Riders: If you don't already have the following items, we recommend you consider looking for or borrowing them.
Helmet
Rain Gear (combini poncho is perfect!)
Bike seat padding (to cushion the bike seat; trust us when we say sore butts are not fun! DIY-padding is doable; think ¥100 store...)
Gloves (keeps blisters away; better bike handle grip, etc. Old winter gloves with fingers cut off should suffice.)
Sunscreen
Small waist pouch / backpack / bike pouch (To store things during cycling)
Waterbottle holder (something to attach water bottles to your bike is most preferable)
Your own snacks, energy bars, etc. (1 large, amazing surprise snack pack will be provided on the first day, but the rest is up to you!)
Volunteers:
Music (enough to keep you going in the car; ipods, CD's, cassette-tape adaptors, etc.)
Car keitai charger (optional)
Everyone will meet at 8:30 am on Saturday, March 13 at the Max Value 24-hour parking lot, a 3-minute walk from Sakanoichi Station 坂ノ市 (5 stops from Oita City).
If you are at Sakanoichi Station, turn left on Route 197 to walk towards Max Value.
What is the Oita International Charity Bike Ride 2010?Edit
The 13th Annual Oita International Charity Bike Trip is a 3-day cycling trip around the beautiful countryside of Oita Prefecture. During the event, both bike riders and volunteers in support vehicles will go roughly 300 km in order to raise money for Room to Read, a non-profit organization dedicated to providing educational opportunities to under-privileged children in third-world countries.
For the past 12 years, Oita JETs have organized an this annual bike trip to raise funds for Room to Read, a NPO that promotes education through building schools, libraries in third-world countries.
Over the years, Oita JETs have raised enough to build one school in Vietnam and one in Nepal, and we recently reached our goal to build our 3rd school in Sri Lanka! We will now begin fundraising for a new library-building project called the Reading Room and other charitable donations.
Aside from this charitable aspect, it's also tremendous FUN! It's the perfect opportunity for you to get out of your local town and see more of beautiful Kyushu while meeting new people and making friends at the same time. Not to mention, it's a great chance to challenge your strength and endurance. It's consistently described as one of the most memorable JET experiences by past participants.
We ask riders and volunteers to collect as much sponsorship money as they can from friends, family and coworkers for undertaking this bike challenge. There are no minimums or demands; everyone does what they can with the provided speeches (in English and Japanese), word-of-mouth and any other fundraising ideas you may have. All funds raised will go directly towards our ongoing school-building project in Sri Lanka with Room to Read.
All riders will need a bikewith gears to use for 3 days. Sorry, but no mama-chari's, please. While we can't provide you a bike, please ask your friends or colleagues if they can lend you one, or let us know if you have trouble finding one!
Each participant (riders and volunteers) pay a ¥15,000 fee - roughly all of which will cover accommodations, breakfast and dinner for 2 nights, drinks and snacks, gas money for volunteers and a snazzy, sweat-proof t-shirt to commemorate the event. Since this fee covers expenses with little to no money for charity, we kindly ask participants to ganbatte with his/her fundraising efforts!
Like past years, this year's ride will take place on the 3-day weekend in March, from Saturday, March 20 to Monday, March 22 (National Holiday - Vernal Equinox Day). There is NO need to take nenkyu...but we do recommend taking Tuesday off to recuperate, if you can afford it!
Riders and volunteers will meet at Max Value 24-hour parking lot, a 3-minute walk from Sakanoichi Station (5 short stops from Oita City) on the morning of March 20, turn in his/her fundraising money, warm up, debrief and then set off towards the first night's destination. The entire trip will end at the same parking lot in Tsurusaki on Monday late afternoon, where riders and volunteers will gather for last group pictures and celebrations.
*Please note that the route has now changed from a clockwise direction to counter-clockwise direction (backwards), due to cabin booking conflicts. We will now start at Sakanoichi and head to Ume for the first night, Kamae the second night, and back up to Sakanoichi to our starting point on the third day.
The Route begins at the 24-hour Max Value Parking lot near Sakanoichi Station (坂ノ市), just 5 stops from Oita Station. We then go around the Saganoseki (佐賀関) peninsula and heads east along its beautiful coastline to Kamae (蒲江).
From there, we dip down into Miyazaki-ken near Nobeoka (延岡) before leaving the coast for valleys with beautiful mountains on either side. After passing through Ume Town (宇目), we return to Sakanoichi via Oita-City (大分市).
A Google Maps version of the route is available at Google Map.
Features: The route is mostly flat with some short climbs as riders approach Kamae where they will spend the night. The route keeps riders close to the coast and takes them through medium-sized towns like Usuki (臼杵) and small fishing villages as they pass Tsukumi (津久見). Views of the coastline and ocean are plentifully and roads are in good condition.
Route: Starting from Sakanoichi Station, riders will take route 197 which soon turns into route 217 around the Saganoseki Peninsula. Riders will stay on route 217 for the majority of the day passing through Usuki and Tsukumi. Upon arriving in Saiki City (佐伯市) riders will turn onto route 388 and head for the night's accommodation at the Marine Culture Center in Kamae (蒲江) just off of route 388.
Features: This leg of the route is the most vertically challenging section of the trip. Riders will spend the first half of the day following less traveled roads that hug the coastline and give spectacular views while traversing a string of steady ups and downs. The latter half of the day will send riders inland through valleys of forested mountains as they pedal alongside a beautiful river.
Route: Continuing on route 388 for about 13km the course turns onto route 122, which will hug the coastline as it rises and falls over hills of varying difficulty before running into route 388 again. Before reaching Nobeoka, the course turns onto route 240 which connects the 388 with route 10. This is the halfway point of the whole trip and the furtherest the route travels into Miyazaki-ken. Once on route 10, the route continues into Oita-ken where the road changes names to route 326. Riders will stop in the town of Ume for the second night's accommodation.
