{"id":2732,"date":"2016-09-17T16:26:24","date_gmt":"2016-09-17T07:26:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/2016-09-17\/2732"},"modified":"2016-09-17T16:26:24","modified_gmt":"2016-09-17T07:26:24","slug":"more-exploring-uji-by-bicycle-and-exploring-my-cycling-psychology","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/2016-09-17\/2732","title":{"rendered":"More Exploring Uji by Bicycle, and Exploring my Cycling Psychology"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i10459\" href='\/i\/JF100_10459.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_10459_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Muddy River the morning after typhoon-effect torrential rains -- Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i10459\"\ntitle=\"Muddy River the morning after typhoon-effect torrential rains -- Japan -- Copyright 2016 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>\/5, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_10459.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_10459.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Muddy River<\/span>\n<br\/>the morning after typhoon-effect torrential rains\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_10459.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2016-08-30'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Muddy River the morning after typhoon-effect torrential rains -- Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>Now that <a href='\/blog\/2016-09-15\/2730'>I'm out of action<\/a> for <span class='nobr'>a while,<\/span> I'll try to make some headway in\nmy blogging. This post is sort of <span class='nobr'>a followup<\/span> to last month's <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><a class='pt' href='\/blog\/2016-08-29\/2725'>Lovely\nBicycle Ride Revisiting Uji Countryside Photographed Five Years Ago<\/a><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>, because <span class='nobr'>I returned<\/span> to the area on my next ride to\ncontinue exploring.<\/p>\n\n<p>The ride ended up being lovely, appearing on Strava as\n<span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/694283943\/' class='pt'>Uji #3 - Wet & Slimy Satisfaction <span class='nobr'>\u5b87\u6cbb\u5e02<\/span>\u306e<span class='nobr'>\u6e80\u8db3<\/span><\/a><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span>:<\/p>\n\n<iframe class='ic tight' height='405' width='590' frameborder='0' allowtransparency='true' scrolling='no' src='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/694283943\/embed\/f726c2cb946a3503735ddcc0831fee600db84bd9'><\/iframe>\n\n<p>I hit as many mountain climbs as <span class='nobr'>I could<\/span> fit in, so the ride ended up with over 3000m (10,000') of climb, but <span class='nobr'>I was<\/span> just\nenjoying to explore, so taking it slow and easy made it not <span class='nobr'>a challenge.<\/span> Just fun. <span class='nobr'>I truly<\/span> enjoyed myself.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a href='\/i\/JF100_10466.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_10466_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Small-Plot Rice Ready for Harvest I doubt anyone actually lives in the house, though -- Otsu, Shiga, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i10466\"\nitemprop=\"image\"\ntitle=\"Small-Plot Rice Ready for Harvest I doubt anyone actually lives in the house, though -- Otsu, Shiga, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 41mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>125 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_10466_sm.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_10466_sm.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Small-Plot Rice Ready for Harvest<\/span>\n<br\/>I doubt anyone actually lives in the house, though\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_10466_sm.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2016-08-30'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Small-Plot Rice Ready for Harvest I doubt anyone actually lives in the house, though -- Otsu, Shiga, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a href='\/i\/JF100_10467.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_10467_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Across the Street harvest likely just finished -- Otsu, Shiga, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i10467\"\nitemprop=\"image\"\ntitle=\"Across the Street harvest likely just finished -- Otsu, Shiga, Japan -- Copyright 2016 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>320 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_10467_sm.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_10467_sm.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Across the Street<\/span>\n<br\/>harvest likely just finished\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_10467_sm.