{"id":2640,"date":"2015-11-13T19:33:08","date_gmt":"2015-11-13T10:33:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/2015-11-13\/2640"},"modified":"2016-06-05T01:07:30","modified_gmt":"2016-06-04T16:07:30","slug":"great-day-in-kyotos-colorful-northern-mountains-and-at-stravas-kyoto-office","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/2015-11-13\/2640","title":{"rendered":"Great Day in Kyoto’s Colorful Northern Mountains, and at Strava’s Kyoto Office"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>160 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nAutumn Colors Have Definitely Arrived<\/span>\nin the cold mountains of northern Kyoto\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

I had a nice<\/span> ride the other day<\/a> with Andy Clark and Michael Edwards.<\/p>\n\n

While meeting up in the morning, Nigel Randell happened to stop by on his way to work...<\/p>\n\n\n

<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>250 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

And we were approached by an American tourist passing by who saw our nice bikes and just wanted to say “<\/span>hi”<\/span>...<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 28mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>160 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nCarlin Eng<\/span>\nin Kyoto\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

It turns out that he works for Strava<\/a>,\nthe running\/riding community site where your activities can be mapped and\ncompared to your prior efforts and to others. In the nine<\/span> months since I\nstarted<\/span> cycling, I've been absolutely shocked<\/i> at how motivating\nStrava has been for me; upon returning from a ride,<\/span> the satisfaction to see\nthe “<\/span>PR”<\/span> (personal record) badge on a particular<\/span> route is something that\ndrives me, and I feel<\/span> disappointed when I don't<\/span> earn it.<\/p>\n\n

Strava does have its issues, including the wild inflation of\nvertical-climb numbers for a ride,<\/span> prompting my May blog post “<\/span>The Voodoo of Elevation Gain\nand Strava<\/a>”<\/span>. Andy and Michael know of my data geekiness along these\nlines, so when Carlin said that he was a data<\/span> engineer for Strava, Michael\nand Andy instinctively parted, lest they get caught in my “<\/span>let's talk about\ndata”<\/span> tractor beam. \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n\n

Actually, we just exchanged pleasantries and made sure Carlin was aware\nof the plethora of wonderful mountain rides in the area. He showed<\/span> us (on\nthe Strava App<\/a>, of course) the ride he'd done the\nprevious day<\/a> up in the northern and western mountains, a great<\/span> route,\nso we were satisfied that he'd at least had a good<\/span> sampling. (Along the\nlines of “<\/span>voodoo elevation gain”<\/span>, Strava says his elevation gain on that\nride was 3,890m, but it was actually 2,036m — 6,680' instead of\n12,760'.)<\/p>\n\n

Wishing him a good time on the temple tour<\/a> he\nhad planned for the day, Andy, Michael, and I took<\/span> off north toward Kibune.<\/p>\n\n

We stopped for a photo at the same bridge that appears in the first photo on\nmy very first cycling-related blog post<\/a>....<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>100 sec, f<\/span>\/1.7, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nGroup Shot<\/span>\non the way to Kibune (\u8cb4\u8239)\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

Our route would take us over Seryo Pass (\u82b9\u751f\u5ce0),<\/span> a climb<\/span> I have<\/span> done\nonly once, with a non<\/span>-cycling friend, on a folding<\/span> city-commuter bike (see\n“<\/span>Conquering\nKyoto\u2019s Seryo Pass with Manu Mohan<\/a>”<\/span>), stopping often. So, doing it\ntoday “<\/span>for real”<\/span> for the first time made me a bit<\/span> apprehensive: it's long,\nsteep, with lots of rocks, leaves\/moss, broken pavement, etc.<\/p>\n\n

I made it, more than an hour faster than that first time, but still slow\ngoing. My time of<\/span> 37:06 was minute slower than Michael, and almost four\nminutes slower than Andy. I'm just happy<\/span> that I was<\/span> able to do it without\nstopping.<\/p>\n\n

