つまらんレース・・・？！？

今日はカンザスでレースがありましたね。結果はダンのぶっちぎり優勝。と言うよりTargetGanassi勢のブッチギリ優勝でしたね。Ganassiを抜いたら、他のチームはセットから戦略やら色々とひっちゃっかめっちゃか・・・、ある意味Ganassiがいなければ面白いレースになってたかもしれませんが、Danが勝っても新鮮味の無い内容でしたね。終わってみて“ん〜・・・・”って言う内容。デビューレースを完走できたMilkaDunoも何とか１４位でゴール。が、本当の勝負はこれからですね。

Whatched the IRL race from Kansas. It was a dominating win by Dan Wheldon...or I should say by the Target Chip Ganassi boys. The race actually would have been exciting if you eliminate those two since many were struggling with car handling as well as strategy. However, after all there is nothing new about the race by having either Penske or Ganassi guys dominate. It was also good to see Milka finishing the race although I think she will face a steep learning curve from here on.

レースが終わってからジムでランニング。１０km走って家に帰宅。明後日はいよいよ５月ですね！！明日中になんとかIndy500の話は決まらないかな・・・。

After the race, I went to the gym for 10km run. Well...we're just about in to month of May. I really hope I can get my Indy 500 deal locked in by tomorrow!!

今日もトレーニング。

今日は朝起きて、まずは妻がホットヨガにいきたいとの事だったので、自分は家で赤ちゃんのお守。１０時にスタバにコーヒーを買いに行って、お昼時間にジムに行ってガッツリトレーニング。身体は絶好調です！！いや〜本当に早くレーシングカーに乗りたい・・・。トレーニングをしながら、NASCAR Busch SeriesのTalladegaでのレースをtv観戦。やっぱりハイバンクのスーパースピードウェイのレースは面白いですね〜〜！！家に戻ってIRLの予選をチェック。今回もどことなくAGR勢が調子いいですね〜〜。しかし、差が小さいので明日のレースがどうなるか楽しみです。明日はIRLのKansasとNASCARのTalladegaで忙しくなりそうです！！（笑）

Got up in the morning and since my wife went to do Hot Yoga...I slept in with my baby and went to buy some coffee at 10am. Than off to the gym for training while I whatched the NASCAR Busch race from Talladega. The highbanked restictor plate racing is definately cool to watch!! Than got home to check the qualifying results for the IRL race in Kansas. Looks like the AGR boys did a lot of home work during the winter to get their car up to speed again!! It will be an interesting race since the speed difference is so small. I will be busy on TV tomorrow whatching the IRL & NASCAR race!!

契約は来週かな・・・？

今日も朝から交渉。なかなか前に進みませんが気合いでプッシュ。今週末のカンザスのレースが終わったら、次はIndy500だし、さすがに５月に入ったら台数の心配もあると思うので、話はババって決まる様な気もします。今週末までに色々と話を煮詰めて、後はなんとか勢いで押し倒さないと！！

Got up in the morning and another day for nego to run the 500. Nothing much took place today but since there is a race in Kansas this week end and after that it is Indy 500...on top of that we are going in to Month of May... I am sure people will start to get eagered to lock the deals. I think I can get a clear picture by this week end and hopefully I will be able to announce the deal next week.

今日も夕方にジムに行ってトレーニング。１０kmのランニングもして身体の体調はバッチリ！！そうそう、昨日IRL３人目の女性ドライバーと言われてるMilkaDunoがルーキーテスとをパス。今週末にいよいよデビュー！！アメリカのメディアでは実力に関してはかなりバッシングされてますが、どのくらい走るか楽しみ。・・・が、彼女とは昔BarberDodgeProSeriesに出ている時に一緒にレースをした事はありますが、当時に実力でいくと・・・・。そう考えるとDanicaは凄いなって感じです！！

Went to the gym again for 10km run. I am just about ready physical wise and just can't wait to get back in to the car.Speaking of the race this week end...it will be Milka Duno's debut race since she was able to pass the rookie test. However, it will be interesting to see how she does in the race. She has got many critics from the media about her driving skills...and since I have raced against her in Barber Dodge Pro Series many years ago... I think she will have a tough time. Considering all that, I must say that Danica really is quite a talent!!

赤ちゃんの検診

今日も朝からチームと交渉。ここ数日間に話が少し失速してるのでイライラ・・・。なんとか前進できるように頑張らないと！！午前中は赤ちゃんを３ヶ月検診に連れて行きました！！順調に育っていて、もう６kg近くなってました！！大きくなるのはあっと言う間ですね〜〜！！注射も一本打って、一瞬ウギャ〜って泣きましたが、すぐに泣き止んで良いこしてました！！

Got up in the morning and started to talk to the guys in Indy again. We haven't made any advancement during last two days and I am getting a bit frustrated... hopefully we can make this happen in next two days. Took my baby to the hospital for 3rd month check up. He is doing well and had a shot. He cried for a brief moment but he was being a real good boy!!

