Jonathan Biddle – Made in Taiwan

Tag: Mountain Biking

  • Mountain Biking in the Snow

    Mountain Biking in the Snow

    Yes, it’s that time of the year that you get the obligatory ‘going mountain biking then head to the pub’ post.  But we know you love it, Michael!

    Dad and I headed over to Thetford Forest, which is usually a quick blast and great for blowing out the cobwebs after eating and drinking too much during the festive period.  However, this time, the melt water from the snow and ice settling nicely in the sand, and not an awful lot of human activity, meant the ground was muddy and waterlogged like I have never seen before.  Two hours of hard slog for me … not sure how my Dad was feeling at the end of it!

    This is how mountain bikes used to look.

    Some people better prepared than us.

    Naturally, Dad had a puncture in the middle of the most severe mud.  Here he is trying to find the hole.  Using CO2 in these conditions is always a risk, and again we ended up pulling the valve out of the tube as it froze.  Great.  At least we didn’t need to urinate on our own hand to release it (like one story I have heard!).

    Truly waterlogged

    Grinding paste.

    Playing with another camera app; 360 Panorama

    And an image taken with my ‘app du jour’, Instagram.  Mud, mud as far as the eye can see!

  • A Dirty Weekend in Hong Kong

    2010 was the Chinese Year of the Mountain Bike, starting it in style on two wheels in Hong Kong, taking in some of Taiwan’s best riding, and ending up recently with a new bike to call my own.  After proving the intra-Asian transport options over new year, I cashed-in some air miles that were burning a hole in my pocket and decided to fly to see Sam, plus Michael and Tanja before their wee one arrives on the scene.

    An ambitious two day itinerary was set for the riding; the Taimoshan trail only being pieced back together after seven months of trying to find it again after new year.  The weather held, and we were left with two lovely days of sunshine, eating, drinking and riding.  Intense, but just the thing to kick off a good Autumn of fun and frolics.  I am now in fact considering a week of mountain biking in New Zealand for Chinese New Year 2011.  Just need to book those flights!

    On the way to the ferry terminal – riding in HK is a different beast to Taiwan; no scooters ironically makes it less bike-friendly, and the boisterous buses were not pleasant riding companions.

    On the ferry out to Lantau island … makes for a pleasant change from riding for 35 minutes through Taipei traffic!

    Stopping for a photo at the infamous ‘Refrigerator’ rock – well framed, don’t you agree!

    The weather on the first day got to all of us – it was bloody hot and humid.  This didn’t seem to effect the fellow mountain bikers on the boat back, who scoffed at our meagre efforts; the higher proportion of bankers in the HK expat population definitely equates to more wankers.  Such is the order of things.

    Very happy to make it to 7-11 at the end of the ride … I have never drunk so much Gatorade for such a sustained period of time.

    Some more waiting around for the guys to finish work on Michael’s bike – some mechanicals that needed to be sorted out (and free replacement brakes, no less!).

    So, the end of Day 1 of riding … day 2 saw zero photos; we were too busy riding!  You can however see the photos from earlier in the year if you want to see what Taimoshan looks like.

    Hanging out with the ladies – was amazing to see Tanja, and Tony’s fiancee was in town to sort out wedding docs.

    Sunset over Kowloon.

    Obligatory shot of wires.

    Good luck next month guys!  It was simply wonderful to see you!

  • New Rig

    I love mountain biking.  It’s ‘my sport’.

    At 13 years old, I remember looking with fascination at my neighbour’s bike when I went round to feed the cats – a guy called Paul. Mountain biking seemed glamorous and Californian, and the shiny metal and the expensive parts no doubt contributed to my eventual selection of Industrial Design as a career. I don’t quite remember the turn of events, but somehow I was lucky enough to be bought that very bike – an 18 speed Holdsworth Montana, featuring first-generation Shimano Deore XT shifters and a mud-sucking U-Brake.  Clearly, it attracted my Dad too, as he picked up a trashed Saracen Tufftrax frame and built up his own bike.

    And so the riding started. Dad and I jaunted off along local lanes, up into the French Alps and all the way to the home of mountain biking in Marin, California.

