{"id":2628,"date":"2015-10-04T17:30:08","date_gmt":"2015-10-04T08:30:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/2015-10-04\/2628"},"modified":"2015-10-04T17:30:08","modified_gmt":"2015-10-04T08:30:08","slug":"so-i-finally-bought-a-road-bike","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/2015-10-04\/2628","title":{"rendered":"So, I Finally Bought a Road Bike"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i078542\" href='\/i\/JF4_078542.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF4_078542_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"459\"\nalt=\"Instructions Included &amp;#8220; Inflation: 8.5 BAR &amp;mdash; 120 PSI &amp;#8221; -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i078542\"\ntitle=\"Instructions Included &amp;#8220; Inflation: 8.5 BAR &amp;mdash; 120 PSI &amp;#8221; -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Nikon D4 + Voigtl\u00e4nder 125mm f\/2.5 &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>400 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/2.5, ISO 2500 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF4_078542.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF4_078542.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Instructions Included<\/span>\n<br\/><span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Inflation: 8.5 BAR &mdash; 120 PSI<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF4_078542.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-22'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Instructions Included &amp;#8220; Inflation: 8.5 BAR &amp;mdash; 120 PSI &amp;#8221; -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>I haven't posted anything in a week, or even read email in <span class='nobr'>a week,<\/span>\nbecause I've been working on some new software projects.<\/p>\n\n<p>The lack of externally-visible productivity (sorry if you've written and\nI've not responded) is not because <span class='nobr'>I bought<\/span> <span\nclass='nobr'>a new<\/span> bicycle, but while we're on the subject, BTW,\n<span class='nobr'>I did buy<\/span> <span class='nobr'>a new<\/span>\nbicycle. \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n\n<p>This is a long article written mostly for my own memory. <span class='nobr'>I won't<\/span> feel bad if you don't read it all<\/p>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\">p.subhead { font-size: 110%; font-weight: bold; margin-top: 40px }<\/style>\n\n<p class='subhead'>The Old Bike<\/p>\n\n\n<p>If you've seen any of <a\nhref='\/blog\/category\/cycling'>my many cycling posts<\/a>,\nyou'll know that since <span class='nobr'>I started<\/span> cycling earlier\nthis year, I've been riding a <a\nhref='http:\/\/www.trekbikes.co.jp\/us\/en\/bikes\/city\/fitness\/fx\/7_3_fx\/'>Trek\n7.3FX<\/a> <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>City\/Fitness<span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> bike that <span class='nobr'>I picked<\/span> up used at <span class='nobr'>a local<\/span> shop, seen\nin many of the photos on <a\nhref='\/blog\/2015-09-20\/2623'>this recent blog post<\/a>.\nI've ridden it about 3,500km (2,200mi) through the mountains around\nKyoto.<\/p>\n\n<p>It's light by non-cyclist standards, weighing in at 13.2kg (29lb)\nwithout drinks or luggage. Compare that to the normal <i>mamachari<\/i>\n(<span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Mommy chariot<span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>) that <span class='nobr'>I bought<\/span> when\n<span class='nobr'>I returned<\/span> to <span class='nobr'>Japan 10<\/span>\nyears ago, which weighs in at 22.2kg (49lb). <span class='nobr'>But by\ncyclist<\/span> standards, where 7kg (15lb) bikes are common, the Trek is\nheavy, and so I've been told many many times <span\nclass='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><i>Dude, if you get <span class='nobr'>a\nlighter<\/span> bike you will positively fly up the mountains!<\/i><span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span><\/p>\n\n<p>I liked this because I was a strong powerful rider in their mind without\nactually having to <i>be<\/i> strong and powerful. <span class='nobr'>If I actually<\/span> got <span class='nobr'>a real<\/span>\nroad bike, <span class='nobr'>I'd be discovered<\/span> for the slow lumbering give-upper that <span class='nobr'>I am.<\/span><\/p>\n\n<p>Also, physics doesn't back up the thought that the bike weight would\nhave such impact. Sure, it sounds like <span class='nobr'>a big<\/span> deal\nto cut the weight in half, but when trying to chug uphill you're not just\npushing the weight of the bike, you're pushing the weight of the bike\n<i>and the rider<\/i> (and all the stuff <span class='nobr'>I take<\/span>\nwith me, like my camera, lots of drinks and food, etc.). <span\nclass='nobr'>My weight<\/span> of 85kg (187lb) dwarfs that of the bike,\nmitigating the savings. <span class='nobr'>I calculated<\/span> that moving\nto <span class='nobr'>a 7kg<\/span> bike would cut the weight <span\nclass='nobr'>I have<\/span> to push uphill by 6%. Big whoop.<\/p>\n\n<p>But then, weight is not the only factor in what makes <span\nclass='nobr'>a bike<\/span> fast. There's the aerodynamics of the bike, and\nof the position it puts your body in. There's the amount of friction in the\nwheel hubs and other moving parts, and of the tires on the road. There's\nthe <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>rotational weight<span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>, which apparently can have <span class='nobr'>a\nbig<\/span> impact, so saving weight on the wheels makes for <span\nclass='nobr'>a bigger<\/span> benefit than the same weight saved\nelsewhere.<\/p>\n\n<p>And then there's the psychological factor... if something about the bike\nmakes you <i>feel<\/i> faster, you will <i>be<\/i> faster.<\/p>\n\n<p>I don't think this will all add up to much, but it'll add up to\nsomething, so <span class='nobr'>I went<\/span> ahead and bought <span\nclass='nobr'>a new<\/span> bike. <span class='nobr'>If nothing<\/span> else, at least it will shut up\nthe cacophony of <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><i>man, you should get <span class='nobr'>a real<\/span> bike...<\/i><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> comments.<\/p>\n\n<p class='subhead'>The New Bike<\/p>\n\n<p>The new bike arrived a few weeks ago, but it was <span class='nobr'>a long,<\/span> convoluted road to my front door.<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i4273\" href='\/i\/JF_i6p_4273.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF_i6p_4273_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"518\"\nalt=\"Straight From The Factory -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"ii6p_4273\"\ntitle=\"Straight From The Factory -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">iPhone 6 Plus + iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f\/2.2 at an effective 29mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>4 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/2.2, ISO 80 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF_i6p_4273.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF_i6p_4273.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Straight From The Factory<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF_i6p_4273.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-17'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Straight From The Factory -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>After much research, I bought <span class='nobr'>a bike<\/span> from <a\nhref='http:\/\/www.rosebikes.com\/'>Rose<\/a>, <span class='nobr'>a\nGerman<\/span> manufacturer. <span class='nobr'>A number<\/span> of friends\nhave bikes from German manufacturer <a href='http:\/\/canyon.com\/'>Canyon<\/a>\nso <span class='nobr'>I looked<\/span> into getting one there, but at the\ntime they didn't have any in my size.<\/p>\n\n<p>Preparing a bike to order at Rose's website is really great because you\ncan customize everything about the bike, and they present <span class='nobr'>a huge<\/span> menu of\noptions. <span class='nobr'>I chose<\/span> the <b>X-Lite CRS\n3100 Di2<\/b> as my base, but then was given the option to customize:<\/p>\n\n<ul>\n<li>frame size<\/li>\n<li>frame paint scheme<\/li>\n<li>crankset (crank and gears that the pedals attach to; <span class='nobr'>I got<\/span> Shimano Ultegra Semi-compact 52\/36)<\/li>\n<li>sprocket (the set of gears at the rear; <span class='nobr'>I got<\/span> Shimano <span class='nobr'>Ultegra 11<\/span>-speed 11-32)<\/li>\n<li>wheels (<span class='nobr'>I got<\/span> Shimano Dura Ace C24)<\/li>\n<li>tires (Continental GP4000 S II 700x25)<\/li>\n<li>seat, seatpost, stem, handlbars, handlebar tape<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n<p>Their system makes sure that all components work together (some tires can't work with some wheels, for example),\nand shows an image of the result updated in real time with the changes you make. <span class='nobr'>It's very spiffy<\/span>.<\/p>\n\n<p>I selected fairly high-end gear because <span class='nobr'>I didn't<\/span> want to outgrow the bike any time soon. When <span class='nobr'>I got<\/span> into photography\n<span class='nobr'>a decade<\/span> ago <span class='nobr'>I was<\/span> fortunate enough to read <a href='http:\/\/bythom.com\/support.htm'>this article on tripods by Thom\nHogan<\/a> which teaches that there are two ways to buy <span class='nobr'>a high<\/span>-quality tripod. <span class='nobr'>The first<\/span> way is that you waste money on\nsuccessively-better inferior equipment until you finally buy something that's actually good, or, the second way is that\nyou just buy something actually good right away.<\/p>\n\n<p>I think this advice applies to <span class='nobr'>a lot<\/span> of things that are meant to be used for <span class='nobr'>a long<\/span> time, like furniture, luggage,\nlenses, suits, etc.<\/p>\n\n<p>So, I researched as best I could, and relied on the informed opinions of friends <span class='nobr'>I trusted.<\/span><\/p>\n\n<p style='margin-top:30px'>Once you've made your selections at Rose's web site, actually placing the order is <span\nclass='nobr'>a much<\/span> less enjoyable experience.<\/p>\n\n<p>They say that they accept PayPal, but it turns out that this is only for\ncustomers in the EU. <span class='nobr'>At least<\/span> this tidbit is mentioned in the small print\non the site. <span class='nobr'>As for credit<\/span> cards, not mentioned anywhere on their site is\nthat they accept only <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><a\nhref='https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/3-D_Secure'>3D Secure<\/a><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> cards, which\nis something I'd never heard of. <span class='nobr'>It turns<\/span> out that it's not common in The\nStates... none of my cards had it, nor my parents' cards (<span class='nobr'>I was<\/span> visiting\nthem when <span class='nobr'>I first<\/span> tried actually placing the order).