病院から家に戻って引き続きメールやデンワ等で色々とやり取り。ん〜早く話が決まってくれないとまた円形脱毛症になりそう〜〜！？！

Came back home and immediately to the PC and my phone. Hopefully I can get this locked up before going bold with all the stress...

交渉・・・。

今日は朝起きてまずはインディアナポリスのチーム等に電話をして交渉。ついでにあっちこっちのエンジニアに電話をして、Panozシャーシーのテストの結果を聞いて回りました。まだ、わかりませんが５００の落ち着き先がPanozを保有するチーム場合の為にもデータを先取り。今年の５００はタイヤのコンパウンドが２００５年度に使った物に戻るそうなので、去年よりはPanozとのマッチングも悪くないみたいです。しかし、なんとかDallaraチームで走れるように交渉を頑張らないと。

Got up in the morning and went immediately to my PC and cell phone to speak with the guys in Indy. I needed to speak with several engineers to find out about the Panoz test that just happened recently. I guess there was no issue with the heating which was my big concern. Apparently, Firestone is going back to the 2005 compounds for the 500 which matches the Panoz a little better than the one was used last year. But all in all...I am hoping to land a deal with a Dallara chassis.

お昼は飛行場に行き、茂木から戻ってきたカメラマンの斎藤ヒロ君をピックアップ。ついでにランチもおごってもらってラッキ〜！！ヒロ君ご地層さんで〜す！！家に戻ってからはガッツリトレーニング。よく考えたら５月まであと１週間ですもんね！！さてさて、色々と頑張らないと。

For lunch, I went to the airport to pick up my friend Hiro Saito the photographer who was returning from the trip to Motegi. We went to lunch in Torrance and he was kind enough to buy me lunch!! Got home and went straight to the gym for 10km run. I can't believe we are going to be in May with in a week time...I better get going with the training and negotiations to be fully prepared once I'm in the car!!

もう一息

今日は朝起きてから早速、電話でIndy500の交渉。なんだか毎日１歩進んで３歩下がる状態が続いてるのでプッシュし続けないと。しかしながら、今日は良い方向に話は流れてます。あと一息かな〜〜・・・！？！基本面では合意できてる気がするのは自分だけだったりして！？！（笑）

Got up in the morning and immediately was on the phone to talk about the 500. I think we are making some advances...but it seems like we will take a step forward and back two everytime with negotiate things. I hope we are all in the same page and it's not only me thinking that we have agreed up on general principals.

話が一段落した所でジムでトレーニング。が、ランニング中に次から次へ電話がかかってきて、話にならないので５km走った時点でランニングは中止。ん〜集中してトレーニングをしたい所ですが、大事な話かもしれないし・・・。早く５００の話を決めて集中したトレーニングに入りたいな〜〜！！

Once the negotiation was over...of to the gym. However, I kept recieving calls while running that Iiteraly quit after 5km because I was not able to concentrate. You never know if it's an important call... I really need to lock the 500 deal ASAP so I can just concentrate on my training and being 120% ready for the race!!

トレーニング・デー

今日は午前中に親父をLAの飛行場におくっていって、家に戻って来てからまずはお仕事。茂木からチームのスタッフは戻ってきましたが、今日は残念ながらほとんどの人達が着いたばかりみたいでオヤスミ・・・。思うように話が進まずイライラ。でも、明日からは急ピッチで交渉を進めないと今週末はカンザスでレースだし！？！しかし、Indyのスタッフも大忙しですね。

Took my dad to LAX in the morning and came home to do some work. Most of the IRL team members are back today...but since they have just got home, they were pretty much all off today and could not advance as much as I wanted for the negotiations talk for the 500. However, I really need to speed things up since they are racing in Kansas this week end and hopefully we will have things locked up by than.

昼過ぎからはジムに行ってトレーニング。ここ２〜３日はアテンド等でジムに行く事ができなかったので、がっつりトレーニング！！やっぱトレーニングをしっかりするとスッキリしますね〜〜！！これからスーパーに行って買い物をしないと。そうそう、最近うちの赤ちゃんは良く笑うようになり、色んな表情を作るようになりました！！声を出して笑うとメチャ可愛いです！！って相変わらず親ばかしてます！？！（笑）

Went to the gym in the afternoon. It always feels great working out after skipping several days out of the gym!! I definately need to be in 100% shape for the 500 since the races are 3hrs long!! Went to the supermarket to get the groceries for dinner and now off to bathing the baby. My baby recently started to show numerous facial expressions and it really cathes your heart when he laughs with his voice!! I can't wait for him to start speaking.... I suppose it will still be over a year till that...

