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RECENT NEWS

MORE GOOD NEWS ON BUS-BIKE TRAVEL

For the second year in a row, I had no trouble getting my bicycle aboard a Chuo Kotsu Travel Club bus - the driver didn’t even blink when he saw me and the bagged bike. (They were using a double-decker bus that day, meaning more leeway for storage, too.) The upshot is that I was able to get myself, my bicycle and a huge bag of delicious souvenirs all the way from downtown Hida Takayama to Shin-Osaka Station for a still-astonishing 2900 yen. Needless to say, both Takayama and the Chuo Kotsu bus (http://www.chuo-kotsu.co.jp/tc/) are highly recommended; watch this site for a killer Takayama bicycle route in the near future.

BIKEBAG UPDATE

So here is the photographic proof that a large frame road bike will indeed fit in the tiny lightweight Tioga Cocoon (with the seatpost sticking out - it’s designed to carry a bike that way; you could always remove the seat):

(Later I’ll post another photo showing the rear wheel left on but the chain off so you can roll it.)

The bag also folds up to about the size of your palm. And did I mention how light it is? Lastly, the material does seem pretty tough.

Some caveats are in order:

- Since it’s a tight fit, it will probably take you longer to pack the bike - no more 3-minute rush jobs.

- More importantly, note that, if you carry it like this, the most fragile parts of the bike - forks, chainring and derailleur - are all on the bottom. So if you drop it, you’re sunk. (I’ll experiment to see if it can be carried more safely.)

The verdict: if I’m on a long trip and will be packing and repacking the bike — and ESPECIALLY if I’m entrusting it to baggage handlers on a bus or airplane — I think I’d want to take a regular bikebag, at least until I get used to this one and also figure out a way to protect the forks, chainring and derailleur.

But this bag is going in my bikepack permanently from now on (yes, it’s that light; use a lighter strap than the ones they’ve provided and you’ll never know it’s there). That way I’ll always have a solution if I suddenly need to take a train or bus home.

LITTLE BITTIE BIKEBAGS

For the past few years, it seemed that bikebags were getting larger and more expensive. But the popularity of tiny folding bikes seems to have pushed the market in the other direction. Tokyu Hands now offers two that are much, MUCH smaller than the traditional ones.

This model, the Tioga Cocoon, is quite a bit smaller than the smallest bags up to now, and a bit less expensive (3,780 yen). More importantly, being made of nylon, it’s light as a feather! (Not sure how well it will wear, though.) The other one, bearing the brand name Mont-Bell, is a bit heavier than that and quite a bit more expensive (6,800 yen), but it’s the most compact one I’ve ever seen:

(Update: The Tioga Cocoon will actually fold down to about this size too!)

I plan to buy the Tioga Cocoon in the near future to confirm that it actually fits a large road bicycle frame (the salesman said it did, but he didn’t know about the smaller bag), and to try to gauge whether the bag material will wear as well as the conventional bags. Stay tuned...

SHIMANAMI RENTAL BICYCLES

One of the most common questions we get asked is: is it possible to rent full-on MTB or road bicycles in Japan? Alas, the answer usually appears to be no - few shops offer anything more than the typical one-speed tourist sightseeing bikes. We’ll try to research this more thoroughly in the near future. For now, note that you can rent MTBs and even motor-assisted bicycles on either end of the Shimanami route (Onomichi or Imabari) and, with the exception of the motor-assisted bikes, even rent at one end and drop of at the other. See http://www.sunrise-itoyama.jp/Cycling/rental%20info.html and the Onomichi City page at http://www.city.onomichi.hiroshima.jp/english/kanko/shimanami/shimanami01.html as well as the other links listed under the Shimanami route.

WHAT’S NEW

ONE OF THESE THINGS IS NOT LIKE THE OTHERS

This should be an easy test for readers of this site.

(Click photo to enlarge)

(Photo taken at a small restaurant in Hakuba)

SPRING AT LAST

After the longest stretch of cold that I can remember, spring warmth arrived yesterday - one day too late for all of the Saturday cherry blossom events. Oh, well.

BUS UPDATE

We note that Alpico, the company that runs a number of buses to and from the Japan Alps, states on its website that its luggage carrier below cannot accommodate “skis, snowboards, bicycles and other large luggage.” But they follow that up with a note in parentheses that this applies only to the overnight buses - meaning presumably that bikes are not a problem for the daytime buses. In the past, I haven’t had problems, and anyway I will be testing this hypothesis in the near future, so stay tuned.

LONG RIDES & HILLS

So since mid-March the question has been: would the April edition of Cycle Sports Magazine once again include the newly revived cycle events calendar, which last year became the Long Ride / Hill Climb booklet? We have our answer. Features maps of all of the routes, lots of photos, and a big map of Japan showing the locations of all LR/HC events. As a bonus, this year they finally put “Long Ride” on one of the two covers, given equal billing with hill climbs. The booklet is FREE with your 800 yen purchase of the magazine. Get yours before they’re all gone.

WARMER CLIMES

(WARMER CLIMBS)

If the roads are too frozen or the winds are too cold for you to justify January/February cycle journeys in Japan... well, there’s always the option of finding other places to travel. Below is a self-portrait (make that CellPh-portrait) taken at the Tantalus lookout that offers spectacular views of Honolulu including Diamond Head which you can see at upper right. It’s also a great ride; this will be KANcycling’s first Guest Route, so stay tuned.

ROAD TO NOWHERE

Thanks to everyone who emailed to tell us that our Destinations links suddenly led nowhere in particular. Apparently links are like fruit and spoil periodically; who knew. The problem should be resolved now; let us know if you have any other problems.

SNOW + COLD

Yup, yesterday sure did away with what was left of the autumn. So, as promised, here is your snow photo.

SO WHY STILL THE AUTUMN PHOTO?

Because, amazingly, a lot of the colors are still around. This is what Nunobiki Falls in Kobe looked like early in the morning on December 30 Japan time:

I don’t think I’ve ever seen fall colors last this long. (And it’s been quite cold even in Kobe, so that’s not the reason.) Still, there’s snow in the Japan Alps already, so we’ll put up a more wintry photo early in the new year.

AUTUMN CYCLING

Although the leaves are still mostly unchanged at lower elevations, the fall colors are now perfect for cycling in the mountains. Here are two examples, taken on the road down from a 1,110-meter pass leading into Hida-Takayama. Excuse the jerky view; I forgot to bring my good cameras. Still, not bad for a hand-held cellphone.

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