The japanese odyssey

The Japanese Odyssey (TJO) is an annual unsupported endurance cycling event around Japan that is held on a different route each year.

Just like the Trans-Continental Race riders have to plan a route around a number of mandatory control points with the aim of reaching the finish line as quickly as possible.

When I rode the TJO, almost all the controls were at the top of mountains, many of them volcanoes, and there would be a terrifying amount of climbing.

An important part of any bike packing event is equipment selection. When I was drawing up my list, a distributor for Pacenti Cycle Design told me about a new rim called the Forza that was about to be released. I bought a set of Forza asymmetric disc rims and had my bike builder make me a set built with an SP dynamo in the front wheel.

Two of the points that particularly interested me about the Pacenti Forza rim were first, the spoke drilling was asymmetric, which means the spoke angles on both sides of the wheel are equal, allowing equal tension on either side making the wheels less likely to suffer from broken spokes. Secondly, the width of the rim was a wide 24mm which should give a comfortable ride with 28mm tires.

The Pacenti Forza wheels performed superbly during the event. I liked them so much that when I had the opportunity to buy into Pacenti Cycle Design I jumped at the chance.