腰痛

日本から戻って来て、長旅でまだ身体が堅くなってる時に調子にのってトレーニングをしたせいか、腰が突然激痛・・・。今日はあまりにも痛かったのでトレーニングはお休みして、カイロの先生に見てもらいました。

Since I got back from Japan, my back started to ache a bit and I guess doing weight training didn't help the situation. I had hard time getting up from the bed so I had to see a doctor today. It's much better now...but I will have to take a week end off from training in general.

色々と治療をしてだいぶ良くなりました。今週末はユックリリラックスして来週からまたトレーニングに復帰ですね・・・。

I will have a lot to catch up during next week and I hope I can recover by Mon!!

水素

昨日LAでカリフォルニア初の水素を供給するスタンドができました！場所はWest LAにあるShell。実のこのスタンドはサンタモニカに住んでいた時によくいれていたスタンドです。しかし、水素が一般的に供給されるようになれば、燃料電池車も増えるのでは期待できますね！

Yesterday, we saw the first opening of the fuel station that supplies Hydrogen for the Fuel Cell Vehicle in California. The station is located in West LA and it is actually at the Shell station that I used to fill up in when I lived in Santa Monica. I think this will allow many car manufacture to further develop fuel cell vehicle now that Hydrogen is accessible to the users.

ガソリンの値段が連日最高値を更新している中、燃料電池車が早く実用的になって、環境にもお財布的にも優しくなって欲しいですね！！！

Since we are seeing record price for barrel of oil on almost daily basis...I think the Fuel Cell Vehicle would be way to go not only environmentally but economically as well!!

無事に帰宅

昨晩やっとロスの家に戻ってきました。長いフライトでした。今回は台北経由。台北の飛行場は以外とモダンで奇麗だったからビックリ。しかも、台北からのシンガポール航空の飛行機も快適で、長旅でしたがいがいと楽ちん。日本からの直行のフライトよりも、LAに着くと夜なので以外と時差ボケもなく楽でした！！

Just got back home after long flight transferring through Taipei. It was actually not so bad since the Singapore Air flight from Taipei was actually pretty good. I was some what surprised with how modern and clean the Taipe Airport was....it actually makes it easier once you land to LAX going through Taipei with jetlag because you arrive in LA at 8PM and all you have to do when you get home is sleep.

今日は久しぶりにジムに行って身体を動かさないと！！しかも、仕事がいっぱい溜まっているので、忙しい一日になりそうです・・・。

Well...I will be going to the gym today and will have a lot of work to cath up with...

最終日

昨日はあまりにも疲れが溜まっていたので、ミーティングが終わった夕方にエアープレス上野に行って酸素カプセルに入ってきました。１時間半バッチリ入ったら完全復活！改めて疲労回復の効果を実感しました。その上にかなりリラックスできるのでやっぱり家に１台完備したい所です・・・。

Since I was tired from all the meetings one after another for a week, I decided to stop by Air Press Ueno to get oxygenated. I can tell you that the capsule do really work because I am back to full throttle now!! I wished if I had one of those machines at home....

今日は日本最終日。午前中に数件ミーティングがあって、６時のフライトで成田を出発します。が、今回はマイレージ切符で予約したので台北経由なのでかなり遠回り・・・。かなりの長旅になりそうですが、“無”になってゆっくりと寝る予定です！！

Well, I will go to several meetings in the morning and head to the airport to catch my flight this evening. Since I ended up getting an award ticket using my miles this time...I will have to go through Taipei rather than direct back to LAX. It's going to be a long trip but I think I will just sleep through the whole trip.

いせやの天婦羅

今回の日本の滞在はいよいよ明日まで。昨晩は蔵前にある“いせや”の天婦羅を食べに行ってきました！サクッと揚がっていてメチャ美味しいです！！かなりお薦めなので浅草界隈に行かれた時はぜひ立ち寄ってみて下さい。

I have one more day left for my trip here in Japan. Last night I went to dinner with my sponsors to have Tempura at Iseya in Kuramae which is only couple of minutes away from my house. The Tempura there was really good and it definitely is a must go place if you are in this part of town.