お買い物

今日は親父がLAに居たので、色々と頼まれ物等のお買い物であっと言う間に一日が終わってしまいました。インディー関連のチームも日本からの移動日でとくに動きがなかったので、今日はできるだけメールで話を前進できるように少しお仕事。今夜はイタリアンを家族で食べに行く事になりました。なんだか週末もあっと言う間に過ぎて明日からは１週間以内にインディーの話を急ピッチで決めれるように頑張らないと！！グッドニュースを待っていてくださいね！！

Since my dad was in town, we were out all day shopping for goods. Since all the IRL team is travelling back to US today...nothing much was going on except to get a head start on the negotiations, I have e-mailed several guys today and that was pretty much it for today's work. We are just about to head to Dinner now. I better get everything sorted out by this week for the 500 and please do expect for a great announcement in the near future!!!

フェニックス

昨日はドタバタしていて、久しぶりにダイアリーをサボっちゃいました・・・。今朝は６時前に起きて、朝一のフライトでフェニックスに行きました。日本から来ているお客さんのアテンドのお仕事で、日帰りで行ってきました。フェニックスではNASCARのレースが行われ、今後の活動について色々と下見。同時にIndianapolisベースの大手マーケティング会社の社長ともあい、５００で何か良いクライエントがいないか商談。早く５００の話を決めないとな〜〜！！しかし、フェニックスのレースの人の数にもビックリ！！１マイルオーバルで８万人もお客がきてるみたいです！！エンターテイメントとしては、IndyもNASCARを見らなう所はたくさんあるのかな・・・、と実感する一日でした。

It was a busy day yesterday...and I had to skip on my blog. I got up really early and catch the first flight to Phoenix. I have attended the NASCAR race with a client from Japan. I hope it will do me good for future career and I was also able to meet several people who may be able to get some help for Indy 500. The deal is getting closer everyday and I hope to have something locked up this week. The race in Phoenix was really exciting. I think there were closed to 80,000 people at the track...IRL definately has some work to do to match the NASCAR guys in terms of entertainment...and marketing aspect.

いい感じに話が進んでます！

今日は朝からIndy500に向けて交渉！ここ２日間でかなり話も進展してあと一息って所です。なるべく早く発表できるように頑張ります！！しかし、茂木のリザルトが気になる〜〜。もちろんライブタイミングでは見てますが・・・。コウスケは調子良さそうですが,AGR勢が揃って調子が良い所が気になりますね。レースの内容はかなり面白くなりそう。結構タイム差がないから、ターン３〜４の争いでクラッシュが続出しそうな予感・・・。

It was a pretty busy day negotiating for the Indy 500 program. There was big progress during the last two days and I think we are just days away from signing the deal. I hope to have things locked up by next week end and to be able to announce the deal. While I check my e-mails... I can resist being home whatching the Indy Japan race live through my PC. The AGR boys look pretty competetive but it will be interesting to see the race because with all the time being so close...I wouldn't be suprised if they are numerous shunts through turn 3-4.

しかし、現場に行けなくて皆さんにお会いできないのは本当に残念です・・・。僕が行けない分も、ぜひコウスケを応援してあげてください！！あっ、でももしIndy500の参戦が決まったら僕だけを応援してくださいね！！（笑）

I really missed being at Motegi and seeing all your fans. However, I really hope everyone can cheer for my buddy Kousuke for some good results this week end.Oh...but don't forget to cheer just for me at Indy 500 once the deal is signed!?!

今日からIndyJapan開幕

いよいよ、今日からIndyJapanが開幕ですね。現地に居る人からのメールによると、今日はあいにく天気が悪いみたいですね・・・。しかも、寒いと聞いていますが。アメリカサイドでは、Indy500に向けての話がだいぶ煮詰まってきました！！ま〜話が決まるまでは油断できませんが、なんとかエントリーが決めれるといいな〜〜！！茂木に行けなかった分もこっちで頑張らないと！！

The Indy Japan race week end is starting today with two practice sessions.I heard the weather is not so great and it's cold... may be not bad of a decision to stay home and work on the deal for Indy. Until it's locked up, never say never...but I think we are headed to the right direction and I hope to have something locked in pretty soon!!

今日も午前中にジムに行きミッチリトレーニング。お昼からは家で色々とIndy500に関して連絡の取り合い。すぽっと参戦するのに何が大変かと言うと人材のリクルートなんですよね。ちゃんとしたスタッフ、メカやエンジニアを集めないと良い結果を望めないので。もちろん契約の話もあるしかなりドタバタしてますが、なんとか２週間以内には話を決めないと！！って言っても２週間たったらもう５月ですが・・・。

I got up in the morning and went to the gym. I came home and got in touch with several guys for Indy. It's hard to get the deal but it is just as hard to find the right staff, mechanics, and the engineer to be in you team if it's a temporarily program. However, I really feel like this deal is going to happen and I hope I can have it announced in two weeks time. Well, having said that, in two weeks it's already in May so I really need to get this moving!!