    I upgraded that bike as far as I could, but managed to save up enough money at age 16 to buy myself an Orange Clockwork – featuring 21 speeds from Shimano XT II, Zoom components and tasty Dia-Comp cantilever brakes. That bike, finished in matte black with orange decals was my love affair for endless summers, and was the steed of choice for Britain’s amateur cross-country racers. Indeed, I still ride that bike when I return to the UK – it might even be appreciating in value, based on it’s retro parts.

    Then University happened, and while I did ride when I was home, I decided other things took priority while studying. It’s a shame, as there is no doubt that more riding in Scotland would have been fantastic, but you can’t have it all.

    It was landing in Taiwan that ignited the flame again. Home of global, high-end bike production, it was inevitable that I would buy something for exploring the hills. I ended up with a Giant NRS, finished in matte black again, and furnished with all the components that I could afford. Most of the guys I was riding with had various descriptions of NRS, and serious skill-building commenced. The rocks and roots and slippery, off-camber cornering call for a certain style of riding, and the NRS gave me a good start – and trip to hospital with a broken wrist. 80mm of travel initially did not fit with my philosophical ‘ideal’ of completely rigid bikes, but the terrain called for shock absorption – and starting off on rigid bikes probably helped my skills, vision and ability to pick lines.

    But 80mm was not enough. When the opportunity came along to pick up a Giant Trance 0 at cost (direct from the R&D Director of Giant, no less), I jumped at the offer. Decked in XTR and XT, and with a 100mm Fox fork it provided a great platform for more adventurous riding, and I soon upgraded the fork to an adjustable 100-140 Fox Talas unit. Serious fun.

    But the market for 4″ trail bikes was being usurped by competitors, finding a ‘sweet spot’ of 5″ bikes; companies like Santa Cruz refining bikes that really can ‘do it all’.

    And this is what I just bought myself.

    The arc of my story just delivered 140mm front and back. Full XTR. Fox Talas. 26.5 lb. This baby is going to form the basis of the next few years of entertainment for myself. It’s the bike way above my abilities, if the Trance wasn’t already.  It’s had several excursions into the hills and mountains, and getting better every ride.  What I am really looking forward to, though, is a weekend of mountain biking in HK in August … still some time to tune and fettle before I leave!

    Yum!

  • Stonedeer Trail 2

    Stonedeer Trail 2

    Well here it is folks; day three on our Taiwan mountain biking bender … the Stonedeer Trail (also known as Syakaro or 石鹿古道) .  The last time we rode the trail in 2007, it dished up a bewildering series of large landslides, leaving us ragged and exhausted by the end.  This time, we aimed to hit the trailhead early, and get the opening section of the ride cleared, ready for the tiring and dangerous hike-a-bike across the rock fields (and building up credit for the sublime singletrack descending).

    Logistics are the trickiest aspect of riding Stonedeer; you first need to get deep into the mountains of Hsinchu County, and then work out a way to get from there back to your car, or to Taipei (an option I would like to try next time).  Last time, we rented a van for the day to do the dirty work for us, but this year instead found a local willing to drive Mark’s car to the end of the trail.

    Enough with the car.  Kicking off from the trailhead, we slowly made our way up the long climb to the highest point on the trail, some 4km away.  Naturally, our memories all conveniently deleted the climb, and we huffed and puffed our way to the top – we did it in good time, however, and conditions were close to perfect.

    I don’t remember it being like this!

    Please stop taking photos.

    A sight for sore eyes – the saddle.  In my head this was the peak; but sadly there was a little more work to do yet.

    Breaking through the ‘saddle’ of the climb is always is always a good feeling, but in this case the architects that built this trail really knew what they were doing, drowning a gap in the trees in fabulous light, and signalling the start of the (mostly) downhill.  Time to munch on one more energy bar, strap down our shoes, clean our glasses, and hunker down for some of the finest mountain biking this island has to offer.  Yes, kilometres and kilometres of pristine single-track, divinely laid-out for us by the gods of mountain biking.

    You can even see Mark’s grin at speed.