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2016-08-30'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Across the Street harvest likely just finished -- Otsu, Shiga, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>One thing that helps me enjoy <span class='nobr'>a ride<\/span> is purposefully sandbagging climbs that are new for me. I've never been competitive by\nnature, but in cycling <span class='nobr'>I find<\/span> that I'm extremely competitive with myself, never wanting to go slower than last time. Taking <span class='nobr'>a new<\/span>\nclimb slow on purpose has two physiological benefits: it gives me an excuse to go slow and just enjoy the ride, and it ensures\nthat I'll get <span class='nobr'>a PR<\/span> the next time <span class='nobr'>I try<\/span> it.<\/p>\n\n<p>I am fully aware of how utterly pathetic this is. <span class='nobr'>It's so obvious<\/span> that even <span class='nobr'>I can<\/span> see it for what it is, which <span class='nobr'>I also<\/span> find to\nbe quite interesting.<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a href='\/i\/JF100_10474.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_10474_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Base of the Omine East Climb a lovely mild climb -- Tsuzuki-gun -- Tsuzuki-gun, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i10474\"\nitemprop=\"image\"\ntitle=\"Base of the Omine East Climb a lovely mild climb -- Tsuzuki-gun -- Tsuzuki-gun, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 37mm &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_10474_sm.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_10474_sm.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Base of the Omine East Climb<\/span>\n<br\/>a <i>lovely<\/i> mild climb\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_10474_sm.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2016-08-30'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Base of the Omine East Climb a lovely mild climb -- Tsuzuki-gun -- Tsuzuki-gun, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>My <a href='\/cycling-heatmap\/'>cycling heatmap<\/a> tells me that <span class='nobr'>I did<\/span> this climb last year,\nbut <span class='nobr'>I didn't<\/span> remember much about it other than being <span class='nobr'>a nice<\/span> ride. <span class='nobr'>The climb<\/span> to the top is <span class='nobr'>a bit<\/span> rolling,\naveraging 5.2% over 6km. (Strava <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/13051132'>says<\/a> the climb\naverages 4.1%, but that's only because <a href='\/blog\/2016-08-15\/2722#dorky-stats'>as we've seen<\/a>,\nStrava has <span class='nobr'>a difficult<\/span> time with numbers.)<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a href='\/i\/JF100_10478.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_10478_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Lovely Road Surface though areas of wet moss would raise caution on a descent -- Tsuzuki-gun -- Tsuzuki-gun, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i10478\"\nitemprop=\"image\"\ntitle=\"Lovely Road Surface though areas of wet moss would raise caution on a descent -- Tsuzuki-gun -- Tsuzuki-gun, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 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 640 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_10478_sm.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_10478_sm.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Lovely Road Surface<\/span>\n<br\/>though areas of wet moss would raise caution on <span class='nobr'>a descent<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_10478_sm.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2016-08-30'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Lovely Road Surface though areas of wet moss would raise caution on a descent -- Tsuzuki-gun -- Tsuzuki-gun, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>All that stuff I said above about sandbagging <span class='nobr'>a new<\/span> climb does not apply to descents, which I'm happy to hit hard and fast the\nfirst time and every time, so long as it's safe. <span class='nobr'>It surprises<\/span> many people to find that <span class='nobr'>I don't<\/span> see much advantage in knowing <span class='nobr'>a\ndescent.<\/span>.. having done it once or 100 times before doesn't (for the most part) help me do it faster. People's reaction is <span class='nobr'>a good<\/span>\nlitmus test for telling me about them: if they're surprised, it tells me that they don't know how to descend safely.<\/p>\n\n<p>But today would not be a day for fast descents, with the torrential rains the evening before and all.<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a href='\/i\/JF100_10483.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_10483_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Effects of the Storm apparently I'm the first to use this road since last night -- Tsuzuki-gun -- Tsuzuki-gun, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i10483\"\nitemprop=\"image\"\ntitle=\"Effects of the Storm apparently I'm the first to use this road since last night -- Tsuzuki-gun -- Tsuzuki-gun, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 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 1000 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_10483_sm.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_10483_sm.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Effects of the Storm<\/span>\n<br\/>apparently I'm the first to use this road since last night\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_10483_sm.