Virginia Tech

昨日はViginia Techの大学での発砲事件で３０人以上の生徒やスタッフが射殺され、今日もそのニュースがしきりにやっています。犯人は２３歳の韓国人らしく、まだ動機は判明してないみたいです・・・。いや〜しかし本当にアメリカは怖いですね！！自分も中学の時は治安があまり良くない所を挟んだ学校に通っていたので、学校に入る時に金属探知機を通らされたりしてました。にしても、今回の事件は本当に怖い怖い。息子が大きくなった時の学校選びも色々と考えないとなって改めて実感しました。

The shooting at Virginia Tech yesterday was astonishing. Obviously a bad news for the whole nation and it was the top news for today as well. It is really scary since this happened at a well established school with good students. It really made me think on which school I should take my son once he gets bigger....

今日は午前中にジムに行ってトレーニング。午後はまたインディアナポリスのチームの人と話し合い、色々とドタバタしていました。そろそろ話も大詰めなので具体化させないと・・・。

Another busy day today. Went to the gym in the morning and was talking to numerous teams in Indianapolis. I better get everyhing sorted really soon since Month of May is just right around the corner.

今日はお家でお仕事

昨日は１０時過ぎに帰宅。１１時に軽く夜食を食べて１時前には熟睡。今日は７時に起きて、１０時にカメラマンの斎藤ヒロ君を飛行場へ送って行き帰宅。今週末は茂木ですね。ん〜今年もIndyJapanに参戦できなくて本当に申し訳ないです・・・。しかも、現場に行って応援してくれているファンの皆さんにもお会いする事ができないので、本当に寂しいです。しかしながら、今週はIndyに向けて大事な交渉が色々とあります！！なので、話を早く決めれるように全力で頑張ります！！

Got home after 10pm last night. Had a snack and was knocked out before 1am. Than I was back up at 7am... went to pick up my friend Hiro to take him to the airport since he is going back to Japan for the Indy Japan race. I am really gutted for not being able to race there this week end, and I truly feel sorry for my fans not only being able to race there but for not being able to stop by there and see all of you!! However, this week will be a pretty important week for me to negotiate the Indy 500 and I figured it was going to be best for me to stay here in LA and get that done.

飛行場から家に戻ってきてからは色んな所と電話で交渉。今年のIndy500はDallaraで参戦したいのですが、この時点ではやはりPanozチームの方が多かったりコストパフォーマンスが良いので悩む所です。もう少し粘って少しでも良い体制に乗れるように交渉をしないとっ！！

After getting back from the airport, I talked to several teams for the Indy deals. I am working really hard to get in to a Dallara than a Panoz... however there are more Panoz teams this year that can do the deal for better price.... I will wait a little more to try to get a Dallara deal and I hope to be in a good car to perform well in the race!!!

これから帰宅

今日も６時に起きて８時前にサーキット入り。４５分の練習走行があってから、２時半に４５分のレースがスタート。昨日のレースのデータを解析して、ドライバーに色々とアドバイスをあげたので、今日のレースでは３秒近くのタイムアップ！！しかも、９位と１２位でドライバー一人はトップ１０入り！！予想以上にレベルアップしたので自分もビックリ。本人達もチームも喜んでくれてるので今後もコーチとして使った貰えそう！！

Got up at 6am again and was at the track by 8am. There was a 45min practice session in the morning and 45min race that started at 2:30pm. After analyzing the data from yesterday, I was able to give few advice to the drivers and they were able to pick up almost 3secs off their time!! Even better they have finished 9th and 12th and I was really impressed and happy with the result!! I hope they will hire me again as a coach and help them achieve better results for the future races.

５時にサーキットをでて、飛行場へ直行！！今は早い飛行機に乗れるようにスタンバイ中です。早く帰って赤ちゃんの顔を見るのが楽しみです！！

I left the track at about 5pm and I am currently on stanby for an earlier flight. I am hoping to get home sooner to see my little baby!!

ステーキ

昨日はソノマにあるステーキ屋で夕飯を食べました。アメリカで食べたステーキの中で一番美味かったと思うほどの美味しいステーキでした。頼んだのはNYSteakでブルーチーズソースが少しかかってて、めちゃ美味しかったです！！ん〜２日連続で食べてもいいくらいです！？！（笑）

Went to the stake joint in Sonoma last night and the NY steak was excellent. It was cooked too perfection and had some blue cheese saucae on it and it was Yum-O!! I don't mind going back there two days in a row!!

今日はフェラーリチャレンジの第１戦目があり、自分は見ているドライバーも無事に完走。昨日からタイムも２秒アップ！！かなり喜んでくれてるみたいです！！明日ももう１レースあるので、もっとタイムアップさせれるように頑張ります！！

The Ferrari Challenge race went well today. The 2 drivers that I was coaching both finished the race and I was happy to see them going 2sec quicker. Hopefully they will do even better tomorrow!!