Halfway down the other side, Andy got a flat.<\/span>..<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>125 sec, f<\/span>\/2.5, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nImpromptu Pause<\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 28mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>125 sec, f<\/span>\/2.8, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nRoadside Mirror<\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 28mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>125 sec, f<\/span>\/5, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nReally Bright<\/span>\nbright light and dark shadows were too much for the camera sensor\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>125 sec, f<\/span>\/7.1, ISO 1000 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n\nDeep<\/span>\ndeep gorge, deep colors.... sadly, doesn't come across well in the photo\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>125 sec, f<\/span>\/5, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nOur Tax Yen at Work<\/span>\nworker cleaning middle-of-nowhere street with leaf blower.\n— what a fantastic waste of resources —\ntaken while riding at 21 kph (13 mph)\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>640 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nCool As Always<\/span>\nbut deep in these northern mountains, it got downright cold.\nGlad I brought a light jacket.\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 41mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>250 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nPhoto Op<\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 41mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>250 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nPosing<\/span>\nto me it looks like they're just checking their six,\nbut they were “<\/span>posing”<\/span> for the shot.\ntaken while riding at 33 kph (21 mph)\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>200 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nNot Posing<\/span>\njust normal countryside riding at or below the posted speed limit\ntaken while riding at 34 kph (21 mph)\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>125 sec, f<\/span>\/4.5, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nHamming It Up<\/span>\ntaken while riding at 34 kph (21 mph)\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>160 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\ntaken while riding at 35 kph (22 mph)\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

As Andy was hamming it up for the camera, I commented<\/span> to Michael that Andy was leaving him in the dust. Of course<\/span> Michael can't have that, so takes off like a shot.<\/span>...<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>200 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nOvertake<\/span>\ntaken while riding at 36 kph (22 mph)\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>250 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>200 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nHe's Gone...<\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

Andy knows the area particularly well, and brought us on a side<\/span> road through a hidden<\/span> little village...<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 47mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>125 sec, f<\/span>\/3.5, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nSecret Path<\/span>\ntaken while riding at 12 kph (7 mph)\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 47mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>250 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 47mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>125 sec, f<\/span>\/2.6, ISO 320 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nIncongruous Objet d'art<\/span>\ntaken while riding at 19 kph (12 mph)\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 35mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>125 sec, f<\/span>\/4, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nAnother Small Path<\/span>\nby a river with absolutely pristine crystal-clear water\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 49mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>125 sec, f<\/span>\/2.7, ISO 320 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nInsanely Steep<\/span>\n35%? 40%?\nAndy rode up it like it was nothing; I didn't<\/span> have the guts to try\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

UPDATE<\/b>: as per Rick's comment<\/a>, I went back\nand measured the slope with the compass app on my iPhone. It's a bit of a long story involving some confusion\non my part, but in the end the slope turns out to be a 36.4% grade<\/a>,\nwhich is about what I guessed, and more than I'm willing to try while clipped in.<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>200 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nBack on the Main Road<\/span>\ntaken while riding at 32 kph (20 mph)\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>200 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nTypical Scene<\/span>\njust another day in Kyoto\ntaken while riding at 45 kph (28 mph)\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>2000 sec, f<\/span>\/1.7, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nDiscussing the Finer Points<\/span>\nof art, literature, space exploration, and carbon wheels\n( actually, I think they were discussing work-related research reports )\ntaken while riding at 34 kph (21 mph)\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>1600 sec, f<\/span>\/1.7, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nPerfectly Pleasant Day<\/span>\ntaken while riding at 19 kph (12 mph)\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>125 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 640 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nEntering a Small<\/span> Village<\/span>\ntaken while riding at 13 kph (8 mph)\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>160 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nSweeping Views<\/span>\nfrom a now-closed road replaced by a tunnel<\/span> far below us\n( it was my second time on this road, the first having been here<\/a> )\ntaken while riding at 14 kph (8 mph)\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 27mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>125 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 800 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nMessy Road<\/span>\nI guess our tax yen is not being spent enough\ntaken while riding at 11 kph (7 mph)\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>13 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 3200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nPathetically-Shaky Photo<\/span>\nI'd mistakenly left the aperture stopped down too far\ntaken while riding at 45 kph (28 mph)\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

The interior of this tunnel has appeared twice before,\nhere<\/a> and\nhere<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n

