Some month ago I wrote an unacceptable and disgusting post about a Positivo Espresso Rider Voluntary Recall. Actually, since then I have long forgotten about, but when I scanned the web for Positivo Espresso entries recently I found this after Mars Petcare, Haba Toys, Wegmans Bagels:
http://www.blogged.com/about/voluntary-recall/
Perhaps we would like to inform them that the recall has been recalled.
Update
Just to help clarify, there are three upcoming Positivo Espresso rides proposed.
Tuesday 30th Dec 2008, Ludwig and mob are going to do a full day ride, starting time between 8 and 9 AM at Fuchu bridge on the Tamagawa. The destination is not decided yet, details will follow today.
Wednesday 31st Dec 2008, proposed by David with Tom and James keen to join. Details to follow in comments or as an update in this post.
Friday 2nd January 2009, Ekiden Ride, David, Michael, Ludwig and James so far. Details can be found below.
After staying in Shibuya late yesterday night with my son and doing the things young people usually do in Shibuya [to be precise: playing table tennis and eating cheese fries at Outback], I decided that I should not go through all the hassle of riding out to Chichibu or some other mountainous place just to end up in piles of knee-deep snow. Instead I had an invitation from Hiroshi to join him and his clubmates for a training session at the Kawasaki Keirin.
I got ready at home after checking the way to the track and packed the usually things plus, as this was the first time and Japanese customs requires to be polite and bring some presents, I took a handful of Haribo Lakritz Schnecken with me. These are tycpical German sweets which look like rolls of low grade Pakistan made industrial cables and taste alike.
It takes only 30 minutes from my house on route 140 to Kawasaki station, I arrived on time. The road is not too bad and there is even a river, Tsurumikawa where one can ride stretches of the ride on a cycling/pedestrian way just as in case of the Tamagawa. I was surprised how big and well developed the area around Kawasaki station is, completely different from my image where I put Kawasaki in the file lettered „insignificant“.
Actually for a very long time I have not been in Kawasaki at all. I mean, yes I have been in Kawasaki but the purpose was not to go to Kawasaki but to pass through, either on the way to Yokohama or to Tokyo. I have exactly three roads through Kawasaki, Dai-Ichi Keihin or Dai-San Keihin, if I am riding a car, the other one Nakahara Kaido if I am on my bike. This is my whole experience of the town which is insignificant indeed.
Apart from that I have been in Kawasaki one time and that was in 1991 or 1992, going to Club Quattro to watch STAR CLUB, a Japanese Punk Band which a friend from Switzerland called Urs (all male Swiss are called Urs, that is similar to Kims and Parks in Korea) recommended to me as the Toten Hosen of Japan. After watching them, I believe there were more the Plastic Bertrands of Japan [Thanks Tom for reminding me of this guy when you wrote your blog recently].
In summary, my image of Kawasaki developed through the years like this:
followed by a long time of nothing and which has now completely changed again.
Hiroshi waited for my at the parking place. I gave him some Lakritz for welcome, he managed to eat them well. The parking space was packed with cars of the spectators, did they come to watch us? Was I am going to race immediately? Of course not, a lot of people come to the Keirin stadium, owned by the city of Kawasaki, to watch the Keirin races at other places on the big screen and place some bets.
Why would anybody wanted to do that, if one can sit at home, have a glass of beer, a bowl of octopus on sticks in front of you and a nice warm blanket over your feet and one can place his bets over the Internet? Well, I guess the answer is that one also have a wife, kids in the midst of puberty, things to do and and and and at home so it might be better to escape and spend the day in freezing cold on the stands of the Kawasaki Keirin and watch TV. I guess this is called „public viewing“ today, a phenomena almost exclusively experienced by males in their forties and fifties.
Hiroshi was so kind to show me around, so I could take a look at a hall with rollers, where the Keirin pro warm up before the races, including ventilators in front and ashtrays on the bench. I also took a look at the parking place where the pro bikes were standing; I saw a Kalavinka bike, so nicely described in this wonderful book : „The accidental office lady.“ He also explained to me the basic differences compared to road bikes. Not the obvious things, but the finer details, such as there is almost no distance between the lower tube and the front wheel.
We then went inside and met some of the other guys. About 20 or 30 riders were presented from various teams, the atmosphere was relaxed and there was not much club mood. No exercising, no long pep speeches, no long explanation of the rules. Very nice indeed for a change. Juliane and me have some experience with Japanese club riding and we didn’t like the set of rules prevailing there.
