Sunday, June 2, 2013

Kona Explosif Steel framed XC Mountain Bikes // A look back in time to 1995 // Daegwallyeong Mountain // South Korea bicycling // Pablo Neruda


Life is better on a bike.
ODA A LA BICICLETA, PABLO NERUDA

Oda a la bicicleta

Iba
por el camino
crepitante:
el sol se desgranaba
como maíz ardiendo
y era
la tierra
calurosa
un infinito círculo
con cielo arriba
azul, deshabitado.
Pasaron
junto a mí
las bicicletas,
los únicos
insectos
de aquel
minuto seco del verano,
sigilosas,
veloces,
transparentes:
me parecieron
lo movimientos del aire.
Obreros y muchachas
a las fábricas
iban
entregando
los ojos
al verano,
las cabezas al cielo,
sentados
en los
élitros
de las vertiginosas
bicicletas
que silbaban
cruzando
puentes, rosales, zarza
y mediodía
Pensé en la tarde cuando los muchachos
se laven,
canten, coman, levanten
una copa
de vino
en honor
del amor
y de la vida,
y a la puerta
esperando
la bicicleta
inmóvil
porque
sólo
de movimiento fue su alma
y allí caída
no es
insecto transparente
que recorre
el verano,
sino
esqueleto
frío
que sólo
recupera
un cuerpo errante
con la urgencia
y la luz,
es decir,
con
la
resurrección
de cada día.

Ode to Bicycles

I was walking
down
a sizzling road:
the sun popped like
a field of blazing maize,
the
earth
was hot,
an infinite circle
with an empty
blue sky overhead.
A few bicycles
passed
me by,
the only
insects
in
that dry
moment of summer,
silent,
swift,
translucent;
they
barely stirred
the air.
Workers and girls
were riding to their
factories,
giving
their eyes
to summer,
their heads to the sky,
sitting on the
hard
beetle backs
of the whirling
bicycles
that whirred
as they rode by
bridges, rosebushes, brambles
and midday.
I thought about evening when the boys
wash up,
sing, eat, raise
a cup
of wine
in honor
of love
and life,
and waiting
at the door,
the bicycle,
stilled,
because
only moving
does it have a soul,
and fallen there
it isn’t
a translucent insect
humming
through summer
but
a cold
skeleton
that will return to
life
only
when it’s needed,
when it’s light,
that is,
with
the
resurrection
of each day.
- Pablo Neruda, 1956








Numerous reservoirs on fire roads around Daegwallyeong-myeon 

 Daegwallyeong Mountain, Gangwon-do, South Korea (25km from Gangneung City)

Welcome center at the Sheep farm.

 Daegwallyeong Sheep farm is also surrounded by 1000 meter descents into Gangneung by single track hiking trails. From the sheep farm to the radio/cellular towers, a long downhill mountain bike track.


This bike climbs like a billy goat. The steel frame is ultra-smooth for soaking up bumps and rides like a full suspension on XC trails. One of the best bicycles I have ever owned...


She's gone!, but I will remember her.

1995  Kona  Explosif
Bicycle Type Mountain bike, front suspension
MSRP (new) $1,399.00
Weight 24.4
Sizes 18"
Color: Forest Green


Frame & Fork
Frame Construction TIG-welded steel
Frame Tubing Material Columbus Max Or
Fork Brand & Model Rock Shox Judy Race
Fork Material Aluminum, triple-clamp crown
Rear Shock N/A

Components
Component Group Shimano Deore XT
Brakeset Shimano Deore XT mechanical rim brakes, Avid lever (front), Hayes trail disc (front)
Shift Levers Shimano LX GOLD (dual mechanical; swapped with Shimano LX Rapid-fire 9-speed)
Front Derailleur Shimano Deore XT Compact Drive, bottom-pull/clamp-on 28.6 mm
Rear Derailleur Shimano Deore XT GS
Crankset Shimano Deore LX Compact, 22/32/42 teeth
Pedals Shimano PD-M535 SPD (clipless)
Bottom Bracket
Shimano Deore LX Integrated sealed BB/Hollowcrank
Rear Cogs 9-speed, 11 - Shimano Deore XT M770
Chain Shimano HG, 9-speed Dura-Ace/XTR
Seatpost Kona Race Light O-Beam, 27.0 mm diameter
Saddle SMP Selle
Handlebar Bontrager Titec 150g
Handlebar Extensions Ergon GP2
Handlebar Stem Kona Race Light Velocity
Headset 1 1/8" Kona Race Light Control Center

