Japan (Sept 17)

There are two buses that go to the track every day.  An early bus, which departed at 6 AM this morning, and a late bus at 9 AM.  Our strategy was to set the alarm for the late bus but plan to take the early one if we awoke in time.  Since we had gone to sleep at 7 PM, we were both awake by 4:30 AM.  So the early bus it is.  I was amazed we slept that late, given the rock hard mattress and lumpy pillows.    Our room is huge by Japanese standards, with a small sitting area and a mini-frig.  We have a fancy toilet with a washing mechanism.  The weight of a person on the seat starts water running into the bowl.  I’m not sure if this is for cleaning or sound masking, but it startles me every time I sit on it.

There are no real freeways in this area, so even though the track is relatively close it takes at least an hour to get there every day.  We wind through rice fields and little towns on a single lane road with a speed limit from 50 to 70 kilometers per hour.  There are no on-track activities today but we’ve been told that there is a great Honda museum to visit and it’s good to get the lay of the land while the team is setting up.  Since the teams can’t bring their normal hospitality set-ups and cooks, all meals are served in a big tent just outside of the paddock.  The food is mostly western, or at least the Japanese interpretation of western food.  Very heavy on the protein.

We kill the time between breakfast and lunch by wandering around.  The fans here are very respectful but rabid in their pursuit of autographs from their favorite drivers.  There are also large groups of school children – something I’ve never seen at a track before.  They wear yellow hats and excitedly wave hello when they see us.  A woman comes to the garage bearing gifts and photos of the pit crew in plastic envelopes that she hands out to everyone.

After lunch we check out the Honda museum.  Soon after we finish touring, an interview with 3 of the drivers starts.  One of them is Dario.  They are being asked questions about their helmets.  We later find out that the first question Dario was asked translated into English as “tell us about your helmet love.”  Even though we can’t understand anything but the drivers’ responses, it’s entertaining to watch.  There is an autograph session down in the garage area later that afternoon.  I go crazy taking photos.

There is a welcome party at 5:00 in the big catering tent.  We expect to see most of the team there but only 2 engineers show up.  It turns out that one of the crew convinced a bus driver to take them back to the hotel right after lunch.  We take the first scheduled bus back, leaving at 6:00.  We arrive back at the hotel 13 hours after departing this morning.  I am exhausted beyond belief and every muscle in my body aches.  Bedtime is 8 PM.

Here’s my favorite photo from the autograph session: