The time passed in an instant.
All that remains are many memories, sunburned skin that stings, and scars from a fall.
Now that I’ve recovered from the fatigue of traveling to the U.S., I’m hitting the keyboard in hopes of sharing some of the experience with you.
Well then, following the previous two installments, "Sea Otter Classic Venue Walkthrough" and "Participating in the Sea Otter Classic Race," let's move on to the final chapter of our 2018 American tour: "Exploring the U.S. West Coast."
After making great memories at Sea Otter and parting ways with our friends, we headed south.
California south of Santa Cruz is a place I haven’t visited much myself.
The state is 1,200km long from north to south, and the vegetation and climate change significantly as you go further south.
Our first goal was Santa Barbara, but the route was crucial.
If you just want to get there fast, Highway 101 is the way, but many friends told us to take Highway 1.
They said it’s because the most incredible scenery unfolds along that route.
Once told that, with my inherent wanderlust, there was no way I could resist, so we headed for Santa Barbara along the coast.
The scenery was indeed spectacular, strongly reminding me of my California tour three and a half years ago.
Watching the sunset over the Pacific Ocean along the way, we pushed ourselves a little further, and that’s when it suddenly appeared.
"ROAD CLOSED"
I couldn't believe my eyes.
A fence completely blocked our path.
According to what we heard, the road had been buried by a collapse during heavy rains the year before last and hadn't been repaired yet, so we couldn't pass.
So, should we turn back?
Going back the same way... I don't really like doing that.
Okay.
We’ll have to go over the mountains, but let's take a detour.
It’s a funny story now, but that narrow, winding road that seemed to graze a U.S. military base was full of thrills.
After resting in a town along the way, we headed for Santa Barbara the next day, and then on to Los Angeles.
Santa Barbara.
That’s the town where the former factory of the brand we deeply respect, Chris King, was located.
Yes, it’s a town we couldn't just pass through.
Times change, and so the factory where Chris King had been making the world's best products since back then has transformed into a delicious and lovely bakery.
The last photo is the former King factory.
I tried to look for some remnants of it, but I couldn't really find any.
But I think that’s very American, too.
The site of a former machinery factory turns into a bakery while keeping the building intact.
You don't hear about that happening much in Japan, do you?
The factory, which must have been quite large, had been partitioned inside and housed many small shops.
It’s wonderful how they continue to use what already exists so as not to drastically change the townscape.
After filling our stomachs with bread, we headed for Los Angeles, a massive city with the second-largest population in the U.S., and were baptized by heavy traffic the moment we got close.
Los Angeles is a city with a very high rate of car usage even by American standards.
It’s only natural, I suppose.
What we aimed for, braving the kind of traffic jams I hate more than almost anything in life, was a single bicycle shop.
The staff are cheerful and helpful, and the customers love cycling dearly. The space created by the mutual respect between the two was incredibly comfortable.
Perhaps an aura of wanting to ride a bike was leaking out while I was looking around the shop, because the owner, Kyle, invited me for a ride the next morning.
Of course, I had no reason to refuse.
But as we talked, I was a bit skeptical.
He said it was a trail we could reach by bike from the shop, and the whole trip would take about two hours.
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This is the big city of Los Angeles.
A trail you can ride to.
Well, I had completely underestimated it, thinking it wouldn't be much.
But what we found at our destination was a magnificent trail.
For a body stiffened by driving fatigue, it wasn't comfortable—it was actually a bit tough.
Riding above the morning commute rush is quite a unique feeling.
After riding for two solid hours and returning to the shop, it was time to open up.
Even if the country is different, the things we do aren't all that different, which comes as a relief.
After this, we went through our own route.
We visited the Cub House.
We visited SWRVE.
We visited a bike shop that lends vintage bicycles to movie studios.
We visited a massive bike shop.
We were moving around intently from morning till night.
Thanks to that, I’d crash as soon as I got back to the hotel, and the final day of the tour arrived in a flash.
On this day, we moved around in the morning and went for a ride in the evening.
A proper ride.
This was the ride I was looking forward to most on this tour.
We traveled by car from Los Angeles, and this was our transport vehicle.
Heh heh, notice anything?
It’s been two years since I last rode with him, and my heart was pounding.
It's always the case that you can find incredible trails just by driving a little way.
This time, I was once again impressed by their attitude toward having fun.
Even long climbs went by surprisingly quickly while chatting.
And if they find a place to play, they play it to the fullest.
There's absolutely none of that talk about what kind of bike it is, what the clothes are, or "I haven't ridden in a while..."
You just enjoy yourself to the fullest extent that you can at that moment.
I swore to the sunset that I would become like that too, and this tour came to a close.
Although the period was only one week, it was a very substantial trip.
I still haven't outputted everything, so I hope to share more with you as opportunities arise.
Well, things are going to get interesting!!
Stay tuned.