Fuji Speedway

We made the trek from the Atami Hotel to Fuji Speedway, with Ichi-san driving a rented seven-passenger van.

Fuji Speedway is a former Formula One race track located in the foothills of Mount Fuji.  The speedway was acquired by Toyota Motor Corporation in 2000.  The track was originally designed as a 2 1/2 mile, high-banked super-speedway, but there was not enough money to complete the project and only one of the banked turns was ever built. Converted to a road course, the circuit opened in December of 1965 and proved to be somewhat dangerous with the banked turn regularly resulting in major accidents. A new part of track was built to to fix the problem, and the resultant 2.9 mile course proved more successful. The speedway brought the first Formula One race to Japan at the end of the 1976 season.

It was a beautiful and scenic route to the Speedway.  Ichi-san took us the "back way."

We made a few stops along the way.  Emi-san steps up for a better view.  Notice the sign about being clean?  Japan is clean, everywhere you go.  There is a big emphasis on cleanliness.

Ichi-san is taking the picture.  Left to right: Emi-san, David, Terry, Edmun, Jerry, and Theresa.
We finally arrive at Fuji Speedway, only to find the front gate locked.  Ah, but wait...  Ichi-san just wanted us to have some pictures at the main gate.  This day was a private rental day, and Ichi-san knows the back entrance.

Here is a detailed map of the track layout.  The front straight is nearly a mile long!  Total track length is about three miles.

Before we go any further, we better have a look at the rules.  I think David (CEO of Thunderhill Raceway) was drooling with new ideas.  I love the last part and think that it should be a Thunderhill rule.  "...perpetrators [who] refuse to amend their behavior, will be saked to leave the premises."  Wow, saked, huh?  And, I though that was just for quarterbacks!

Here is the view of the front straight from the grandstands.  In 2003, the track was closed down to accommodate major remodeling of the track, using a new design by Hermann Tilke. The track was reopened in April 2005.  Toyota won the bid to host a Formula One race here, replacing the Suzuki Circuit as host to the Japanese Grand Prix in the 2007.
This is "pit out" where cars enter the course.  It's also the entrance to Turn 1, a right hand turn.

This is the run-off area for Turn 1.  Lots of asphalt then sand trap.  They are pretty safety-conscience.

They use "gator strip" style curbing, similar to Laguna Seca.

They are big on safety.  This is a very well padded Armco at the end of a very long run-off area.
One of the flaggers sitting in a safety cage.  Again, good safety.

When we were there, they were racing the "March Cup."  These are Nissans (March model), not available in the USA.

 

 

 

 

 

This is the special polymer-asphalt they use for the racing surface.

These are the garages from the pit-road side.  They have a door that opens to pit road and a door into the paddock; it's like  drive-through garages.  Also, note the giant cinema-type screen.

Other Facilities

There were several test and training tracks, including a small track, like The Streets of Willows.

This is a small test track, similar to The Streets of Willows.
Here is the map they use to teach the line.  And, of course it's backwards because it's in Japan...  Did you know that they use metric adjustable wrenches there too?  <grin>

They also have the "Fuji Lexus College" there at Fuji Raceway.  This makes sense since Toyota owns the track and they also own Lexus.

Just above the small track, built into the hillside, remains the banking from the old track.  The Japanese left this part of it as a monument to the track's heritage.  Such is the Japanese style.  Always respect the culture, heritage, and pay proper tribute. 

I love Japan.