いや〜しかし、なんだか疲れが溜まっていて、帰る前になんとかエアープレス上野に行って酸素カプセルに入りたい所です・・・。今日も忙しくなりそうですが残り少ない日本での滞在時間を頑張ります！！

Well...I my energy is getting drowned and will need to go to Air Press Ueno to relax and inhale some high compressed oxygen!!

キックボクシング

さっき後楽園ホールで行われたキックボクシングの試合を見に行ってきました。今回の“野良犬電撃作戦”にでる、石川直生選手は僕の親戚で今回はグッドタイミングで日本に帰って来れたので応援に駆け付けました！いや〜やっぱり格闘の試合は凄いですね・・・。直生選手以外にも今回はなお君の友達の山本優弥選手や寺戸選手が出ていたので皆を応援！！しかし、やっぱり面識がある選手を応援するのは辛いですね〜・・・。パンチやキックが痛々しくて。でもプロの厳しい世界を感じて、ある意味いい刺激になりました！自分も頑張らないと！！

I went to see a Kickboxing match today at Kouraku-en Hall. My relative is actually a champion in Japan and the timing was just right to make a visit to cheer him! I have been to an K1 fight but the Kickboxing match was actually really exciting.

試合内容は、優弥選手もナオ君も負けてしまいましたが、内容はメチャメチャ濃かってです！試合後に一緒に会食に行けて色々と話せて本当に良かったです！試合結果は善男ですが、皆も頑張ってるから自分ももっともっと頑張らないとって思える良い一日でした！！

My buddy Naoki Ishikawa, and Yuuya Yamamoto have both ended up losing the fight but I must say that they fought really well! It really made me think twice that how lucky I am racing in Indy Car Series and not getting kicked and punched....but most importantly it reminded me how hungry you needed to stay as an athlete!!

石川直生選手の試合前

山本優弥選手の入場！

試合後に皆でワンショット

紅月

いや〜久しぶりの日本は忙しい・・・。しかも暑いんだか緩いんだかって微妙な天気が続きますね〜。そんな中、昨晩はMyFavoriteレストランの紅月に行ってきました！

It's been a real busy trip so far... I can't get enough sleep during the night. To make things worse it's hot and somewhat humid but seems as if it's going to rain!?! I am enjoying the great food and drinks here but not the weather for sure!?!

やっぱ美味いっすね〜〜！しかも昨日はな〜んとアワビシャブX２を食べちゃいました！あまりにも美味しすぎて無言で食べてしまいました！！昨晩はK1ファイターの秋山選手と食事を同席させてもらいました。来月の試合に向けて気合いが入ってるのを感じました！！K1の試合をまたちかじか見に行きたい所です。

I had a chance to eat at my favorite restaurants Kougetsu last night. The food was fantastic as usual! We had Abalone ShabuX2 last night. It was real tasty!! I wished they would open a restaurant in LA... I joined the dinner with one of the K1 fighter Mr.Akiyama. He is huge...definitely I would hate to get in to a fist fight with him....I wouldn't fight him even if I had a gun!?! I bet he can kick my before I can pull the trigger...lol

名古屋

昨日は夕方に急遽、名古屋に行く事になり、さっき東京に戻ってきました。厳密には多治見ですが・・・。夜に会食をしてホテルに泊まり、今朝はお昼に親父と名古屋駅で待ち合わせをして、味噌煮込みうどんを食べて帰ってきました！味噌煮込みうどんレストランをロスでやったら流行りそう！？！

I had a last minute meeting come up last night in Nagoya and was there for a night. The meeting went well and I just got back to Tokyo. I hope I don't have to travel much anymore because I am pretty tired of traveling... Anyhow, met with my dad for lunch today in Nagoya and had Miso-Nikomi Udon for lunch. It's basically a Udon with Red Miso soup. It is really good and I'm sure it would be popular if someone opens up a restaurant just specializing Miso-Nikomi Udon in LA!?!

