Kuro Neko

Spring days...



The road to our minka includes a hand-cut tunnel, and legend has it - because you cannot see either entrance from the middle - it is haunted, as the ghosts of those who died here cannot escape.
If you're into J-pop and perhaps vintage Skyline, here's a better look:





Some lightly driven wasser outside a local tire store.
Assumed they were the owner's or similar, but will have to check again as they were closed.






Children's Day koinobori (carp streamers) were harder to find this year in our valley.




With the weather warming up, we hope to spend a bit more time outside...

various cheeses

Oh cool. I had a couple of these when I was a kid.

Marine Blue

That tunnel shot is very cool!

Kuro Neko

Now, that's cool!
Pretty neat, as there is something relaxing about them fluttering in the breeze.
The koi symbolizes determination, courage, and success; things parents wish for their children. Traditionally, the black koi represents the father, the red mother, and the others the children in the family. With the number of children falling, this is a day that needs recognition in Japan.
Some more from previous years:




Thanks, as I nearly didn't include it because of the suspect color tint from the sodium lights and the blur.
I hope it will get 15 million views too, like that vid...

Kuro Neko

Last serious run with the old 19-inch wheels and 30-series tires…



With the day off, we decided to take a drive out to Gunma and a few runs on the Usui Touge. It was a light traffic day, even leaving Tokyo. The Usui is famous for both its myriad of pop culture drifting references, and the over 100-and-something challenging IRL corners.

It’s been a few years since we drove what is part of the old National Route 18, and with the Baby Beast to push the Porsche along, it was also some the fastest passes we’ve made. A random Macan tried to do the needful, but after a few corners - where it looked like it was going to capsize - the driver made the logical step of letting the Cayman S and the 1M pass…









With the light traffic, and keeping within the speed limit of course, we were able to enjoy the down run freely too.

We only saw one Panda 86, making runs each time in the opposite direction to the Germans, and assumed it was a local.
But a cynic might suggest the prefectural office hires black and white Corolla - like they do with kimono geisha in Kyoto - just for the tourists to gawk at.






Perhaps fresh off the touge themselves, two classics at the lunch stop on the way home. JPS Lotus always look cool!






In typical Japanese fashion, the SA includes an amusement park, and we grabbed a soft cream to wait for a shinkansen to pass.
The Usui Touge and area offers a wide range of attractions - mountain walks, bicycle paths, a railway museum, some off-list haikyo exploring, and great restaurants, so its not just for the drivers.

(Camera: Bessa R3a. Film: Kodak Portra 400.)

Marine Blue

Wow those roads! I had no idea Japan had that many great roads, seems similar to Cali. Thanks again for posting

Kuro Neko

We have 1000s of them!
You could live ten lifetimes in Japan, and never hope to explore them all - the views, the foods, the roads...
All as smooth as smooth can be made (well, mostly anyway).

I've posted it before, but here's a list of just 157.
If you need to waste a few languid hours via YT, check them out...

The evolution of one Cayman S:



Fancy air-intakes and 19-inch Sport Design wheels.



Replace air intakes with Spyder OEM intakes.



Replace 19-inch Sport Design wheels, with 18-inch OEM Cayman S wheels, and more compliant 40-series Michelin PS2s.
Get out and drive...

More to follow!

Kuro Neko

With a new set of wheels and Michelin PS2s, it was time to get out and drive. The town of Otaki, on the other side of the Boso Hanto, has been on our return list for a while, so we left the minka early in the morning, for a great set of roads, some serious old building exploring, and a tonkatsu lunch.






A kei-truck in its native habitat...



While some of the Otaki town shotengai operators, have shut shop, others have reformed or reopened as different businesses. Cafes, arts, trinkets, second-hand stuff, a nihonshu (sake) brewery, pottery works, and restaurants all needed exploring. There's even a castle in town, and we saved a revisit for the next time...






We spent most of the day wandering, and enjoyed the rat motif on a kura’s keyhole, including the different colored nail for an eye.
Wondering too; what would happen if the Michelin Man met the Yokohama Lady?







The driver of this perfectly stanced Starion on RS Wats, was a little amused by the visitors wanting to photograph his kyusha - but if ever there was a classic configuration, this was a pretty good example.
With so many good roads in the area, there were many Miata, sport bikes, and others out to enjoy with us as well.







While much of the town dates from the Meiji-era, there were a few Showa-era remnants like shops, garages, and homes.
Most surprisingly, at least two Taisho-era design kura - something we’ve never seen before.
Most kura, even those built well into the Showa-era are typically made in the classic Meiji- and pre-Meiji-era style. So, to see obvious wealth and design for a stone kura in this style was very special.





Following the Isumi Rail for a short time, we stopped for a cool drink at one quiet station to enjoy the view, and to perhaps catch the one-man car as it trundled through the freshly-planted rice fields.




