wind in the valley

What a wind today. I headed up the Nota valley for a quick asaren loop this morning. The side wind was incredible. The hot, wet and humid weather means that the grass at the sides of the road is really growing quickly and is really showing off the aggressive wind.

By Nota I’ve had enough. At this rate I won’t be back for lunch, never mind breakfast. A quick right and fight the now head wind to the base of Komura Pass.

Shelter at last. A couple of digs to raise the HR to 170. Just to remind the legs. Tempo the rest of the way. Drop down into the headwind and down to Kakizaki dam.

Water from a spring and a u-turn. A fantastic wind on my back now. Can do most of the climb in the big ring. A few welcome spots of rain.

Head home. Trying to catch the side wind like a windsurfer to propel me home. Like Mary Poppins on the way out. Like Cancellara on the way home.

We can expect similar weather down in Uchinada. Rain too. Not that I would wish for bad weather, but I think it will play to our advantage. Less time to be gained on technical corners. More time to be gained on strength and power through the straights. It’ll be hard to escape in the road race though……

Friday’s asaren: Komura Toge ~ Kakizaki dam return (40 km, 500 m climbing)