日本に到着

昨日の夕方、無事に日本に着きました。飛行機の中ではそこそこ寝れたのですが、やっぱり時差ボケ・・・。今朝は６時前に起きてしまいました！？！日本はまだ蒸し暑くなくてちょうど良い温度ですね。

Got to Tokyo last night and still somewhat jetlagged. I was able to sleep in the plane and was knocked out before 12:30am last night...and was up before 6am this morning. It's still not hot and humid here so at least that's good for the stay.

家に帰って来たら、週末のラグーナでの仕事でずっとサングラスをつけたまま外にいたので、日焼けで目の回りがパンダ状態・・・。アメリカだとあまり気にならないけど、日本だとなんだか恥ずかしいですね・・・！？！（笑）

When I got home, I was greeted by my uncle and cousins and all they talked about was my sun tan from being at the track all week end. Obviously the I was out working and not golfing...but people here in Japan think that you are out playing when you get too dark...!?!

これから日本です

昨日は作業を１時まで終わらせて、なんとか１時半までに寝る事ができました。今朝は７時前に起床。ってか、息子に起こされました！？！（笑）９時前にジムに行って軽くトレーニング。家に戻ってダッシュでパッキングをして、今は飛行場です。これから飛行機に乗って日本に戻ります。

I was able to get all the work done before 1am last night and was at sleep by 1:30am. My son woke me up before 7am and I wasn't able to catch a good sleep. Since I was going to catch an afternoon flight today, I was planning on sleeping in the plane and get some work out done in the morning.

飛行機の中では爆睡できそうです。しかし、インディーから戻って来て、一度も週末を家族と過ごしてない事が今日発覚・・・。日本から戻って来たら少しファミリーサービスをしないとって感じです。

I am at the lounge now getting ready for the flight. I am ready to sleep anytime now. I was just going through my schedule and realized that I haven't spent any time with my son during the week end since I got home from Indy. I better plan something out when I get back in town to keep my wife happy....

帰宅

さっき家に帰ってきました。今日は珍しく早目に終わったので、９時前には家に着く事ができました。明日は昼過ぎのフライトで日本に向けて出発なので、今から洗濯＆荷造りで大変です・・・。今夜は徹夜かな？！？

Just got home from Monterey. It was a good day at work and we were able to get done fairly quickly. The drive was smooth coming back down and I was home by 9pm. I still have to do my laundry and pack up my stuff for tomorrow so I will probably be up all night to catch my flight tomorrow afternoon...

スクール２日目

今日はスクール２日目。昨日よりはサーキットを何セッションも走るので、忙しい一日でした。明日の夕方には帰れるので、家に戻るのが楽しみ。が・・・、５時間のドライブは辛そう。

Today was the 2nd day at the school. The 2nd day is actually pretty busy because you are going in to the pit lane and out to a corner to observe the drivers. It was a good day at work and I am really looking forward to getting home tomorrow night although not so much with the 5hr drive...

暇つぶし用にiTunesに入ってる音楽をCDに焼いて、帰りは新曲を歌いながらカラオケの練習ですね！？！（笑）明日の夜は１０時頃に帰って、夜中の間に洗濯をして月曜のお昼には日本に向けて出発です。

It will be a busy day for me tomorrow since I will have to work until 5PM and have a 5hr drive home...than will have to do my laundry and get ready for my flight on Monday Afternoon... I guess I will have a good sleep in the plane!!

山火事

今日はスクールの初日。基本的に初日の走行はほとんどパドックの中で行われるのでけっこう楽です。午前中は天気が良かったのですが、午後からはサンフラン界隈での山火事からでる煙のせいで、そらが薄暗い感じで奇妙な感じです・・・。

Today was the first day at the Racing School. The first day is actually pretty easy since most of the exercise is done in the paddock. It certainly gets busier during the next two days though...The weather was really nice in the morning, but the wild fires in the bay area brought some dark clouds on top of the track. The sky was really weird and it seem like something was coming especially considering it was Friday the 13th today...!?!