<\/p>\n\n<p>The last resort is a bank wire transfer, so with that method of payment <span class='nobr'>I finally<\/span> placed\nthe order for my bicycle.... but when <span class='nobr'>I got<\/span> the wire details, <span class='nobr'>I\nrealized<\/span> it was <span class='nobr'>a dead<\/span> end because they don't accept standard international wire\ntransfers, but only wires on some obscure little system used in Europe. Another tidbit they failed to mention on their\nsite.<\/p>\n\n<p>I couldn't believe how difficult they made it for me to give them my money. They seem to be set up for worldwide\nsales, but judging by my experience, they appear to have never sold outside the EU. <span class='nobr'>I was\nready<\/span> to give up, until my brother Steve came to the rescue: he had <span class='nobr'>a credit<\/span> card Rose\nwould accept.<\/p>\n\n<p style='margin-top:30px'>So with his help <span class='nobr'>I placed<\/span> my order. <span class='nobr'>I had to<\/span> rebuild the order from\nscratch; <span class='nobr'>I would<\/span> have liked to have just updated the payment method on the original order, but\nfor inexplicable reasons Rose doesn't allow <i>anything<\/i> to be changed once an order has been placed. Absolutely\n<i>nothing<\/i> can be changed, even if the order wouldn't move to the next stage for over <span class='nobr'>a month.<\/span><\/p>\n\n<p>Yes, my order would just sit there waiting to be built for five weeks because, <span class='nobr'>I suppose,<\/span> one of the components <span\nclass='nobr'>I customized<\/span> was backordered. <span class='nobr'>I was willing<\/span> to wait.<\/p>\n\n<p>Meanwhile, <span class='nobr'>I returned<\/span> to Japan. Upon entry <span class='nobr'>I told<\/span> the customs\nofficials about the impending arrival of the bike, and they had me declare it as <span\nclass='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>unaccompanied baggage<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>. As such, things would go much more\nsmoothly if the phrase <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>unaccompanied baggage<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> would be\nwritten on the box somewhere, and <span class='nobr'>I had<\/span> to beg Rose to add the phrase to my mailing label.\n<span class='nobr'>It took some<\/span> back and forth because they really really really don't want to change anything\nabout the order after the <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>order<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> button has been pressed, but they finally did it for me, thankfully.<\/p>\n\n<p>Six weeks after ordering, it finally arrived to my door.<\/p>\n\n<p>I was excited when it arrived, of course, but with the willpower of Zeus himself, <span class='nobr'>I set<\/span> the\nbox aside unopened for five days because <span class='nobr'>I had<\/span> family things that needed my attention and so\ndidn't want the distraction of the new bike.<\/p>\n\n<p class='subhead'>Unboxing<\/p>\n\n<p>Finally two weeks ago I opened the box...<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i078506\" href='\/i\/JF4_078506.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF4_078506_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"459\"\nalt=\"Nice to Meet You -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i078506\"\ntitle=\"Nice to Meet You -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Nikon D4 + Nikkor 24mm f\/1.4 &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>400 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/2.8, ISO 2800 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF4_078506.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF4_078506.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Nice to Meet You<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF4_078506.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-22'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Nice to Meet You -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i078514\" href='\/i\/JF4_078514.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF4_078514_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"478\"\nalt=\"Dura-Ace Wheel &amp;mdash; the more you pay, the less you get &amp;mdash; ( the wheels were a costly upgrade, but they are very light and were well recommended by a friend ) photo by Fumie Friedl -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i078514\"\ntitle=\"Dura-Ace Wheel &amp;mdash; the more you pay, the less you get &amp;mdash; ( the wheels were a costly upgrade, but they are very light and were well recommended by a friend ) photo by Fumie Friedl -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Nikon D4 + Nikkor 24mm f\/1.4 &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>400 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/2.8, ISO 2200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF4_078514.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF4_078514.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Dura-Ace Wheel<\/span>\n<br\/>&mdash; the more you pay, the less you get &mdash;\n<br\/>( the wheels were a costly upgrade, but they are very light and were well recommended by <span class='nobr'>a friend<\/span> )\n<br\/><span class='photo-by'>photo by Fumie Friedl<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF4_078514.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Fumie Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Fumie Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-22'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Dura-Ace Wheel &amp;mdash; the more you pay, the less you get &amp;mdash; ( the wheels were a costly upgrade, but they are very light and were well recommended by a friend ) photo by Fumie Friedl -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>When the box first arrived, I posted <span class='nobr'>a picture<\/span> to <a\nhref='https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/groups\/cyclingkyoto\/'>the <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Cycling Kyoto!<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>\nfacebook group<\/a>, to which <span class='nobr'>I unsurprisingly<\/span> received replies like\n<span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><i>Nice box!<\/i><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>. <span class='nobr'>My reply<\/span> to that comment was \"<i>Dude, it's HUGE... <span class='nobr'>I can make<\/span> <span class='nobr'>a fort,<\/span> <span class='nobr'>a pretend<\/span> store,.... really, the ideas are limitless. So\ncool.<\/i>\".<\/p>\n\n<p><span class='nobr'>A week later<\/span> when <span class='nobr'>I actually<\/span> opened the box, <span class='nobr'>I followed<\/span> up\nwith....<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i078533\" href='\/i\/JF4_078533.jpg' itemprop='image'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF4_078533_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"459\"\nalt=\"&amp;#8220; This box is great! It's like the front of a choo -choo train! So fun!! &amp;#8221; photo by Fumie Friedl -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i078533\"\ntitle=\"&amp;#8220; This box is great! It's like the front of a choo -choo train! So fun!! &amp;#8221; photo by Fumie Friedl -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Nikon D4 + Nikkor 24mm f\/1.4 &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>400 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/2.8, ISO 360 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF4_078533.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF4_078533.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><i>This box is great! <span class='nobr'>It's like the<\/span> front of <span class='nobr'>a choo<\/span>-choo train! So fun!!<\/i><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>\n<br\/><span class='photo-by'>photo by Fumie Friedl<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF4_078533.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Fumie Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Fumie Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-22'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"&amp;#8220; This box is great! It's like the front of a choo -choo train! So fun!! &amp;#8221; photo by Fumie Friedl -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>You wouldn't think that a bicycle would need much of <span class='nobr'>a manual,<\/span> but there were separate\nmanuals for many parts, including five different manuals for the electronic shifters (separate manuals for front\nderailleur, the rear derailleur, the controller, the battery, and the shift levers).<\/p>\n\n<p>Most manuals came in at least <span class='nobr'>a few<\/span> languages, but the manual for the battery (just <span class='nobr'>a\nbattery!<\/span>) seems to have come in all languages...<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i078537\" href='\/i\/JF4_078537.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF4_078537_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"459\"\nalt=\"&amp;#8220; Battery: When No Longer Needed, Recycle It &amp;#8221; (my English translation for the substance contained in a full page of drivel per language ) -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i078537\"\ntitle=\"&amp;#8220; Battery: When No Longer Needed, Recycle It &amp;#8221; (my English translation for the substance contained in a full page of drivel per language ) -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Nikon D4 + Nikkor 50mm f\/1.4 &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>400 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/2.8, ISO 450 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF4_078537.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF4_078537.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'><span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Battery: When No Longer Needed, Recycle It<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span><\/span>\n<br\/>(my English translation for the substance contained in <span class='nobr'>a full<\/span> page of drivel per language )\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF4_078537.