This weekend was round 2 of the sfiDARE Crit, which is the first and only fixed gear criterium in Japan. I was originally planning on riding there alone, but my wife Thuong was able to get her visa to come back to Japan processed early and she ended up making it back in time to join me on today’s ride.
The first part of the ride was very cold and cloudy as you can see. Nevertheless, that didn’t stop us from taking some selfies.
After about a 45km ride, we arrived to the race venue at Hirata Riverside Plaza Park. The racers had already been doing time trials in the morning to determine race categories and starting positions. We arrived with good timing, right before the main races were starting.
I quickly went into vlogging mode, and started filming the race action.
I actually participated in this race last year, and won, so coming back this year and not racing was a little bit tough. On the other hand though, it was nice to be able to relax and enjoy watching the race and cheering on my friends who were participating (and suffering).
If you want to read about / watch last year’s race, click here.
Unlimited Class Start (Elite)
The fastest class of the day was “unlimited”, which was limited to the top 15 fastest riders of the morning.
The course here at Hirata for the sfiDARE Crit is half technical with some narrow turns, but also requires power with some very long straights and corners that can be taken at full speed.
This was Thuong’s first ever time seeing a race, and she quickly turned into a super fan with her cowbell.
In the end, Kodama-san, who had the fastest morning TT, also won the unlimited category race by riding solo away from the field with a strong attack halfway through.
The pack riders put in a really hard chase, ultimately shattering the pack, with the sprint for second coming down to a group of 3 who couldn’t quite close the gap to Kodama-san.
All in all, it was a really fun race to watch and it was great to see some big growth and interest in the race compared to the previous year. Kodama-san is actually a professional keirin racer here in Japan and together with his wife, they are making big strides to make fixed gear racing popular in Japan. They’ve even started their own dedicated fixed gear racing time that is racing in fixed gear races throughout the Asian circuit (and even Red Hook Brooklyn).
The Long Way Home, To Ichinomiya Tower!
Rather than going back home the same way we came, we (I) decided to take the long route back, and check out the cycling path along the Kiso river and Ichinomiya Tower 138 Park.
This was my first time coming here up close, and I was really glad we made the extra effort to come here, but I think I pushed Thuong a little bit too hard..
Nothing a quick little nap can’t fix..
We ended up getting over 100km in for the day, and the cold cloudy morning turned into a pretty warm day with some strong sun. I hadn’t prepared for such weather, and ended up getting really sun burned. Was going to happen sooner or later though.
Today’s Ride on Strava
Be sure to check out today’s VLOG as well.
