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Well, the typhoon may have dashed our hopes for the Tohoku Cycling Festival this weekend, but it didn’t stop the two iron men on their Tohoku Coast to Coast challenge. Yesterday, it took them three attempts to get across the mountains that stand between the cities of Yamagata and Sendai, but they finally made it after 100km-plus of riding. Not content to rest on their laurels and reach the Pacific in Sendai, they kept going north to their original destination for the night in Matsushima.
Yet again, the typhoon had left a major obstacle in the way shortly before they reached their destination as the coast road had been flooded by the surge and was closed. This meant yet another detour and another 15km of cycling. They finally reached their accommodation for the night shortly before 9pm, where the Hotel Daimatsuso staff had been kind enough to keep dinner for them. In all during the day, the pair spent 14 hours in the saddle and covered 147km of mountain and coastal roads in the wind and rain.
After all the terrible weather conditions, Lowell and Stuart awoke this morning to a glorious sunrise and a day of perfect cycling weather. They linked up with Tony and made their way as planned to Miyatojima, where they performed the ritual dipping of the front tire in the Pacific Ocean. A huge “o-tsukaresama” to them all!
The Tohoku Coast to Coast Challenge was always going to be just that, a challenge. But we never anticipated just how much of a gauntlet Mother Nature was going to throw down. It’s a credit to the training and the determination of the cyclists that they not only completed the ride, against the odds, but did so on schedule. Thanks from everyone at Japan Coast to Coast also go out to the many sponsors and those who have pledged donations to the riders. All that support played a huge part in getting those guys from one coast to the other.
Meanwhile, the recovery and rebuilding in Tohoku continues for yet another day. Every dawn brings new challenges but also fresh hope for these most resilient of people.
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 Typhoon #15 It looks like Typhoon #15 has left a trail of death and destruction in its wake as it swept across the country. About a dozen people are reported as dead or missing. While we are happy to report that all the Japan Coast to Coast and HOPE-JP personnel and riders in Tohoku are safe and accounted for, unfortunately the typhoon and its aftermath have caused some real problems for the two JC2C events.
The Tohoku Coast to Coast riders are currently trying to find a road open through the mountains to Sendai and the Pacific coast. Yesterday they tried to get over the Sasaya Pass but had to turn back and spent the night in Yamagata as originally planned. Another attempt at the pass this morning was thwarted when they were unable to use the service road around a major 4km tunnel on the Yamagata Toll Road. More updates as they come in.
It looks like the typhoon caused more extensive damage in Tohoku than we expected. Since the earthquake in March, landslides are a real concern following any major rainfall. And today all roads in and out of the Ojika Hanto are closed due to flooding and landslides and power is out on the whole peninsula. Tony and HOPE-JP development officer Norio are on the peninsula and report that all the roads to the festival location are heavily damaged. Our base camp area in Kyubunhama suffered damage too and the locals are busy clearing water from their homes. In addition it is very unlikely that they would be able to get to Ishinomaki city to buy the food supplies needed for the festival.
Due to these circumstances and our desire to be sensitive to the needs of the people of Ojika, we have decided to postpone the Tohoku Cycling Festival until further notice. We will be contacting all of the registered participants directly.
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 Recumbent in the rain I mentioned yesterday how Tony ran into a guy who had traveled all the way from Norway to be at our Tohoku Cycling Festival this weekend. So here are some photos of Gunnstein and his recumbent bike, a pretty rare sight in Japan. As you can see, the bike is a big hit with young Japanese schoolkids!
After a few days of riding in wet conditions, the bike was in need of repairs and I tried to help him find a store in sendai that might be able to help. A spare inner tube was found, but no brake pads. If you’re reading this and happen to know of anyone with a similar bike in the Sendai area, or a store that sells them, drop us a line.
 
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 Rear wheel in the Sea of Japan After a night spent near Niigata City enjoying the warm hospitality of HOPE International development officer Takeishi Norio and his family (see the JC2C Gallery), Lowell and Stuart braved the worsening weather conditions on the first full ride of the Tohoku Coast to Coast. It started with a wet but pleasant 10km ride along the Arakawa River before the first climbs of the day. At about the 20km mark, they started to climb again in earnest and after a total of about 42km the pair arrived mid-afternoon, wet but otherwise none the worse for wear, at the Shofukan minshuku at Oguni onsen.
Tony drove ahead along the proposed cycle route today checking tunnels and mountain and coastal road conditions and is now at the HOPE-JP accommodation in Kurihara. On the way, who should he happen to meet but Norwegian Gunnstein Lye, who on his recumbent bicycle is cycling north to join the Tohoku Cycling Festival this weekend. One silver lining to the cloud cast by this typhoon is that the weather should be glorious for the festival. So there’s no excuse not to pack your bags and your tent and come join us in Miyagi. More info here.
