Bike now pain later (part 1)

I recorded this video about ten years ago. I went on a few more bike rides since this one, but I’m not an expert in any way. I just happen to appreciate nice bikes (mine is a custom track frame that I designed myself), and the challenge that a long-ish rides represents, as long as it’s not too extreme.

I see myself as an “enthusiast commuter” more than a cyclist. I don’t know if that helps understanding where I stand on the spectrum, but I’m way more interested in urban cycling infrastructure developments than in any major cycling competition.

Some quick research lead me to discover that Taiwan could be the cycling capital of Asia. Not having a plan for the next couple of weeks pushed me to go on a short bike adventure, just to see what it’s like, with my own eyes and my own legs.

Among the many routes Taiwan has to offer, I decided to ride a small portion of the Taiwan Cycling Route 1 on the east of the island, also known as Highway 9, from north to south. The start and finish of my ride would only be decided by the places where I can pick up and drop off a bike.

The easiest way to rent a bike is to go with Giant, a well-known company from Taiwan itself. They have plenty of shops all along Route 1, and you can choose where you pick up and where you want to drop off your bike. Their website isn’t translated in english but use whatever translation your browser offers and you’re good to go. I picked mine up in Hualien, and would drop it off in Taitung, 171km further away.

There are many ways to ride this distance, but taking everything into account (my previous experience in multi-day rides, my current physical fitness, where guesthouses or hotels are located along the way…), three days seemed like the right split. I know there’s a younger and fitter (and more ambitious) version of myself that could do it in two, but I prefered playing it safe, and average about 60km/day, for three days straight.

Once you have the bike rented out and the guesthouses booked, you just… start pedaling. There’s nothing like a starting line or a crowd to cheer you up at km0. You just get on the bike and start. There might be expectations around the start of such a trip being a big deal, but it’s as uneventful as it can get.

The landscape along the road is very quiet, and very green. I was surrounded by mountains on both sides of the road. Highway 9 is located in the valley between two low mountains ranges, protecting you from the wind coming from the coast (I believe coastlines are always windier than flat lands, but I can be completely wrong here). This is one of the reasons why I picked Highway 9 over Highway 11, on the coast.

The weather was a cool 16 degrees celsius, mostly cloudy. This was very close to ideal conditions, minus the rain after my first coffee stop. “Not too hot, not too cold, and not too sunny” is how I would describe the ideal weather for cycling.

Overall the first day was fairly easy to go through, even if my legs hurt a little, given that I haven’t done such a physical effort in a long time. My past experiences tell me that this type of pain doesn’t go away immediately, but it eventually does.

I safely make it to Ruisui, 66km away from my starting point. I’m the only customer in the guesthouse I booked for the night. The owner kindly uses the translation app on her smartphone to explain to me that restaurants close very soon, and that food delivery isn’t a thing here. She seems very sorry about that fact, and I tell her that’s totally fine.

I ride back to the center of the village to find an open 7-eleven close to the train station, and make it back to the guesthouse for my first night.

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