MTB for Family Fun

In the last few weeks the weather has finally warmed up! MTB'ing has been for 30 years now my favorite sport, recently I have been discovering something that when I started riding I did not think about. Riding with Kids! What a great way for the family to get out and enjoy a day together. Nesta my 10 year old son has been riding with our customers this year and Dayna at 5 years old has just started riding in the bush this spring. Escape the summer heat,come and spend a day riding with your family here on Yatsugatake Mtn, Nagano.

Happy New Year! 2010 Last Ride

What an end to a great season, Fresh Powder for our last ride! This season is the first time we didn`t cancel any rides in November or December. On Dec.29th,a record for riding so late in the season! I had a group of 4 beginners come riding, I had been worrying about the weather for this ride ever since Noguchi-san made thier reservation back in early October, we ended up riding in 5 cm of fresh powder snow and it was a super fun day in the sunshine. What a great sport mountainbiking is!
Next year makes it 30 years of riding a Mountainbike for me, it keeps getting better for me. I still feel like a kid when I ride, I still improve my skills and am enjoying watching my 2 young boys riding thier MTB`s. I hope it as good for you as it is for me. Thanks to everybody that came riding with us year and we are looking forward to seeing you all again next year.
HAPPY NEW YEAR !!

Young Guns

I took the Izumino Speed Skate Team for a Mountainbike ride this week. Last year I took them out for a day and was really pleased when they asked me to take them out again this year. I am convinced there is a future Olympian somewhere in this group, they all look great on the bike even though they spend 300 days a year training for speedskating. We did a couple hours out on the trails and did one good climb in the middle of the ride, no complaints , no crying, just smiles,lots of hoots and hollering. A couple of good crashes along the way just to keep them in the game and some hamburgers for lunch made for a great day. Thanks to the kids for bringing thier A-game and the moms for bring the dessert.

City Riding, helmets or style?

Recently I have been spending some time riding around some cities here in Japan. I am happy to see so many people using bikes these days. It could be the economy or enviromental issues that have gotten more folks riding but it does show that the bicycle is a very good solution for this world.
When I ride in the city my biggest concern is safety, I need to have good vision, good brakes and quick reactions. I almost always ride my Mountainbike, I am sat up on the bike looking at all my surroundings , the disc brakes will stop me quicker than anything else available especially if it is wet, and with the high volume tires I can at least try some sort of manouver if a car happens to attack, and attack they will.
I consider myself a very good cyclist, I have ridden as a courier, a pro-racer and now as a guide and I always ride with a helmet. Why I wonder do all these smart well educated people ride around on their fancy bikes without a helmet on? "I don't want to mess my hair" is the answer I hear most , second is "helmets don't look cool". Whatever the reason it doesn't cut with me, I have crashed many times over the last 20 years, both my fault and sometimes caused by others, 3 helmets have been demolished during this time and each time I broke a helmet I walked away, and each time I crashed were times that I would consider low risk riding, you just never know when you will go down, but you will.
I urge you to wear a helmet ask any doctor they will back me up, you are putting yourselves at an even higher risk than we already are.
Paul

Winter Olympians

Every 4 years the Winter Olympics arrive and evry 4 years I have been amazed to see banners across the roads congradulating local athletes on thier selection to the games. Speed Skating is the sport around here and every year there seems to be a local doing well at the world level. Last year my then 7 year old son Nesta decided to join the school skate team, so my skate education began. Yatsugatake Mountain is quite well know for its cold dry winter air, we don't get lots of snow here but it stays below zero for a good 3 months every winter, good for making ice. As an ex-pro bicycle racer I am very impressed by the coaching and infrastructure of the local skate clubs. I now understand why the level of cyclists is so low here in Japan, they have no support, by the time an apsiring cyclist figures out how to train properly they are already well into thier 20's and it is too late. Here are a few shots of last weeks Izumino Elementry School Skate Race. The skate club members and PTA were out on the ice every night for 2 weeks getting the ice ready. The sign in the background is a fight banner for local girl Sayuri Yoshi recently 2nd in the world speed skate championships.

Indian Summer!

September is a great time for riding here in Japan, the humidity drops and the temperature seems to stay between 25- 28 degrees C. for most of the month. I spent a week riding around the Noto Penisula and then into the mountains to Takayama. Fantastic weather, great roads and good company made for a really good trip.

Father and Son Ride

Genki and Nesta took thier fathers for a summers end ride last week. I am very lucky to have some customers who are starting to bring their kids to ride here at Freeride Adventures, my son and I really enjoy spending the day riding the trails with them . Takagi-san has come riding with his son Genki a couple times this year and it is really exciting seeing both the father and son riding better and better. Kids learning curve is so much quicker than us adults and it won`t be long until they are demanding bigger jumps and faster trails to ride, but for now it is great cruising some easy trails.

Summer Time at Last

I haven`t been able to get the camera out much recently,the rainy season really dragged on this year and it was really nice to finally have some sun for the Holidays. I had some Demo Bikes, www.covebike.jp , for an event a Panorama Ski Area last week and spent a bit of time checking out the new 4 cross and jump areas now open. I thought it looked like a lot of fun and today I took my 8 year old son , Nesta and his friend Ayano to give it a go. I have never tried this style of riding but after a few hours playing today I am hooked. It really helps your riding on the berms and jumps. If you ever have a chance to pump of a few runs definitly give it a try, it will only make you a better rider.

Panorama "motai nai"

I had 3 Austrailians up here for a week a the start on July. 3 very solid riders who were happy to spend their time riding the Gondola at Panorama and ripping up the trails. I was suprised to hear that in the land down under they were riding 2-3 minute tracks,when you think about how many Aussies are at the top of the MTB downhill game it is hard to understand why there are no fast Japanesee riders, Mio-san excepted. They also wondered why Panorama doesn't make some trails like Whistler has done, this would help with the erosion problems ,slow the riders down and make it more enjoyable. They wonder why the thinking in Japan is "small world not the big picture". My favorite quote " This place could be Aisa's MTB capital,don't they know we are out here?" I had no answers for them ,, who does? Check out this video of the 3 Aussies enjoying a bit of Japanese single track.

Bikes are Beautiful

Last weekend my customers and I met some cycle tourists on a local climb, it was the first time in over 10 years that I have met any riders on this road. These riders have been riding for a long time and they all looked very smooth climbing up the mountain. Check out the pictures I have uploaded and you will not find any Carbon in this group! Proof that the most important part about riding is getting out the door not worrying about having the latest, lightest gear. I am now inspired to build up a few of the bikes in my basement,,,they are crying out to be ridden again!