Then we stopped by the Ochiba Shrine (the aptly-named “<\/span>Fallen Leaf\nShrine”<\/span>)...<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>125 sec, f<\/span>\/3.2, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nGroup Photo<\/span>\nat the Iwato Ochiba Shrine (\u5ca9\u6238\u843d\u8449\u795e\u793e),<\/span> Kyoto Japan\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

I've visited this shrine during the fall-foliage season many times,\nfirst having written about it on my blog five years ago in “<\/span>Carpet of Yellow\nat the Iwato Ochiba Shrine, Deep in the Mountains of North-West Kyoto<\/a>”<\/span>,\nthen again three years\nago<\/a>, and at about the same time, one of my first real\nwigglegrams<\/a> was made there.<\/p>\n\n

I learned about this shrine five years ago when a friend<\/span> wrote on his blog\nabout a bicycle<\/span> trip here<\/a>.\nUntil this year I couldn't<\/span> fathom ever coming this far by bicycle, so it means something to me to be able\nto come here to see the colors by bicycle. I actually<\/span> came the day before as well,\non a solo<\/span> ride<\/a> to take in the fall colors.<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>160 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nQuintessential Shot<\/span>\nat this shrine during the foliage season\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

On the way home I think I bonked<\/a> a bit<\/span> —\nla petit bonk<\/i> — and suddenly felt depleted about half way up the climb to Kyomi Pass. So back in<\/span> the city after we all went our separate ways to return home, I stopped<\/span> by a restaurant<\/span>\nfor some All American calories...<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>1600 sec, f<\/span>\/1.7, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nBig Burger at Speak Easy<\/a><\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

In the evening I treated myself to a sports massage at Dou<\/i><\/a>,\nthe clinic run by my friend Kentaro Kataoka, who once appeared on my blog\ngiving an impromptu massage<\/a> to another friend.<\/p>\n\n

Then to cap off a great day, I met Carlin Eng, the Strava engineer I'd met that morning, for dinner. As is my<\/span> habit with folks new to Kyoto, I took him<\/span> to Uroko<\/a>...<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nPanasonic LX100 at an effective 28mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>40 sec, f<\/span>\/2.2, ISO 1600 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nCheers<\/span>\nCarlin Eng opens the Strava Kyoto<\/i> office for a few<\/span> hours\nat Uroko (\u9c57), Kyoto Japan\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

I go to Uroko often, though I don't think I've mentioned it since “<\/span>Facebook Engineering Opens a Satellite<\/span> Office\nin Kyoto<\/a>”<\/span>. As with that<\/span> event, I shamelessly<\/span>\nused dinner to bribe my way into an opportunity to talk engineering and user experience directly with a\nmember<\/span> of the company. They're probably not the appropriate<\/i> person to talk to about my various concerns, I know,<\/span> but it's fun and enlightening.<\/p>\n\n

I really like Strava, but there are many things I wish<\/span> were different, and likely would be different\nif they had unlimited resources and didn't have to worry about business. I'm acquainted<\/span> with at least\nfive billionaires that I can<\/span> think of... if one of you are reading this, please buy Strava and make me\nKing. \ud83d\ude09 That'd be a nice<\/span> achievement to have, in addition to the “<\/span>KOM”<\/span> (King of the Mountain) and “<\/span>QOM”<\/span> (Queen of the Mountain) achievements, “<\/span>KOS”<\/span>\n(King of Strava).<\/p>\n\n

Strava aside, Carlin was a great guy to chat with, and I hope<\/span> he looks\nus up next time he visits Kyoto so we can all go out riding together.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I had a nice ride the other day with Andy Clark and Michael Edwards.<\/p>

While meeting up in the morning, Nigel Randell happened to stop by on his way to work...<\/p>

And we were approached by an American tourist passing by who saw our nice bikes and just wanted to say \"hi\"...<\/p>

It turns out that he works for Strava, the running\/riding community site where your activities can be mapped and compared to your prior efforts and to others. In the nine months since I started cycling, I've been absolutely shocked at how motivating Strava has been for me; upon [...]","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30,14,1,2,31,10],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2640"}],"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=2640"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2640\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2640"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2640"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2640"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}