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-22'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"&amp;#8220; Battery: When No Longer Needed, Recycle It &amp;#8221; (my English translation for the substance contained in a full page of drivel per language ) -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i078539\" href='\/i\/JF4_078539.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF4_078539_sm.jpg\" width=\"550\" height=\"700\"\nalt=\"Lots of Manuals -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i078539\"\ntitle=\"Lots of Manuals -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Nikon D4 + Nikkor 24mm f\/1.4 &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>400 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/2.8, ISO 800 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF4_078539.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF4_078539.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Lots of Manuals<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF4_078539.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-22'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Lots of Manuals -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i078555\" href='\/i\/JF4_078555.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF4_078555_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"459\"\nalt=\"Complimentary Bottle I don't know whether the yellow was coincidental, but it was a nich touch -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i078555\"\ntitle=\"Complimentary Bottle I don't know whether the yellow was coincidental, but it was a nich touch -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Nikon D4 + Voigtl\u00e4nder 125mm f\/2.5 &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>400 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/2.5, ISO 3200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF4_078555.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF4_078555.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Complimentary Bottle<\/span>\n<br\/>I don't know whether the yellow was coincidental, but it was <span class='nobr'>a nich<\/span> touch\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF4_078555.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-22'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Complimentary Bottle I don't know whether the yellow was coincidental, but it was a nich touch -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<div class='ic tight' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i078558\" href='\/i\/JF4_078558.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF4_078558_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"459\"\nalt=\"Oops -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i078558\"\ntitle=\"Oops -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Nikon D4 + Voigtl\u00e4nder 125mm f\/2.5 &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>320 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/2.5, ISO 6400 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF4_078558.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF4_078558.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Oops<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF4_078558.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-22'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Oops -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>One of the crank arms (where the pedals attach) had <span class='nobr'>a huge<\/span> gash in its metal on the inside\nedge, something that had to have happened before he bike was assembled at Rose. <span class='nobr'>To their<\/span> credit, when <span class='nobr'>I\ncontacted<\/span> them about it, their first immediate reply was that they would send <span class='nobr'>a\nreplacement<\/span> and so would <span class='nobr'>I be<\/span> able to install it? That was cool.<\/p>\n\n<p>To swap it out requires specialized tools, but would take only five minutes, so <span class='nobr'>I said<\/span>\n<span class='nobr'>I could<\/span> have <span class='nobr'>a bike<\/span> shop do it. <span class='nobr'>But then I<\/span>\nalso said that I'd consider just accepting <span class='nobr'>a credit<\/span> to my account and deal with it completely\nmyself. <span class='nobr'>If this idea<\/span> appealed to them <span class='nobr'>I thought<\/span> they'd propose an\namount, but instead they replied <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Great, we've credited you \u20ac50<span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>. Uh, okay, <span class='nobr'>I would<\/span> have like to have been given the option to accept\nor decline, but sure, that seems reasonable.<\/p>\n\n<p>There wasn't much assembly to be done, but part of it was hooking up the battery (that of many manuals) in the seat\nstem to <span class='nobr'>a wire<\/span> coming from the frame. <span class='nobr'>A special<\/span> tool was included to\nfacilitate this, but it was impossible to use. <span class='nobr'>I think<\/span> they installed <span class='nobr'>a\nwire<\/span> backwards or something, and <span class='nobr'>I sent<\/span> them photos to let them know about <span\nclass='nobr'>a possible<\/span> problem in their assembly process. <span class='nobr'>But I could<\/span> work around it\neasily enough.<\/p>\n\n<p>The bottle cages, which I had bought separately, are to be installed with two simple screws each, and this proved to\nbe <span class='nobr'>a much<\/span> more difficult task for me. <span class='nobr'>I somehow<\/span> installed the first cage upside down, so <span class='nobr'>I had<\/span>\nto take it off and reinstall it. Silly me. But then <span class='nobr'>I inexplicably<\/span> did the exact same thing\nwith the second one. <span class='nobr'>Am I old<\/span> enough to use the phrase <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>senior\nmoment<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>?<\/p>\n\n<p class='subhead'>Day 0 Test Ride<\/p>\n\n<p>I'd never ridden a bike with drop handles, so was <span class='nobr'>a bit<\/span> worried\nhow I'd handle how it handles. <span class='nobr'>As a little<\/span> test, <span class='nobr'>I cycled<\/span> over to <a\nhref='http:\/\/noru.cc'>NORU Kyoto<\/a> for <span class='nobr'>a cup<\/span> of coffee and to show off\nthe new bike.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i4782\" href='\/i\/RM_IMG_4782.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/RM_IMG_4782_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"690\"\nalt=\"Me and the New Bike with two properly-instaled bottle cages, and two friends, Andy and Joshua at NORU Kyoto photo by Ross McLean -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Ross McLean\"\nid=\"iIMG_4782\"\ntitle=\"Me and the New Bike with two properly-instaled bottle cages, and two friends, Andy and Joshua at NORU Kyoto photo by Ross McLean -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Ross McLean\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">iPhone 6 Plus + iPhone 6 Plus back camera 4.15mm f\/2.2 at an effective 39mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>40 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/2.2, ISO 32 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FRM_IMG_4782.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/RM_IMG_4782.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Me and the New Bike<\/span>\n<br\/>with two properly-instaled bottle cages,\n<br\/>and two friends, <a href='https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/handyclark'>Andy<\/a> and <a href='https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/joshua.levine.architect'>Joshua<\/a>\n<br\/>at NORU Kyoto\n<br\/><span class='photo-by'>photo by Ross McLean<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/RM_IMG_4782.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Ross McLean'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Ross McLean'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-22'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Me and the New Bike with two properly-instaled bottle cages, and two friends, Andy and Joshua at NORU Kyoto photo by Ross McLean -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Ross McLean\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>As I explained above, I wasn't too hopeful for how the low weight (7.2kg\nwithout drinks or luggage) would help me when climbing mountains, but <span class='nobr'>I did<\/span>\nhave hope for how the large 52-tooth front gear would help me on <span class='nobr'>a fast<\/span>\nstraightaway. With that in mind, on the way home <span class='nobr'>I gave<\/span> it some gas on <span class='nobr'>a\n600m<\/span> (&frac13; mile) straightaway where the speed limit is 50 kph.<\/p>\n\n<p>I kept up with the cars, so figured that <span class='nobr'>I did<\/span> it sort of well. <span class='nobr'>I'd find out<\/span> the details\nonce <span class='nobr'>I got<\/span> home and uploaded the ride data to Strava.<\/p>\n\n<p>Finally before returning home, <span class='nobr'>I wanted<\/span> to see how it felt on <span class='nobr'>a hill,<\/span> so\n<span class='nobr'>I gave<\/span> <span class='nobr'>a try<\/span> to <span class='nobr'>a little<\/span> hill that rises 47m over 600m (150' over &frac13;\nmile) for an average grade of 8%.<\/p>\n\n<p>What I found out is that exherting oneself on the new bike is no more\nnor less tiring than on the old bike... hard is still hard. <span class='nobr'>I didn't<\/span> give\nit 100%, but the 70% <span class='nobr'>I gave<\/span> felt like 70% on the old bike.<\/p>\n\n<p>So I returned home and uploaded the data to Strava, and was <span class='nobr'>a bit<\/span>\nsurprised to find that despite not having given it my all, <span class='nobr'>I actually<\/span> beat\nmy previous best time on <a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/397629468\/segments\/9529205463'>the\nstraightaway section<\/a> by two seconds, to log <span class='nobr'>a time<\/span> of 50 seconds with\nan average speed of 47kph (29mph).<\/p>\n\n<p>This was the second fastest time of all the 316 people who have recorded\nattempts of the segment at Strava, which might sound impressive except for\nthe fact that most folks riding the segment don't realize nor care that it's\n<span class='nobr'>a segment<\/span>; they're just cycling by on the way to or from somewhere.<\/p>\n\n\n<p>Still, it's rare that I get into the top anything, so I'll take it. <span class='nobr'>If I go<\/span> there some Sunday morning when there's no traffic, <span class='nobr'>I'm sure I<\/span> can beat\nthe 46 seconds currently listed as the top time (but if any of my friends\nactually make an effort at <span class='nobr'>a time,<\/span> <span class='nobr'>I'm sure they<\/span> can do it faster than <span class='nobr'>I\ncan<\/span>).