I got my "century of the month" ride in on Sunday, which at 205 km (according to the Garmin or 210 according to Strava) was longer than what I rode in the preceding three weeks combined.
It was a brevet route used by AudaxJapan Kanagawa in January 2013, Zushi-Izukogen-Zushi. The middle two quarters of the ride were hilly while the first and the last quarters were chilly, but thankfully there was almost no wind along this coastal route.
I got up at 4:00 and caught a train down to the coast around 5:00. A little before 7:00 I hit the road. The day started out cold and gloomy, but it brightened up and got warm enough for me to take off my jacket around 10:00. As it brightened up I put on sunscreen.
From the start I felt that I was out of shape, having done very little riding in last three weeks, but with the first brevets of the year coming up I might as well jump in at the deep end. When the road got hilly as I got into Izu peninsula I was counting down distance to the halfway point. The last quarter of the ride was the hardest, despite having paced myself throughout the ride.
Enoshima on a cold morning:
House gutted by fire somewhere between Kamakura and Odawara:
Ocean view:
Coastal view:
Atami castle:
Temple with plum (ume) blossoms:
If you enjoy passing hundreds of cars, the east side of Izu on a Sunday is the place to be:
Customized Harley:
