Pedaling in Pink Petals

One of the simple pleasures of living in Japan. A mid day ride among the Cherry Blossoms.

Why I do as my wife says

I go to the gym every morning. It's one of my secrets to staying beautifully fit and handsome. I'll cycle to the gym unless I'm with Mrs. Crankee, then we take the Honda. Today I was going alone and decided to bring my Surly Steamroller.

"You need to pick something up for me, so you'd better take the car", she said.

"But it's such a nice day and I want to ride my bike", I whined. I do that a lot.

She won, I lost. Surprise.

Well, 3o minutes into my warm up stretches, I hear a loud bang and thud. I look out the second floor window of the gym and stared at the spot on the corner where I usually chain my bike, right by the Chez Toto restaurant street sign. This is what I saw:

Where I usually chain my bike

Apparently some poor sap lost control of his car, plowed though the Chez Toto sign, jumped the curb onto the sidewalk, continued straight down the block, destroyed the awning belonging to a seafood restaurant, crossed the street and crashed through a small fence. The couple in the car didn't seem terribly hurt, but the wreck they left behind them will certainly give their insurance carrier a fit. First thing I did was email the wife and thank her for forcing me to bring the car instead of the bike.

Smashed awning

Had my bike been chained by the street sign I would have been spending the afternoon picking up bits of Surly and cursing my bad fortune. Unfortunately, Muto san, one of the gym employees, wasn't so lucky, his scooter now looks like Godzilla slept on it.

"Ah, no worries, I was planning on buying a new one anyway." he said.

Damn Japanese optimism.

This is a good place to park

The Circle continues...

Higashi Betsuiin Circles Bike Shop

I first met Shin Tanaka at his tiny bike shop in Nagoya City when I was shopping around for a new bike for my planned trip through the French countryside. Shin exudes "Bike Cool". He had spent some time in America, so his English was peppered with urban slang and decidedly non-Japanese gestures. I liked him immediately. Shin has a very simple approach to how he sells bicycles: He doesn't sell them. He's no pusher. He will usually steer his customers to spending the least in money and the more in riding. When I finally decided to purchase a Surly Traveler's Check for my trip to France, he suggested I pick up the frame during one of my visits to the States thus saving $500.


I took his advice and let him handle the final build. This is why, over the last three years, Circles has become the premiere bike shop for people who are serious about cycling. And with the growing popularity, came the need to move to a more spacious location. Last week Circles opened their new shop in Higashi Betsuiin section of Nagoya.

Nice collection of Japanese and International cycling wear

The first floor features a gear, bike and clothing store, as well as a back section used for bike building & repair and a separate area for customers to work on their own bikes. This last thing is the coolest part of the new Circles. Customers can now rent a work area complete with all the tools and pro advice you will need to work on your own bike. A one day fee of ¥1000 is all you pay. If you wish to have unlimited access to the work area, the yearly membership fee is only ¥12,000. I think this is a great way to learn about bike repair; hands-on, all the tools you need and Makoto or Sal within arms reach if you need a little help.

Makato san showing us the universal hand sign for carbon forks

The second floor is the "build room". Arranged like a tony boutique, here customers can get advice on customizing their Vicious frame set with a Brooks saddle, Lino drop bars or whatever their heart desires.

Second floor customizing room

Shin has gone out of his way to make the new Circles more than just a bike shop, but a place cyclists can grow a better appreciation for their bicycles through education and assistance. The staff at Circles are all top rate and if you need English language help, Shin or Sal can handle that too. At any rate, stop by the new shop and say hi to the guys.

Member's work Space

Circles Bike Shop


View Circles in a larger map
460-0012
名古屋市中区千代田4-14-20
tel:052-331-3232
fax:052-331-3231
・地下鉄名城線「東別院」駅1番出口より徒歩約5分
・都心環状線「東別院」出口より約5分

Wipe Out!

Riding back home alone yesterday afternoon after the BBQ I hit a concrete excrescence on route 19 and faster than you can say "Fuck" I was on the ground tasting some of Nagoya City's finest Asphalt. I can't explain how it happened, I can't even remember much after it happened. All I know is that I got up quickly and staggered over to the sidewalk to check for damages, on the bike, not me. The leather handle bar strap was ripped, I noticed a deep scratch on my wrist and felt pain on my right knee. But I knew that I wouldn't become fully aware of my physical damage until the next day, so I got back on the saddle and rode over to Circle's bike shop to have Makoto san fix my handle bar strap. This morning I took inventory and counted 8 bruises and cuts on my leg, hip, arm and shoulder. This is only my second spill on a bike in the last 5 years. I'm still getting used to riding my new track bike and the awkward riding position places the center of gravity further forward than my road bike. In addition, my Surly Steamroller is much lighter than a road bike and this makes it easy to fly forward through the air like a crazed gymnast whenever you hit a pothole. Did I mention how many people approached me to offer assistance? Zero. That's cool. I probably wouldn't approach me either.

My new ride

Yesterday I picked up my new Surly Steamroller at Circles Bike shop. As you can see from the photos, the custom camouflage paint job and classic Lino drop green handlebars make this one very PUURRTY bicycle! This marks my introduction to track bikes and fixed gears. Since I'm a 44 year old chicken and not some 20 something hipster, I've set my flip flop gears to freewheel and installed front and back brakes for added safety. When I feel confident enough I'll switch to fixed gear and practice falling on my ass. The ride this morning was all together different (which I expected). Track bikes position the body for optimal speed and not necessarily comfort. It will take some getting used to. The smaller drop down handlebars leave little space to move the hand, and I went back to using strap clips instead of SPD clips. After a few minutes, I started to get into the groove and noticed how much faster the bike responds to my body movement. And this baby is fast! This will be my city bike for rides downtown and occasional day trips to the countryside. My Surly Travelers Check will remain my choice for long trips, hilly rides and for BBQs. Enough yapping. Time for a ride.

Cycling BBQ at Shonai Park

Just in case any of my cycling friends are in the area, today I will be in Shonai Park by the lake with my Surly BBQ Cycle. Stop by, say hi and taste my ride.

Showing Off

Took my Surly out for a ride today. The weather was superb and I couldn't resist taking a few photos to show off the new Toshio Handlebar leather tape I bought last Saturday. Looks nice huh? Trying to get a couple of the guys together this weekend for a ride in Seto Shi. Hope the weather holds.

Packing your Travelers Check!

When I first decided that I wanted to try cycling through Europe, I knew I needed a bike frame that could travel light and cheap wherever I go. Lo and behold, Surly came out with a new touring frame that promised to answer my needs. The Travelers Check is basically Surly's already popular Cross Check frame but with nice S&S couplers added to allow you to split the frame into two pieces. I bought the Frame and the way over-priced travel case in time for my cycling tour of France. Let me warn you if you're thinking of getting the Travelers Check; packing the bike into the special case is no picnic. It took me a month of trying different variations before I was able to get it all comfortably into the case. Surly and S&S websites offer little or very poor examples on how to pack the bike. In the future, I plan to make a video outlining how I did it. For now, here is a picture of the finished results. A bit of advice if you plan on getting the Travelers Check and the case; you'll need to remove the crank set, back derailers, handlebars and fork. And forget about placing the front wheel on top of bike parts as suggested on the S&S website. It doesn't work. You'll need to shove the wheel into the top half of the travel case as shown in the picture (deflate both tires beforehand). After a few tries, you'll get the hang of it. I can now pack the bike in about 45 minutes.