<\/p>\n\n<p>More surprising still was my time on <a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/397629468\/segments\/9529205468'>the\nlittle climb near my house<\/a> where <span class='nobr'>I beat<\/span> my previous PR by 13 seconds to\nlog <span class='nobr'>a time<\/span> of 1:15. This put me in sixth place out of 526 riders who have\nlogged the segment with Strava. This was better than the 6% improvement <span class='nobr'>I\nthought<\/span> <span class='nobr'>I might<\/span> find, so <span class='nobr'>I was<\/span> pleased.<\/p>\n\n<p class='subhead'>Day 1<\/p>\n\n<p>The next day I went out for a quiet ride with\n<a href='https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/profile.php?id=621221675'>Michael Edwards<\/a>,\nand we did a <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Heart Loop<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>, <span class='nobr'>a common<\/span> Kyoto route <a href='\/blog\/2015-07-11\/2596'>described here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i05251\" href='\/i\/JF100_05251.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_05251_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Michael Edwards at the start of our ride -- Jingu-Marutamachi Station -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i05251\"\ntitle=\"Michael Edwards at the start of our ride -- Jingu-Marutamachi Station -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 31mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>1250 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_05251.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_05251.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Michael Edwards<\/span>\n<br\/>at the start of our ride\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_05251.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-23'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Michael Edwards at the start of our ride -- Jingu-Marutamachi Station -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>Michael was feeling sluggish due to jetlag, having just returned from <span class='nobr'>a\nvisit<\/span> to The States, so we took it easy, and <span class='nobr'>I got<\/span> the chance to start to\nget to know the bike.<\/p>\n\n<p>Michael is a fast guy, so his <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>taking it easy<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> on the first little climb\nout of Kyoto (3% for 1.5km) was still faster than I'd done it the first\ntime. <span class='nobr'>But it felt<\/span> easier than the first time, so that boded well.<\/p>\n\n<p>When we got to the farming village of Ohara, we stopped for some photos...<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i05264\" href='\/i\/JF100_05264.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_05264_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"photo by Michael Edwards -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i05264\"\ntitle=\"photo by Michael Edwards -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 33mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>2500 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/2.2, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_05264.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_05264.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='photo-by'>photo by Michael Edwards<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_05264.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Michael Edwards'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Michael Edwards'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-23'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"photo by Michael Edwards -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>When I was configuring the bike at Rose's website, <span class='nobr'>I could<\/span> choose black\nor white for the stem (the short segment that connects the handlebars to\nthe bike frame), and for some reason <span class='nobr'>I thought<\/span> that white might make for an\ninteresting accent. <span class='nobr'>I realized<\/span> that <span class='nobr'>I was<\/span> wrong on that point the moment\nthe bike arrived, and the white stem just looks out of place.<\/p>\n\n<p>As I write this article a week later, it's already been changed for <span class='nobr'>a\nblack<\/span> one, but not for vanity reasons. More on that later.<\/p>\n\n<p>Most bikes tend to look generally the same to me except for paint and\ncolor, and mine is no different, but Michael's is unique and stands out\nwith some very futuristic aero features, such as non-round spokes and his\nnew handlebars, which look like something Darth Vader would fly...<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i05263\" href='\/i\/JF100_05263.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_05263_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Michael's Bike -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i05263\"\ntitle=\"Michael's Bike -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 33mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>2500 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/2.2, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_05263.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_05263.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Michael's Bike<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_05263.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-23'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Michael's Bike -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<div class='ic tight' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a href='\/i\/JF100_05263z.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_05263z_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Closer Crop -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i05263z\"\ntitle=\"Closer Crop -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 33mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>2500 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/2.2, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_05263z.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_05263z.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Closer Crop<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_05263z.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-23'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Closer Crop -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>I'll have to do a photo session with Michael and his bike with my good\ncamera, so <span class='nobr'>I can<\/span> do both justice. You can't tell\nin the photos above, but his bike is very cool; <span class='nobr'>I\nhereby<\/span> dub it <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>blade<span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>. \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n\n\n<p style='margin-top:30px'>We continued on, and on the first big climb (<a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/398330333\/segments\/9543615027'>7% for 1.7km<\/a>) we rode slowly together and it\nwas very easy. When <span class='nobr'>I got<\/span> home and checked the data, <span class='nobr'>I was shocked<\/span>\nto find that I'd missed my PR by only <span class='nobr'>a slim<\/span> margin (6:15 vs. 6:01). If I'd known at the time\nit would have changed how <span class='nobr'>I felt<\/span> about the rest of the ride... it was really shocking to me\nthat an effortless lazy stroll on the new bike could end up being almost as fast as <span class='nobr'>a fairly<\/span>\nhard effort on the old bike.<\/p>\n\n<p>Then there was <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/398330333\/segments\/9543615043'><span class='nobr'>a\nlong<\/span> downhill<\/a> where <span class='nobr'>I tried<\/span> go quickly. <span class='nobr'>I had hoped<\/span> the\nlarger gear on the front would allow me to continue to accelerate as long as <span class='nobr'>I had<\/span> power, but\n<span class='nobr'>I quickly<\/span> <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>spun out<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> (reached the\nlimit for how fast <span class='nobr'>I could<\/span> pedal), and so my speed was similarly limited. <span class='nobr'>I\nwas disappointed<\/span>, and not surprised when <span class='nobr'>I returned<\/span> home to find that I'd beat my PR by\nonly four seconds (2:27\u21922:23).<\/p>\n\n<p>Then we came upon <a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/398330333\/segments\/9543615078'><span\nclass='nobr'>a short<\/span> little uphill sprint that <span class='nobr'>I\nlike<\/span> to try my best on<\/a>, so <span class='nobr'>I hit<\/span> it\nfairly hard. Like the little uphill sprint <span class='nobr'>I\ntried<\/span> the previous day, <span class='nobr'>I didn't<\/span> feel any\nfaster, just equally tired. Thus, it was one of the biggest shockers for me\nwhen <span class='nobr'>I got<\/span> home... it turns out that I\n<i>crushed<\/i> my PR on this one, despite giving it only an 80% effort.\n<span class='nobr'>My previous<\/span> PR was 1:44 on <span class='nobr'>a\nday<\/span> that <span class='nobr'>I got<\/span> <span class='nobr'>a\nrunning<\/span> start at it and gave it absolutely everything <span\nclass='nobr'>I had,<\/span> but today <span class='nobr'>I did<\/span> it in\n1:19, an improvement of 24%.<\/p>\n\n<p>Again, I didn't know any of this while <span class='nobr'>I was<\/span> out riding.<\/p>\n\n<p style='margin-top:30px'>After <span class='nobr'>a long<\/span> lazy climb back into the mountains, we came to Mochikoshi Pass <span\nclass='nobr'>(\u6301\u8d8a\u5ce0),<\/span> <span class='nobr'>a short<\/span> but brutal climb that rises at <span class='nobr'>a\n10<\/span>% grade for 1.1km. Unlike, say, the much more difficult <a href='\/blog\/2015-07-17\/2598'>Momoi\nPass<\/a> where the brutality is in trying to merely complete it, the brutality of Mochikoshi Pass East is in trying to\ndo it quickly. <span class='nobr'>The steepest<\/span> section is at the beginning, leaving little left in the gas tank\nfor the remaining bulk of the climb.<\/p>\n\n<p>Michael, who had been one of the more vocal <span\nclass='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>dude, if you had <span class='nobr'>a real<\/span>\nbike...