For those who have never watched Initial D and don’t know what touge or tōge is, we are going to discuss it in today’s post.
Touge is a type of Japanese street racing that consists of driving through a curvy mountain pass at high speed. It can be done alone or with other drivers.
FAQ about Touge Racing
The word Touge, or Tōge, is a Japanese word (峠) that means “mountain pass”, a navigable road through a mountain range. It’s also used as a type of racing performed on these roads.
As touge racing involves a type of driving that puts at risk the life of the driver and others, it is an illegal activity in most places in the world. Although illegal, some legal events have touge exhibitions that are on controlled or closed roads, making it a fun and safe way to watch touge races.
Touge word meaning
The word Touge or Tōge, in Japanese “峠”, means “Mountain Pass”, and it’s used to describe a navigable road through a mountain range. Since the start of touge racing, the word touge became a synonym for this type of racing outside Japan.
What is Touge racing?
Essentially, touge is driving. Although it can be done in groups or with strangers, a lot of touge drivers drive alone. Driving through curvy mountain roads it’s difficult, dangerous, and exciting, three elements that an enthusiastic driver seeks when driving.
In a conservative society like Japan, where the general public opinion about illegal activities is very skeptical, touge racing is seen as a reckless and rebellious activity. Nowadays, this type of racing is very difficult to practice in Japan, since the police supervision over it is more forceful. Although illegal in some countries, there are some showcasing events around the world where you can watch these crazy and brave drivers showing their skills going up and down mountains.
It’s important to understand that touge is not a racing sport, it’s about driving tuned cars around narrow and curvy roads through a mountain or a hill to test the limits and the skills of the driver. There are lots of famous touge roads around the world in places like Japan, Italy, Spain, California, Norway, Australia and more.
When done with other drivers, touge racing is fun to watch. It usually consists of two cars going downhill or uphill on a road at the same time, one behind the other, and if the gap between the cars increases, the lead driver wins, but if the back car maintains the same space between them, or decreases the gap or overtakes the lead car, the back car wins. As you can see, touge racing is about the driver’s skills and strategies, not about only fancy driving, as many think.
Unspoken rules of Touge racing
There are a couple of unwritten rules of Touge racing. These rules aim to keep the racing fun and the drivers and others safe. If you want to learn more about the rules and touge racing in general, check this post on Kansei.
1. Never announce the mountain range you’re going to battle.
2. Do not drive in the other lane.
3. Stay within your limits.
4. Do not overtake unless your opponent leaves a space for you to do it.
5. When in a group, leave a safe space between the other cars.
6. Make your touge group as small as possible.
7. Don’t break any traffic laws on your way to the touge.
8. Scout the road before you start.
9. Be careful with wildlife.
10. Don’t take your ego to the touge, learn with others.
11. Stay alert and focus
12. Check your equipment before you go.
13. Look as far ahead of you as possible.
Touge racing must be fun and the safest possible, so don’t be ruthless and try to learn first if you’re leaning to try it with your car!
Share in the comments if you ever did touge racing and where and with what car you did it!
