It was March 14th of last year when I went for a ride around Seto, Toyota, and Toki with a friend who had borrowed a road bike from Keita-san of Aliba. Exactly one year later, this past March 13th was his first ride after taking delivery of his brand new BREADWINNER CYCLES A-Road.
He already led a cycling lifestyle, tearing up the trails on his beloved SURLY Grappler and commuting to work on his track bike, but he had long been interested in road bikes, wondering if they might allow him to travel further and faster to see more places.
So last year, we decided he should give a road bike a try, and he borrowed one from Keita-san, who I often go riding with on my days off. On the day we finished riding a route I frequently take on my solo weekend rides—connecting quiet mountain roads—he made up his mind to buy a road bike. After much deliberation, he settled on this BREADWINNER CYCLES A-ROAD.
Since it's a handmade bike, it naturally took some time to arrive, but we had planned to go for a ride as soon as he picked it up. It was pure coincidence that it fell on March 13th, almost exactly one year after our first ride together.
We headed to Asuke in Toyota City for our first ride. We started in Korankei, famous for its autumn leaves, and followed the GCR ASUKE route we know well, passing through Shitara and Tsukude, with a stop for lunch at @koi_site_uchushonen_cafe. This was the same route we took for our Golden Week ride three years ago.
It’s a route that requires a solid effort to climb in the first half, followed by a pleasant, continuous descent in the second half.
Soon after we started, we encountered Otoga Pass, one of the longest in the Nagoya area, stretching over 10km. The grade isn’t extremely steep, but the steady, relentless climb gradually saps your energy. Once you reach the top, there’s a short descent before you start climbing again. A while later, we arrived at Lake Dando, the highest point on this route. We really wanted to take a leisurely break and enjoy the lakeside scenery, but it was so cold that we kept the break brief and pressed on.
The descent from there is absolutely exhilarating—it’s so good that I didn't even want to stop pedaling, which is why there are no photos from that stretch. Haha.
After a decent descent, we hit National Route 473. From there, we started climbing again, heading toward Mikawa Lake via Prefectural Road 35, passing by Narisawa Falls. This climb isn't long, but it’s steep enough to be tough. For some reason, out of sheer stubbornness, neither of us dropped into the inner chainring, and we managed to grind our way to the top. (I’m not taking any advice on whether we should have just used the inner ring—it was purely a matter of pride. Haha.)
Once we made it over that, it was a relief. While there were a few ups and downs, the rest of the way to the finish was mostly flat or downhill. Even though we hadn't quite reached the halfway point in terms of distance. Haha.
We spent quite a while at lunch at "Koishite Uchu Shonen Cafe" (quite the memorable name). I had the motsu miso-nikomi curry, and cheesecake for dessert. My vocabulary is limited, so I’m sorry to sound repetitive, but both were delicious! The exterior walls of the shop, decorated with illustrations by @yoshi_47, are just as striking as the name! Also, there’s an RC car track right next to the parking lot! If you're ever in the Tsukude area, I highly recommend checking it out.
We lingered here for quite a while, but from here on out, it was pure reward—no more suffering. The roads along the shore of Mikawa Lake and the long stretch along the Tomoe River were incredible. If the weather had been better, the views would have been even nicer, but I'll leave that to look forward to next time.
When we got back to Asuke, I planned to buy a lucky charm at Asuke Hachiman-gu, but we missed the business hours. After a prayer and some commemorative photos, we reached the finish safely.
I knew he was athletic to begin with, but seeing it for myself was impressive; he looked like a fish in water. It was also striking to see just how naturally and comfortably he handled the bike.
He’s definitely going to be visiting many more places from here on out. I’m very excited to see what kind of experiences he has next.
I’ll be introducing his BREADWINNER CYCLES A-ROAD in more detail later, so stay tuned!