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2016-08-30'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Effects of the Storm apparently I'm the first to use this road since last night -- Tsuzuki-gun -- Tsuzuki-gun, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>The tree limb laying across the road was <span class='nobr'>a lot<\/span> bigger than it looks in this snap, and it took some effort to\ncajole it over the cliff off the side of the road.<\/p>\n\n<p>The photo was taken on the way up. <span class='nobr'>I didn't<\/span> use the camera on the way down the other side because\n<span class='nobr'>I was<\/span> concentrating on not crashing. (Did <span class='nobr'>I mention<\/span> that the roads were slimy, wet, slippery, and filled with crap?)<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a href='\/i\/JF100_10495.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_10495_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"At The Base On The Other Side -- Tsuzuki-gun -- Tsuzuki-gun, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i10495\"\nitemprop=\"image\"\ntitle=\"At The Base On The Other Side -- Tsuzuki-gun -- Tsuzuki-gun, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 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>500 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_10495_sm.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_10495_sm.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>At The Base On The Other Side<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_10495_sm.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2016-08-30'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"At The Base On The Other Side -- Tsuzuki-gun -- Tsuzuki-gun, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>Another psychological issue to talk about is my approach to big climbs. <span class='nobr'>I tend to<\/span> at the same time want to try them,\nbut also am terrified of them, especially if it's <span class='nobr'>a road<\/span> I've never ridden up, but have ridden down, seeing all the\nvertical climb fly by at high speed.<\/p>\n\n<p>I'd recently decided to take a stab at overcoming this phobia in last month's doing of\n<a href='\/blog\/2016-08-22\/2724#i6242'>the Big Buddha climb<\/a> immediately after having descended\nit for the first time. <span class='nobr'>As I descended<\/span>, <span class='nobr'>I could<\/span> only see pain and suffering in any attempt to climb it, so it was <span class='nobr'>a great<\/span>\npsychological victory to just turn around and do the climb right away. <span class='nobr'>It's here that<\/span> <span class='nobr'>I realized<\/span> that taking it easy\nmakes it <i>easy<\/i> and removes the phobia fear.<\/p>\n\n<p>So I did that again today, turning around and doing\n<a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/694283943\/segments\/17023406871'>Omine West<\/a> right away.\nPart of <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>taking it easy the first time<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> meant that <span class='nobr'>I could<\/span> stop for photos...<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a href='\/i\/JF100_10496.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_10496_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Osaka Skyline from early in the climb -- Tsuzuki-gun -- Tsuzuki-gun, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i10496\"\nitemprop=\"image\"\ntitle=\"Osaka Skyline from early in the climb -- Tsuzuki-gun -- Tsuzuki-gun, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 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>320 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_10496_sm.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_10496_sm.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Osaka Skyline<\/span>\n<br\/>from early in the climb\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_10496_sm.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2016-08-30'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Osaka Skyline from early in the climb -- Tsuzuki-gun -- Tsuzuki-gun, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>By the time I got to the top this second time the roads were drier, so <span class='nobr'>I could<\/span> be <span\nclass='nobr'>a bit<\/span> less ginger (but still ginger) on the second <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span><a\nhref='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/13051160'>Omine West Descent<\/a><span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> for the day. <span\nclass='nobr'>It's started<\/span> to not surprise me when <span class='nobr'>I take<\/span> <span class='nobr'>a descent<\/span>\nslowly and carefully yet still register the KOM, but it still amazes me. That didn't happen this time, though, as my descent time\nof 8:43 was seven seconds slower than the KOM. Next time I'll actually try, at least, if it's safe to do so.<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a href='\/i\/JF100_10510.