<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> crowd, suggested that <span\nclass='nobr'>I could<\/span> do the hill in five or five and <span\nclass='nobr'>a half<\/span> minutes. Considering that my times on previous\nattempts had been 6:27 and 7:05, anything below 6:00 seemed far fetched,\nbut to make an informal timing <span class='nobr'>I left<\/span> <span\nclass='nobr'>a stopwatch<\/span> running on my handlebar-mounted phone, and\nnoted its times when <span class='nobr'>I crossed<\/span> the starting and\nending points of the segment.<\/p>\n\n<p>It was horrible. I was breathing so hard for the entire run that my throat\ngot cracked and dry. <span class='nobr'>It was not<\/span> fun at all.<\/p>\n\n<p>But I did it in about 5:05, which perhaps made up for the pain that\npersisted in my throat for the next couple of days as the pain turned into\n<span class='nobr'>a mild<\/span> cold (or the pain was an early warning for\n<span class='nobr'>a mild<\/span> cold). <span class='nobr'>I was\nstoked<\/span>... the bike really did make me faster.<\/p>\n\n<p>Michael was still in <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>taking it easy<span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> mode, so I'd left him behind at the start, and\nwas likely not visible to him on the hairpin-filled road after the first 30\nseconds, yet based on how <span class='nobr'>I started<\/span> he was able\nto predict that I'd done it in five minutes. When <span class='nobr'>I\ngot<\/span> home to check, it turned out to have been 5:01. Amazing\nobservation skills, Michael.<\/p>\n\n<p style='margin-top:30px'>We took it easy for the rest of the ride back to Kyoto, stopping by\n<a href='\/blog\/2010-12-12\/1678'>the Hasegawa cafe<\/a> for coffee.<\/p>\n\n<p>We then stopped by <a href='\/blog\/2015-05-25\/2579'>the\n<span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Nasty<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> 21%\ngrade<\/a>. <span class='nobr'>As I mentioned<\/span> in <a\nhref='\/blog\/2015-09-20\/2623'>my update on riding clipped\nin<\/a>, its an ultra steep section like that still makes me worried about\nfalling over, so <span class='nobr'>I thought<\/span> <span class='nobr'>I\nshould<\/span> just get it over with.<\/p>\n\n<p>I was quite apprehensive about it, especially since <span class='nobr'>a large<\/span> group of\nriders arrived just after us and so any falling over would be done in front\nof them.<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i05322\" href='\/i\/JF100_05322.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_05322_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"&amp;#8220; Please don't fall Please don't fall Please don't fall... &amp;#8221; photo by Michael Edwards -- Nasty 21% Slope -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i05322\"\ntitle=\"&amp;#8220; Please don't fall Please don't fall Please don't fall... &amp;#8221; photo by Michael Edwards -- Nasty 21% Slope -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 28mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>1600 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/2.1, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_05322.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_05322.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'><span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Please don't fall Please don't fall Please don't fall...<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='photo-by'>photo by Michael Edwards<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_05322.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Michael Edwards'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Michael Edwards'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-23'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"&amp;#8220; Please don't fall Please don't fall Please don't fall... &amp;#8221; photo by Michael Edwards -- Nasty 21% Slope -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<div class='ic tight' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i05327\" href='\/i\/JF100_05327.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_05327_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"366\"\nalt=\"this is the &amp;#8220; it flattens out near the top &amp;#8221; section photo by Michael Edwards -- Nasty 21% Slope -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i05327\"\ntitle=\"this is the &amp;#8220; it flattens out near the top &amp;#8221; section photo by Michael Edwards -- Nasty 21% Slope -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 28mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>800 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/2.1, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_05327.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_05327.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/>this is the <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>it flattens out near the top<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> section\n<br\/><span class='photo-by'>photo by Michael Edwards<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_05327.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Michael Edwards'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Michael Edwards'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-23'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"this is the &amp;#8220; it flattens out near the top &amp;#8221; section photo by Michael Edwards -- Nasty 21% Slope -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>My concentration was not on speed, but on simply not falling over, and it turns out to have been no problem. <span\nclass='nobr'>It also turns<\/span> out that <span class='nobr'>I again<\/span> crushed my PR, going from 39 seconds to 33\nseconds. <span class='nobr'>As I write<\/span> <a href='\/blog\/2015-05-25\/2579#strava_problems'>here<\/a>,\nStrava has issues with this particular segment, but <span class='nobr'>I believe<\/span> my 33-second time is the 3rd\nbest overall.<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i05335\" href='\/i\/JF100_05335.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_05335_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Some Guy Having Fun one of the group that arrived just after us ( he doesn't look worried about falling over ) -- Nasty 21% Slope -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i05335\"\ntitle=\"Some Guy Having Fun one of the group that arrived just after us ( he doesn't look worried about falling over ) -- Nasty 21% Slope -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 58mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>200 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/2.8, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_05335.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_05335.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Some Guy Having Fun<\/span>\n<br\/>one of the group that arrived just after us\n<br\/>( he doesn't look worried about falling over )\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_05335.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-23'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Some Guy Having Fun one of the group that arrived just after us ( he doesn't look worried about falling over ) -- Nasty 21% Slope -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n\n<p>So, that was my first real ride, <a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/398330333'>57km (35mi)<\/a> filled\nwith new personal records and hope for the future. Michael and the others\nwere right: <span class='nobr'>I would<\/span> be fast on <span class='nobr'>a new<\/span> bike.<\/p>\n\n<p>Unfortunately, as I mentioned about the throat pain, <span class='nobr'>I did come<\/span> down with <span class='nobr'>a cold<\/span> for <span class='nobr'>a few<\/span> days.\nOnce it was mostly better, <span class='nobr'>I went out<\/span> for <span class='nobr'>a ride<\/span> just to try to chase the cold away with some physical effort.<\/p>\n\n<p class='subhead'>Ride #2<\/p>\n\n<p>On <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/401074506'>Ride #2<\/a> <span class='nobr'>I did<\/span> some exploring\nof new mountains, and some short climbs. <span class='nobr'>I didn't<\/span> exert myself too much, but still made <span\nclass='nobr'>a few<\/span> new PRs, so that was nice.<\/p>\n\n<p>The electronic shifters are nice, but they are not as smart as I'd hoped. <span class='nobr'>You can press<\/span> the button to shift gears\nvery quickly, and it tries to move the derailleur faster than the gears can actually shift, so if you're not careful,\nyou can get some clunking and skipping.<\/p>\n\n<p>And even if you're careful, it still clunks and skips at times under heavy load. <span class='nobr'>It's much better<\/span> than what <span class='nobr'>I had<\/span>\nbefore, but it's not at all perfect. <span class='nobr'>It's nice and<\/span> <span class='nobr'>I don't<\/span> feel the need to change it, but using it still requires\nskill.<\/p>\n\n<p class='subhead'>Ride #3<\/p>\n\n<p>The next day I went out for an easy ride with Anthony, <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/401184166'>43km (27mi) along <span class='nobr'>a river<\/span> and back<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i05450\" href='\/i\/JF100_05450.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_05450_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Riding Around the Yodogawa Kasen Park (\u6dc0\u5ddd\u6cb3\u5ddd\u516c\u5712) taken while moving at 22 kph (13 mph) -- Yawata, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i05450\"\ntitle=\"Riding Around the Yodogawa Kasen Park (\u6dc0\u5ddd\u6cb3\u5ddd\u516c\u5712) taken while moving at 22 kph (13 mph) -- Yawata, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 49mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>640 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/4.5, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_05450.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_05450.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Riding Around the Yodogawa Kasen Park<\/span>\n<br\/>(\u6dc0\u5ddd\u6cb3\u5ddd\u516c\u5712)\n<br\/>taken while moving at 22 kph (13 mph)\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_05450.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-27'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Riding Around the Yodogawa Kasen Park (\u6dc0\u5ddd\u6cb3\u5ddd\u516c\u5712) taken while moving at 22 kph (13 mph) -- Yawata, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>We went as far as <a href='\/blog\/2007-04-03\/411'>this\npark<\/a> that <span class='nobr'>I wrote<\/span> about 8&frac12; years ago, which is absolutely\nstunning during cherry-blossom season. When we were there, it was <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>just<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>\nsimply lovely.