週末はずっと天気が良さそうなので何より。日曜にLAに戻ったらもしかしたら、月曜に日本に向けて出発しないといけないかもしれません・・・。今回はマイレージを使って予約しようと思っているのですが、月曜以外は予約が取れそうにないです。しかも、帰りのフライトはもしかしたら、台湾経由・・・。直行便が空くかまだ様子を見ている状況です。

I am looking forward to get back home in Sunday night. However, I may have to travel to Japan on Monday if I can book a flight. I am trying to get an award flight using my miles and there is only availability leaving on Monday. I may also have to connect through Taiwan for my return flight so I may wait until Sunday to see if something will open up...

週末はラグーナセカ

今日は午前中にジムでトレーニング。お昼をさっと食べてから、モントレーに向けて出発しました。今週末はラグーナセカでスクールの仕事があるので、日曜までモントレーに居ます。

Went to the gym in the morning and had a quick lunch at home before I headed up north towards Monterey. I will be working at the racing school this week end up at Laguna Seca until Sunday.

久しぶりのロングドライブはかなり退屈でした・・・。やっぱり一人で５時間は辛いですね。

I haven't done this drive for a while so it was really boring...I had nothing to do other than listen to the music and practice my Karaoke skills....!?!

フリマ

今日も午前中にジムでトレーニング。ガッツリトレーニングをしてからお昼前にスポンサーとカンファレンスコール。来季に向けてのプラン等に関して話し合って、その直後にまたまた別件で連絡の取り合い。なかなか忙しい一日でした。

Went to the gym in the morning and had a good work out. I had several conference call before lunch to talk about some plans for next year. There are couple of things building up as we speak and I am really looking forward to it. I definitely need to move the conversation forward while the topic is hot. It's always hard to do it once the season is over and when people are looking forward to Thanksgiving and Christmas....

お昼の合間を縫って、毎週水曜にダウンタウンで行われるフリーマーケットに行ってきました。妻がはまってて、毎水にお花や、野菜そして果物等を買いに行ってます。以外と新鮮でスーパーよりも安いのでお得です！！

After lunch, my wife and I went to the Farmers Market which is held every Weds in downtown area. My wife started to get flowers, Fruits, and Veggies from there every Weds because it is fresh and cheaper than buying at the Supermarket. It's always fun to stroll around and look at fresh fruits...it makes you feel like you are in resort...!?!

週末はモントレー

今日も日中はジムでガッツリトレーニング。やっぱりジムに行って身体をしっかり動かさないと駄目ですね。２〜３日開けると逆に身体の調子が悪くなります・・・。ある意味、動いてないとストレスも溜まるし！？！

Went to the gym in the morning and was able to spend some quality time there. Obviously it's been real good being able to work out every day. For some reason, my back hurts if I don' work out every day...which means good for me because that will keep me in shape!?!

午後は色々と電話で連絡の取り合い。面白い事に良い話がある時って、いっぺんに来るもんなんですよね。来季に向けてのプログラムで色々と検討をしなくてはいけない事が沢山あるので、よく考えて行かないと！今年はレースの結果がぜんぜん出ていないので、来季に向けての活動は今までの倍以上頑張らないとって思ってます！

In the afternoon, I was on the phone for couple of hours. I had couple of discussion about some prospects for next year. It's still talks at this point but it's always strange because good things always comes at the same time when you have to make difficult decision. I guess I'm lucky that getting married with my wife was an easy decision!?!

トレーニング＆リラックス

昨日はLAに戻って来て、家についてご飯を食べて寝る準備をしたら既に１時でした。朝は子供に起こされて６時に起床・・・。午前中はジムでガッツリトレーニングをしてきました。お昼に素麺を食べて午後はお家でお仕事。

Since I got home pretty late last night...I was planning to sleep in today but my boy woke me up really early... It wasn't much of an issue since I was already on the East Coast time but sure would have liked to have couple of more hours of sleep. Since I was up early, I went to the gym to train and was home before lunch. I got some work done in the afternoon since I had couple of articles that I needed to finish up.