Features: This leg of the route is the shortest, but it does feature some steady climbing in the early parts as riders continue through the valleys on their return to Saganoseki.
Route: Continuing on route 326 riders will ride into Mie-machi and turn onto route 519 and then onto the old route 57 heading towards Oita City. In Inukai (犬飼) they will ride past the station on 631 and continue alongside the Ono River (大野川). Crossing over the river with a brief stint on route 10 riders will turn onto route 38 which will again run along the Ono River. They will continue straight at the IC junction onto 614 which will deadend into 197, the homestretch. Once on 197 the route finishes at the Saganoseki station.
ANYONE is welcome to take part! Although most participants will be Oita JETs and their friends/coworkers, many JETs and non-JETs from all over Japan have also come down to Oita to enjoy the 3-day bike trip through our beautiful prefecture in the past.
The group usually consists of 40-50 people involved. While the riders cycle the designated route for the day, volunteers in vehicles will help riders with replenishing snacks, liquids, bike repairs and general support and encouragement.
Oita is located in the northeastern corner of Kyushu. It has an airport located about 45 minutes by bus from Oita City. It is also accessible from Fukuoka by train (2 hours) and various ferries, including an overnight Osaka route.
If you are interested in additional sightseeing opportunities, Oita is most famous for Beppu, the land of onsen. If you have any questions regarding transportation or need an extra night's place to stay, please let us know.
Our starting point is the 24-hour Max Value Supermarket parking lot, a 3-minute walk down the road from Sakanoichi Station on Route 197.
Here are some options:
If you're biking from Oita City to Sakanoichi, the ride only takes about 45-minutes to an hour on Route 197. You can then lock and leave your bike at Sakanoichi Station, then take the train in on the morning of event.
If you're coming into Sakanoichi by train, please go to this website: Rinko Bag to learn how to pack your bike on the train.
Based on previous rider's experiences, taking bikes on the train is not difficult. You should detach the wheels, affix them to the bike frame with Velcro from the 100-yen store, then carry it onto the train as-is, covered or most preferably, inside a bike bag (rinko bag.) However, be warned - officially, you "must" use a rinko bag when taking a bike on the train, but riders in the past have gotten away with it in Oita without covering the bike. Also, if you don't attach the wheel to the bike frame, you may have trouble navigating around unforeseen obstacles.
Morning meetings, impromptu meetings or even casual one-on-one chats at your school are a perfect time to ask for donations. Riders and volunteers in the past have received as much as ¥25,000 at one time; don't be afraid to let others know what you're planning on doing!
"Formal" speeches are a good starting point for collecting donations. Please practice before you give the speech, although most people tend to be quite impressed with the event and your ganbaru-spirit no matter what!
Also, print out this flyer Bike Trip Flyer in Japanese and post it on your school's bulletin board to let everyone know all about it!
Donations will be collected on the morning of the event.
Good morning everyone. Sorry to take time out of your busy schedules, but I have a favor to ask of you. During the holiday in March, us ALTs will be participating in a volunteer effort called Oita Charity Cycling. This isn't just for fun, but an effort for a charity called Room to Read, a charity that builds schools in developing countries.
Oita ALTs have been a part of this fundraising activity for many years. Up until now we have been successful in building schools in Nepal, Vietnam, and Sri Lanka. The goal of this year's activities is to build a library.
The charity ride plan is go about 300km in 3 days by bike. We will start at Sakanoichi and go over the Miyazaki border, pass through Nobeoka and come back. We will stay in Kamae and Ume on the way.
In order to support this effort, and to support the education of impoverished children, we are asking for donations.
A small amount of money in Japan has a high value in those countries, so I would really appreciate if you could give even just a little bit. I would be honored if you could either put some money in this donation box or pass it to me later.
Mina-san, ohayo gozaimasu. O-isogashii tokoro, shitsurei shimasu ga, mina-san ni onegai ga arimasu. Watashi-tachi ALT wa san-gatsu no shuku-jitsu ni awasete, Oita Chariti Sai-ku-ring to iu volunteer katsu-dou ni sanka shimasu. Kono katsu-dou wa tanoshimu to iu dake de naku, "Ru-mu tou Ri-do" to iu koku-sai chariti no tame no katsu-dou desu.
Ru-mu Tou Ri-do to iu no wa, to-jou-koku ni gakko o tateru chariti desu.
Oita-ken no ALT wa, kono chariti baiku rai-do to iu bokin katsu-dou o nan nen kan mo yatte kimashita. Soshite ima ma-de Neparu, Betonamu, Suri-Ranka de gakko o tateru koto ni seikou shimashita. Kotoshi no katsu-dou wa, toshokan wo tateru koto ga moku-teki desu.
Kono chariti rai-do no keikaku wa, mikka-kan de san-byaku kiro o jitensha hashiru koto desu.
Sakanoichi kara Miyazaki no ken-zakai o koete, Nobeoka o totte kaerimasu. Touchuu de, Kamae to Ume ni tomarimasu.
Kono katsudou o shi-en suru tame, mata wa kaigai no mazushii kodomo-tachi no kyou-iku o shi-en suru tame ni kifu-kin o onegai shite-imasu.
Nihon de sho-kaku no o-kane demo, muuko de wa takai kachi ga arimasu node, sukoshi demo kifu o i-ta-da-ke-tara, HONTO NI arigatai desu. Ima kara mawashimasu bokkin bako ni okane o irete i-ta-daku ka, watashi ni watashite i-ta-da-ke-tara ureshi desu.
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