FROM THE SOURCE

FROM THE SOURCE

Corey Kubber  //  Entrepreneur. Innovator. Visionary. Philanthropist.
Interests include Social Media, Technology & Science, Health, Food, Photography, Entertainment, Travel, Business

Jul 9 / 7:53am

A quick end to an exciting beginning...

So I really need to start writing these on a daily basis. Too many things happen, and then I can't decide what to write about. Ahh!

The title to this this blog entry is actually not in reference to how soon my dream of writing blogs everyday ended. In fact, it is about my adventure from this past weekend. My boss agreed to give me a day or two off, and he was still allowing me to use his bike.

SO I set off on Saturday morning from Tsukuba, Ibaraki, intending to travel more than 200 miles in 3 days. WOW! I can't believe I was actually going to go through with that! "WAS" is the key word there. I was finally done psyching myself up for the pretty mountains, lakes and waterfalls in Nikko, Tochigi Prefecture. I woke up bright and early, and set out with water bottle and map in hand. It was Saturday morning, and I was already pedaling away, more than ready to take on the many rice fields and hills on the way to Nikko. Nothing could stop me!

*SCA-CHING-SCA-CHING* Mile 5: I hear a strange noise. *SCA-CHING-SCA-CHING*
"Please don't be what I think it is..."

I looked back- "DAMN!" It's a flat tire. And only on mile 5! What luck! I wasn't meant to go on this trip- at least not this weekend. But wait!!! I still have a patches and even a spare! I'm saved!

Now I have never changed a wheel before, not that I thought it was necessary to have prior experience, but it's not very comforting knowing you have a bag full of tools, when you don't know what to use them for. But I was determined, and after at least a good hour and a half of fidgeting around, and two failed attempts at patching the hole, and another failed attempt at using the wrong size tire (given to me by the guy in the bike shop), I finally had finished adding the extra tire that my boss gave me. Good thing I had two spares. The problem was that it was soooo old, that I couldn't get the cap off of the air valve! It was corroded shut! But with the help of a flathead screwdriver and my teeth, I finally got it off :) Thank god for the pump I picked up the day before.

So I was off again, with a brand new, err, old-new tire! NOW, nothing could stop me!

Mile 12: What is wrong with my stomach? I feel like I had plenty of carbs for energy; nothing to upset my stomach. BUT then why do I feel like I'm going to puke!

I went to Micky D's to rest, and then it hit me. After leaving my home, I stopped by a different McDonald's to grab an egg breakfast burrito. In America, I don't anything from that place, but I figured all food is healthier in Japan...I guess I was wrong. So after an hour with my head down on a table, the queasiness finally went away, and I was back on the road again! I should have taken a hint though- too much bad luck already at the beginning of my trip could only mean there would be more to come...

In the area I was traveling, I was surrounded by large hills and vast fields of rice. I guess in some areas at the bottoms of the hills, there was a buildup of mud. Or so I soon found out. Even though it's very difficult to climb tall hills, going down is so much fun that I don't even care. Also note that I was traveling on a sidewalk that ran parallel to a pretty empty highway, so it could easily be mistaken for just a main road.

Mile 26: Accelerating down one of the larger hills, I probably reached about 30mph, and decided to slow down. I was just beginning to slowly brake when I noticed the mud at the bottom. It looked dry, but still appeared as if it could be posing a bit of an obstacle, so I tried to brake a little faster without overheating the breaks- too late. With little time to react, I reached the mud, and immediately realized 3 things: the mud was in fact very wet, the mud was deep, and I was definitely going to crash. I instantly lost control of the bike, and drifted sideways. At the end of the mud I curved off to to the left, towards the road. Fortunately, or maybe unfortunately (depending on how you look at it), there were some bushes bordering the road and sidewalk, which were surrounded by a concrete curb, about 8 inches high. I hit the curb dead on. The front tire exploded, the front wheel frame bent back into the main frame and pedals, the back brakes locked up, the outer gear disc (?) bent in half, and I flew over the top of the bike, hitting the bushes first and then the road.

I guess the bicycle wasn't completely totaled, but it sure was rendered useless. As for me, I am very lucky to be safe and uninjured. Well, mostly. If not for the bushes breaking my impact, I would have flown much further and probably into oncoming traffic. Most likely, I would have also landed with my head slamming on the ground. Instead, I only suffered some cuts and scrapes on my arms and legs, and even though I still fell into the road, I was able to get out of the road just before the cars came (a good thing since the road curves, and they wouldn't have seen me).

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The path to my doom...it's pretty difficult to tell how steep it is by looking at the picture, so just trust me that it was steep enough..
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The (un)grand finale.

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If you look at the frame that holds the front wheel, you can see that its bent like 45 degrees back from where it should be, pushing the wheel into the rest of the frame and the pedals.