We then started to ride on the track. Tracks in Japan are either 333.33 m or 400 m long, this one being the later type. The direction is always counter clockwise, which fits me well as I am much better in left corners than in rights. From the inside to the inside, there is a green marked part and a red marked one which is for warming up and almost flat. This is followed by a small part in green which is enclosed by two white lines. The inner one of these two white lines is precisely 400 meters long. This is the normal racing part where one rides during the race, mostly in a draft line. There is a slight inclination on the curved banks but not too much. Then further up is another yellow line, about halfway of the width of the track.
First we went in a group of seven riders, starting slowly at 20 km/hr but accelerated equally slowly until 40 km/hr. We took turns in the lead after each lap. The pace was fast, but I could follow almost until the end. The last laps were at 46 km/hr and there it became increasingly difficult for me to hang on. It takes some power to concentrate on going at the same speed all the time, not faster, not slower, not to leave any gaps to the rider in front and keeping the same distance. It is not allowed to shift gears or to brake, so everything has to be managed with pedal power.
As I had no fixed gear bike, I could brake while continue to pedal but I rarely did. When I was in danger to overtake somebody, I climbed up on the bank in the curves only a little and that decreased the speed sufficiently.
The level of concentration is similar to riding in a a group during a race. I tried my best to keep pedaling all the time, not to use the brakes or shift the gears.The general feeling is a litle bit like on a home trainer, there is no change in position on the bike which I generally dislike because my butt starts hurting after some time. As long as one goes at the same speed I managed well, but sometimes there was some confusion when we overtook other groups and I started to brake or to shift out of habit.
After 40 minutes or so we made a break and after that we tried it again. This time we moved up to the highest point of the bank. When looking to the right, everything is normal, just riding along a fence. But when I looked down to the left and I saw the inclination and the height I didn’t felt too good. But I got used to that. Hiroshi showed me how to get down from the high line in the curves to the two white lines and accelerate, taking all the momentum. One can easily go up to 50 km/hr.
I then felt strong and stayed with another group making more laps. Then another break. I talked to some of the other guys and everybody was very friendly. I spotted also Ms. Takamatsu, JCRC women champion of 2007 from Maglia Rosa, who I have seen at some JCRC races here at there this year.
Then I did a last try and went as fast as I could, followed by some laps to regain power, so some kind of interval training. Just for the fun of it I did 1.000 meter time trial and with flying start and I could do below 1.30 min which would be more than 40 km/hr average, but there is still a long way to go to achieve a good time with standing start, which should be around 1:15 min a guess.
I must say that everybody was very friendly and helpful and the atmosphere was nice, just the right balance of being taken care of but also left in peace. I personally felt much more powerful when I left the venue and I thought that this would be a good training to gain more stamina and absolute speed, something which comes in handy when thinking of the races I would like to do in 2009: endurance and flat course short races.
I distributed the remaining Lakritz to everybody as a token of gratitude. Not sure if this was appreciated. Then I rode home. which felt strange. I mean it felt good to change position from time to time and to get out of the saddle. But I tried not to brake and not to shift gears and to keep pedaling, I just couldn’t get used fast to my usual style.
My thanks go to Hiroshi who as so kind to introduce me to track racing and to Tom who introduced me to Hiroshi. I would like to do it again in the near future. It is good to know that there are still so many things left in cycling which can be explored. Not only track racing but maybe I need also a mountain bike to do the remaining stretch of route 76 next year.
When I came home I found out that Hiroshi has already updated his blog about todays training. I got a very positive review and the Lakritz I have given him found their way into the glass heart of the family.
This is somewhat on a short notice, but I am going to train today with Hiroshi and his Kawasaki Pista Club on the Kawasaki track race which is located here:
If you like to join, please give me a call. We meet at 12.30 hr today. It is OK to race on your normal racing bike, no track bike is required. You just need the usual stuff (helmet, gloves).
UPDATE 28. December 2008
So far, David, James, Ludwig and me will attend the Ekiden ride on January 2nd. The meeting point is close to the Tamagawa at the Family Mart at the cossing road 15 and road 409 in Kawasaki [see Google map below] at 8.30 AM.
