Half-fast cycling at full-throttle
2005-12-26
When Don Morton took to Tokyo's streets six years ago he didn't expect to become a mob Don. That's because he prefers a bike bag to a gangster's cello case and is more than mere Mafioso. He's the man behind the cyclists of Don's Half-Fast Flash-Mob.
"Normally when you get a certain age like me you have to use it or lose it," says Morton, 60. "Cycling is a really nice way to use it."
It's not so much this Don's two-wheeled weapon of choice that earns him respect. It's how he wields it to carve routes out of the cityscape for the mob to follow. He has whacked the notion that Tokyo streets can't be navigated and conquered turf as a mob connection to fun-filled workouts that explore some of the city's best-kept cycling secrets.
Morton insists his cycling mob is not a club, and cringes at advice from the clueless to make it a business. "It's a natural thing," he says, "that started because it needed to. I decided that whether anybody else wanted to go, I'd go every weekend."
What the film critic started after nearly two decades in Japan was to pen a couple of articles for Metropolis magazine about scenic cycling routes he mapped out which sidestep city traffic. "The response was good, so I decided to open it up." Soon, the U.S. Embassy asked him to lead a few rides and things just shifted into high gear, he says. (Independent filmmakers even tagged along to make a documentary about the excursions.) It wasn't long before Don's Half-Fast Flash-Mob Urban Weekend Bicycle Rides was born.
These days, at least 15 of the 200 riders on the mob's e-mailing list show up for 11 a.m. Saturday and Sunday rides. (Details about the meets are e-mailed a day or two in advance.) About a third are Japanese and as many female, causing Morton to boasts that now, "We're a United Nations, with riders from Russia, New Zealand, Quebec, Brazil ..." The list goes on.
The mob is open to just about anyone - especially the inexperienced. Morton stresses the "half-fast" in the group's name with a joking nod to another adjective it may sound like when repeated quickly three times. The main requirements are a bike of any ilk, helmet, spare inner tube and tire-repair kit, and to "leave the iPod at home."
Dons Half-Fast Flash-Mob
"We are non-competitive athletes," he says, adding that beer and fun are also high on the group's priority list. "We only go as fast as the slowest person. You're not expected to be a professional bicycle racer but you are expected to stay at about 20 kph - and improve. We'll wait the first couple of times for new riders."
Participants come from all walks of life for rides that can range from 30- to 50- kilometers long or even more. What they have in common is a desire to cycle, socialize and see more of the city than most thought possible by saddle.
"Even the Odaiba ride," Morton says of one of the group's regular routes, "will show people more of Tokyo than they knew existed." He adds that trips often dispel "subway mentality" misconceptions about Tokyo topography: "We'll take off from Roppongi Hills, get to the bay and people say, 'we're here already?' They don't realize the city's not really that big."
Riders get more than just a spatial reality check about their fair city. They roll past nearby rice paddies, see history unfold in a tapestry of varying architectures and learn that great parks, rivers and beaches are just a bike ride away, says Peter Fuchs, 50.
The financial consultant from Copenhagen joined the mob just over a year ago. He insists that: "If you're a Tokyoite that's only been to the office and home you'll find this is an incredible and funky way to get to know this dynamic city."
The mob has three regular circuits that all start from Roppongi Hills. They include a 30-km cruise to Haneda via Tokyo bay and Shinagawa before returning through Shibaura. Another skirts Tsukiji on the way to Odaiba where riders sip a cold one or two to the sound of Hawaiian reggae at a beachside pub before completing the 35-km journey by way of Ginza and the Imperial Palace.
Morton's favorite is a 55-km jaunt that spans Ochanomizu, Ueno Park and Nishi Nippori all the way too the Arakawa River. It follows the river a ways before returning via Odaiba. "The first 15 km is a warm up then we stop for beer," he says of his undisputed No. 2 passion. "The second leg is the aerobic leg where we get to our maximum speed and stay there for about 20 minutes. Sometimes we take extra loops for lengthier rides."
The mob is also not afraid to escape the big city. About once a month they slip away by train or ferry for longer rides. These include an hour train ride - with bike bags in tow - to the bucolic foothills of Ome. "It's a little up hill," Morton admits, "but what goes up must come down."
Another regular getaway involves a ferry ride to Oshima island, an overnight stay and morning ride before lunch, hitting a local onsen and catching the ferry back in time for a breathtaking view of Mount Fuji, weather permitting. The group also meets monthly at a local pub to carouse, reminisce about previous rides and plan new ones.
"It's a good social thing to do," Morton says of the whole affair. "After a while you get to the point where if it's a nice day and you're not outside and sweating a little you don't feel right."
To request info about Don's Half-Fast Flash-Mob Urban Weekend Bicycle Rides e-mail: halffastcycling@hotmail.com. An access map to the Roppongi area where the mob gathers for weekend rides is at: http://www.kirin.co.jp/brands/HL/shop/index.html. Links to Metropolis magazine articles that outline two of the Don's routes are: here and here.