A reasonably swift run home via the local skyline confirmed the decision to put smaller wheels and slightly taller tires was a good one.
The 40-series Michelin PS2 (now superseded by the Super Sport?) are significantly quieter and more bump compliant than the previous Nangkang the S was equipped with when purchased.
While I was never able to get the 275 30-series Nangkang lose (they did chirp sometimes subjected to maximum Sport Plus acceleration though), they used to give off an oscillating drone at high speeds, and would really THUMP over pavement joins and manhole covers.

The PS2s are quiet at all speeds, and give a more comfortable ride all around.

While the main roads in Japan are mostly smooth and well-maintained, we are often on lesser roads exploring and the road surfaces can vary, so a little more sidewall gives a little more confidence.

Under hard acceleration and cornering, the PS2 can be felt squatting and squirming about, at least at recommended road pressures.
This adds a bit more feel to driving, and while others who track might not like the extra feeling, for road work and touring it suits me fine.



We arrived home for late afternoon, and enjoyed the classic flat six cooling sound - tink, tink, tink...

(Camera: Voigtlander Bessa R3a with f1.4 S.C Nokton. Film: Kodak Portra 400.)

PhillyNate

Put the same wheels on my 987.2
We are twinning. GREAT photography my friend. Pls keep it coming.

Kuro Neko

Thanks!

The Ronal 18s look good on the Cayman; the five-spoke look and the vague shape of classic Fuch look.
Going down from 19s, I read this on Jalopnik this week too.
Need more touge? While on Jalopnik, you can check out more from me here.

I was going to remove my rear wing too, or at least gloss black it with the front lip, and yours shows it looks good too.
I also like the last two pics, kind of matching in historical towns...

See ya!

kiznarsh

Looks like another solid adventure! For some reason while reading this, I get the impression that to get to the fun roads, it doesn't take you that long. I guess if you live in a smaller town (not sure if you do), then you probably don't have that much traffic to deal with. Is that the case?

It takes me at least 90 minutes to get out of LA proper and be able to explore relatively empty roads. The canyons are a little closer but that's more technical driving in 2nd and 3rd gear, as opposed to being able to stretch its legs and experience roads like the one you've shown here.

Kuro Neko

Good question!
We rent an apartment in Tokyo for work convenience, but our house (the minka and kura and stuff above) is in the middle of the mountains in Boso Hanto.
So the Cayman gets used on both the Shuto / Wangan expressway system during the week, and for wider touring and touge runs on days off and the weekends.

Unlike a lot of straight-and-wide US freeways and highways*, the Shuto-ko and Wangan are a mess of challenging ups, downs, curves, high-speed straights, tunnels, bridges, and just about anything road designers can think of.
Including a four-tiered, double corkscrew interchange and the world's longest urban road tunnel just filled with corners of fun.

This is why it features in video games, movies, manga, and anime...

The inner C1 takes less than 20 minutes to run:


Here's a daylight run at normal speed:


The outer C2 takes an hour or more, and both are connected with numerous feeders.
Here's the traffic map we use to check the status:



Both C1 and C2 can be run clockwise and anti-clockwise and each way is different because of the number of interchanges and connections.
That's just out to the C2, as there's more outside of this, including the Ken-O (for a four or five hour run around the outer limits).
The Tokyo Wan Aqualine, ex-home to the Wangan Mid Night 300km/h club is lower right on the map, and it still gets used including Umi Hotaru somewhere in this thread too.

The touring and touge are all at least an hour or more outside of Tokyo, and you do need to plan a little to avoid the worst of the traffic.
Avoiding public holidays coming back into Tokyo is key, as are usual peak hours and their Monroe Distribution congestion curves...

* I used to live in Hermosa and learned to drive in an Electra 225 land yacht.

Kuro Neko

An early Sunday morning run to the shops, on empty roads...

Kuro Neko

Warm weather, and a spontaneous after work drive for a chat and an ice cream on the wangan...



Il Mostro parked in Shinjuku on the way out.
If you've not heard an SZ on full throttle, they're pretty neat - like a Ferrari made V6, glorious sound!



We thought this guy was perhaps an eel merchant from Matsumoto, but his vinyl says 'Feel the Need'.
Not quite sure he was an actual member of the A-Team though.



Classic Bayside Blue on the Bayside Route.



Not sure the Must Leave Doors Open crew got the joke.
A bit too subtle perhaps...

Kuro Neko

At 05:30 on a Sunday, the roads are empty...




This set of corners was particularly smooth, even for Japan.




There are a number of one-man, one-car lines on Boso Hanto, and much of the network is single track.
If you're into trains, they're well worth the experience to trundle through the valleys and rice fields.




A quiet little temple on the way.
We've stopped before a few times.





Not abandoned, but certainly not loved - three V12s and a V8 from a previous excursion.
I wonder if Gemballa 928 will ever rise again?




On touge, the S660 is nearly as popular these days as Mazda Roadster.
They are certainly fun to drive!



Despite their maintenance costs, there are still a number of 500E running around.
My neighbor used to have one, and gave it to his brother because of the cost of keeping it on the road.
Ironically - or perhaps not these days - he replaced it with a C7 Corvette.



Pics from the day's racing to follow...

(Camera: Bessa R3a. Film: Portra 400.)