Yes, indeed. Don’t know if you can call it a fun ride. But in a strange way I enjoyed the suffering 
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第19回 川崎マリンエンデューロ 2時間エンデューロ 午後 = 19th Kawasaki Marine Enduro (2 Hours)
This was my 3rd attempt at the Kawasaki Marine Enduro and my 3rd podium. However, after two 3rd places I finally managed to get 1st over the finish line!
Not only was I first in my age category but also amongst all participants.
And as if this wasn’t enough, this was my FIRST RACE VICTORY EVER !!!
What a day…
Everything just went perfect. From preparations over fueling to execution.
(well, almost everything. unfortunately the battery of my camera died 15min before the race finish and therefore the best part of the race is missing 
)
Anyway, the weather was miserable (non-stop raining and heavy cross-winds) and therefore perfect for me. I don’t know why but I perform best in such conditions.
There was a solo breakaway right at the beginning and nobody dared to catch him. I wasn’t sure what to do since it was a former Tour de Okinawa winner. While still thinking one guy started to chase and I jumped on without wasting a thought.
Following was a 90 min chase during which the both of us worked seamlessly together and closed the gap cm by cm slowly but surely lap by lap.
After a while it should have been obvious that we will catch him sooner or later but he didn’t wan’t to wait and work with us. So we had to keep chasing. With about 3 laps to go we finally caught him. Unfortunately, my chasing partner got dropped and the former leader didn’t want to work with me. So I was basically pulling for the last 3 laps. Luckily I was totally in the zone for the whole race. Being in such a ‘flow state’ is absolutely amazing. And it lasted just long enough to finish it off with a final sprint.
It was such an amazing feeling during the whole race. I knew that if I keep the pace constant I will catch him. And I have to say I enjoyed chasing quite a lot.
Hopefully you can enjoy the video somewhat despite the missing finish.
Perhaps I should think about a new camera. The virb 360 is just not the right camera for such an event.
Please let me know what you think about the video.
See you next time.
Stay safe, stay strong, stay healthy.
Get on your bike and be AWESOME !!!
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#MyPrefrontalRides #回川崎マリンエンデューロ #roadbike
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@Sir_Roland Congrats on the win! That must feel really good especially after a race in challenging conditions.
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Thank you @JSampson
It was the nicest race experience so far!
Can only hope it wasn’t the last 
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Nice. Congrats. I have done that event twice. Last time was really hot and very windy. I guess its always windy there, but that time was really hard. I was happy to finish. The start always seems to kill me with folks letting gaps and those bloody u-turns 
Not pleasant in the rain for sure. Have they fixed the surface? Looks smoother than I recall.
2 Likes
sorry mate for coming back to you so late.
well, it was my third time in a row and it was the first time that it was so bloody windy.
the road surface was the same all three times. meaning mostly alright but during the first half on the long stretch there are some serious bumps where you can easily crash if you do not hold tight to your handlebars.
for some reason this course really suits me well. the 180 deg hairpin turns are the points where I can make ground particularly during bad weather conditions. which years did you race?
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I think last one was 2019. My races there usually go like this… Start mid pack, try to make my way up. get boxed in, first hairpin folks up gaps, closing. back on again. 2nd hair pin, I think I’m on but the 3 lads in front have opened a huge gap, bridge and burn matches. 2 more of those and I’m in no-mans land for the rest of the race either collecting folks or being collected. Last time was mad as we had a huge wind in our faces on the long straight to the first hairpin and the summer sun caking us. Actually, first time I raced there it was semi wet and I liked that better although there were more crashes (behind me). Maybe see you out there sometime.
1 Like
Rapha500 Festive - Big Chiba challenge. 千葉県チャレンジ 
500 km in 
hours 
Every year towards the end of December I try to challenge myself in a big way.
At first, there was just a crazy idea…
About a week before the holiday season I thought about a long trip circumnavigating the prefecture of Chiba.
The fact that it is just about 500km and the Rapha500 festive was in front of the door made any attempts to convince myself unnecessary.
Unfortunately I broke my Garmin Virb on this trip but I hope there is enough footage for you to enjoy.
It was a wonderful experience and I was thinking about repeating this challenge again during the summer time just after finishing.
I managed really well and didn’t think about giving up a single time. Certainly I could have managed it in less than 24h but what’s the point if you don’t document such an effort accordingly.
Also, the headwind was crazy and without such a wind the ride would have been even more enjoyable.
I took a few days off after the challenge because although I managed so well my right hamstring tendon wasn’t very happy for I’ve made the rooky mistake of changing my carbon saddle with one which has some polstering which increased the saddle hight. Not enough for being noticed by me but certainly enough for being noticed by my hamstring tendon. I am already recovered while writing this and in the middle of the preparations for my next challenge. The Tour of Sufferlandria 2022 !!!
#roadcycling #endurance #recovery
#thesufferfest #xert #gcn
#canyonaeroad
4 Likes
Fantastic videos! Amazing to watch. thanks for sharing.
1 Like
Group ride with Team WGN up the 横松郷 (Yokomatsugo) and the 白石峠 (Shiroishi Pass).
Another tough climbing session with my T-WGN mates up the 白石峠. It was a hard climb but the scenery is just amazing. Also, the descents are super rewarding. Spring is just around!!!
I hope this one will get you off the couch and out on your bike. Enjoy!
Let me know in the comments section what you think and give it thumbs up.
If not, please let me know as well and why.
See you next time.
Stay safe, stay strong.
Get on your bike and be AWESOME !!!
