Motegi Twin Ring Review

Overall 5.00 of 5 (by 1 user)

Rainmaker
Marietta, GA

Honda Land Extraordinaire, the Indy of Japan

Love Japan, travel for hot-air ballooning, Always up for an adventure

Pros

Family Destination, Excellent Race Track, Museum, attractions and distractions

SEP

2008

The Indy of Japan, this double race track is also the Honda Proving Grounds, tucked away in the mountains in Motegi Japan. Recently, even the local Honda Motorcycle Dealer I spoke to didn't know where this was. Now that Danica Patrick won her first race there, perhaps it will be better known in the United States. This is not just a race track though. There are many things to see here.

I was visiting to work as a race official for a competition balloon race that Honda sponsors annually in November. We stayed in the hotel on the grounds. This was heaven for me. I woke at dawn to see the practice launch from my picture window. Usually, I am up pre-dawn to help with the launch, but for this I just made a cup of green tea and enjoyed the view from the warmth of my room with some complimentary cookies that were packaged in a checkered racing flag design.

This is a family destination, There are often weekend activities planned. In addition to the balloon race, there were nature crafts for the children, Taiko Drummers performing and a few vendors. There was a fireworks show combined with a balloon glow. This is when the hot-air balloons inflate in the dark, but do not fly. When the burners are on, they look like giant Chinese Lanterns.

Asimo the robot performs in an activity center daily, the narration is in Japanese, but entertaining all the same. It is intriguing to see how the robot is both graceful and awkward. There are walking paths and nature trails.

For Honda fans the museum will be the highlight o the trip. From the reproduction of the first Daimler wooden motorcycle to the most recent cars, everything is well organized, put in context with its time, and well displayed. Items range from lawn mowers to race cars and I found them quite interesting even though I normally only have a casual interested in these things.

There is a shuttle to take you from one location to another as the grounds are a bit spread out. Food and service in the restaurants are good. My Italian friend even gave the Italian dishes a thumbs up.

The setting is a little isolated and that is unusual for Japan, but the nearby town of Motegi has good restaurants and many friendly people. This was a very pleasant visit and I would reccommend it to anyone.

Last edited on Sep 25, 2008