    Pumpin’

    Yes, one more thumbs-up from Carlos, to the trail!

    But once again, we did not have it all our own way.  Time saved on the climb and opening sections were lost when we met the first of the bridges over one of the multiple streams and rivers.  Untreated wood, humidity, rain and the odd rock-fall meant they were in a sorry state of repair, and in stark contrast to the conditions from last time.  Each crossing took a group of us to pass the bikes from one side to the other, but this is the stuff that teams are made for, eh.

    Less than ideal conditions.

    Team building!

    I am sure there is a thumbs-up somewhere in the background.

    Some then whizzed across the scary suspension bridge…

    … and some walked it.  I don’t blame you , Mark.

    But the guys who rode in 2007 knew what was coming.  Landslides – and lots of them.  The condition of the bridges was not boding well, and really we had time to be making up time if we expected to get people to the airport in the evening.  So, with a hearts pumping from the steep drop to the river below, we started the first climb.  Thankfully, new ladders had been installed, which aided climbing to a large degree.  However, I did not really trust the steps when completely new, and I shudder to think of the consequences should the wood break, but never-the-less we made it to the top, bikes slung over our shoulders and eager to press-on.  Phew.

    Yes – that is the river down below!

    Our fears for the integrity of the rest of the trail were well-founded, but the trail-builders had been working hard in the last few years; despite the heavy rain of recent weeks, reasonably navigable tracks had been cut into the landsides, and bridges had been installed in a couple of places.  This made for a far more pleasant preparation to the final kilometres of singletrack!

    Contrast with the last attempt was stark, and welcome.  Last time saw us disassembling the bikes, descending straight down in two trips to gather wheels and frames, straight up the other side twice more, and reassembling the bikes on the other side.

    The final section of trail was as sublime as ever, and Mark locked-on to my back wheel and pushed me to the limit, the speeds getting ever higher.  His attempts to pass me through the (very attractive – but no time for photos this time!) glades of bamboo were repeatedly met with aggressive lines from yours-truly, but I had met my match that day, and an unforced error saw me sliding along the trail as I hit a helpfully-positioned, diagonally-orientated trunk of bamboo lying across the path.  I was exhausted, and Mark disappeared as my legs went into screen-saver mode.  Tired, sweaty, bloody, muddy and numb from nettles, we arrived at the end of the trail, grins on our faces, and triumphant.

    Bikes – intact.

    Bodies – mostly intact.

    Stonedeer, we salute you!

    Information

    Peace & Ride – Stonedeer Trail

    Forestry Information – Stonedeer Trail

    Stonedeer Map

  • Puli Mountain Biking

    Mark works it.

    Day two on our little adventure was supposed to have started by waking up in a tent, halfway up a mountain.  Sadly, that did not quite happen as planned, and instead we found ourselves in the tourist honeypot of Sun Moon Lake (although 日月潭 is actually a reservoir) staying overnight.  There were plenty of good hills in the local area to keep us entertained, so we asked around and made a bee-line for some trails near Shueli and Puli.

    Our fortune during the trip regarding mechanical issues with the bicycles (or the people for that matter) was not matched by the stamina of Mark’s van.  Frustratingly, we blew a tyre on the way out to the trailhead, and wasted a precious hour or two working out the best way to get it fixed.  All I can say is, at least it didn’t happen on the way back the previous day – the puncture’s vicinity to a tyre repair place and helpful policeman saved the day.

    Strike the standard ‘shit I have a puncture’ pose.

    Finding trails in Taiwan at the best of times is hard work, but vague instructions, poor maps and increasingly scary roads as we gained altitude did not really help proceedings.  No matter, we were happy to arrive at the forestry rangers station, and they pointed us up the hill, which seemed to have been marked with hiking association flags, heading off through the trees.  This was going to be a hike-a-bike climb, but some awesome, technical descending.  Our guess was, this was the first time that bikes had ever been on this trail.

    Don’t worry Mum, we didn’t ride down this section.

