Posts from Japan, Part 1: My Old Stomping Grounds
This is the first in a series of posts about all things Motorbike related while I'm on vacation to Japan. I hope to show a slice of the fun and funky motorcycle scenethat we have here.
We got into Tokyo from a pretty uneventful flight from LAX. Except for parking. All I will say is, what is the point of having a reservation for airport parking if all the spots are full? After a full 20-ish hours of planes, busses and taxis we got home.
Jet lag firmly taking hold, the whole family woke up at 5 am. The best way I've found to combat the effects of modern international travel is to get out and get some fresh air and sun. I always like these first solo walks around the neighborhood. We lived here for five years while I worked as an English teacher 11 years ago. We get back about once a year. The first walk helps me refresh my memory of the neighborhood.
To do the walk right, I have to stop by the vending machines. I usually overdose on the can coffees my first few days back in Japan. I'm not going into depth on these. If you've ever been to Japan you know how awesome they are. If you've never experienced one then you don't know much joy that can be found in a can for about a $1.00.
I saw the tail of this little beast and got interested in a bit of bike archeology. I only took just one quick shot as I didn't want my first day in Japan to be spent explaining to the police why I was creeping around the neighbor's house. From the nose it looks more like a 90's bike than a modern one. Both tires were flat and the cover of dust tells me I may be more right than wrong. The seat looks all business and the size lets me know it's probably a cc size we don't get in the states. Ideas that would put me in the dog house with the wife started running through my recently can coffee caffeinated brain regarding imports and race bikes. It's best to move along now.
Another model of bike out of reach to us poor yanks I suspect. It's a single with a kick start. Perfect for commuting around the tight confines of the Tokyo suburbs. I envision this one stripped down with a 60's cafe influence to rip around a kart track. It's already got the bump stop seat and a gigantic air cleaner that the cafe crowd would love to shove into the bin.
I went to the local shopping area at a nearby train station. Inside there is a used book store that also re-sells hobby items like model cars, figurines and train sets. I found this beauty in the display case. It is a Tomica Yamaha TX750 Police Motorcycle. Tomica is the Japanese equivalent of Matchbox or Hot Wheels. This one looks to be from the 70's and was around $30. I may bring it home just because. I have a growing collection of toy motorcycles that I like to display around my office and shop.
There are so many models of bike in Japan that we don't get to play with. This is one. I'd call it an Eddie Lawson replica-replica-replica...?! The ELR bikes have an interesting history and this inline 4, big bike has the old school colors that make it stand out in traffic. It is almost a waste of such a nice engine as the national max speed on the highways here is 80 kph. That is less than 55 mph.
I used my iPhone map to do a random search for Yamaha and found a neat little shop. From the outside I could see more older airhead BMWs than Yamahas. Upon entering I was treated to a shop I could call my own. A random selection of bikes in various states of repair, a bunch of posters and parts all placed on any surface that could hold them. In the back were a couple of sets of race leathers and a naked race bike of some kind. I wanted to chat up the guy working there, but his demeanor suggested otherwise. I settled for taking a pic of these early-21st century dual sports sitting out front. They were all in the 2-300 cc range and were begging to be made in supermoto super commuters that could split lanes and deal with the narrow roads of my Japanese hometown.
I hope you enjoyed this tiny morsel of Japanese motorcycle cuisine. I'm planning on renting a bike to get a ride in later this week. I will also be hitting up some shops, both big and small, to soak in the Japanese motorbike flavorI can while here. Check back in for a few more posts of my Japanese Motorbike Adventure coming soon.
Blue
We got into Tokyo from a pretty uneventful flight from LAX. Except for parking. All I will say is, what is the point of having a reservation for airport parking if all the spots are full? After a full 20-ish hours of planes, busses and taxis we got home.
Jet lag firmly taking hold, the whole family woke up at 5 am. The best way I've found to combat the effects of modern international travel is to get out and get some fresh air and sun. I always like these first solo walks around the neighborhood. We lived here for five years while I worked as an English teacher 11 years ago. We get back about once a year. The first walk helps me refresh my memory of the neighborhood.
To do the walk right, I have to stop by the vending machines. I usually overdose on the can coffees my first few days back in Japan. I'm not going into depth on these. If you've ever been to Japan you know how awesome they are. If you've never experienced one then you don't know much joy that can be found in a can for about a $1.00.
I saw the tail of this little beast and got interested in a bit of bike archeology. I only took just one quick shot as I didn't want my first day in Japan to be spent explaining to the police why I was creeping around the neighbor's house. From the nose it looks more like a 90's bike than a modern one. Both tires were flat and the cover of dust tells me I may be more right than wrong. The seat looks all business and the size lets me know it's probably a cc size we don't get in the states. Ideas that would put me in the dog house with the wife started running through my recently can coffee caffeinated brain regarding imports and race bikes. It's best to move along now.
I went to the local shopping area at a nearby train station. Inside there is a used book store that also re-sells hobby items like model cars, figurines and train sets. I found this beauty in the display case. It is a Tomica Yamaha TX750 Police Motorcycle. Tomica is the Japanese equivalent of Matchbox or Hot Wheels. This one looks to be from the 70's and was around $30. I may bring it home just because. I have a growing collection of toy motorcycles that I like to display around my office and shop.
There are so many models of bike in Japan that we don't get to play with. This is one. I'd call it an Eddie Lawson replica-replica-replica...?! The ELR bikes have an interesting history and this inline 4, big bike has the old school colors that make it stand out in traffic. It is almost a waste of such a nice engine as the national max speed on the highways here is 80 kph. That is less than 55 mph.
I hope you enjoyed this tiny morsel of Japanese motorcycle cuisine. I'm planning on renting a bike to get a ride in later this week. I will also be hitting up some shops, both big and small, to soak in the Japanese motorbike flavorI can while here. Check back in for a few more posts of my Japanese Motorbike Adventure coming soon.
Blue
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