old Fuji Speedway footage

[Yannick]

The old Fuji Speedway

Recently, I've found some videos on youtube that prominently feature the old Fuji Speedway in its configuration that existed from its opening in 1965 until 1973, which includes the infamous banking, Turn 2, Turn 3, and the whole uninterrupted final corner 300R. Some of the footage is quite astonishing, especially that of the lost sections like the banking.

For better orientation, I've included a track map in the attachments.

These days, a track design like this would end up in the "weird conceptual tracks"-folder of the My Tracks forum, hence my interest in the track. But in 1965, they opened this track for real. And in the coming years, they had to learn in the hardest imaginable way, that coming from what today is considered F1's longest straight, going over a blind crest and then dropping downhill into a severely banked highspeed corner is not safe at all. They subsequently edited the circuit in 1973, removing the banking.

The first video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=byJ5NH5t37U includes a mix of old footage from the days of the banking and new footage from shortly before the track's renovation in the early 2000s, which includes the Daichi hairpin as Turn 1 and the Dunlop Chicane in the midst of 300R.

This is to give you a first glimpse of the banking. Notice also the runoff problem at the exit of 300R coming onto the main straight that is now solved in the Tilkefied layout.

The 2nd video was filmed before the closure of the track prior to the redevelopments in the early 2000s and shows the tourist view of the ancient banking. The camera car enters the banking area from below, against the racing direction and climbs upwards, where it turns 180 degrees and then follows the banking in the correct direction: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPNkVt8hIH8

Next, there are some other tourist videos, which give you an impression on how steep the banking actually is / was:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUkgWPZ_dec
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=noZA8ZwL5k4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mvZWqGoxVWE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vqlZcsIrloI

And the following video is the real pearl of the bunch, because it includes impressive helicopter footage from 1969!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2sDAGM-5xvM

The last video in this showcase includes footage from a race at Fuji Speedway that was held in 1972 in heavy rain: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ifVBUgdIDc
It's unbelievable that they actually raced the banking under these terrible weather conditions. You need not watch further than 4:08 because the footage of the track ends with the chequered flag.

I hope you like the impressive footage from some of those videos and I hope it was new to at least some of you.

Bye
Yannick

[Peat]

Nice One!

That was a fearsome turn! I have been interested in this track configuration for a while after spotting it on google earth. I read Fuji was originally intended as a tri-oval to attract NASCAR, but the developers ran out of money and sold it after building 1 turn. The buyer then used T1 and made a road course. Albeit a VERY fast one.

Again, thanks. Made my morning!