Sonomaでお仕事

昨日はレンタカーを借りる時に、トラブルがあり飛行場を出てホテルに着いたのが１２時半・・・。今朝は６時に起きて、サーキットに７時入り。今週末のレースでコーチングするドライバー２人と会って、色々と話し合い。今日は３回のセッションがあり、明日の第１レースの予選が夕方ありました。SkipBarberの時は４０人近いドライバーを同時に見なくてはいけないので、かなり大変ですが今週末は２人のドライバーに集中できるのでだいぶ楽です。

I got to the rental place last night and there was an issue with rental car reservation..by the time I got to the hotel, it was already passed midnight and I was not too happy about that. Got up this morning at 6am and was at the track by 7. Met with the two drivers who I am coaching this week end and went through all the basics for the week end. There was 3 practice sessions and qualifying session for tomorrow's race. It's much easier to work with two guys compare to being at Skip Barber where you have to look after 40 drivers during their race week end.

そして、何よりもガレージにある新しいフェラーリFXXは格好いいですね〜〜〜！！ぜひ乗ってみたい！！今回のドライバーの結果が良ければ今後もコーチとして使ってもらえるかもしれないのでお仕事がんばらないと！！

The new Ferrari FXX is really cool looking!! Hopefully I can have a go one day in them. Well...if I do a good job this week end and if my drivers do finish well, I may be back again in the future to work with these guys so I better work hard all weekend!!

LAは強風

今日は朝起きて早速LongBeachに行ってきました。シリーズコーディネーターにパスも用意してもらっていたので、とりあえず現場にいて昔から知ってるメカやエンジニアやチームのオーナーなどと会って話をしてきました。今日はセットアップDayだったので、走行はなく静かでしたがChampCar、F.Atlantic,そしてALMSのパドックを渡り歩きありとあらゆる知り合いに遭遇したのでなかなか楽しかったです。ついでに、子供と妻も連れて行き、なんだか赤ちゃんは嬉しいのか・・・、爆睡してました！？！（笑）

I took my baby and my wife to Long Beach today. It was only a set up day and it was quite but that allowed me to run in to some of my old friends that are working in ALMS, Champ Car, and F.Atlantic paddock. I got some work done today and we decided to leave at 2pm when the wind was getting stronger. I guess my baby liked being at the track because he was a sleep most of the time!?!

が、お昼から強風・・・。家に帰る途中にあと５分と言う所で道に気が強風に倒され通行止め！！もの凄い渋滞にはまって５分で戻れる所を２０分もかけて帰宅しました！！さたさて、これから荷物の準備をしてソノマにいかないと・・・。

When the return home was awful...I was just 2 blocks away from my home when a tree fell from strong wind and shut down the street. It took my 20 min to get home from there.... No I need to get ready to go to Sonoma!!

携帯で撮ったのでややピンボケしてますが、倒れてる木を撮ってみました。

ジムでガッツリトレーニング！

今日は朝起きて犬臭が気になるピットをまずグルーマーへ連れて行き、洗ってもらいました。その間にジムでガッツリトレーニング！！ランニングも１０kmして気分爽快。家に戻ってシャワーを浴びてから、明日の夜からソノマに行くプラニング。同時に一昨日Indy500のエントリーの締め切りがあったせいか、色んなチームから連絡がありドタバタしていたらあっと言う間に時間がすぎてしまいました。今の所は色んなエントリーはありますが、確実なのは２５台。あと８台は必要な中スポンサー探しを頑張ってなんとか近日中に話を決めないと・・・。全力で頑張ります！！

Got up in the morning and took my dog to the groomer since he actually started to smell like an actual dog...!?! While I wait for him, I went to the gym and ran 10km. Got home took a showere and had to plan all the travels for this week end. I will leave tomorrow night and will be back on Sunday. While I was working on that, I started to get numerous calls about Indy. After the entry deadline, I am sure many teams are looking for driver with some $$$!!

明日はロングビーチに午前中に行って、色んなチームと話をする予定です。なんだか忙しい一日になりそう・・・。

Well...I'll be off to Long Beach tomorrow to speak with some teams. It looks like it will be a busy day....

週末はInfineon?!?

今日はお昼に子育て教室が一緒だった、夫妻と赤ちゃんとランチ。お互いに赤ちゃんが産まれて日も近くて、息子にとっても始めてのお友達って感じですね！！いや〜ダウンタウンにすんでるとなかなか、他の家族や赤ちゃんと接する機会がないので仲良くなってもらわないと！！

I took my family to Lunch today with our friends who we met during the pre-natal lessons we took last year. Both of our babies were born 3 months ago and I am sure they will become good friends. Since it is very hard to find a friend/family who can grow up together with my son in Downtown, I really hope they will be become good friends.