    Climbing up through the trees, we couldn’t resist spinning the bikes around every once in a while, and attacking the odd set of corners.  The guys that used to live in Taiwan were in there element here; it was like all the best bits from our regular Graveyard and Helens runs, all wrapped up into one run.  The disappointment of the morning was turning into a mild sense of amazement that we had found these trails – and when we couldn’t easily climb any more, we stuffed some food in our mouths, and started a wicked descent.

    So wicked, in fact, that in a moment of super-human skill, I overcooked it through a set of steep, off-camber rooted turns.  I knew several metres before the trail dropped that I needed to shed some speed, and I elegantly locked-up my wheels, sending me sliding across a field of roots and kindly leaving it to my head to do the final speed retardation.  With a tree.  Cracking sounds turned out to be my helmet splitting; my ego a little bruised, I packed up my Superman suit and kept riding.

    The descending begins…

    Observing progress

    Thumbs-up from Carlos!

    Picking lines through the trees.

    Single-track heaven.

    Emerging at the end – mostly unscathed!

    Considering this was his first time mountain biking, he looks like a natural cross-country racer, don’t you think?!

    Team Giant (and one Specialized) give their approval!

    So, day 2 dished up some surprises, but in some ways was the most memorable day (despite the bashed noggin!).  A 30 minute high-speed on-road descent to the bottom certainly did not hurt our moods one little bit, though our disk brakes were certainly screaming in pain.

    Information

    It’s a bit difficult to give much in the way of information, as we barely knew where we were … but here is a map for your viewing pleasure!

    Puli MTB

  • Nenggao Mountain Biking – 能高越嶺古道

    Nenggao Mountain Biking – 能高越嶺古道

    Riding the ridge of mountains that comprise the spine of Taiwan has long been an ambition of the myself and the riding group.  After some significant effort, Mark put together some days of riding; day 1 of the plan was to attack the infamous Nenggao trail system (能高越嶺古道), which was built by the Japanese in an attempt to control the unruly locals.  Comprising a day of climbing, an overnight camp, and a day of blissful high-speed descending, this was set to be an epic one.  We were joined by Taiwan mountain biking alumni, flying in from Shanghai, Hong Kong and – would you believe it – Mexico.  While several of us had bikes, the majority were going to be renting, or buying new rigs; luckily, we found a place north of Taipei run by Giant that was renting pretty decent machinery, and we were good to go.

    Staying overnight in a hot spring hotel near Renai (仁愛) , we mentally prepared by hanging out way past curfew in the hot tub, and quaffing hand-imported Patron ‘Añejo’ Tequila.  As the first results from the football World Cup beamed in Mr. Patron accompanied us, assisting in the respective celebrations and commiserations.

    Perhaps as a result of said Tequila, the day got off to a somewhat more leisurely start than we initially planned, but we were climbing up to the trail-head proper within no time.  The weeks of precipitation, namely the ‘Plum Rain‘, seemed to have receded in time for the ride, and we were climbing in cool, if humid, weather.

    Crossing the bridge one the way to the up, while the weather was still behaving.

    Negotiating one of the waterfalls – you can see how fragile the earth underneath is.

    One of the landside sections – just before we opted to turn around.

    Weeks of rain had clearly taken their toll, however, and large landslides blocked our path on several occasions.  Our steely resolve to press on to the camp ground was tested, when finally the heavens opened, breaking promises of safe conditions, and we opted to get the hell off the hill, as soon as we saw rivulets of water dragging rocks and debris down the landslide area.  It was not worth the significant risk, and we were all shivering insider our rain jackets, soaked in sweat, rain and humidity.

    So, off the mountain we went, and the six of us made a rapid bee-line for the trail-head, some six kilometres in the other direction.  The hours of climbing compressed into minutes of descending, naturally, but we were energised and warmed-up once more; it’s amazing what a little adrenalin can do.

    Greeting each other after a slightly hairy descent!

    Sweat, rain, relief.  In that order.

    Team photo. Thumbs-up from Carlos!

    Reaching the van, and caked in landslide, Craig found a pipe gushing water, and we took it in turns to wash the bikes and ourselves.  He maintains that the pipe was broken when he found it, but we feared a village was missing its evening shower as a result of our group cleansing activities.  One thing is for sure; we will be back in November, when the park officials have had some time to repair the trail, and the weather will hopefully be in our favour.