If there is interest, we can do the Hakone climb and then the best downhill in Japan from Hakone Pass to Atami pass on route 20:
Moto Hakone to Atami Route 1 / 20 Ride
Find more Bike Rides in Hakone, Japan
David suggested to do the first ride of the new year on January 2nd from Tokyo to Hakone. As the Ekiden is hold on this day, the roads are sealed off and one can go on the bike in front of the field almost without traffic from Tokyo to Hakone – a once a year opportunity. I could convince my family to go to an onsen in Hakone the same day already, so I would be very much interested to do this ride, but the details, where to start, how to go etc. should be clarified with David. It would be nice to have a larger group of Positivo Espresso Riders together for this trip. Please let me know if you would be available.
Being in Japan for more than years, Juliane left on December 20th for London. After david, – his departure somewhat related to hers – and Marek, this is the third hard core Positivo Espresso member that left Japan in 2008 and I feel very much obliged to write something about it – from my own perspective.
In the last two years we have something like a Positivo Espresso Team and Juliane was one of our core members. Needs more to be written?
Going back very much in time, Juliane came to Japan with the same scholarship from the German Academic Exchange Service as I did. She stayed on and could somehow convince a German curtain wall maker to establish her as a representative in Japan. Which she than did despite all obstacles for a very long time, considering the average shelf-life of (in particular female) expats in Japan.
Juliane did a lot of interesting things here and I am glad that I could be part of some of them. She tried to sell my crappy sandwich panels from SKW when I was still working for Schindler Elevator.
She lived in Gotanda and an old wooden house with a huge garden by Japanese standards and invited us every year for cherry blossom viewing. One night we were all sitting in the garden, a strong wind blew through the trees and the cherry blossoms fell down in huge clouds, just like snow flakes. It was most beautiful and impressive.
I in turn took her and her boyfriend at this time, Nils, to my favourite hair dresser in Jiyugaoka which was almost the end of our friendship. We shared some of our secrets nevertheless.
I guess the first time we were riding on a bike together was in 2001, when Johanna, Tom (my boss at Schindler), Juliane and me embarked on the first Yamanote Challenge, a round trip along the 42 km long Yamanote line, stopping at each of the 28 stations and taking photos of all three of us. It took us eight hours. Which was mainly due to the time the photo taking took, we had to ask a harmless bystander and explain him what we want. I did not even have a digital camera at this time.
We did some races then together when we both joined Tamagawa cyclists (then : Veloz) and we were together at the first race I ever attended, Tsukuba seven hours endurance in 2003. And we raced also at Shuzenji and then later at Saiko the same year.
We had times when we were closer and we had times when we were not. We met often and we didn’t. It was not always easy with here, but out of the hundreds of friends she made in Japan, I was one of the few that accompanied her from the beginning to the end of her stay here. I am not the one that took her to new shores, although.
By chance I watched „Balzac and the little Chinese Seamstress“ on video which includes a scene when the little Chinese Seamstress is leaving her small mountain village and parting from her lover and her friend to search for new luck in the big city. There is no relation whatsoever between this story and the story I am trying to tell about Juliane. But the sadness is about the same.
Goodbye. Sayonara.
&<span class=“blsp-spelling-error“ id=“SPELLING_ERROR_0″>lt</span>;a <span class=“blsp-spelling-error“ id=“SPELLING_ERROR_1″>href</span>=“http://www.mapmyride.com/ride/japan/sagamiko/937894900501″><span class=“blsp-spelling-error“ id=“SPELLING_ERROR_2″>Suzugane</span> <span class=“blsp-spelling-error“ id=“SPELLING_ERROR_3″>Hinazuru</span> to Hon <span class=“blsp-spelling-error“ id=“SPELLING_ERROR_4″>Atsugi</span>&<span class=“blsp-spelling-error“ id=“SPELLING_ERROR_5″>lt</span>;/a>&<span class=“blsp-spelling-error“ id=“SPELLING_ERROR_6″>lt</span>;<span class=“blsp-spelling-error“ id=“SPELLING_ERROR_7″>br</span>/>&<span class=“blsp-spelling-error“ id=“SPELLING_ERROR_8″>lt</span>;a <span class=“blsp-spelling-error“ id=“SPELLING_ERROR_9″>href</span>=“http://www.mapmyride.com/find-ride/japan/sagamiko“>Find more Bike Rides in <span class=“blsp-spelling-error“ id=“SPELLING_ERROR_10″>Sagamiko</span>, Japan&<span class=“blsp-spelling-error“ id=“SPELLING_ERROR_11″>lt</span>;/a>
An interesting ride last Sunday. Six riders, three different ways back and now blogs on four sites [Jimmy Shinag/ Vlaamsewielrenner / Hiroshi / Positivo]. I wish we would do all the editing on one blog and write one epic story where everybody contributes from his point of view and create a Rashomon or „Lola rennt“ like story. 