<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i05461\" href='\/i\/JF100_05461.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_05461_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"taken while moving at 16 kph (10 mph) -- Otokuni-gun, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i05461\"\ntitle=\"taken while moving at 16 kph (10 mph) -- Otokuni-gun, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 75mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>250 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/4.5, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_05461.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_05461.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/>taken while moving at 16 kph (10 mph)\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_05461.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-27'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"taken while moving at 16 kph (10 mph) -- Otokuni-gun, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i05488\" href='\/i\/JF100_05488.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_05488_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Rich Late-Afternoon Light on the way home -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i05488\"\ntitle=\"Rich Late-Afternoon Light on the way home -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 60mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>160 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_05488.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_05488.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Rich Late-Afternoon Light<\/span>\n<br\/>on the way home\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_05488.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-27'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Rich Late-Afternoon Light on the way home -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i05511\" href='\/i\/JF100_05511.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_05511_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"419\"\nalt=\"Encroaching Grass taken while moving at 18 kph (11 mph) -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i05511\"\ntitle=\"Encroaching Grass taken while moving at 18 kph (11 mph) -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>125 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/7.1, ISO 320 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_05511.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_05511.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Encroaching Grass<\/span>\n<br\/>taken while moving at 18 kph (11 mph)\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_05511.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-27'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Encroaching Grass taken while moving at 18 kph (11 mph) -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>It was a trivial ride for me, but quite an accomplishment for\n12-year-old Anthony, who hasn't ridden his bike much lately. <span class='nobr'>I'm glad I<\/span>\nmade him get <span class='nobr'>a shower<\/span> right away after we returned home, because he then\nfell asleep and didn't wake up until it was time to get ready for school\nthe next morning.<\/p>\n\n<p class='subhead'>Ride #4<\/p>\n\n<p>I was feeling better from my cold, so the next day <span class='nobr'>I did<\/span> a <a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/404525969'>more ambitious ride of\n110km (68mi) with lots of climbing<\/a>, with Manseki. <span class='nobr'>We had great<\/span> fun exploring new\nmountains to the southeast of Kyoto.<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i05583\" href='\/i\/JF100_05583.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_05583_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Manseki Being Manseki cresting the pass at Mt. Kasatori (\u7b20\u53d6\u5c71) -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i05583\"\ntitle=\"Manseki Being Manseki cresting the pass at Mt. Kasatori (\u7b20\u53d6\u5c71) -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 70mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>200 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/2.8, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_05583.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_05583.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Manseki Being Manseki<\/span>\n<br\/>cresting the pass at Mt. Kasatori <span class='nobr'>(\u7b20\u53d6\u5c71)<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_05583.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-28'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Manseki Being Manseki cresting the pass at Mt. Kasatori (\u7b20\u53d6\u5c71) -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<div class='ic tight' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i05585\" href='\/i\/JF100_05585.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_05585_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"near the pass at Mt. Kasatori (\u7b20\u53d6\u5c71) photo by Manseki Kanemitsu -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i05585\"\ntitle=\"near the pass at Mt. Kasatori (\u7b20\u53d6\u5c71) photo by Manseki Kanemitsu -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>125 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/2, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_05585.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_05585.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/>near the pass at Mt. Kasatori <span class='nobr'>(\u7b20\u53d6\u5c71)<\/span>\n<br\/><span class='photo-by'>photo by Manseki Kanemitsu<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_05585.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Manseki Kanemitsu'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Manseki Kanemitsu'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-28'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"near the pass at Mt. Kasatori (\u7b20\u53d6\u5c71) photo by Manseki Kanemitsu -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>It's interesting to compare the photo above with <a\nhref='\/blog\/2015-03-05\/2533#i219404668'>this photo<\/a>\n(also by Manseki) at the same location on <span class='nobr'>a ride<\/span> in March, going the other\nway. <span class='nobr'>It was one<\/span> of my first long rides, and the climb absolutely killed\nme.<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i05595\" href='\/i\/JF100_05595.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_05595_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"At One of the Many Nameless Passes ( the same pass seen here on that ride in March ) photo by Manseki Kanemitsu -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i05595\"\ntitle=\"At One of the Many Nameless Passes ( the same pass seen here on that ride in March ) photo by Manseki Kanemitsu -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 75mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>125 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/2.8, ISO 2000 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_05595.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_05595.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>At One of the Many Nameless Passes<\/span>\n<br\/>( the same pass <a href='\/blog\/2015-03-05\/2533#i069199'>seen here<\/a> on that ride in March )\n<br\/><span class='photo-by'>photo by Manseki Kanemitsu<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_05595.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Manseki Kanemitsu'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Manseki Kanemitsu'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-28'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"At One of the Many Nameless Passes ( the same pass seen here on that ride in March ) photo by Manseki Kanemitsu -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>The jersey has text at the bottom saying <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>Give Your Brain The Night\nOff<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>. <span class='nobr'>I thought<\/span> this might have more <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>character<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> than the rolling\nbillboards that cyclists tend to wear. Some cyclists are actually paid to\nwear their sponsor's logos (such as Sarah, seen <a\nhref='\/blog\/2015-09-24\/2626#i04676'>here<\/a>, who <span class='nobr'>I\nbelieve<\/span> is sponsored by Aussie retailer <a\nhref='https:\/\/www.bikebug.com\/'>bikebug<\/a>). <span class='nobr'>I'm not good<\/span> enough to be\nsponsored by anyone, so instead I'll go with <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>character<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>. \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n\n<p>Moving off into uncharted territory, we climbed <a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/10595114'><span class='nobr'>a road<\/span> up\n   Mt. Tanakami <span class='nobr'>(\u7530\u4e0a\u5c71)<\/span><\/a>\n\nthat I'd seen on Google Earth, which is great for finding unmapped logging\nroads and the like. I've since added the road to OpenStreetMap.org, and the\nsegment to Strava. <span class='nobr'>I currently<\/span> have the <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>King of the Mountain<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> (best ever)\nrecord, simply because I'm the only one to ever log it with Strava. \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n\n<p>There's a nice view from the top:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i05616\" href='\/i\/JF100_05616.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_05616_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"View of Otsu and Lake Biwa from the pass on Mt. Tanokami (\u7530\u4e0a\u5c71) -- Mt. Tanokami (\u7530\u4e0a\u5c71) -- Otsu, Shiga, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i05616\"\ntitle=\"View of Otsu and Lake Biwa from the pass on Mt. Tanokami (\u7530\u4e0a\u5c71) -- Mt. Tanokami (\u7530\u4e0a\u5c71) -- Otsu, Shiga, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 50mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>160 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/8, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_05616.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_05616.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>View of Otsu and Lake Biwa<\/span>\n<br\/>from the pass on Mt. Tanokami <span class='nobr'>(\u7530\u4e0a\u5c71)<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_05616.