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_10510_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Bonus Climb -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i10510\"\nitemprop=\"image\"\ntitle=\"Bonus Climb -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 43mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>500 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_10510_sm.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_10510_sm.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Bonus Climb<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_10510_sm.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2016-08-30'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Bonus Climb -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>One thing I like to do, which apparently almost no one else does, are side climbs just for the sake of the climb.\nBefore heading off on <span class='nobr'>a new<\/span> route, <span class='nobr'>I scour<\/span> Google Earth looking for roads that are steep, paved, and accessible,\nand give them <span class='nobr'>a try.<\/span> <span class='nobr'>The road above<\/span> is one such little detour, 1.1km of perfect tarmac at 7%, that leads exactly nowhere.\n(There's some kind of landfill at the top.)<\/p>\n\n<p>I made <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/13051255'><span class='nobr'>a segment<\/span><\/a> for this lovely little climb, but\nit turns out that there's only one other registered ride. That's too bad, because even though the road doesn't lead\nanywhere, it does have <span class='nobr'>a nice<\/span> view:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a href='\/i\/JF100_10512.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_10512_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Reward for the Short 1km Climb -- Kuse-gun -- Kuse-gun, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i10512\"\nitemprop=\"image\"\ntitle=\"Reward for the Short 1km Climb -- Kuse-gun -- Kuse-gun, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 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>400 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_10512_sm.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_10512_sm.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Reward for the Short 1km Climb<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_10512_sm.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2016-08-30'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Reward for the Short 1km Climb -- Kuse-gun -- Kuse-gun, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>An even better reward is <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/13051260'>the descent<\/a> on the wide, pristine, deserted road.<\/p>\n\n<p>After that I took <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/694283943\/segments\/17540343504'><span class='nobr'>a little<\/span> shortcut<\/a>,\nthen explored <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/13215226'>another <span class='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>leads nowhere<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> climb<\/a>. This short climb is the same\nlength as the one above, but this time it averages 11% and the road quality is much worse.<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic tight' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a href='\/i\/JF100_10525.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_10525_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Tunnel Vision -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i10525\"\nitemprop=\"image\"\ntitle=\"Tunnel Vision -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 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>\/1.8, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_10525_sm.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_10525_sm.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Tunnel Vision<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_10525_sm.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2016-08-30'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Tunnel Vision -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>Only five people have done <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/13215226'>this climb<\/a>. <span class='nobr'>I guess<\/span> most folks just\ndon't like climbs for the sake of it, or to explore new locations, but it doesn't make sense to me. <span class='nobr'>If your goal<\/span> is just\nto get from Point <span class='nobr'>A to<\/span> Point B, why not take <span class='nobr'>a cab<\/span>?<\/p>\n\n<p>My route then was supposed to take me down <a href='https:\/\/goo.gl\/maps\/ZzQEomnhSuQ2'><span class='nobr'>a super<\/span>-twisty steep little road<\/a>,\nbut it turns out to be closed for the next few years for some big construction:<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a name=\"i10539\" href='\/i\/JF100_10539.jpg' itemprop='image'\n><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_10539_sm.jpg\" width=\"503\" height=\"575\"\nalt=\"Not as Fast and Fun as I had Hoped -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i10539\"\ntitle=\"Not as Fast and Fun as I had Hoped -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 30mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>125 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/4, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_10539.