    Games with the water pipe …


    Information

    Map

    Enjoy!

  • Derelict Firing Range

    It was miserable weather up in the hills today.  Conditions were humid, rainy and chilly/hot in a way that only seems to happen around Taipei.  As a result of the extremely slippery conditions, Mark and I opted to take a different route.  We came across a derelict police firing range, and I obviously had to stop to take some photos … it’s been disused for some time, but you can still see its unique ‘patina’ of use, AKA bullet holes.  Not completely convinced it is a safe set-up for firing projectiles!

  • Springtime Mountain Biking

    Cloned Riding

    The cool weather during the week politely extended into the weekend, and I jumped at the opportunity to get out into the hills.  I was provided with wheels once more by Lance Armstrong’s shop, Mellow Johnnie’s, again with Ken and Sandra expertly guiding me on the trails (and in the post-ride tacos) … but sadly we were missing Tony on these excursions.

    We lined-up two days of riding; the first a two-hour drive out to Flat Rock Ranch near Comfort, and twenty five miles of high-intensity switch-backs and short, sharp climbs to numb both the brains and the legs.  Sandra is a former professional racer, so if she is feeling the pressure I know what I am riding is pretty serious.  I was determined to work off the calories consumed during the week, and I was pushing pretty hard the whole way, cramping up near the end.  Exhausting, exhilarating, and rounded off with ‘The Best Burger in Texas’; the images are still flashing in front of my eyes (the trails, and the burger).

    After the tough Saturday route, we opted for a shorter 18-miler on Sunday at Reimers Ranch.  Another private trail centre, this was more of a skills and finesse session, sporting multiple foot-high step-ups and steep drop-ins.  It took me a little while to really get the hang of the approach to these things; third gear seemed about right, with a firm lift on the bars, deft weight transfer, and finessing the rear wheel over the final inches.  With legs still reeling from the day before, I took it a little easier, and treated myself to tacos and cup cakes on my return to Austin.

    The amazing thing about these sets of trails is the quite insane number of turns, looping back and forth, as if penned by a slightly nervous five year-old.  Both of these ranches were privately-owned, and as a result the owners want to maximise the course length on the available terrain.  This is in contrast to the UK, where trails are usually old routes between settlements, and as a result, straight.  All I can say is that I would not be surprised if riders used to these trail centres are wicked at negotiating turns.

    Cacti – A tyre’s best friend.

    Confident over the rocks …


    Ooh – but a bit steeper than I expected!

    But smiles all round.

  • Hongmonay

    Mince Pies, mid-process.

    I had, in my thirty years, never been away from my village for Christmas, bar trips to family around the country. As adorable as that is, it was high time I flew the nest during the festive period.

    Thoughtfully, my sister agreed with this and timed delivery of a new addition to the family to coincide approximately with Chinese New Year. As a result, I instead decided to fly back for a visit in early February, leaving Christmas ominously without family. Eeek!

    There seem to be two distinct types of forriner in Taiwan; those that refuse to put any effort into celebration, and as a result sit around in a haze of depression as the Taiwanese population continues about their daily business; and those that band together to meet, cook, eat, drink and proclaim proudly how very jolly their Christmas was. I decided to jump two-feet-first into the second camp, and I am fortunate enough to have friends and flatmates that felt the same way.

    Rather than settle for your common-or-garden set of meals, we opted to go completely overboard, inviting about a dozen friends over for a Christmas Eve meal. This was to be followed up with an invite to even more friends for an evening ‘Desert Party’, no doubt washed down with some booze and Christmas cheer. And we hadn’t even got to planning Christmas Day yet.

    Planning, prep and purchasing for this set of events began about a week prior to the date. Served up with fresh Christmas decorations, a sober realisation dawned that this was not going to be as straightforward as we expected. Number one, single-handedly ferrying the food around Taipei is not easy; even with taxis. Second, while with some effort it was clear we were going to be able to get hold of American-style delicacies and comestibles, hunting down British ingredients was sadly not going to be a ‘cake-walk’.