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-28'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"View of Otsu and Lake Biwa from the pass on Mt. Tanokami (\u7530\u4e0a\u5c71) -- Mt. Tanokami (\u7530\u4e0a\u5c71) -- Otsu, Shiga, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>For context, the bridge seen in the background of <a href='\/blog\/2015-06-14\/2586#i00575'>this picture<\/a>\ncan be made out near the upper left of the photo above.<\/p>\n\n<p>Descending the other side of the mountain involved <span class='nobr'>a kilometer<\/span> of gravel and fording <span class='nobr'>a stream,<\/span> but we were soon thrown into\nour next climb.<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i05672\" href='\/i\/JF100_05672.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_05672_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Prepared for Anything but on the inside the &amp;#8220; 16% &amp;#8221; made me quiver photo by Manseki Kanemitsu -- Otsu, Shiga, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i05672\"\ntitle=\"Prepared for Anything but on the inside the &amp;#8220; 16% &amp;#8221; made me quiver photo by Manseki Kanemitsu -- Otsu, Shiga, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 35mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>160 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/9, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_05672.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_05672.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Prepared for Anything<\/span>\n<br\/>but on the inside the <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>16%<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> made me quiver\n<br\/><span class='photo-by'>photo by Manseki Kanemitsu<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_05672.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Manseki Kanemitsu'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Manseki Kanemitsu'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-28'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Prepared for Anything but on the inside the &amp;#8220; 16% &amp;#8221; made me quiver photo by Manseki Kanemitsu -- Otsu, Shiga, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>I don't know what road the <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>16%<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> sign was for, but it wasn't for the road we were on,\nbecause the climb was not bad at <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/404525969\/segments\/9699530582'>7% for 4.6km<\/a>,\nfollowed by the <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/404525969\/segments\/9699530588'>most lovely fast descent<\/a>\nwhere <span class='nobr'>I could<\/span> average over 40 kph for more than three minutes.<\/p>\n\n<p>It ends near some nice rice fields, where the harvest has started.<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i05675\" href='\/i\/JF100_05675.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_05675_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Rice Harvest -- Koka, Shiga, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i05675\"\ntitle=\"Rice Harvest -- Koka, Shiga, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>4000 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/2, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_05675.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_05675.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Rice Harvest<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_05675.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-28'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Rice Harvest -- Koka, Shiga, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>I had been hoping to make it as far as <a\nhref='\/blog\/2010-11-23\/1668'>this remote temple<\/a>, but\nwe were taking it too easy and time was running short, so we turned around\nat the gate of <a href='\/blog\/2013-12-06\/2349'>The Miho\nMuseum<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n<p>On the way home we stopped by <a href='http:\/\/www.sajo-towson.jp\/'>the\nSajo Towson <span class='nobr'>(\u8336\u4e08\u85e4\u6751)<\/span> cafe<\/a>, which is run by <span class='nobr'>a cyclist<\/span> friend of\nManseki. We'd <a\nhref='\/blog\/2015-03-05\/2533#i069025'>stopped by<\/a> on\nthat ride in March as well.<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i05705\" href='\/i\/JF100_05705.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_05705_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Cafe Sajo Towson (\u8336\u4e08\u85e4\u6751) -- Sajo Towson (\u8336\u4e08\u85e4\u6751) -- Otsu, Shiga, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i05705\"\ntitle=\"Cafe Sajo Towson (\u8336\u4e08\u85e4\u6751) -- Sajo Towson (\u8336\u4e08\u85e4\u6751) -- Otsu, Shiga, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>125 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/3.2, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_05705.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_05705.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Cafe Sajo Towson <span class='nobr'>(\u8336\u4e08\u85e4\u6751)<\/span><\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_05705.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-28'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Cafe Sajo Towson (\u8336\u4e08\u85e4\u6751) -- Sajo Towson (\u8336\u4e08\u85e4\u6751) -- Otsu, Shiga, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>I had some <a\nhref='\/blog\/2015-03-05\/2533#i069031'>Terabe Mochi<\/a>,\nwhich was <span class='nobr'>a waste<\/span> because <span class='nobr'>I scarfed<\/span> it down but its delicate flavors are\nbetter suited to <span class='nobr'>a slow<\/span> lingering enjoyment. <span class='nobr'>I should<\/span> just bring some home\nnext time.<\/p>\n\n<p>The proprietress, Maria, kindly gave us an extra little snack, some kind of\nsemi-sweet translucent jelly-like <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>noodle<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>...<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i05706\" href='\/i\/JF100_05706.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_05706_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"I Don't Know What This Is other than &amp;#8220; tasty &amp;#8221; -- Sajo Towson (\u8336\u4e08\u85e4\u6751) -- Otsu, Shiga, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i05706\"\ntitle=\"I Don't Know What This Is other than &amp;#8220; tasty &amp;#8221; -- Sajo Towson (\u8336\u4e08\u85e4\u6751) -- Otsu, Shiga, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 26mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>100 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/1.9, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_05706.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_05706.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'><span class='nobr'>I Don't<\/span> Know What This Is<\/span>\n<br\/>other than <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>tasty<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_05706.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-28'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"I Don't Know What This Is other than &amp;#8220; tasty &amp;#8221; -- Sajo Towson (\u8336\u4e08\u85e4\u6751) -- Otsu, Shiga, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>Getting closer to home, we swung by <a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/404525969\/segments\/9699530646'>this\nlovely little segment<\/a> that <span class='nobr'>I discovered<\/span> while on the kicking-my-cold\nride two days prior...<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i05733\" href='\/i\/JF100_05733.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_05733_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Pleasant Road in the City -- Otsu, Shiga, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i05733\"\ntitle=\"Pleasant Road in the City -- Otsu, Shiga, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 25mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>30 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/4, ISO 3200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_05733.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_05733.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Pleasant Road in the City<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_05733.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-28'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Pleasant Road in the City -- Otsu, Shiga, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>Feeling mentally comfortable on the bike, <span class='nobr'>I made PRs<\/span> on the last two\nclimbs before home, where I <a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/404525969\/segments\/9699530655'>tied\nGorm's time on Kosekikoshi Pass <span class='nobr'>(\u5c0f\u95a2\u8d8a)<\/span><\/a>, and shaved off <span class='nobr'>a few<\/span> seconds\nfrom the <a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/404525969\/segments\/9699530681'>climb\nup the hill at Keage <span class='nobr'>(\u8e74\u4e0a<\/span>\u3052\u6771)<\/a>, which <span class='nobr'>I last<\/span> PR'd after the <a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/322384916'>230km ride around Lake\nBiwa<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n<p>All in all, a good day.<\/p>\n\n<p class='subhead'>Ride #5<\/p>\n\n<p>Finally, my most recent ride was <a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/403286417'>another heart loop<\/a>. <span class='nobr'>It was a<\/span> group ride where we mostly stuck together, but <span class='nobr'>I still<\/span> made <span class='nobr'>a bunch<\/span> of PRs,\nincluding averaging almost 60 kph (37mph) for the two minutes down\nthe <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/403286417\/segments\/9668295504'>fast downhill<\/a>\n<span class='nobr'>I mentioned<\/span> from Day 1.<\/p>\n\n<p>Twice I hit a five-second average of 70 kph (44mph), but that seems to\nbe my limit. I've been told since then that gains beyond that are to be had\nin aerodynamics, so I'll have to follow the advice in <a\nhref='https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=clfm0lf5Now'>this well-timed GCN\nvideo on aero-riding<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n<p>I couldn't repeat my 5:01 time on Mochikoshi Pass, even though <span class='nobr'>I felt<\/span> <span class='nobr'>I\ntried<\/span> harder. <span class='nobr'>The first<\/span> initial climb just killed me, and <span class='nobr'>I had<\/span> nothing\nleft for the rest. <span class='nobr'>I did a<\/span> 5:10. <span class='nobr'>I guess<\/span> this tells me to take it easy on\nthe first climb, then use the saved energy on the <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>easier<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> (everything's\nrelative) last &frac23; of the segment.