A stop for an iced coffee en route from Tokyo to Tsukuba suddenly got interesting with the arrival of two very large, very black Toyotas. "What are those?" I asked Peter. The V12-engined Toyota Century apparently, a uniquely JDM equivalent of an Merc S600 with wafty ride, wafty engine and the unmistakable air of power. Much like the stocky chaps who piled out and suddenly swamped the small Starbucks, constantly looking over their shoulders and barking orders to each other. Ill-fitting suits, thick necks and, hang on, that chap's missing a little finger......
One for the bad parking thread? Erm, maybe not
"I've been here two decades and never seen anything like that," said Peter as we scuttled back to our CX-5 and left them to their coffees.
Arriving at Tsukuba not long after I had a very weird sense of a world I'd inhabited virtually in Gran Turismo suddenly becoming very real. Oddly familiar, the track day going on even had a weirdly reminiscent mix of JDM machinery including AE86s, RX-7s, S2000s and even the odd Demio or Honda Fit.
Tsukuba itself is small, endearingly a little bit shabby but full of atmosphere. It is, after all, a little club circuit elevated to international fame via its inclusion in a videogame! And after a quick look around we headed over to the paddock to find our race car. And here it is! Not bad, eh? The graphics are ... distinctive and now bolstered with a few additional smileys to round things off and the team are busy attaching additional LED lights to improve visibility for the closing stages of the race. I'll be watching that from the paddock because it seems I've been elected to do both qualifying - the first time I'll get out on track - and then the start and opening stint. So no pressure then.
It really is like being in a game of Gran Turismo
It's a blessing and a curse because I'll be able to put the foot down and not be as constrained by fuel saving as the middle stints and also in a position to get stuck in with some overtaking. Hopefully. But there's also the very present incentive not to cock it up, prang the car and ruin everything for those hoping to follow me. Gulp.
All those wasted hours on Gran Turismo back in the day and, indeed, in the last couple? I'm hoping they turn out to be anything but.
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