    Exhibit-A: Mince Pies. No, they do not contain meat. Yes, apparently they used to. In the UK, complete packs of pies are sold, or the ‘mince’ is sold in jars for assembly in your own kitchen, and has been allowed to mature for a decent period of tim prior to sale. Try as I might, I could not find either; thus a resort to mince pie manufacture from ‘first principles’. This involved sourcing my own beef fat in place of suet (note to self; do not ever use a food processor to cut up beef fat – pink goo is not a pretty sight!), currents and sultanas. I decided to substitute in some cranberries and chopped-up figs, add plenty of booze and allow just under a week for maturing and soaking. While the pastry was a little hard on day one, I would proclaim these a success!


    Photo taken with my iPhone and the Tiltshift app … quite a fun way to get creative.

    Exhibit-B: Brussel Sprouts. This perennial favourite, and source of greenhouse gasses, is clearly not on the menu of the average Taipei resident. Understandable, perhaps, but a bit disappointing. Luckily, teams of British people were scouring the city, and tracked down a tray of the little gas-bombs in one of the hotel delicatessens – absurdly expensive, completely overcooked, but just the thing to add a splash of colour to the table.

    Exhibit-C: Meat. I can proudly claim that I have never once had turkey on Christmas day; our family instead tends to go for a more traditional range of birds, such as duck or goose. This was clearly not going to fly with the American contingent, so we decided that while the larger Christmas Eve event should feature turkey and a shoulder of lamb, the Christmas Day meal was centred around a pair of ducks (still sporting heads and feet, as I discovered to my mild horror). Turkey was marinaded in beer, chilli and garlic for several days and was as good as I have ever had, lamb was not half bad and a world better than our previous attempt; and the ducks were juicy and flavourful, just lacking a little in the way of crispy skin that is so loved by everyone.

    Exhibit-D: Suedes, Turnips and Parsnips. Nada. No way. Couldn’t find ’em. A shame, but we subbed-in some great mashed pumpkin. Tensions were also raised over the method of roasting potatoes … of course you peel them! Get that duck fat in there! … I have a feeling no matter what we did, without Maris Pipers or King Edward potatoes, nothing was going to work very well. Never the less, very enjoyable, and a nice project for me the next time we have a big meal.

    A small package also arrived from my mother in the weeks approaching Christmas. Christmas cake(nobody ever eats it anyway, so the bite-size portion was perfect), Christmas pudding (okay, I admit she sent it one year previously! But it keeps, right?), various nuts and a pack of decorations. Add to this the 3Kg bag of almonds from Tasha for our family tradition of toasted nuts, and iTunes access to a completely overpriced ‘Nine Lessons in Carols’ from the King College Chapel Choir, and we were set.


    Christmas Eve. 4pm. Our family members over the globe tune in to Radio 4’s broadcast of Nine Lessons in Carols, and take a moment to think of each other. Our tradition of roasting almonds is one of my favourite aspects of Christmas, and I believe it comes from my Mother’s expat roots in Spain.

    Two full days of preparation and effort from all of us paid off handsomely. We had a splendid meal with some great friends, and a lovely time meeting some new people at the desert party. Indeed, I felt I did my bit when I sent off a British Graphic Artist resident in Taipei with a pack of Mince Pies and cakes for a day when he had to work. A very satisfying Merry Christmas indeed.


    Heroic efforts from the guys made for a great time. Effort in = rewards out x 2.

    Armando does his bit.

    Devoured in seconds, each Christmas Pie took me a total of about fifteen minutes to make … all worth it!

    Checking progress …






    Mmmm.


    Dawn preps the stuffing.


    Food porn.


    Resource-allocation of ovens and hobs drew ridicule … but it worked!


    Birds of a feather.


    People arrive for the desert party.


    Chefs and cheffetes.


    Abe and Tasha, sitzing in a tree!








    Party photos. We were treated to three splendid bottles of high quality scotch Whisky; Highland Park from Orkney and both Bruichladdich (pronounced ‘Brook Laddie) Bowmore from Islay. Noel had given up drinking a few years ago, and we certainly offered a good home to them!


