{"id":2774,"date":"2017-02-12T21:53:02","date_gmt":"2017-02-12T12:53:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/2017-02-12\/2774"},"modified":"2017-02-12T21:53:02","modified_gmt":"2017-02-12T12:53:02","slug":"snowy-cycleversary-mountain-ride-challenge-part-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/regex.info\/blog\/2017-02-12\/2774","title":{"rendered":"Snowy Cycleversary Mountain-Ride Challenge, Part 2"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>100 sec, f<\/span>\/7.1, ISO 140 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nAbsolutely Gorgeous<\/span>\nsnowy world somewhere between Hanase Pass and Nomi Pass, Kyoto Japan\n(this is a full<\/span>-color photograph)<\/span>\n
Desktop-Background Versions<\/b>\n1280×<\/span>800<\/a>  ·  1680×<\/span>1050<\/a>  ·  1920×<\/span>1200<\/a>  ·  2560×<\/span>1600<\/a>  ·  2880×<\/span>1800<\/a><\/span>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

This post picks up from part one<\/a> on my two-year-cycleversary ride\nthough the snowy mountains north of Kyoto. I'd suffered<\/span> a spell<\/span> of frozen fingers, but was now mostly warm again and in good spirits.<\/p>\n\n

The area is fantastically beautiful in the snow.<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 28mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>160 sec, f<\/span>\/7.1, ISO 100 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>125 sec, f<\/span>\/7.1, ISO 100 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nSmall Village<\/span>\nwith blessedly-clear tracks to ride in, mostly\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 56mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>250 sec, f<\/span>\/7.1, ISO 720 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nTurnoff<\/span>\nI took the right, leading to the Kuta area and its Nomi Pass\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 56mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>250 sec, f<\/span>\/7.1, ISO 640 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nObscured Warnings<\/span>\nvarious warnings about snow, partially obscured by snow\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>100 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 720 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nSnowy Road Paralleling the Clear River<\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 55mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>250 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 450 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>100 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>100 sec, f<\/span>\/5, ISO 180 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nVery Steep<\/span>\nand very difficult for me to ride\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

As I mentioned in Part One, riding through the semi-compact snow with thin (28mm) road-bike tires often felt like my tires had\nto work like ice breakers, shoving through a semi<\/span>-frozen slushiness of evil-Goldilocks consistency (it's not strong enough to\nsupport the weight of the bike, nor weak enough to be easily shoved out of the way).<\/p>\n\n

It was particularly bad on the super-steep initial climb toward Nomi Pass, and the added power needed to push through the\nice required more traction than my tires could afford, so I ended<\/span> up walking the worst parts of it.<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 29mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>125 sec, f<\/span>\/5, ISO 180 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nNomi Pass<\/span>\n\u80fd\u898b\u5ce0\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>100 sec, f<\/span>\/5, ISO 180 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nRelatively Clear<\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 48mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>200 sec, f<\/span>\/8, ISO 1250 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nEnd of “<\/span>Relatively Clear”<\/span><\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>100 sec, f<\/span>\/9, ISO 320 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nExiting the Forest<\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 70mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>320 sec, f<\/span>\/9, ISO 1400 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nGunk<\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

Sometimes so much frozen gunk would get caught up in the mechanisms, the rear tire would lock up until I gave<\/span> things a few<\/span> good\nkicks to jar things loose.<\/p>\n\n

Over time, I also lost the outer range of my gears, also due to frozen gunk, first losing the easiest “<\/span>granny gear”<\/span> up front,\nthen the higher gears in the rear. I didn't<\/span> miss the latter until I got<\/span> to the fast, snow-free downhills later in the ride.<\/p>\n\n

I'd stopped at the spot above because the farmhouse scene is quite picturesque...<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 32mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>125 sec, f<\/span>\/9, ISO 200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nSnowy Farmstead<\/span>\n
Desktop-Background Versions<\/b>\n1280×<\/span>800<\/a>  ·  1680×<\/span>1050<\/a>  ·  1920×<\/span>1200<\/a>  ·  2560×<\/span>1600<\/a>  ·  2880×<\/span>1800<\/a><\/span>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>100 sec, f<\/span>\/9, ISO 100 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nFarm + Boxing Ring<\/span>\nthin electric-fence wires made thick by snow\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 26mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>200 sec, f<\/span>\/9, ISO 100 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nRoadside Temple<\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 70mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>320 sec, f<\/span>\/9, ISO 500 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nOh Deer!<\/span>\na well-camouflaged white-butt deer in the river watches a man<\/span> and his dog\n\u53f3\u5074\u306b\u5ddd\u306e\u4e2d\u3067\u9e7f\u3044\u308b\u3002\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 29mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>125 sec, f<\/span>\/9, ISO 2500 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nFrosty<\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 45mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>125 sec, f<\/span>\/9, ISO 6400 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nNasty<\/span>\nroad-wise\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>100 sec, f<\/span>\/9, ISO 1250 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nPicturesque<\/span>\nmoreso in reality than in the photo, sadly\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>100 sec, f<\/span>\/9, ISO 900 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nIcy Mountain Bike Stand<\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 28mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>125 sec, f<\/span>\/9, ISO 280 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nNearing Route 367<\/span>\nfor the 32km (20mi) ride home\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

Having reached Route 367 (the same road as covered in\nthis silly-cycling article<\/a>),\nthe road was mostly clear for the undulating return to Kyoto.<\/p>\n\n

<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 38mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>160 sec, f<\/span>\/9, ISO 250 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nMostly-Clear Road<\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 44mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>200 sec, f<\/span>\/9, ISO 2000 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nScenery Still Pretty<\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 70mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>320 sec, f<\/span>\/9, ISO 1000 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nStill Frosty<\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 48mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>200 sec, f<\/span>\/7.1, ISO 400 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nBypass Road<\/span>\n
around a tunnel\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>100 sec, f<\/span>\/7.1, ISO 1100 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nI'll Take the Tunnel Today<\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 70mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>320 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 1000 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 70mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>320 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 3200 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nSuperfrosty<\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>100 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 2500 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nGetting a bit<\/span> Slushy<\/span>\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>100 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 500 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nSuper-Fast Descent<\/span>\nI'll often hit 70kph just before this curve, but not today\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n
<\/a>\nNikon D4 + Nikkor 24-70mm f\/2.8 @ 24mm — 1<\/sup>\/<\/big>100 sec, f<\/span>\/5.6, ISO 1000 —\nmap & image data<\/a> — nearby photos<\/a><\/span>\nLast Photo of the Day<\/span>\nbecause I noticed the lens had become splattered with muddy water\n\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n

All in all it was a great ride, though next year I'll take a bit<\/span> more care with my gloves. I should<\/span> also get more knobby tires for the snow, but I don't<\/span> know whether one ride a year<\/span> is worth the hassle.<\/p>\n\n

Here's the ride at Strava:<\/p>\n\n