NANKAI SUZUKA MINI MOTO 4 HOUR

by Mick Gronert

The mighty KSR110

For the past four years, riding with the warm winds of May, gnashing hordes of male and female speed monsters descend on Suzuka Circuit, all frothing for a hot spring weekend of two-wheeled carnage known as the 'Nankai Suzuka Mini Moto 4 Hour.'

With three or four riders per team, literally thousands of entrants travel from around the country to compete on modified 100cc machines across two classes -- Stock and Open -- the entries of a number of Japanese ex-International GP racers and even the odd movie-star adding a little extra prestige to this famed crash-circus.

Budget Grid Girls

Team STEC

Looking at some of the team names, you could be forgiven for thinking the event was a little on the camp side. Take 'Team PLEASURE BOY'S' (sic) for example, or the 'SMILE BROTHERS' and of course 'Team MISTER HERO', but the professionalism shown by all of the amateur teams is inspiring and it's evident they take this annual race very seriously.

The Stock class consists predominately of Honda XR100 Motards and 100cc Apes, with a scattering of Kawasaki KSR110s for good measure. Rules state that engines must maintain stock form, though teams are free to adjust the jetting and all bikes must have working headlights. Other mods are limited to mufflers, rear-sets, brake pads/lines and handlebars.

In the Open class however, modification and bike design is basically free-for-all provided the engine isn't bored bigger than 125cc. In what may be an attempt to calm some of the madness, both classes have a choice between 12-inch control tyres provided by Dunlop and Bridgestone.

This year the Stock class alone registered 240 bikes and as only the top 100 bikes gain entry to the four hour race, qualifying was outright insanity. The class was split into two groups of 120 bikes, with any riders holding international or national level licences thrown into the first group. Other teams just sent out their best rider, to battle it out over the 15 minute session against 120 other pain-fiends, hoping to make it back in one piece, which unfortunately for many teams didn't happen.

Team STEC (pronounced Ess-Tek) were looking at a top 100 position until their rider Motoyuki Arakawa was punted off the course at the first chicane, bending his brake lever, and leaving a nasty dent in the muffler which ultimately dashed their chances for glory. But such things are to be expected on a track which has bikes six wide into some corners and according to Arakawa, is ridden with the throttle held wide open, and brakes are only applied twice per lap -- entering turn one and just before the final chicane. The rest of the track is an elbow-smashing brawl, with equally brilliant displays of slip-streaming and testicular fortitude.

Like its older brother, the Suzuka 8 Hour, the Mini Moto 4 Hour uses a Le Mans style start, and while in comparison the size of the bikes may be comical, there's something horrifically enjoyable about watching 60-plus bikes charging head-first into a corner.

In most cases, the racing is so close that if one rider goes down, inevitably a number of others do too. Displaying true samurai/kamikaze spirit and the virtual indestructibility of the machines, most riders pick their bike up, finish the lap injured and hand the reins over to a team-mate. A mandatory three-minute pit stop rule, in which the engine must be turned off and then restarted by the fresh rider, ensures some need for tactical planning but at the end of the day, keeping the bike alive for four hours is everyone's priority.

For many teams, qualifying for the '4 Hour' alone is a redeeming experience that makes the long trip to the circuit worthwhile. A first-class example of affordable, extremely competitive racing; it's easy to see why the 'Nankai Suzuka Mini Moto 4 Hour' is so popular. Whether they win, lose or fail to qualify, one thing is for sure, these teams of mad men and women will be back next year; there will be many more of them and a whole lot more carnage in tow.


The line-up...	...goes on for ever

Grid girls...	...are not within every man's budget