Runningmonkeys

Bike racing in Japan is much like everything else in Japan for a foreigner:

1. It is confused and conflicting
2. It is vibrant but still grey
3. It is full of history but laced with technology and fashion
4. It can be the best and the worst at the same time

Yesterday was the 2007 Tour de Sakuragawa and it was no exception.  This tour is a local event made up of a bunch of loops around the countryside loosely defined as Sakuragawa city.  There were three different courses held simultaneously of 40, 80 and 100kilometres. 

The 40 and 80 were held over mildly rolling courses and the 100klm had an extra loop involving some extreme climbs added in the middle.  When I say extreme climbs, the first significant climb would have to be one of the most deadly that I have ever ridden.  It was long and steep and had this excruciating texture designed to slow you down when you descend, which of course also slowed you down when you ascend.  It was such a ridiculous climb that plenty of riders swallowed their pride and took to their feet.  For some, this would have been wise, because it is less shameful to walk up than to roll backwards down a mountain.  However, the point that people were dismounting at made me think that they would have spent maybe half an hour or more walking that day.  That is a long time in bike shoes.

I am still not sure if I should call it a race or not.  We started in groups of 10 at 1 minute intervals and we arrived home by the clock and were given certificates with our adjusted finish times.  Apart from that, the similarities with any form of racing were a bit cloudy.  There were checkpoints along the way that we had to stop at and be recorded .  Most riders sat around eating and drinking there for some time before moving off.  There was definitely cooperation and slip-streaming going on but that didn’t stop a lot of people from riding the course by themselves even though the wind was quite severe.  We stopped at traffic lights and some guys even got off to walk over bad sections of road, but somehow it was still a competition…I think.

Quite often I felt like I was trying to play a board game without the rules, or that I had joined an orchestra without learning my instrument.  Everyone else seemed to know what was going on except me…or at least I guess every else did.

After wards we were all tired and sun burnt.  The ride was incredibly taxing and we’d spent a lot of time in the sun. Add to this, I was suffering from a bad cold and had a stinking headache and trouble breathing.  The only thing that made me less sorry for myself was one of my team mates, Kumagai San.  He had a blow out and crashed on a corner at about 20kilometres.  He rode the next 80 kilometres with significantly less skin and a fair bit of pain from his impact with the ground.  His courage helped us all feel stronger and I think we were able to help him over the line as well.

It’s going to take me a while to work out how I feel about this form of riding.  But I’d better not take too long.  The week after next our team has entered in the 13th Around Kasumigaura Cycling (ride/race/tour/?).

Sorry for the digression from running.  Its all linked together somehow but It must look a bit off topic.  From tomorrow, it is back to running and I am starting out on my journey to become a “Pose” runner.  I’ve read the book, now I am going to try the drills.  I’ll write about what I discover.