The rainy season has been dragging on late this year. Usually, by this time, the rainy season would have ended and the hot summer would have already arrived.
The weather forecasts have been so uncertain lately about whether or not it would rain, so I decided to just go for a light gravel ride on my day off recently without worrying about the weather! (The full details for the Japanese edition of Grinduro are finally starting to emerge, too!)
It was a short ride that also served as a warm-up for two people ahead of the OMM BIKE event happening today and tomorrow. By the way, the bike I was curious about is one we successfully delivered recently. I'm sure it's tearing things up in Hakuba as we speak. I’d like to introduce this bike properly another time, so I’ll save the excitement for then.
Once you head into the lush, overgrown gravel paths, you stop worrying so much about the rain. That said, it’s slippery, so you have to keep your eyes on the road. There is something truly special about the feeling of successfully tracing the line you envisioned.
It looks like it will still be a while before the rainy season ends, but a weekend like this reminds me that these kinds of rides aren't so bad either. My thoughts are with everyone in Hakuba. Good luck to everyone at OMM LITE / BIKE!