Wheels
Hubs Shimano Deore XT w/suspension front axle
Rims Mavic 217 SUP, 32-hole
Tires Front: 26 x 2.25" Schwalbe Racing Ralph, Rear: 26 x 2.35" Schwalbe Fat Albert
Spoke Brand Stainless steel, 1.8 mm straight gauge
Spoke Nipples Brass nipples

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About the Korean-World Author

Brian Perich was an English as a Foreign Language (EFL) lecturer for a decade, father, and adventure cyclist based in South Korea.

Previously, Brian has led Canoe adventures in Quetico Provincial Park, Atikokan, Ontario, Canada (1993/1999); led Grand American camping adventures (2000); lived at Paramahansa Yogananda's SRF Ashram for 5 months (see the film "AWAKE"), formerly worked in titanium welding at Agilent Technologies, formerly worked in Winery industry in Marin County with Kendall Jackson in California; Surfing and Meditation continued for several years in California, British Columbia, South Korea, Yoga training in California 1999-2000.

Between 1994-1998 - Brian completed his own adventures with motorcycles. His motorcycling marathons took him across the United States and central/western Canada, while traveling solo over an astounding 24,000km in 60 days! Brian endured 900 mile/1300km average days in the motorcycle saddle and apparently loved every minute of those adventures.

Today, he has given up motorcycle adventures altogether, but finds an outlet for his enthusiasm in outdoor recreation while bicycle touring and micro-blogging about those experiences on his mountain bikes.

While employed as an English teacher in South Korea, Brian has became an advocate for bicycle touring on his mountain bikes. The Korean-World blog originated from those small adventures in Korea, now expanded to cover his recent trek down the TransMongolian highway to the Gobi Desert, cycling 900km east through the Khentii grasslands and in 2012 crossing Mongolia in 45 days, 2500 kilometers 1553 miles. HimalayasX expedition Brian previously cycled across western China, the Taklamakan Desert, the northern Himalayas of East Turkestan Xinjiang/Uyghur Autonomous Region, the corrugated back roads and mountains of Kham Tibet. Brian successfully completed his 2011 mountain bike expedition with 3200 kilometers / 1988 miles unsupported, on/off road MTB adventure cycling.
Brian has completed his second mountain bike journey, MongoliaX expedition - Crossing Mongolia 2012, an unsupported mountain bike MTB expedition across 2500km of Outer Mongolia from Ulanbaatar to Altai Taven-Bogd National Park bordering China, Russia and Mongolia.


In 2013, as a sequel to a trilogy of cycle tours, Brian enjoyed a more leisure bicycle tour onboard his Koga-Miyata World Traveller seeing the northern tier of the United States and western Canada covering 3400 kilometers / 2000 miles in 30 days. This North American cycle tour was called Totherocktour. Enjoying the adventure of bicycle travel and every great conversation started while traveling on the road - has refueled his inspirations to cycle around the Earth. In 2013, while he cycled solo from the Great Lake State of Michigan, United States to Banff National Park in the Canadian Rocky Mountains. He weaved through local communities and reconnected with friends, family and community after spending almost a decade in Asia.


Brian is now supporting several non-profit foundations through expeditions: IDEAS Foundation of Canada IDEAS is the acronym for Intestinal Disease Education and Awareness Society which supports the IBD community, those suffering from IBD-inflammatory bowel disease, also known as Crohn's and Ulcerative Colitis.


The second non-profit foundation is ETE.ORG - Education Through Expeditions, UK which supports educational outreach programs inside schools around the world. ETE connects explorers with students in the classroom, through an interactive online program in development (Beta).


Brian is researching support for a 18000 kilometer bicycle expedition across the Americas: North, Central and South America - ONE -Arctic to Argentina
Please contact him if you are interested in helping out.

Twitter: Cycleagain
Location: Gangneung, Gangwon-do, South Korea or southern Ontario, Canada.

Thanks for visiting my Journal from Asia

I hope you enjoy the updates!

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Brian's friends have also been...Cycling in Korea!

Brian's friends have also been...Cycling in Korea!

Cycling in Korea, Warning: always wear a helmet! (I gave mine to my friend)

Cycling in Korea, Warning: always wear a helmet! (I gave mine to my friend)

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