradise of a country, and even maybe, eventually, elsewhere in the world. I can almost taste it, I am so full of anticipation. 

On the 24th, I rode the trainer in the morning, then hopped on my bike for my Christmas Eve visit to the orthopedist at Keio Univ Hospital in Shinanomachi. After getting his "80%" report, I pottered around Tokyo and stretched my return home, then rode out to dinner and back for a mix of over 75kms virtual/real cycling on the day 1 of the Festive 500. The next day I enjoyed a short 40+km Christmas morning spin with Nils, then on the 26th a slightly longer 70km ride with Jerome, then on the 27th 77kms with Jerome and Peter Y. accompanying them on the early stages of their ride to Yamanakako on the east side of Mt. Fuji -- a 200km plus round trip for them. On the 28th I did more shorter rides in town.  So with 3 days to go, I had logged 325kms toward the Festive 500.

The forecast for the 29th was beautiful -- the low temperature around 4C, high around 12-13C, with mostly clear sky. This would be the day for a big ride -- long slow winter distance, enjoying the countryside that I missed so much.

Only last week my wife had pointed out some "susuki" -- aka "Chinese silvergrass" -- the tall grasses that turn straw-colored in the autumn, with little tufts that reflect the sunlight. Near Tokyo, susuki usually grows in abandoned fields, or as a large weed beside highways. It does not seem highly valued. But I hold a vision in my head of rides in late autumn or early winter along Route 76 in the hills west of Tokyo, on a climb between Lake Sagami and Doshi Michi. If you push it hard on a training ride, these hills are where you start to get tired, and a perfect place for a quick stop to take a sip of water or a bite of trail mix, and snap a photo. When I think of susuki, I think of that stretch of road. But I had not been there in winter in at least five years.

Nils was up for a full day ride; Jerome for a longer half day. So we met at Futako Tamagawa at 7AM and headed up river, out of town. We stopped for coffee (and breakfast) early, then continued on, over "hospital hill" (also known as the climb to Renkoji), then headed out Yaen Kaido. Jerome had a report that Peter Y. was riding with some other friends, already over Yaen Pass and heading for the north side of Lake Tsukui. So we also went over Yaen Pass, then zig-zagged through Minami Hachioji and eventually to the Shiroyama area just before Lake Tsukui, where we had a second rest stop. This zig zag route through the suburban hills also was something I had not done in ages. It is a slower way out of town than some others, so I had crossed it off my list of regular routes long ago, but the road is wide and traffic volume relatively low. This was the prelude. Now the main act.

Nakazawa, Midori-ku

Lake Tsukui from the North shore hillside

The day was beautiful as we climbed past the village and winter vegetable fields of Nakazawa, Midori-ku/Sagamihara-shi, on the northeastern side of Lake Tsukui. Then we took the always lovely Mii-Sagamiko route further along the slope on the North side of the lake. We took the (closed to cars) forest road and passed Peter and his two companions heading the other direction, en route to a coffee appointment with new friends who live in a distinctive, fish-out-of-water Spanish-style house on the North Shore we jokingly refer to as the "Colombian drug lord house", or maybe the "Casa de Pablo Escobar".

Pink fallen leaves -- like an imaginary land -- the closed Tsukui forest road.

Looking west, still North side of Tsukui

Jerome and Nils

We then swooped down the hill to cross the narrow suspension bridge over the lake that brought us back to Matano and Mikage on the other side. This is a regular route -- I've taken photos of the slope we just rode along in nearly every month of the year.

Me on the bridge

We rode along there.

I was feeling good, never pushing, not yet fatigued, and enjoying the freedom of being on the bike, finally getting out to the countryside, with good relaxed company, regular riding buddies. 

The red chili pepper Asian food store on Rte 517.

We headed further west on National Rte 412, then Nils and I turned left onto local Rte 517, a side road through a village then a forest and on to first shown to Laurent by his cycling (and work) mentor Charles, then passed on to the rest of us. We took Route 517 over several steep "bumps" and eventually joined Route 76 at Fujino. A left turn and we were soon on the climb to ... my susuki fields. There they were, the grasses glowing in the weak winter sun, as they had in years past.

My susuki

We were down the other side of the slope quickly and to Doshi Dam with its jade colored waters, then another climb up (with a left turn off of Rte 76 for the short connector back to Doshi Michi, National Rte 413, the planned climb for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics Road Race -- signs marking the route along the roadside looking a bit less than fresh, but they should make it through the winter and to next summer. The view back down the valley was spectacular.

Doshi Dam

Looking back toward town down lower Doshi Michi

Heading back in Doshi Michi is always fast and joyful -- plenty of twists and turns, a few dips followed by short uphills one can power through with 10-20 pedal strokes. But this day we had enough of a headwind to slow us down and make us work a bit. We decided to stop for a real lunch at Zebra Coffee and Croissant after we got back to Lake Tsukui. 

Zebra -- full of socially distanced cyclists!
(Many bring their bikes inside here.)

A massive "Zebra gratin" for lunch.

Getting back on the bike, I felt as if I had already done two rides, the morning one with Jerome, then the scenic mid-day ride, and now we started our third--the trip back into town. It was uneventful, our pace quickened now that we were on lower, flatter ground and had left most of the headwind behind. We made decent time and decided to go all the way to the mouth of the Tamagawa, or at least to the entrance to Haneda Airport, to add a few more kilometers. By now, late afternoon, the sun was low and the paths along the river full of runners and walkers. The runners all seemed to be wearing harnesses with water bottles on each side ... maybe training for a trail running or longer distance event? It's definitely Tokyo Marathon training season. 

Nearing Kawasaki along the Tamagawa

The light of the fading day was soft and lovely, as we reached the Torii outside of Haneda. Nils headed back up river toward his home, while I headed along the Bay toward mine. In the end, a ride of 165 kms, or just over 100 miles.  The Strava track is here. 

At Haneda Airport

One of the canals of Shinagawa Ward 

This year has challenged the world. Many have lost much. But there is hope. This ride was a perfect but understated way to transition toward the hope of a new year. It was such a good ride, I decided it would be my last of the year. So on the 30th I just got on my trainer and "rode" the final few kms of the Festive 500 indoors. I did not want to dilute the memory of my susuki, not yet.

Four Views of Fuji - South, West, North and East

First view -- South side. On my approach, on Shizuoka Route 72 after the climb up from Shin-Fuji Station to around 450m elevation.

Second view -- West side. Taken from a small road that connects Shizuoka Route 71 with National Route 139 just south of Asagiri Kogen.

Third view -- North side. From Lake Shoji at midday. Spectacular!

Fourth view -- West side. From Lake Yamanaka as I head back toward Tokyo. (If I had waited another 45-50 minutes here with many photographers, I could have taken the "diamond Fuji" with the sun setting directly over the summit ... but that would have meant a cold and dark descent down Doshi Michi).

All in all, an excellent ride. Doshi michi is completely blocked below the Route 76 turn off, and so there was a line of sitting cars several km long on Route 76 trying to get onto Route 20 at Fujino. ... and another line of cars on Route 20 beyond. So I rode cautiously past these cars, then hopped the train from Fujino.

Even Rte 139 near Fuji Yoshida looked nice on Sunday.

A bike alone at the Doshi "michi no eki" with its signs welcoming the Olympic Road Race

Fall colors in fading daylight on lower Yamanashi section of Doshi michi

Endless traffic as Route 76 approaches Route 20 (Koshu Kaido)

The day's route. As you can see, not QUITE straight no S, W, N and E views.
More like SW, W, NNE, ENE?