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_10539.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Not as Fast and Fun as <span class='nobr'>I had<\/span> Hoped<\/span>\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_10539.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2016-08-30'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Not as Fast and Fun as I had Hoped -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a href='\/i\/JF100_10541.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_10541_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Amagase Dam \u5929\u30f6\u702c\u30c0\u30e0 and an old building -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i10541\"\nitemprop=\"image\"\ntitle=\"Amagase Dam \u5929\u30f6\u702c\u30c0\u30e0 and an old building -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 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>\/5, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_10541_sm.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_10541_sm.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Amagase Dam<\/span>\n<br\/>\u5929\u30f6\u702c\u30c0\u30e0\n<br\/>and an old building\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_10541_sm.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2016-08-30'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Amagase Dam \u5929\u30f6\u702c\u30c0\u30e0 and an old building -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>The next goal was to climb <a href='\/blog\/2016-08-29\/2725#kisen'>the long Mt. Kisen descent<\/a> <span class='nobr'>I had<\/span> done\non the previous ride (and posted <a href='https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=J5IxZiktbiQ'><span class='nobr'>a video<\/span> of that descent<\/a>).<\/p>\n\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a href='\/i\/JF100_10546.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_10546_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Long and Winding Road \u03c0 km @ 8% -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i10546\"\nitemprop=\"image\"\ntitle=\"Long and Winding Road \u03c0 km @ 8% -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 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>125 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_10546_sm.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_10546_sm.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Long and Winding Road<\/span>\n<br\/><span style='font-family:times; font-size:130%'>\u03c0<\/span> km @ 8%\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_10546_sm.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2016-08-30'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Long and Winding Road \u03c0 km @ 8% -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>Of course since it was my first attempt, <span class='nobr'>I took my<\/span> time and stopped for photos.<\/p>\n\n<div class='ic' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a href='\/i\/JF100_10549.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_10549_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Pretty Moss kindly keeping to the side, off the road -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i10549\"\nitemprop=\"image\"\ntitle=\"Pretty Moss kindly keeping to the side, off the road -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/a>\n<br\/><span class=\"camera-info robots-nocontent\">Panasonic LX100 at an effective 27mm &mdash; <sup>1<\/sup><big>\/<\/big>400 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_10549_sm.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_10549_sm.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Pretty Moss<\/span>\n<br\/>kindly keeping to the side, off the road\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_10549_sm.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2016-08-30'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Pretty Moss kindly keeping to the side, off the road -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<div class='ic tight' itemscope itemtype='http:\/\/schema.org\/Photograph'><a href='\/i\/JF100_10554.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"\/i\/JF100_10554_sm.jpg\" width=\"690\" height=\"461\"\nalt=\"Wish I Had a Good Camera with a nice macro lens for this rich moss -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\nid=\"i10554\"\nitemprop=\"image\"\ntitle=\"Wish I Had a Good Camera with a nice macro lens for this rich moss -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 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>2000 sec, <span class='f'>f<\/span>\/6.3, ISO 200 &mdash;\n<a href='\/imageinfo.cgi?url=http%3A%2F%2Fregex.info%2Fi%2FJF100_10554_sm.jpg'>map &amp; image data<\/a> &mdash; <a href='\/blog\/proximity\/i\/JF100_10554_sm.jpg'>nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n<br\/><span class='caption'>Wish <span class='nobr'>I Had<\/span> <span class='nobr'>a Good<\/span> Camera<\/span>\n<br\/>with a nice macro lens for this rich moss\n<meta itemprop='url' content='http:\/\/regex.info\/i\/JF100_10554_sm.jpg'\/>\n<meta