Champion jersey. On the way to the bridge I discovered already that it didn’t make my any faster. And then going up I came to Sekidobashi with the full intention to show off my new 2008 JCRC Road SERISEOtarumi I felt a lot of pressure, as everybody naturally wanted to beat the champion. But I was still fast enough and get stay within a distance of Tom and Hiroshi which was good enough for this state of the season.
A typical Positivo ride, very fast along the Tamagawa and Asakawa. After we split before Sagamiko station, I had a hard time to keep the pace of Tom and Hiroshi on route 20. I went my own pace and I didn’t thought that I would be slow, but they were just faster. Route 20 was surprisingly empty, as it was a Sunday there were also less trucks on the road. And going through Uenohara without an accident always feels like „the first time“.
Now, the road up to Suzugane was beautiful as always. No traffic at all, only forest and sunshine and as last year, a strong wind that moves the fallen leaves on the road. I almost felt like being included in a movie from Hayao Miyazaki: 
I am moving through the nature and the spirits and ghosts of the forest are moving the leaves by invisible hands to create hidden messages and symbols. I went twice to the Ghibli museum in Mitaka and one can see a short movie at the cinema there. The first time I saw a short movie about a little girl that hikes through the forest, somehow it left a lasting impression on me. My children are afraid of the movies, I can understand why. There is this nativity with whom the characters, mostly children move through their lives and one can almost smell the danger that waits for them. There is always the expectation, that something, bad, terrible will happen. But it never does. Everything works out fine just naturally.
I felt good, Tom was fast and Hiroshi was not up to the usual standard I have heard about.
We took a photo of all three of us with three cameras at the same time on top of Suzugane pass.
Then we took a break at the cycling manju shop; nobody knows exactly why we stop there, but it seems to be some kind of tradition. As we were sitting there, another cyclist joined us and we chatted about riding here and there. I noticed that he had a helmet with „Ravenello„, the name of a strong JCRC team written on it and I asked him if he belongs to that team. So he said yes and I said that these guys are strong and I often see them at races, Then he asked me, if I would go racing often.
What a splendid opportunity! I felt like Mito Komon! 
I ripped down my winter jacket so that the full glory of the JCRC champion jersey came into display and said: „Of course I am racing often, I am the champion of 2008.“, not mentioning D class or any other circumstances that would devaluate the full glory of this marvelous achievement. Caught red handed in an orgy of evil, the poor guy dropped down to his knees and grovel. After right and order was restored, we continued on our way.
We rode through the beautiful landscape until we came to a crossing with … route 76. I immediately made up my mind and rode further to Doshi Michi, then to Miyagaseko and further on to Hon-Atsugi where I took the train home. There were very strong gusts when I rode down route 64 from Miyagaseko to Hon-atsugi. At one time I was riding past a small bamboo forest on the left side of the road. A strong wind from behind bended the bamboo almost completely down the ground. Gusts are OK from behind, but not from the side when one is riding fast and when there are a lot of leafs on the road and they are blown into your face it hurts quite amazingly.
167 kms and 9 hours total time, but only 7 hours on the bike. When riding in a group of six, we did not make too much breaks, but later on being with Hiroshi and Tom we did. So I decided not to take any breaks when I was on my own and went in one stretch from route 76 to Hon-Atsugi. So this was the shortest day of the year. From now on it will become perhaps colder, but finally days are getting longer. Good.
Anyone care for a winter solstice ride this Sunday? I’m proposing a ride I did with Marek and Michael (on different occasions) last year: a Suzugane-loop: http://vlaamsewielrenner.blogspot.com/2007/12/hinazuru-touge-revisited.html
Propose to meet at Sekidobashi at 9:00 ⇒ due to popular demand moved up to 8:30 ! NEW! Moved up to 8:10 !