夕方にスーパーに買い物に行ってついでにガソリンをいれたら、値段にビックリ！ついに、１ガロン＄５だいに突入してしまいました！？！車を満タンにしたら＄８０！！！本当にバッドなニュースです。

Went to the market to buy some waters and needed to get some fuel. I was amazed by the gas prices! Guess what...it's $5/Gallon.... I was going crazy when it above the $4 mark....this is all bad news for all of us...

モントリオールレース

さっきLAに帰ってきました。今日は決勝日で凡そ１０万人の観客がレースに来るので早目にサーキット入りしました。自分のドライバーは２０分のレースでポジションをあまり上げる事ができず、けっきょく２３位でゴール・・・。

Just got back to LA. Since there was supposed to be 100,000 spectators at the track today, I drove in early to be ready for the race. The Ferrari Challenge race was shortened to 20min and my driver was only able to get up to 23rd...

F１のレースは、自分のドライバーと一緒にスタンドから観戦しました！久しぶりにスタンドからのレース観戦でなんとなく新鮮でした！？！（笑）レース内容は面白かったですね〜〜！！金曜からコーナーで見てたら、HamiltonとKubicaの動きが良かったのでどっちかが勝つだろうな〜って思ってたら予想が的中。

Obviously we were all disappointed with the results but watching the F1 race from the grand stands certainly made our day.By watching from the turns, I knew either Hamilton or Kubica was going to win the race. It really was an exciting race and I'm glad I stayed to watch the race.

さてさて、今日はユックリ寝て、明日からまたLAでガッツリトレーニングです！！また現実的な生活に逆戻りです・・・。（笑）

Well...back in LA and will be back to real life for another couple of weeks...

モントリオール予選

今日のモントリオールは夏日和でかなり暑いです！今日も朝早くサーキットに着いてドライバーとミーティング。残念ながら僕のドライバーは予選２周目に前の車と接触してしまい、速攻で終了・・・。明日は後ろからの追い上げになると思います。

It was a real nice day out at the track today! It was cold yesterday...but was really hot and humid today. Got to the track early to meet with my driver to discuss about qualifying strategy... However, my driver got in to an accident during his second lap and we will have to start last tomorrow and will have a lot of catch up to do in the race.

しかし、サーキットの人の数には驚きです！昨日は金曜なのにスタンドはほとんど満席！やっぱりこう言う雰囲気でレースをできるのは嬉しいですね！！

The track here is great and I am amazed with the fans! The stands were full already yesterday and I can't imagine how it's going to be tomorrow!!

F1走行開始！

今日はフェラーリチャレンジ走行初日。チャレンジの走行は夕方４時からだったので日中はかなり暇でした。自分のドライバーと一緒にF１の走行をコーナーに見に行ってきました！やっぱF1はコンパクトで速いですね〜！音も格好いいし！！久しぶりにF1を見て、だんだん乗りたいオーラが出てイライラしてきちゃいました・・・！？！（笑）

The Ferrari Challenge Session was at 4PM and we had nothing to do all day until that session. My driver and I went out to the stands to watch the F1 cars. They are much smaller than the Indy Cars and obviously super fast out of the corners!! It's great to watch the cars...but it made me eager to get back in to a car!

夕方の走行では自分のドライバーはなかなか納得いくラップを重ねる事ができず、タイムもいまいち・・・。色々とアドバイスをしたので、明日はしっかりタイムアップをしてもらわないと！！

The session for my driver went OK. We couldn't put together a good lap and the time was not what we have hoped for...but I'm sure we should be much better tomorrow!! I went through the data real thoroughly tonight so we should be able to make some real gains for tomorrow!!