itemprop='creator' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='copyrightHolder' content='Jeffrey Friedl'\/>\n<meta itemprop='dateCreated' content='2016-08-30'\/>\n<meta itemprop='about' content=\"Wish I Had a Good Camera with a nice macro lens for this rich moss -- Uji, Kyoto, Japan -- Copyright 2016 Jeffrey Friedl, https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/\"\/><\/div>\n\n<p>The roughly 10 gazillion moss-related articles I've posed in the past with better photos\ninclude\n<a href='\/blog\/2012-06-29\/2037'>this<\/a>,\n<a href='\/blog\/2012-11-09\/2133'>this<\/a>,\nand\n<a href='\/blog\/2012-06-19\/2027'>this<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>After this climb I found myself at the top of the <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/segments\/13051621'>lovely Sumiyama East\nDescent<\/a>, which is 2.7km at 7% of mostly twisty mountain roads, but with <span class='nobr'>a long<\/span> wide section in the\nmiddle where you can really let loose. <span class='nobr'>The pavement<\/span> is very nice, at least for the first half.<\/p>\n\n<p>I'd done this for the first time earlier in the ride, when the roads were quite scary... steep , wet, slimy, littered. <span\nclass='nobr'>By now there<\/span> were nicer, so <span class='nobr'>I had<\/span> more fun. <span class='nobr'>I reached<\/span>\n75kph (46mph) on the fast middle part. But you've still got to be defensive any time you're on the road, and I (figuratively) ran\ninto cars coming around <span class='nobr'>a blind<\/span> corner <i>in my lane<\/i>, sections of wet and slimy road, etc. <span\nclass='nobr'>As I do<\/span> on all descents, <span class='nobr'>I choose<\/span> to ride <span class='nobr'>a way<\/span> that\nallows for these kinds of issues. Still got the KOM. \ud83d\ude09<\/p>\n\n<p>As I continued, I came across the site of the abandoned thatched-roof restaurant that <a\nhref='\/blog\/2016-09-09\/2728'>I posed about the other day<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n<p>I made my way to Otsu and the brutal <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/694283943\/segments\/17023407346'>Iwanoma\nTemple Climb<\/a>. <span class='nobr'>The road was<\/span> so steep and slippery in parts that <span class='nobr'>I put<\/span> my\nweight toward the back, to give the rear tire more grip, but because the road was so steep the front wheel came off the road and\n<span class='nobr'>I came<\/span> <i>that<\/i> close to falling over. Scary.<\/p>\n\n<p>Still, it was easier than <a href='\/blog\/2015-03-05\/2533#i069086'>the first time <span class='nobr'>I did<\/span> this climb<\/a> (on my second long ride ever) and so <span class='nobr'>I was<\/span> happy to make <span class='nobr'>a PR.<\/span><\/p>\n\n<p>I made a PR on <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/694283943\/segments\/17023407433'>the descent<\/a> as well, but <span class='nobr'>I don't<\/span>\nthink there will ever be <span class='nobr'>a KOM<\/span> for me on this descent; the current KOM (3:35) just doesn't seem safe at any skill level.<\/p>\n\n<p>Finally, I headed back over to Kyoto via <a href='https:\/\/www.strava.com\/activities\/694283943\/segments\/17023407517'>the climb\nup Mt. Hiei<\/a> that took an hour earlier in the month on <a href='\/blog\/2016-08-22\/2724'>my first ride<\/a> after\nreturning from America. <span class='nobr'>I was so<\/span> wiped out by heat and fatigue that <span class='nobr'>I had<\/span> to stop continuously.<\/p>\n\n<p>This time it was a bit cooler, and <span class='nobr'>I was<\/span> in much better shape, so <span class='nobr'>I made<\/span>\n<span class='nobr'>a PR<\/span> with 15:46, so <span class='nobr'>I was<\/span> very satisfied. (To put things into context, though,\nwhile <span class='nobr'>I often<\/span> do well relative to others on descents and on short, intense climbs, <span\nclass='nobr'>I'm quite<\/span> weak on climbs that are not ultra short; among all the male friends and acquaintances that <span\nclass='nobr'>I follow<\/span> on Strava, my PR time on this climb is ranked #16 of 19. Optimistically, I'll call that <span\nclass='QO'>&#8220;<\/span>room for improvement<span class='QC'>&#8221;<\/span> \ud83d\ude42 )<\/p>\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Now that I'm out of action for a while, I'll try to make some headway in my blogging. This post is sort of a followup to last month's \"Lovely Bicycle Ride Revisiting Uji Countryside Photographed Five Years Ago\", because I returned to the area on my next ride to continue exploring.<\/p> <p>The ride ended up being lovely, appearing on Strava as \"Uji #3 - Wet & Slimy Satisfaction \u5b87\u6cbb\u5e02\u306e\u6e80\u8db3\":<\/p> <p>I hit as many mountain climbs as I could fit in, so the ride ended up with over 3000m (10,000') of climb, but I was just enjoying to explore, so taking [...]","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\/2732"}],"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=2732"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2732\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2732"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2732"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2732"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}