<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i05752\" href='\/i\/JF100_05752.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_05752_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Joking Around After the Ride at Yama no Ie Hasegawa (\u5c71\u306e\u5bb6\u306f\u305b\u304c\u308f) -- Yama no Ie Hasegawa (\u5c71\u306e\u5bb6\u306f\u305b\u304c\u308f) -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i05752\"\ntitle=\"Joking Around After the Ride at Yama no Ie Hasegawa (\u5c71\u306e\u5bb6\u306f\u305b\u304c\u308f) -- Yama no Ie Hasegawa (\u5c71\u306e\u5bb6\u306f\u305b\u304c\u308f) -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>100 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/2, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_05752.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_05752.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Joking Around After the Ride<\/span>\n<br\/>at Yama no Ie Hasegawa (\u5c71\u306e\u5bb6\u306f\u305b\u304c\u308f)\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_05752.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-30'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Joking Around After the Ride at Yama no Ie Hasegawa (\u5c71\u306e\u5bb6\u306f\u305b\u304c\u308f) -- Yama no Ie Hasegawa (\u5c71\u306e\u5bb6\u306f\u305b\u304c\u308f) -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i05761\" href='\/i\/JF100_05761.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_05761_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Coffee and Cheescake my standard order -- Yama no Ie Hasegawa (\u5c71\u306e\u5bb6\u306f\u305b\u304c\u308f) -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/ -- This photo is licensed to the public under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc\/4.0\/ (non-commercial use is freely allowed if proper attribution is given, including a link back to this page on http:\/\/regex.info\/ when used online)\"\nid=\"i05761\"\ntitle=\"Coffee and Cheescake my standard order -- Yama no Ie Hasegawa (\u5c71\u306e\u5bb6\u306f\u305b\u304c\u308f) -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/ -- This photo is licensed to the public under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc\/4.0\/ (non-commercial use is freely allowed if proper attribution is given, including a link back to this page on http:\/\/regex.info\/ when used online)\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>125 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/4, ISO 1000 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_05761.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_05761.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Coffee and Cheescake<\/span>\n<br\/>my standard order\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_05761.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-30'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Coffee and Cheescake my standard order -- Yama no Ie Hasegawa (\u5c71\u306e\u5bb6\u306f\u305b\u304c\u308f) -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/ -- This photo is licensed to the public under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc\/4.0\/ (non-commercial use is freely allowed if proper attribution is given, including a link back to this page on http:\/\/regex.info\/ when used online)\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>So, that's my experience with the new bike. After 309km (190mi) <span class='nobr'>I feel<\/span>\npretty comfortable with it, mostly.<\/p>\n\n<p>It's my first drop-handle bike so I've still got to get used to the\nvarious riding positions it affords. They're so different from anything\nI've ever experienced that <span class='nobr'>I don't<\/span> have the knowledge to differentiate\nbetween something I've just not gotten used to yet, and something that's\nmisadjusted. <span class='nobr'>So with this<\/span> in mind, <span class='nobr'>I went to<\/span> someone who does have that\nknowledge, and stopped by for <span class='nobr'>a followup<\/span> bike fitting at Vincent\nFlanagan's PedalForth. <\/p>\n\n<p>Since this was a followup to <a\nhref='\/blog\/2015-08-10\/2603'>my earlier bike-fitting\nsession<\/a>, Vincent started right in with the measurements of the bike's\ncurrent setup, and asking me how <span class='nobr'>I feel<\/span> about that current setup.<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i05763\" href='\/i\/JF100_05763.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_05763_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Vincent Working On My Bike PedalForth Fitting -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i05763\"\ntitle=\"Vincent Working On My Bike PedalForth Fitting -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>125 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/1.7, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_05763.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_05763.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Vincent Working On My Bike<\/span>\n<br\/>PedalForth Fitting\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_05763.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-30'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Vincent Working On My Bike PedalForth Fitting -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>I felt mostly good about the bike, but felt that maybe the reach to the handlebars was <span class='nobr'>a\nbit<\/span> long, and that <span class='nobr'>I wasn't<\/span> sure yet how to get the most power through the pedals.\n<span class='nobr'>Now when riding<\/span> hard, <span class='nobr'>I sometimes<\/span> feel I'm not being particularly\nefficient. <span class='nobr'>I don't<\/span> know whether these are issues of the bike setup or just my ignorance on how\nto ride this kind of bike.<\/p>\n\n<p>Vincent did his thing, and we ended up moving the seat up by 23mm (&frac78;&quot;), the handlebars back by 32mm\n(1&frac14;&quot;) and up by 21mm (&frac78;&quot;). They sound like small changes, but they made <span class='nobr'>a\nworld<\/span> of difference and suddenly the bike felt <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>right<span\nclass='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>.<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i05768\" href='\/i\/JF100_05768.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_05768_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Much Better photo by Vincent Flanagan -- PedalForth Fitting -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i05768\"\ntitle=\"Much Better photo by Vincent Flanagan -- PedalForth Fitting -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>60 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/1.7, ISO 320 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_05768.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_05768.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Much Better<\/span>\n<br\/><span class='photo-by'>photo by Vincent Flanagan<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_05768.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Vincent Flanagan'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Vincent Flanagan'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-30'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Much Better photo by Vincent Flanagan -- PedalForth Fitting -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>As a bonus side effect, the re-positioning of the handlebars required <span class='nobr'>a shorter<\/span> stem, so <span class='nobr'>I was<\/span> able to get rid of the\nwhite one that stuck out like sore thumb.<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i05770\" href='\/i\/JF100_05770.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_05770_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"More Powerful Power Transfer currently being measured: knee angle at maximum extension -- PedalForth Fitting -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i05770\"\ntitle=\"More Powerful Power Transfer currently being measured: knee angle at maximum extension -- PedalForth Fitting -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 28mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>125 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/2.1, ISO 2000 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_05770.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_05770.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>More Powerful Power Transfer<\/span>\n<br\/>currently being measured: knee angle at maximum extension\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_05770.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2015-09-30'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"More Powerful Power Transfer currently being measured: knee angle at maximum extension -- PedalForth Fitting -- Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2015 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>It felt great on the ride home, but unfortunately <span class='nobr'>a busy<\/span> schedule and another mild cold have conspired to keep me off\nthe bike. <span class='nobr'>I can't<\/span> wait to try the new setup on some real climbs...<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>I haven't posted anything in a week, or even read email in a week, because I've been working on some new software projects.<\/p> <p>The lack of externally-visible productivity (sorry if you've written and I've not responded) is not because I bought a new bicycle, but while we're on the subject, BTW, I did buy a new bicycle. \ud83d\ude42<\/p> <p>This is a long article written mostly for my own memory. I won't feel bad if you don't read it all<\/p> <p class='subhead'>The Old Bike<\/p> <p>If you've seen any of my many cycling posts, you'll know that since I started cycling earlier [...]","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30,1,2],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2628"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2628"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2628\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2628"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2628"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2628"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}