    Uncle Ken asleep on the couch for most of the party.


    A slightly more austere, but no less enjoyable, Christmas day.

    NYE in HK

    Phase 2 of the festive for me usually involves meeting up with good friends, and putting a fair amount of effort into traveling somewhere to celebrate it in some style. This year was no different, but for the first time in about half a decade (maybe more?) I did not reunite with Phil for the bells. Perhaps next year!

    Instead, a weekend invasion of Hong Kong was planned. This gave me the chance to meet up once again with Michael and Tanja (and new addition to the house, Moc Moc), and see Sam in his new natural environment. With more than a little pressure, I also persuaded Sam to finally complete construction of his new mountain bike, and thus the plans were set for a great weekend of wining, dining, hiking and biking in Hong Kong.


    The ubiquitous red plastic ‘lanterns’ found floating above Hong Kong’s market stalls.


    Raindrops keep falling on my head.



    Cracking up!


    Darkness & Light.


    Hard at work.


    Tramlines.


    Love Handles.


    Stolen moments.


    Gates Foundation.


    Goes like a Singer.


    Flying in formation.


    Broom broom.

    I have always been quite a fan of Hong Kong, as you may have guessed. It’s little nods to the UK, combination of high-density quasi-chaos, international atmosphere, and easy access to nature has always been a draw, and each trip I take there sees me finding a different angle through which to appreciate it. This time, I was armed with mountain bike and charged with a mission to enjoy a good new year.

    And so I did. After a clumsy session of assembling my bike on the balcony while catching up with Michael over a beer, the first port-of-call was to meet with Sam at the Bloomberg offices in Central. Michael, Tanja and I spent a happy hour wandering around the studios, prodding Sam with questions about the interior design, software systems, HR policy and protocols for filming a TV show that is beamed across the world. The level of care poured into every aspect of the business was an inspiration, and left us jealous / inspired for the return to our respective offices the following Monday.

    A happy day spent wandering the lanes of HK island, and a quick visit to Michael’s friend of
    f=”http://www.voidwatches.com/”>Void watches fame (yes I did buy one, in white) meant we were well prepared for a feeding session to see in the bells later on that evening. Hosted by a new open ‘creative space’ initiative, we were surrounded by an interesting array of people, spanning fashion design, product and print – indeed the girl running her own printing business claimed to be heading to the North Pole in the new year, greatly impressing Michael and myself, and encouraging us to resolve to do something equally adventurous (and preposterous-sounding) at the earliest opportunity. Champagne flowed, and we saw in the new year drinking our way through the remnants of the bottles on the street.


    Candlelight.


    Streetlife.


    Loitering.


    Towering above Hong Kong.


    The Late Show.

    The first day of 2010 saw a change of pace, and a mildly hazy hike up into the hills surrounding Taimo Mountain. A truckload of monkeys, an inspection of WWII fortifications and a mutual fondling of each others’ cameras and it was back to HK island to meet one of Michael’s ex-colleagues from ideo Shanghai. Great food, German beer served out of porcelain bowls, and another desert session in the street; not a bad beginning of the end for 2009.


    Monkeying around.


    View back towards the city.


    Amusing icons.


    WWII fortifications.


    Colour combinations on storm covers.

    With hours to spare, Sam got his wheels laced up, and we met at the Lamma Island ferry terminal to jump into buses for the run up to Taimo Mountain – not quite the most efficient route, but it worked. We joined Hector (Head Chef of the Marriot Hotel, no less) and the guys from the Hong Kong Mountain Bike Association for a day in the hills. Michael risked it with his old wheels from Taiwan, and we set off into the clouds. It’s no surprise that the trails were highly reminiscent of Taiwan, but still the first kilometre or so had us all sliding around in extremely slippery conditions. The trails did open up as we approached the summit, however, and we were treated to a fantastic descent down a ridge, hugging the contours – truly memorable. The rest of the ride was a decent mixed bag of trails and conditions, and I came away rather taken with the riding in Hong Kong. I aim to be back!


    Waiting for the bus.