Eingeordnet unter Tom
I woke up this morning at 6 AM and when I looked out of the window the rain had already started to pour down. Now it is almost 12 and it is still raining outside. No way to enjoy the Tokyo Enduro Race today at Tachikawa Kinen Koen, so I informed Tom, David and Ludwig per e-mail this morning that I would not go and all agreed to go back to bed or do other more meaningful things. This is the third time I wanted to attend the race and the third time I couldn’t. I became sick some days before the race in 2005 and in 2007 I applied to late and missed the deadline. This race is jinxed. The location is actually the one where I saw the first cycle race of my life ever, in September1990 a German friend of mine was racing there.
What a bummer that was! Still, when I look at the TCC picture below, I don’t regret the decision to go back to bed. For me too, there has been a jinx on enduro-type races and this would have been the third one in a row after Shuzenji and Motegi last year. It is simply no fun to ride with muddy water spurting right into your face from the backwheels of riders ahead. I admire those TCC cyclists though who decided to brave the elements!
Tom
Twenty years from now, when most people are asked what they remember about the Fall of 2008, they will answer with some story about the greatest financial crisis since 1929, the election of Barack Obama, or maybe a international political crisis set in motion by Pakistani militants‘ attack in Mumbai on luxury hotels, train stations, restaurants and a synagogue. But for Positivo Espresso members and fans, the dominant events will be, first, David J. and Juliane Prechtl’s relocation to London, and (a distant) second, the discovery and expansion of our riding territory into Chichibu, in addition to Yamanashi, Kanagawa and the far western reaches of Tokyo-to.
Sunday November 30 it was Jerome’s, Juliane’s and my turn.
Jerome and I rode up the river with James Knott and his group of merry men, who were headed toward Takao/Sagami-ko on their fast pace/early curfew trip. James was on his spectacular 2008 Cervelo SLC-SC, and stayed with us as Jerome took off. … something like 5 km later we noticed that the three of us had ridden away and the rest of James‘ group was nowhere to be seen (flat tires caused the delay). Jerome and I said our goodbyes and pushed ahead to meet Juliane at Aurore Bakery in Oume just after 9AM.
The road was quiet, the air crisp, and the fall colors were spectacular after we left Oume.
On the descent after Shomaru Toge, despite explicit warning signs …
Someone wanted to go faster than everyone else:
Fortunately, a cyclist had left a spare road bike nearby, so the driver could become a rider, and join us for the rest of the day.
Jerome and I celebrated our victory about 2/3 of the way up the hill to Karibazaka-toge, after stopping to change a flat tube and enjoy the view.
We did get to the top without other problems, and the vista to the NE was spectacular.
After riding along the ridge and climbing some to Shiraishi Toge vicinity, we turned left past the Ken-min no Mori parking lot (Saitama’s version of Tokyo’s To-min no Mori) and then took the Maruyama Rindo („forest road“) all the way down the hill into Yokoze/ Chichibu-Shi, a route that allowed us to get to the Seibu Chichibu train station with only 150 meters or so riding along the crowded stretch of Rte. 299, then had an almost civilized lunch and hopped the 2:25PM express train to Ikebukuro.
*The title to this entry, „More Chichibu!“ is to be said loudly, in the tone of Christopher Walken addressing Will Ferrell in the 2000 SNL sketch „More Cowbell“.
11-23
Rot Weiß Silber Schwarz
what ?
[not for real]
Geldgrab mit 61 Zähnen.
Fuchsien Schönheit
Japan Braut
Blau Gold Weiss
Track Version
Zu schön zum fahren
7 kg Plastik und Blech
Motobecane, Raleigh oder Peugeot?
Beginn der der Fixie Liebe
... what you gonna do ...
Nun komplett in blau
Leider nicht in Gunmetal Grey
Da einzige RH 60+ Rad in Tokyo
Keep on cruising in the free world
Der Todesstern
Daccordi Universum
Design follows function
Blau Rot Silber
Arktis Blau
CIÖCC. Hannes.
Drei Farben. Schwarz.
Beim Shopping.
Schwarz Rot Weiß
Shopping Blockade Runner
Entlackt
Viner Black Viper
Gross und Gelb
Oops.
Zwischen Florenz und ....
Dancelli O-nabe
Prinzessinnentraum
Aus einer anderen Galaxie
Fixie Projekt
Concorde Twin
Lange Geschichte
Classic Cyclone
Für Manu
Für Midori
Deutschland !
Grelle 80er Farben
Reus
Gold wert ?
Für Shozo
Neunziger eben
British Racing
Wait and See
Kotter für Heike
Colnago Super XL 1988
bikesnob28hb
fixiefanboyhb
sudi1662
there is no "I" in cyclyng 