Meanwhile, with the typhoon bearing down and weather conditions meaning possible closed roads and other hazards, it was decided to change tomorrow’s route to avoid a more than 100km ride over remote mountain passes and stick closer to civilization. The route now will take the riders on a long 79km ride over and down the mountains to Yamagata City. After a night there, they will head on down to the coast, though Thursday is also when the typhoon is expected to be at its most intense in the area. AGain, you can follow their ride and their route in real time via Lowell’s online RunKeeper account.
Speaking with Lowell this evening, he told me how delighted he and Stuart had been by the sudden surge of fundraising support they had received in the last 24 hours, and he asked me to express their immense gratitude to everyone who has pledged a donation. The support received so far has pushed the pair over their target amount, but if you haven’t pledged yet, remember they still have many challenges ahead and would really appreciate your donation and it will no doubt provide much-needed psychological support when they brave the elements again tomorrow. Go ahead and make your pledge now!
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The Japan Coast to Coast gang gathered early this morning at Lowell’s hillside home in Seto to load up up the van with bikes, supplies and stuff needed for next weekend’s Tohoku Cycling Festival. Thanks to sponsors too numerous to mention who supplied spiffy new jerseys, helmets, power bars, drink bottles and more. The weather is glorious today as are the Southern Alps in the sunshine. There is a little concern about the typhoon on its way and reportedly headed in the Tohoku direction the day after tomorrow. But a bit of wind and rain won’t stop these guys!
After a night in Niigata City, Lowell and Stuart will be starting the Tohoku Coast to Coast ride early tomorrow morning. We’ll be posting occasional updates on their progress here on the website but you can also follow them in real time thanks to Lowell’s RunKeeper account.
PS: There’s still time to register for the Tohoku Cycling Festival, and we’d love to see you there!
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The Tohoku Coast to Coast riders will be setting off from Niigata on Monday – wish them luck. Or better still, give them some extra motivation by sponsoring a rider.
But there is still almost a week to go before the 1st annual Tohoku Cycling Festival. And what better place to spend the Silver Weekend than on the spectacular Ojika peninsula in Miyagi Prefecture? Come and enjoy the beautiful coastal scenery, enjoy fresh food and bbq, meet and talk with the locals, camp under a starry sky…oh, and enjoy some great cycling while you’re there. Saturday, September 24th will see a full, fun day of cycling activities and events. Tony Torres of JC2C will be in the area from the middle of next week preparing for the weekend.
The local people of Ojika are rightly very proud of what their region has to offer – beautiful coastal scenery and a warm, welcoming community. They are looking forward to welcoming as many visitors as possible for a weekend of tours, cycling and fun activities, and they hope you will tell people far and wide about this wonderful but largely unknown tourist destination.
The local economy was devastated by the quake and tsunami of March 11 and the last six months have been an immense struggle for these people. By joining this event you’ll be not only supporting the community’s efforts to rebuild their lives but also reminding them that they have not been forgotten and bringing them hope for the future.
Just ¥19,000 for the full weekend, including a camp site, all meals, and activities. We ask that you bring your own bike and tent but some rentals will be available. We will have a shuttle bus running between Matsushima/Ishinomaki and Ojika, but spaces are limited so make your enquiries soon!
To register or get more info, see the event page.
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We’re delighted to report that our negotiating skills are far better than we realized, and as a result we have managed to reduce the cost of the upcoming Tohoku Coast to Coast Challenge. We’re passing the savings on accommodation and other costs onto all participants.
The cost of the ride is now just 69,000 yen per person, which includes 4 night’s accommodation, breakfast and supper each day, an original Assos cycling jersey, Japan Coast to Coast sunglasses, support vehicle etc. (each participant will receive over 30,000 yen worth of goods PLUS the use of a new OGK helment for the ride).
For more info on what promises to be an amazing ride, see here.
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On this trip to Tohoku, we have met several people who are inspirational, not by power of personality or remarkable skills – in fact they are in many ways quite ordinary – but by simply being people who take action. There is a problem, they see a way forward, and they do it.
I wrote yesterday about Ando-san, the fisherman who is helping us coordinate the Tohoku Cycling Festival on the dorstep of his home in the small community of Kyubunhama. Today in the neighboring fishing town of Ayukawahama we met with Endo-san, a dynamic young surfer dude from Tokyo who came here immediately after the tsunami to deliver relief supplies and has stayed ever since to lead and organize the constant flow of volunteers who come to the area to help. Tomorrow we are bringing him a shipment of 25 new mountain bikes kindly donated by Cannondale. He will gladly accept more.
