Happy New Year from Tokyo Two Wheeling. Ride with the dragon this year.
By Paul Richards
My 11 year old daughter gave me this handmade neck warmer/hat. A little bicycle love for daddy.
Pearl made this hat/neck warmer just for her dad.
And my 8 year old son gave me an umbrella holder to put on Boris the Bike. I don’t know if it will fit and I am not really an umbrella kind of person but I wouldn’t dream of not installing it no matter how awkward it looks.
Andy gave his daddy an umbrella holder for his bicycle for Christmas.
These were the best gifts I got this year and to be sure neither of them were on my list. Santa was good to me.
Santa gave my son a new, blue mountain bike. Santa must have thought my son was a bit taller than he is or maybe he just knows that the boy is growing like a weed because the bike is a 24 inches. The look of excitement and joy on his face were incredible. On Christmas morning we went for a ride in the park and played follow the leader and swung by the local big box bike store to get a back light for his new machine. In the afternoon, we rode around the town looking for geocaches. He was thrilled that he found 2 and his old dad found none.
Santa knows life is better on a bicycle. 
Merry Christmas from Tokyo Two Wheeling.
By Paul Oertel
For those of you living in the Kanto area of Japan you might want to check out the 7th and final stage of the 14th Annual Tour of Japan. 16 teams representing 8 countries are competing in the race. The six stages are spread across the Kanto and Kansai regions of Japan. The Tour of Japan offers the best of Asian Road Racing. The final stage is 112.7 km. There is a 14.7 km parade, followed by 14 laps of 7 km circuit. It will start in front of Hibiya City near Hibiya Park. After doing 14 laps of the circuit the racers will finish at Minato-ga-Oka Futo Park. This is a flat course with many long straight sections is the only stage of the Tour that is ideally suited for sprinters so it should prove to be a very fast race.
Map of Stage 7 of the Tour of Japan from the official TOJ website.
The riders to watch for are wearing the green, blue and red jerseys. The green jersey riders are the riders with the fastest overall time. The time leader going into this stage is the Italian rider Christiano Salerno from Team De Rosa-Stac Plastic. The blue jersey rider is the racer with the most points. Going into this stage is Michael Matthews from Australia riding for Team Jayco-Skins with 52 points. Finally the King of the Mountain is wearing the red jersey and that is Salerno again. The leaders in the team competition are Team Kazakhstan in first place, Team Nippo in 2nd place and Shimano Racing in 3rd place.
There a few things you should mindful of if you go to watch the race. Road racing is fast with speeds that can reach up to 70 kilometer per hour which increases the risk of serious accidents.
* Only view the race from designated places along the race. Do not enter the course. Watch from the side. Keep any banners, flags, umbrellas or cameras from entering the course as well. Be particularly on the inside of corners because races will cut them as close as they can. You risk your safety as well as that of riders if you enter the course.
* Vehicles such as team cars, motorcycles and media vehicles will be passing at high speed. Even after the Peloton has passed don’t enter the course because the support vehicles are following shortly behind.
* The peloton picks up speed as it makes its way to the finish line. Do not cross the barriers with any part of your body as it puts the riders and yourself at risk.
* Follow the instructions of police and race officials.
Thank you for your cooperation and I hope you enjoy the race.
You can see video clips from each stage of the race at http://sp.cycloch.net/toj2010/. There are pre and post race interviews. For team profiles and stats you can turn your web browser to http://www.toj.co.jp/
translated and commented on by Paul Oertel
Nagano's hand-cycle challenge around Kyushu - Hakata Ward Fukuoka
On April 22, 2010 the asahi.com reported that Akira Nagano (34), Fukuoka-barn professional wrestler with cerebral palsy, plans to participate in TE-DE 2010 Marathon, hand-cycle tour around the island of Kyushu. “I want to expand awareness of disable sports” says Nagano by completing the 1000 kilometer course in 12 days.
Nagano’s cerebral palsy was cause by a high fever when he was an infant causing him to paralyzed in both legs.While working at a printing company in Tokyo he founded the disabled professional wrestling organization called Force. He participates as both a representative of the organization and an athlete.
Nagano started hand-cycling 5 years ago. He cycles about 10-15 kilometers everyday without fail. In 2008 he hand-cycled 1,200 kilometers from Tokyo to Fukuoka and he followed that in 2009 with hand-cycling 470 kilometers from Hiroshima to Nagasaki.
He will leave on this new tour from in front of the JR Nagasaki Station in Nagasaki on April 24th. After that the will pass through Saga, Kumamoto, Kagoshima, Miyazaki and Oita prefectures. On May 5 he will reach his goal in front of JR Hakata Station in Kyushu.
The reason for hand-cycling around Kyushu is that it is the where he was born and raised. He explains that he “feels gratitude to the people who supported him and wants them to see him action close up.” About a 1,000 kilometers of the route is through the mountains and he will be spending 4 of the 12 days without a support car. “Because of the encouragement I received from the people around me I feel I can meet this challenge.” says Nagano with enthusiasm.
