Re: [CR]Classic Japanese track bikes: a related question

Keirin racing is a form of paramutuel betting, so - in general - the aim of the Nihon Jitensha Shinkokai (i.e. the NJS) is to keep things equalized, safe and fair for all competitors. So there are rules regulating every part of the bicycle. No doubt, many ordinary pieces meet those specifications, but they have not been submitted to the NJS by the manufacturers. Additionally, the NJS generally tries to maintain the viability of domestic manufacturers, so - as I understand it - they tend to make things difficult for non-Japanese manufacturers.

There are regulations for each part of the bike, including frame dimensions, and I believe there is also a minumum weight for frames. Still, even though the NJS has to approve any builder of Keirin frames, every frame is put on a sort of torture machine before it is allowed to be used in competition. That's why you see those scrutineer's stickers on Keirin frames. The dimensions specified by the NJS rulebook are basically those of a standard late 1960s track bike. Additionally, there are rules such as those prohibiting rear seat-stay bridges or fork crowns being drilled for brakes.

For the special events in which "International Racers" are brought in to compete, the Internationals can bring their own bicycles, but all parts must be NJS approved and the frames are subjected to the same torture test as any other Keirin frame.

Since the aim of the NJS is prevent a competitor from having an unfair advantage, as far as the bicycles are concerned, the parts tend to be rather old fashioned. E.g. I think that wheels must use 36 spokes. Strength is obviously a consideration as well. Beyond the more obvious reasons for this, bear in mind that a racer is penalized if he does not finish a race. Remember, there's betting on the races. That's why, even after horrendous crashes, you see racers get back on their bikes and finish races long after the winner has crossed the finish line.

By the way, Japanese Keirin also includes some seemingly strange rules relating to tactics. The idea is to prevent a racer from even having a tactical advantage. E.g. (and I hope I get this right) you must declare if you're decided to lead out the race, and if so, you must attack at some specified number of meters before the finish. That is, you can't suddenly drop back to take another competitor's wheel. Similarly, if you declare that you will take the lead out man's wheel, that's where you must stay until some number of meters before the finish. There are details of this that aren't entirely clear to me, but the idea seems to be that each race will end with several parralel pacelines, and each member of a paceline plays a role such that no one racer has an especially advantageous position. I don't know if all the crashes occur in spite of these rules or because of them.

Despite the length of this email, I'm actually being a bit vague. I once had a link to an English translation of the rules, but I've since lost it. There seem to be live links to the actual Japanese rules, but I have absolutely no idea how to read them. What I have managed to glean, comes from stories such as this one, which really has more that enough detail: http://www.cyclingnews.com/riders/2007/diaries/benk Josiah Ng's old keirin blog was also informative: http://www.josiahng.com/keirin.html

Years ago there was a great story in (I think) Velo News that described one of Nelson Vails's seasons in the Japanese keirin events open to international racers. Does any one still have a copy of that?

Sayonara,
       Fred Rednor - Arlington, Virginia (USA) where I rode 40 miles
          today on my KHS faux Keirin bike, 36 spoked wheels and all...