Thanks also to Abe-san, owner of a very small dairy farm, who saw enough in my feeble attempt to explain what we are trying to achieve through the cycling festival to agree to allow us use his field at the southern tip of the Ojika peninsula for a day of events. He immediately agreed to do what was necessary to ensure the field would be ready for use in September. Surrounded on three sides by the Pacific and flanked by the majestic Kinkazan Island, this is a field with the kind of views that would command a million-dollar price tag in many parts of the world. Anyone who has climbed the Hill of Howth in my hometown of Dublin – as I did again just last month – would immediately feel right at home on this hill of Kurosaki.
Abe-san is a man who – truth be told – seems to live a very solitary and probably lonely existence in this remote spot. But he quickly warmed to our ideas and expressed in very eloquent terms what the festival could mean to people in this area, who have suffered so much this year. Our ideas are big, our resources limited, but if we can put on an event that is well received and enjoyed by these people who have endured great hardship, we too will have done something.
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I don’t know if there’s a hierarchy of hospitality in Japan but, for me, being invited to use someone’s bath is pretty high up there. Tonight, myself and Tony are enjoying the warmth and hospitality offered to us by Ando-san and his family here in the small fishing community of Kyubunhama on the western coast of the Ojika peninsula. Tony’s been here before but it’s my first time to meet them and I’ve been touched by how warm and welcoming they’ve been to us, a couple of fuzzy foreigners with a half-baked plan to hold a festival on their doorstep. The bath was very welcome because Ando-san – a grandfather – took us on some hikes along the rugged coastline that, with the summer humidity, had us sweating.
Ando-san comes from a long line of fishermen, a family occupation he has continued all his working life, as does his own son. But while the younger Ando is a man of few words, his father is friendly and chatty, a man of action with one eye fixed on the future. Like many oyster fishermen along the Pacific coast of Tohoku, the tsunami in March dealt a potentially fatal blow to his livelihood. But almost immediately he took action, contacting the company that supplies the special equipment needed for oyster harvesting and asking them to put aside a supply for his community. When I asked him this evening what percentage of the region’s oyster fishing industry had been hit by the disaster, he didn’t hesitate in saying, “100%.” But his quick action ensured that Kyubunhama was the first town to get their oysters back in the water, providing the spark for other nearby communities to quickly do the same.
Thus it came about that when we were looking for a local person with a can-do attitude to help us get a cycling festival off the ground on the Ojika peninsula we looked to Ando-san for advice. He was more than happy to show us around the many spots on the peninsula that would provide a dramatic scenic backdrop for any event. But it came to pass that we took him up on his offer to host our festival on his own doorstep, because we felt that we want this event to be about people and community as much as it is about cycling and scenic beauty. And so it was decided that we would have a camping site in a small orchard belonging to Ando-san’s cousin, and would make good use of the patches of land cleared of tsunami debris. Our festival will bring a small amount of revenue into the community, but hopefully that is just the start because much more is needed. The government scheme to provide day-labor payments for local people to carry out the cleanup effort continues only through the end of this month. But it will be several years before the people of this area return to anything close to the life they knew.
Kyubunhama is a small community that numbered only around 170 people even before the tsunami. The town was blessed in that it lost only one person to the forces of nature on that fateful day. But the damage was extensive and much of the population was dispersed to evacuation centers throughout the region. Much of that community is on the verge of coming back together, as temporary housing units will be completed in just a few days, just around the corner from Ando-san’s house, and some 37 households will be able to return to Kyubunhama. It is our hope that the first Tohoku Cycling Festival will be a rallying point for this small town, a chance to express themselves as a community. They may have been displaced from their own homes and thus unable to offer a bath or a bed as Ando-san has done today, but hospitality is not about bricks and mortar, wood and tiles.
If participants in the Cycling Festival enjoy anything like the hospitality that we have enjoyed this weekend, it will be a wonderful event indeed.
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Today Mark and I (Tony) set off for a few days in Tohoku to meet with local NPO and contacts. We’re hoping to finalize the details for the Tohoku Cycling Festival and bring in a few other interested NPO parties. In addition, we just got word that the first shipment of donated bikes by Cannondale have arrived at the HOPE-JP Kurihara warehouse. We need to install bells and reflectors on all bikes before they can be distributed. Mark and I will assist in the distribution this weekend. We keep getting word from local agencies that bikes are in big demand (they estimate that over 40,000 vehicles were washed away in the tsunami). We can use all the help we can get to make sure as many people as possible get needed bikes. I’ll try to post pictures of the distribution as well as the planned location for our Cycling festival. Stay tuned!
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