    Awesome trails.


    Team HK.


    Preparing to jump.


    Landing zone.


    New bike. New bike.


    Quite jealous … my wallet starts quivering!

    Packing the bike up was marginally more straightforward than the arrival leg, but it was still amusing to squeeze the hilariously over-sized case into the taxi. Cathay Pacific really delivered the goods (literally), allowing me to use my 30kg weight limit to full effect in both directions with no extra charges. When I get my road bike sorted, I aim to see where else I can head to in the Asia region.

    Happy New Decade!


    …. and back to Taiwan!

    The story of a British Industrial Designer in Taiwan…

  • Mountain Biking Austin


    Myself, Tony, Ken and Sandra … ready to roll!

    I am almost positive that if I did ever end up moving to Austin, my waist line would do one of two things, depending on a series of decisions I would need to make. These decisions would essentially revolve around two of the central tenets of Austin culture; high-intensity sport, and high-calorie Texmex food. Until the middle weekend in Austin, I had done a fantastic job at tackling the second of the two pillars, but an astoundingly poor job of moving the centre of gravity (literally and figuratively) the other way.

    Luckily, Ken (my big boss), Sandra (big boss’ wife, and former pro-mountain biker) and Tony (shave-legged roadie compatriot from the Austin design team) were on hand to lead me round a few of the best trails in and around Austin; quite literally on a large portion of the population’s doorsteps.

    I spent the week sorting a bike out, eventually opting for a 5″ Trek Fuel EX8 from Mellow Johnnie’s bike shop – owned by Lance Armstrong no less. I also took the opportunity to top-up on bike kit and clothing that tends to be more expensive or simply unavailable in my size back on the ROC.


    Trek Fuel Ex8

    We tackled the Green Belt the first day, escaping the rain just as we returned to the cars (the best type of rain?). It mixed in highly technical rocky sections that were reminiscent of our own ‘Graveyard’ run, but with long flat-out sections where it was possible to stretch your legs in ways impossible in Taiwan. Tony is pretty bleeding fit, and we laid down some rubber for the final kilometres, with Sandra hot on our tail whooping encouragement and tips at us sweaty guys in the engine room at the front. Texmex perfectly filled the hole left by the early start and the exertion.


    Pioneer spirit


    I was pretty impressed with the Trek, both up hill and down dale.


    It was certainly much tighter than the average rental bike, and seemed to have similar responses to my Giant Trance.


    Tony, rocking a similar vintage bike to the one I ride back home.


    Sandra – a wolf in sheep’s clothing. Wonderful to ride with!


    Tony and I both flatted on the same rock step, within seconds of each other. As ever, the CO2 cartridges managed to spray a mixture of ice and condensed water everywhere except into the tube.


    Trail vision


    Hanging on, back up the hill


    Tony – I want to see you with some better equipment next time – bloody impressive skills!

    The clouds returned the next day, so we opted to head a little further afield to trails that are a little more tolerant of erosion than the downtown trails. Indeed, I was quite impressed to see how protective people were of the trails; riding in the wet was positively anti-social. Not quite sure that would be feasible in the UK. Ending up at Mule Shoe (doesn’t that just sound so Texan?) and passing by banks of hill-top haciendas, the trail begins by weaving through an intricate series of tracks with entertainingly technical ups and downs. We managed to get in a few kilometres before the heavens well and truly opened once more, and we got thoroughly dumped on. I was like a pig in shit, but we opted to turn back, since flash flooding is a very real risk.

    So, and early exit, but a great experience and two days of excellent riding. Hopefully, I will be back to finish the rest of that Mule Shoe trail some day. I hope I also proved that the opposite and opposing forces of mountain biking and Texmex may some day find a happy balancing point.


    Single track heaven …


    … and some more mechanical hell. Typically – just as the downpour begins.


    Mud, glorious mud.


    Water splash 1


    Water splash 2


    Rain stops play – and Ken has rather a nice toy!


    Sandra and I enjoy drying off a little


    While I am left with the distinct memory that Austin is wet and rainy!

    The story of a British Industrial Designer in Taiwan…