そうこうしてるうちに、週末のお仕事が急遽はいって大忙し・・・。本当はLongBeachに行くはずのが、なんとInfineonでFerrariChallengeのドライバーのコーチングのお仕事が入っちゃいました・・・。ん〜息子にレースに連れて行くのを謝りつつ・・・、今週末はお仕事に行ってきます！？！

During lunch...I have started to get some phone calls for the work during this week end. I was planning to go to Long Beach but so much for that and I will be in Sonoma to coach a driver who is racing in Ferrari Challenge. I had to apoligize my baby for not being able to take him to Long Beach...in return I will have to work pretty hard during the weekend and buy him a toy!?!

今週末はLong Beach

今日のLAは久しぶりに天気が良かったです。昨日はTargetでオムツ等をゲットできなかったので、今日は早朝からTargetに行って日用品をゲット。それからIndyのチームとコンタクトを取ってなんとか５００の話をまとめれるように交渉。平行に色んなチームから連絡があり、自分の頭の中も少し混乱状態・・・。そんなこんなで今週末はLongBeachのレース。そこでも色々と今後の為に交渉する事もあるので少し忙しくなりそうです。

It was a great day today here in LA. Since Target was closed yesterday and we missed out on buying diapers, I was the first one to enter the store this morning!! I came home and talked to several teams regarding to the Indy 500 deals in order to make it happen. However, there are so many prospects out there and it is hard to make up your mind with just one team.... This week end, I will be at Long Beach talking to several teams as well...looks like it will be a busy week end.

Easter Sunday

今日はイースターで全米は祝日。スーパーぐらいはやってるだろうと思って、赤ちゃんのオムツを買いにTargetまで行ったら、な〜んとお休み・・・。最近はThanksGivingでもChristmasでもやっていたのに恐るべし、EasterDay！？！仕方ないのでサンドウィッチを買って、家に戻りべガスで行われてるChampCarのレースを観戦。１７台中８台完走のレースで、やはり新車のデビューレースとの事で色々とトラブルが続出。ギヤボックスや、給油等の問題はまだ色々とあるそうです。しかしながらも、Will　Powerの初優勝！！今年のChampCarは誰が勝つかわららなそうな内容なのである意味おもしろそうですが、ドライバーからすると色んな細かいドラブルが出て少しイライラしてそうな感じです！？！

Since it was Easter Sunday, I just ended up chiliing in the house. We went to buy some diapers to Target, however we didn't realize it was going to be close today since it was open on Thanks Giving day as well as Christmas. At that time, my wife and I have pretty much given up of going anywhere and decided to get a sandwich for lunch and headed home to whatch the Champ Car season opener in Vegas. It was an interesting race since only 8 cars finished out of 17. Since it was a debut race for the new chassis, there are still several mechanical glitches such as gear box and refuelling problems. Having said that it was a great win for Will Power and I really think it will be an exciting season since you really can't predict who will win the race this year. At the same time it must be frustrating for the drivers with all the mechanical issue...

New Car試乗

今日は雑誌のお仕事で新しい車を試乗してきました。最初はMitsubishiのOutlander。その後にMazda MX-9。どちらともSUVで比較するのには面白い車です。とくにMX-9にはかなり興味があったので乗れてラッキー！！Outlanderはイメージのままの車かなって感じです。乗った瞬間にパワーはそこそこあるなと思いましたが。が、Mazda MX-9に乗ったらビックリ！！よくできた車ですね〜〜！！MX−７といい、最近のMazdaは本当にコストパフォーマンスの良い車を作るなって改めて実感しました。いや〜しかしLAは相変わらず天気が曇り空なのでスッキリしませんね・・・。

I had to work today doing some driving for magazine impressions. The car I drove today was the new Mitsubishi Outlander, and the Mazda MX-9. The Outlander was pretty much what I expected and the power of the engine was pretty good for the class. However, the MX-9 was rather impressive. For the cost of the car, I am impressed how well the car is built. Betwee the MX-7 and all other models that they came up with, they are probably the best manufacture in terms of cost performance wise. The weather was no to so cooperative today for the photoshoot...but we got everything done and that's what's important.

あっという間に週末

あっと言う間に週末ですね！今日はインディーや今後の活動に向けてのミーティングをして、同時にチームと連絡の取り合い。インディー以外でもALMSやGrandAmの話もちょくちょく出てるので頭がひっちゃかめっちゃかです。が、やっぱり何が何でもIndy500には参戦したいですね！！

I can't believe it's already week end...this week went by so fast! It was another busy day today having a meeting and getting in touch with some teams. I have som interest from ALMS and Grand Am side and it's hard to focus on just one thing. However, I really would like to make the Indy 500 deal happen!!

