Searching for Spring

It has been a long winter this year, much more snow than I have seen here in the 20 years I have lived on Mount Yatsugatake. I just said goodbye to a family from Toronto , Canada. They came to me looking to ride some nice easy rides in a warm area. I decided to take them to the Seto Inland Sea and Shikoku for 4-5 days of riding. It ended up being a perfect match for them and also myself as I hadn't ridden for the last 4 months. We used ferries and my van to avoid any urban built up areas and managed to get in 4 very good and different rides. We started following the famous Shimanami Cycling route that follows the highway over to Shikoku from the main Island, 2 days following the coast and beautiful rivers then back towards Hiroshima over some forgotten islands. The weather stayed cool but nice for us and we even saw some early blossoms mixed with the citrus fruits as we rode along quiet backroads. We finished the trip in Hiroshima and spent a day being tourists at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park and Museam. I have now visit the Park 4 times and it never gets easier for me emotionally to deal with it but, I truly feel that every human should visit here at least once in their lifetime , It would make the world a much more peaceful place.

Warming Up!

The weather has changed quickly here this year, we have gone from a full on winter season to nice warm spring days quite suddenly here on Yatsugatake Mtn. 2 weeks ago we were riding snowboards in 120 cms of fresh snow and now we are riding the bikes at the lower elevations! This year I was hoping a long break from the bikes would help my body get over all the aches and pains I had lingering on from a few good crashes I took in 2013, but as the new year rolled in I seem to have found ways to abuse myself even further and now am looking forward to some serious recovery on the bike! Looking forward to meeting and riding with you all in 2014, lets have a good one !

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year !

Good Bye 2013 and Hello 2014! Here at Freeride Adventures we hope all our friends have a wonderful and fulfilling 2014. After having a big break, almost 5 weeks without a ride! I feel refreshed and ready to start up again for the new year. I feel a lot of cyclists , especially all the new ones here in Japan would really benefit from a break from the bike instead of going hard at it 12 months a year. As I get older I feel I can still ride very well and think if I got in good shape I would not be too slow in a race but recovering from little aches and pains is impossible unless I take a break from my bicycles. I don't stop exercising but try and do something different. My boys have been Speed Skating for the last few years so for me skating 3 times a week is my workout. Skating is probably not the best as its the hardest sport I have ever tried. I have gained much respect over the last few years for all the kids and their parents who brave the -10 degree nights to go out skating. Not only is it cold , skating around a 400 meter ice track trying to be as low as possible hurts, there is no easy way to do it. Back in the day when I was an elite cyclist I would swim through the winter and still feel that this is one of the most benificial sports for any athlete, the bouyancy of the water makes for a very low impact cardio workout. 2014 is going to be a big year here on Yatsugatake , come visit!

Winding down the Season

Today I put the snow tires on my Van, I am hoping that it was a bit premature as I still have a couple more weekends of riding booked and would love to finish the riding season properly. Now the riding is super fun with most of the leaves on the ground , it makes for a magic carpet ride! Hopefully we will have a few more warm days before winter really sets in before I put the bikes away for another year.

Sore Legs- Riding with the Lady's

I woke up this morning and my legs felt tired, I wondered why and then thought about the ride I did yesterday. I met my clients at 9 in the morning and we were climbing into the forest right away. At 12:30 we stopped for a Soba Noodle lunch and were back on the bikes by 1:30 . Rode all afternoon and got back to our cars at around 4:30. Our pace was good, always able to talk as we rode but 6 hours of MTB riding will make anybody's legs tired. At least 50 kilometers and 1400 meters of climbing probably more and no breaks , 2 very strong fit Gals. I am now 14 years into Freeride Adventures and in the last few years have really noticed a big increase in female riders here in Japan, not girls just tagging along with their boyfriends, but girls who ride because the love it.

I mentioned to some girls once that I was sad that I had a female customer tell me she wouldn't continue MTB riding because she might scrape her legs, they told me that girl was "Tadashi Nihon no Onanako" (proper Japanese girl) and they were "Warui Onanako" (bad Japanesse girls). I am happy to find more that there are more Bad Girls riding MTB in Japan!