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My living air bag

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Well, 26 miles into my journey, I am now hurting, badly sunburned, covered in mud (and a little blood), and most importantly, without any mode of transportation. So, what to do? I first called Nagao Sensei, to reluctantly inform him of the fate of his bike and also my journey. :( His wife was using the car, so he was unable to come pick me up- a good thing I suppose, since I would have felt even more terrible. He suggested I walk back to the 7-11 about a half-mile back, and ask them to call a taxi for me. It would cost more than 10,000 Yen- "So that's...ahhh! More than $100?!?!" That's right. Even though I didn't even make it to my destination, I was going to have to spend more money than I was planning on spending for the whole weekend! I was not a happy camper.

So in the 95 degree humidity, I started walking back up the hill with the bike over my shoulders. It would have been a bit easier, if not for the bag I had tied to the bike. A disgruntled mess, I finally made it back to the 7-11. BUT I didn't go inside. Why? I couldn't get over that I was going to have to spend so much money on a taxi, when I didn't even accomplish anything. I was brainstorming to myself, trying to decide if it was worth it to walk and then call a taxi, to save some money, but I figured at any pace, it would hardly help.

During my brainstorming- or more accurately, braindeadness- I saw a man pull up to the 7-11 and go inside. I thought- why not? When he came back outside, I attempted (in my broken Japanese) to ask him where he was going, to explain my bicycle accident and situation, and ask for a ride (while showing him my wallet and money lol). I'm not sure how much he understood, but he agreed, and told me to throw my muddy bicycle in the back of his SUV.

He appeared to be about 26 years old. I managed to work up the courage to test my Japanese during the long ride. I found out he was coming from his job, which was in the area, although I don't think he was going home (I didn't understand- something about getting off of work early and doing something?). I also learned (not surprisingly in Japan) that he is a Red Sox fan woot! We also talked about Japanese and American TV shows. Ironically, I knew more about Japanese shows, and he knew more about American series! :P

Soon after we started driving, I called Nagao Sensei, and asked him to explain the situation to make sure there was no confusion, and I realized that this man was actually not going to the same place as me. In fact, he now was going a bit far off of his path, but there was nothing I could really say at this point. He agreed to take me to the bike shop, where I would meet my boss. After finally arriving, I told him I was ok now, and that he could go. I tried to convey as much as possible how thankful I was (ie bowing repeatedly with "Doomo arigatoo gozaimasu!" Among other things.) And I also tried to give him 2,000 Yen, about the equivalent of $20. He kept saying, "No, no, it's ok. It's ok," but I eventually, he took just one of the 1,000 Yen bills from me. I guess it put my conscience at ease at least a little. I asked him for his phone number before leaving. I don't know what I intend to do with it, but at least if I ever want to thank him again, I can. I said goodbye, he got back into his SUV, and I walked over to the entrance of the bike shop. However, there was still one more thing I was forgetting...

Just before he pulled away, I managed to run back over to where he was parked, and pulled out my camera. Of course I had to take a picture to remember him! Besides, now I get to show you guys the person who helped me! :)

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The awesome guy who helped me. And yes, he actually got out of the car for the picture. ^_^

After all this, the day was still far from over. Nagao Sensei brought me back to his home to shower and relax. He and his wife both were very hospitable, and I felt very at home. His son is very kawaii! I think he is 8 years old. Their daughter was coincidentally away from home for the first time ever, spending the night at a school sleep over with her kindergarten class. Mrs. Nagao prepared me several oisii Japanese snacks, mugi cha (roasted barley tea), and some ice cream. We spent many hours talking about America, Japan, food, Japanese dramas (again lol), and life. And for the second time in my life, I experienced another earthquake- while I was at their home. Thankfully, the earthquake wasn't severe, but it definitely shook the house up a bit. But a while afterwards, they invited me out for dinner. We went to a Chinese restaurant. Somehow I was able to recall some of the little Chinese I know, and I taught them a little while we were waiting for dinner. We discussed all of the similarities between Chinese and Japanese, and it was pretty interesting.

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The food just kept on coming...
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And seemed to never stop...

Finally, after a ton of food, a few beers and some rice wine, we decided it was time to go. I was soooo stuffed! The food was all delicious! Oisikatta desu nee! ^_^ Apparently my boss felt bad that I hadn't been eating enough food since I'm a poor student (lol), so he wanted to make sure I was extra full! He is too nice!

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My boss and his family (minus his daughter who was at a kindergarten event)

All in all, it was one hell of a day, and I'm still trying to figure out if it all really happened during the same day. Another adventure in Japan. Another happy memory. And still more to come...
Filed under  //  Japan   Japanese   accident   adventure   biking   food Chinese   hitchhiking   ibaraki   travel   tsukuba   vacation