Even though hand-cycling is an official sport in the Paralympics the number of athletes in Japan is still only about 300 athletes. “I would like people to become interested in hand-cycling when they see me up close”, explains Nagano. He will investigate the road conditions from disabled person’s perspective. He will appeal to local governments for barrier free road construction.
Send e-mail to the TE-DE Marathon Office (nagano@five-force.com) if you have any questions about the event.
Editorial Comment: Mr. Nagano’s accomplishments should serve as an inspiration to all people not just those who have disabilities. We should remember these accomplishments when we feel like giving up and throwing in the towel.
Japanese Resources:
http://mytown.asahi.com/fukuoka/news.php?k_id=41000001004220003
translated and commented on by Paul Oertel
A Toyohashi Rail worker demonstrates the specially designated train cars on the Cycle Train.
It was reported in the Asahi News Site on April 20, 2010 that during the upcoming Golden Week holiday the Toyohashi Rail will run a “Cycle Train” trial on the Atsumi Line between Toyohashi and the Atsumi Peninsula. The aim is to promote a new style of holiday recreation. Holiday cyclist will be allowed to bring their bicycles on the train for free. The trial will be held on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays from April 29th to May 9th. Cycle trains will leave from Toyohashi Station from 9:00 am to 3:15 pm and from Mikawa-Tawara Station from 9:02 am to 3:15 pm. Altogether thee will be 52 cycle train runs. The Cycle Trains will have specially designated cars for bicycles. Riders may board any Cycle Train from any station along the way. There is no extra charge for bringing your bicycle on the Cycle Train.
As a general rule no prior reservation is required before bringing your bike on the train but for groups of 5 or more cyclists a reservation should made by 6 pm of the prior day. Riders should call Takashi Station at 0532-45-4927 to indicate the time, the number of riders and the stations cyclists will use.
The Atsumi Line has more than 760,000 passengers per year. Most of the passengers that ride the train are either commuters or are going to school but there are also many tourists spots along the line to attract passengers.
Tawara City has made a “Tawara Walking Map” which it distributes from Mikawa Station and other stations. The map marks historical courses, courses where fireflies can be seen, nature courses which feature local magnolia flower viewing and the home of Watanabe Kazan, the Tokugawa Clan retainer, thinker and painter. There is also a cycling road maintained by the prefecture that runs along the Pacific coast from Cape Irago to Toyohashi. This Road was chosen as one of Japan’s “Best 100 Roads”.
Toda Masahiro, project manager for the Toyohashi Rail Company, says “It’s about 40 kilometers from Toyohashi to Irago. The expectation is that the Atsumi Line can be used for 18 of those kilometers will make it easier to enjoy the Atsumi Peninsula.”
In the Tokai region from 1998 Cycle Train trials were run on the line that connects Kuwana Town in Mie Prefecture with the town of Ibikawa in Gifu Prefecture. In 2008 4500 people took advantage of this program. In Aichi Prefecture segments of Meitetsu Railway’s Nisio and Gamagori Lines were opened to bicycles from March to May of 2007.
Editorial Opinion: In the photo that accompanied the article it appears as though passengers will be able to bring their bicycles on the train without putting them in a rinko bag. This is a welcomed change in current policies that requires passengers with bicycles to put their two-wheeled steed into a rinko bag. I can understand the necessity for bagging your bike but it is a real hassle that discourages many people from bringing their bicycles on the train and expanding their cycling activities.
Recently, I participated in a group ride with the Half Fast Cycling Club. The ride was quite enjoyable and gave me the opportunity to see a part of Tokyo I would normally not have gone to by bike or otherwise. However, the effort of bringing my bicycle on the train is definitely a deterrent to future participation. It is 30 kilometers from my house to the starting point of the ride. Before I left I thought this was a bit too far to ride my bike just to enjoy group ride of about the same length. It would take me about 2 hours to ride that distance. Taking the train seemed like the best way to go. In retrospect, I didn’t save any time by taking the train because I had to leave much earlier to allow time for bagging my bike at my home station and unbagging it at my destination. Then I would have to do it all over again for my return home. I suppose I would get better at bagging with practice but the trip was not without casualties. My cyclocomputer’s functioning was erratic after I reassembled the bike and my hands and clothing got covered with grease from my struggles with taking off the rear wheel.
Though my beloved Asahi Prec cross bike (lovingly named Whitey) is not one of those high-end carbon fiber beauties I never considered it to be very heavy but after lugging it through four train stations to get to my destination I am reevaluating Whitey from a new perspective. It would have been a much more pleasant trip if I could have just rolled Whitey on and off the train. I believe I could have navigated the ticket wickets, stairs and escalators much more easily without actually carrying the bike. The Cycle Train is free but, to be honest, I would be willing to pay a small fee for this luxury.
Japanese New Sources:
http://mytown.asahi.com/aichi/news.php?k_id=24000001004200001
Tokyo Two Wheeling
Tokyo Two Wheeling is a source for cycling information, bicycle culture, news and commentary on cycling.