今日からいよいよChampCarの開幕戦ですね！LasVegasのダウンタウンで行われてるレースは見たかったな〜〜！！何よりも今年からデビューしてる新しい車の格好いいですね！！そろそろ、Indyも車を新しくしないとなんだかかっちょわるいですね。（笑）今週末はF1にChampCar・・・、またTVに釘付けですね！？！

The new Champ Car looks excellent!! They are racing in downtown Las Vegas this week end and the new Panoz is definately a much better looking cars than the IRL. Hopefully the IRL will come up with a new car soon since there current car is getting out of date. It looks like it will be another busy week end in front of the TV with the F1 and Champ Car race!!!

曇り空

ここ数日はLAにしたら珍しく、空が曇ってます・・・。やはり快晴が似合うLAの空が曇ってるとなんだかムード全体が暗くなりますね。今日は早起きして午前中にジムでトレーニング！ここの所は身体の調子は絶好調で、車に乗る準備は何時もでOKってかんじです！！午後は色々とスーパーに行ったりして食材をゲット。夕方に赤ちゃんをお風呂に入れて、今夜はユックリ。最近は赤ちゃんをお風呂に入れるのも慣れてきました。赤ちゃんもお風呂が好きみたいで、入浴中はおとなしいです！！いや〜でも一緒に温泉とか行けるようになると楽しみですね〜〜！！ちなみに、僕は赤ちゃんの時に始めて温泉に行って溺れてそれから水恐怖症ですが・・・！？！（笑）

It was another cloudy day today in LA. It's always better to have a shiny day especially here in SoCal!! Although I was not in a good mood...I went to the gym in the morning and worked out pretty hard. My condition is really good and I am ready any day to get back in to the car!! I just need to find a ride I guess...!?! In the PM, went to the grocery store to pick up some food for the week end and came home and bathed my baby. He is getting used to bathing and seems like he is enjoying it. I can't wait for him to get older so we can go to hot springs together in Japan. However, I have a bad experience at the Japanese hot springs when I was a child since I nearly drowned in one of those places...!?!

日焼けで真っ黒

今日も家で仕事をしていたらあっという間に一日が終了・・・。Indyのチームと色々と話をしたりプランを立てているとあっと言う間に時間がすぎてしまいます。来週はLongBeachでChampCarの開幕戦がありますが、もしかしたらFerrariChallengeのお客さんのドライバーコーチでソノマに行かなくてはならないかも・・・。ん〜またドライブで行くとなったら気が遠いな〜〜。でも仕事をしないとだし・・・。しかし、先週末のLagunaSecaの仕事で日焼けをして顔が真っ黒になってしまいました・・・。もう３０歳を目前に日焼けをすると肌が昔のように対応してくれないのを感じる所がトシですね〜！？！（笑）

Another day at home working and getting in touch with many Indy teams. The day went by so quick. I want to go to the Long Beach race next week end but I may have to drive up to Sonoma and work for an client in Ferrari Challenge driver coaching. Hopefully I will be able to fly up there... I have got so much sun tanned last week that as I get older, my skin is not taking the sunshine so well!?! I will definately need some sunblocks next time at the track!!

Superleague Formula

昨日２００８年からシリーズ開始予定のSuperleague Formulaの発表がありましたね。このシリーズは以前からも噂はされていましたが、モータースポーツとサッカークラブが融合して行われるシリーズ。とくにヨーロッパではモータースポーツもサッカーも人気なので、面白いシリーズになるかもしれませんね！！・・・と言う事はベッカムが移籍してジダンも移籍を噂されているLA Galaxyも参戦するのかな？！？しかし、このシリーズが立ち上がったらますますA1GPの人気は下がる気配がしますね。

There was an announcement of Superleague Formula starting mid 2008. It will be an interesting series since it will be a joint venture between motorsports teams and soccer clubs. In Europe, Soccer and Motorsports are the most two popular sports and I can see the popularity raising if we can hace the cars colored as the same way as the soccer teams team wear. Speaking of Soccer, I am curious if LA Galaxy will have a team with Beckham joining the team as well as Zidane rumorued to be joining the team!! Well, if this series does happen...it will certainly be an upset to the A1GP boys!!

今日は家で仕事をして夕方にジムでトレーニング。Indy500参戦に向けてスポンサー活動でもあっちこっちに連絡をとったり大忙しです。時間はあっと言う間にたっちゃいますね・・・。

It was a pretty busy day today working all day and going to the gym in the afternoon. I really have to get on it for the sponsorship hunt for the 500 as the time is clicking really quickly.