サーキットの下見

今日は朝一でサーキットに行ってコースの下見をしてきました。モントリオールのサーキットに来るのは初めてだったので、去年のデータをみたりドライバーの車載カメラを見て色々と研究をしました。インディーでも痛い目にあいましたが、レースで買えない物は時間・・・。だからこそ、準備が大切なので少ない走行時間をフルに使える様にドライバーと入念にミーティングを行いました。

Got up early to go to the track. I walked the track with my driver and went through all the data and the in-camera videos from last year to be well prepared. I have learned big time in Indy this year that time is the only thing you can' buy...therefore, preparation is key to success!!

いよいよ明日から走行です！今回のレースは楽しみです！！

I think my driver will do well here this week end! I am looking forward to the first session tomorrow!!

モントリオールに到着

さっきモントリオールに到着しました。今週末はカナダF1GPの前座で行われる、フェラーリチャレンジのレースのお仕事できています。今回はモントリオールまでAirCanadaの直行便。エコノミークラスでも各席にモニターが着いて映画や音楽を楽しめたのでけっこう快適でした！！

Just arrived to Montreal. I am here for the Ferrari Challenge race that will take place before the F1GP. I took the direct Air Canada flight to Montreal and I was pretty impressed with the service. Yes...they do charge for the meals but every seat had a monitor to see the movies and listen to the music and the 5hr flight just went real quick! I hope all the US carrier had the same service....

明日はサーキットに行って、ドライバーとコースを下見。久しぶりにF1の車が走るのを見れるので楽しみです！！

I will be going to the track tomorrow to check out the course. I am looking forward to seeing the F1 cars since last time I saw a F1 car run was in 04 at Indianapolis.

ファミリーサービス

ここ１ヶ月間はずっと週末は家にいなくて、子供を何処にも連れて行く事ができなかったので、今日は海に行ってきました。午前中はジムでガッツリトレーニングをして、海に行ったと言っても、お弁当を作ってランチを食べに行ったって感じですが・・・。（笑）

I went to the gym in the morning and took my son to the beach today for lunch. Since I was away most of the week end and will be away during the next two week ends...I figured that should keep my wife happy temporarily...!?!

息子はどうやら、砂浜や水辺がまだ怖いみたいで、あまりエンジョイしてなかったので１時間半くらいで帰って来ちゃいました！？！（笑）そろそろプール教室に連れてって泳ぎを覚えさせないと、自分みたいに泳げなくなっちゃうからな〜。そうなんです・・・、今はちょっとなら泳げますが昔は泳げませんでした！？！

It was the first time for my son walking on the beach. He was scared of the sand and the water...and didn't seem to enjoy much!?! I guess it's about time to take him to the swimming class. I used to hate swimming and I hope he will turn cooler than me being able to surf the wave!!

スポンサーイベントInべガス

今週末はべガスに行ってきました！インディーカーのシリーズスポンサーでもある腕時計メーカーのイベントでコンベンションに行き、その後にラスベガスにあるスピードウェイでインディーカーの体験走行のインストラクターを勤めてきました。イベントは大成功！来て頂いたお客さんは大喜びでした！！夜のイベントだったので仕事が終わったのは１２時過ぎでした・・・。

I just got back from Las Vegas. I was there doing an appearance for Ritmo Mvndo who are the official time piece for the IRL as well as our sponsor during last year's Indy 500. We also had a Indy Car driving experience out at the speedway and all of the guests seemed to enjoy the ride!! It certainly was a successful event and I was happy to see the smiles when they got out of the car!!

ホテルにチェックインしたら、な・な〜んとスポンサーがペントハウススィートの部屋を取ってくれたのでリビング付き２ベッドの部屋でした！かなり満喫させてまりました！！できればもう一泊したかった・・・。（笑）

I was done working after midnight and went to the hotel to check in. The sponsor has booked us in to a Penthouse Suite....which was just huge!! Unfortunately it was only for couple of hours but I thoroughly enjoyed the stay!! I certainly appreciate the guys from Ritmo on really taking care of us!! It looks like I have couple of more appearances in LV this year so I better learn how to gamble!?!