PLEASE LIKE & SHARE
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Kawagoe (“Little Edo”) during Golden Week. 黄金週間 の 川越市 (小江戸 川越)
A short trip to Kawagoe (川越市) during Golden Week (黄金週間).
If you have the opportunity you really should stroll along Kurazukuri Street (蔵造りの町並み). You will find lots of little restaurants and shops selling traditional crafts.
Not far away is the Kanetsuki street (かねつき通り) - with the bell tower (Toki no kane, 時の鐘).
Another great attraction is the Kawagoe Kita-in Temple (川越大師 喜多院(天台宗 星野山 無量寿寺).
And if you have some spare time you can get some, less traditional, bagels at VANITOY BAGEL KAWAGOE (バニトイベーグル 川越店) .
See you next time.
Stay safe, stay strong.
Get on your bike and be AWESOME !!!
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#MyPrefrontalRides #川越市 #roadbike
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第２０回 川崎マリンエンデューロ. 2時間ｴﾝﾃﾞｭｰﾛ ﾛｰﾄﾞ･ｵｰﾊﾞｰ40. 20th Kawasaki Marine Enduro. 2022-06-19.
Race season has begun!
Unfortunately…I wasn’t in the best condition and thus didn’t go into this race with a lot of expectations. I had an accident 6 weeks ago and broke one rib, the top of my left shoulder and my elbow. On top of that I had an ear infection and just stopped the antibiotics a day before I started the race. I had high fever last Friday to Sunday and my fitness was declining in general for a few weeks before that already. I had to cancel last weekend’s Fuji hill climb challenge and had trouble to get into shape this year. So, overall I went with low expectations into the race. I actually considered it a training race. Nevertheless, I took preparations seriously (travel to the event, nutrition, timing of the above etc.).
As frustrating as the working ethics of the other guys has been I was pretty happy with my performance and the end result for I didn’t expect a top 10 placing under any circumstances. Very motivational for my next race. Anyway, I can only blame myself. Lesson learned. I should always remember to stick with the front group if I want a podium position.
檜原都民の森ダウンヒル - Hinohara Citizen’s Forest descent (2022/07/09)
he good thing about steep climbs is…you have to go down again.
On my last 265km ride I faced a few big climbs. One of them was Hinohara, Tokyo.
However, this video only captures the descent. It’s a quite technical descent with plenty of hairpin turns. That’s why you will hear my discs way too often. I hope you don’t mind 
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#MyPrefrontalRides #東京都檜原都民の森 #roadbike
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棡原ダウンヒル - Yuzurihara descent (2022/07/09)
The good thing about steep climbs is…you have to go down again.
On my last 265km ride I faced a few big climbs. This is the second of them. 棡原 (Yuzurihara), Tokyo.
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#MyPrefrontalRides #棡原 #roadbike
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サンディエゴ (エンバーカデロ & ガスランプ クォーター) - San Diego (Embarcadero & Gaslamp Quarter)
Hey fellow athletes,
I’ve been to San Diego California for a conference (SfN 2022) and took advantage of the free bike rental offfered by my hotel (San Diegor Solamar). So, on our last day I took 1.5h off and cycled up and down the Embarcadero and afterwards the Gaslamp Quarter. My appologies for the ‘suboptimal’ positioning of my GoPro. But there was no other way to position the camera and taking off the basket wasn’t an option either. Anyway, I hope you will enjoy the sunny ride and perhaps it’ll encourage you to travel to California for a bike ride or even take some time off next time you visit for business and rent a bike. It’s really worth it.
See you next time.
Stay safe, stay strong.
Get on your bike and be AWESOME !!!
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#MyPrefrontalRides #Tokyo #roadbike
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Just a short stroll through 東池袋 (east Ikebukuro) the center of Cosplay in Tokyo.
It was Halloween but unfortunately I’ve missed the right time window and there wasn’t much going on. Anyway, if you are in Tokyo and want to see some Cosplay, this is the place to go.
See you next time.
Stay safe, stay strong.
Get on your bike and be AWESOME !!!
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#MyPrefrontalRides #東池袋 #roadbike
3 Likes
Mizumoto Park (水元公園). A Beautiful Autumn Leisure Ride on a Sunny Sunday
This was a wonderful short trip to the Mizomoto Park (水元公園).
Initially I wasn’t motivated at all to go out on my bike despite the beautiful weather. Luckily I overcame my letargy and made this trip.
I was rewarded by the most beautiful autmn scenary.
Hopefully you enjoy the ride as much as I did and perhaps you consider to visit the park yourself. Trust me, it really is worth it.
See you next time.
Stay safe, stay strong.
Get on your bike and be AWESOME !!!
PLEASE LIKE & SHARE
#MyPrefrontalRides #水元公園 #roadbike
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This was a big one. Cherry blossoms everywhere. Chiba is such an amazing place. I get surprised all the time. So many beautiful places. I highly recommend you to discover Chiba on your bike. They really made quite some effort and built wonderful bike paths along their rivers. #MyPrefrontalRides #桜 #roadbike
3 Likes
Shimofusa Criterium MATRIX. しもふさクリテリウム5月 (おっさんずカップ)
Misjudged the final sprint. Should have started earlier. 1st place could have been easily achieved. Well, happy 2nd nevertheless.
It was heavily raining and the wind was blowing strongly. I don’t know what it is but I really enjoy these conditions 
Next race will be the 32nd Tour de Hitachinaka in Ibaraki.
See you there and see you next time.
Stay safe, stay strong.
Get on your bike and be AWESOME !!!
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#MyPrefrontalRides #Shimofusa #roadbike
1 Like