今週末はChampCarの開幕戦

昨日は家に戻ってご飯を食べて寝たのは１時過ぎ・・・。さすがに、仕事をして４時間半の運転の後だったので疲れました。今日の午前中はユックリしようかなと思いつつ、ずっと早起きしてたので朝しっかり目が覚めてしまったので早速インディーのチームとコンタクト。先週はホームステッドからセントピーターズバーグに移動があったので連絡を取ってなかったので状況をアップデート。

Since I got home late last night, after having dinner and a shower, it was already past 1am. After whole day of work and 4.5hr drive home, I was definately nacked!! I was planning to sleep in but all the early wake up calls during the past 3 days got me up when the sun was bright and shiny!! I could not sleep in so I ended up getting up early and touching basis with all the Indy teams since I couldn't do much when they were travelling from Homestead to St.Pete.

色々とスケジュールを見ていたら今週末はラスベガスでChampCarの開幕戦ですね。いったい何台集まるんだろう・・・。今年のChampCarは新しい車でのレースなのでどんな状況になるのか楽しみです。そして、その翌週はLongBeachで第２戦目。せっかくなので顔を出そうかなと思ってます！！ちなみに、息子も連れて行こうかなと検討中。考えてみると自分も産まれて始めて親父にレースに連れてってもらったのが凡そ６ヶ月の時のロングビーチで行われてたF1のレースでした！！大きくなっても記憶は無いだろうけど話のネタにはなるかな・・・！？！（笑）

I was glancing through the schedule and there is going to be a Champ Car opening round race this week end in Vegas. I really wanted to go whatch that, however since there is Long Beach next week end, I decided to stay home and whatch the race at home. I am considering to take my baby to the race next week end. My first ever race I have been to is when my dad took me to the Long Beach F1 race when I was just 6 months old. Although my son will probably won't remember much from it, I think it would be a good thing for him since he can brag about it when he gets old!!

やっと帰宅

今日は６時に起きて、７時半にコース入り。４時半までサーキットで仕事をして、そのままダッシュで家に戻り４時間半のドライブで９時にLAの自宅に着。日曜日だったので道もすいていて、思ったよりも早く戻れてラッキ〜！が、家に戻ってリラックスもつかの間・・・。赤ちゃんがもう少しで３ヶ月に入る所ですが、どうやらこの時期は感情も色々と覚え始め一時的に泣きまくったりするみたいです。なので家に戻ったらすぐ赤ちゃんの抱っこ。でもやっぱり自分の子供は可愛いですね！！仕事で疲れても子供の顔を見るとホッとします。

Got up at 6AM and arrived to the track at 7:30am. I was working until 4:30PM and headed straigh back home. Since it was a Sunday, the traffic was fairly light and I was able to get home in 4.5hrs. After the long drive, I was pretty tired but so much for resting since my baby was crying big time when I got home. Apparently he is in the period of time when the baby has a tendency to cry a lot for a little while. Nevertheless, after not seeing him for 3 days my tiredness just went away when I saw his big smile on his face!!

Laguna２日目終了

LagunaSecaでの２日目の仕事が終わりました。いや〜今日も日差しが強くて顔が真っ赤です！！（笑）今日も５時までが走行があり、午後は４グループのレースがありました。その中で毎年この最終戦に参加する日本人の選手が優勝！！もの凄く優しい方で、インストラクターの皆からも人気で今回は初優勝だったのでパドックに戻った時にはバケツで水を被されてました！！（笑）

The 2nd day here in Laguna Seca just ended. Another long and sunny day. My face is actually turning red with the sun burn!! The racing was really exciting today with all 4 groups. One of the Japanese driver ended up winning his race and since it was his first win and being popular with all the mechanics, he celebrated the victory with the instructor dumping bucket of water on to him!! Since it was a warm day, I'm sure he didn't mind that after the race!!

あれれ、気がついたら４月ですね。色々とウトウトしている間に、茂木までもう３週間・・・。残念ながら現時点では実りそうな話はありません・・・。ただ、明日はセントピーターズバーグでレースがありますし、どのタイミングでドライバーが怪我をしたりクビになったりするかわからないので、まだ可能性は１００％無いとは言い切れません。最後まで諦めてはいけないと思う反面、人の不幸を待つの際どい心境です・・・。しかしながらファンの皆様からもメールを頂いて、IndyJapan参戦を楽しみにして頂いてるのに参戦できないのは本当に悔しいですしファンの皆さんにも申し訳ないです。何があってもIndy500には参戦できるように頑張りますので引き続き応援してください！！しかし、仕事でLagunaにいながらやっぱりセントピーターズバーグの結果＆状況が気になります・・・。

I can't believe it's already April. And 3weeks to Motegi Indy Japan race. At this time I don't have any prospect of likelyhood of sponsorship deals to race in Motegi, but in Indy Cars you never know what's gonna happen. There is a race this week end and some one may get injured....or fired after the race. You can't give up until the end...but it is also weird to hope for an incident like that to happen inorder for you to get a ride. Nevertheless, I feel really bad and gutted for all the fans who were looking forward to see me race in Motegi and at worse case scenario I hope I can make the Indy 500 deal happen. I really appreciate the conituing support from all your fans with fan mails!!