TOUGE!!! BANZAI!!!

"TOUGE"

TOUGE is a Japanese word literally meaning "pass." It refers to a mountain pass or any of the narrow, winding roads that can be found in and around the mountains of Japan and other geographically similar areas.

Placing a series of turns or bends in the steep roads that provide access to and from the high elevations of the mountains was intended to be a safety measure, usually to prevent commuters from reaching unstable speeds or creating excessive wear on the vehicles associated with them.

It is therefore ironic that these same passes have become popular with street racers and motorsport enthusiasts in the last two decades, providing a dangerous and therefore challenging course where nightly competitions are not unheard of.

RACING...

For touge racing team battling, a race has two stages — an uphill and a downhill battle.

One car leads the race during the uphill stage, with the second car leading the downhill. Because most touge races feature narrow tracks, overtaking is extremely difficult and is sometimes impossible.

This style of touge racing was popularized by the TV show, Initial D.The lead car wins if the space between the cars increases considerably, while the following car wins if the gap between them stays the same, decreases from start to finish or the following car overtakes the lead car. If any car spins out or crashes, the other one wins the race.

Touge races start illegally when one car attempts to overtake another and the car in front will not let the car behind pass and speeds up. Also, in night races, the car behind will FLASH its HEADLIGHTS and the lead car will then speed up to begin the race.

Misconception...

Common mistake is the association of drifting with touge, implying at times that the words share a common definition. While drift is considered a style or form of driving, touge does not necessarily have any binding relationship to motorsports. In most occasions, a touge driver only drifts his car to shake off excessive entry speeds. This is because extended drifting will not only cause excessive wear on tires but can also cause the car to exit a corner much slower than not drifting.

Touge area in Brunei?? hehehe