When I first originally made plans to go to Osaka for the annual Wekfest Japan event, I actually made absolutely no plans, other than the show itself. I knew Yasu had been pretty busy lately with the expansion of Exceed Japan so I didn’t want him to spend so much time having to worry about taking care of me. The Japanese can be incredibly hospitable, almost too much sometimes, where they invest all their time into making sure that you are having a good time. I go to Japan so often that it just feels like another home so it wasn’t that big of a deal to create this entire itinerary filled with car adventures and sight-seeing. It just felt like a good time to kick back and relax. So much has been going on here at home lately and I knew that I’d be back just in time for the Eibach Honda Meet, so it was important that I wasn’t burned-out by the time I came home. Yasu would asked me what I wanted to do every day I was there and I honestly just told him to leave me at his office while he worked, and that’s mostly what we did. It was a 10-day long holiday week for Japan as well and typically around this time, better known as “Golden Week”, tourists from all over come to visit Japan to shop, eat, and sight see. Over the weekend, Yasu notified me that some of the guys from No Good Racing were heading to Nakayama Circuit for a private track day. He asked me if I wanted to go and well, you guys know that I’m not one to turn down some adventures with the guys from NGR so I told him that I’d be down to check it out. We just had to wake up at 5 AM and meet them at a rest stop by 6 or so to make the trek out to Okayama. For whatever reason, we also randomly decided to stay out all night to eat and drink with some friends so we barely were able to squeeze in an hour of sleep before meeting the No Good Racing guys. Hindsight being 20/20, it was probably a mistake to stay out all night but I was excited to see Nakayama Circuit for the first time and to watch these cars run. Here are the photos, thanks for looking…

The widely-recognized No Good Racing “Red Bull” EG6 Civic, once owned by current NGR boss. It is now owned by another member of No Good and is tracked regularly…

In the trailer next to the Red Bull EG was the “Yellow Shark” EG6 wearing the familiar Shark Energy Drink-inspired livery…

Speaking of the Shark livery, let us not forget that the Red Bull EG was once the “Red Shark” Civic, but was redone after an accident on the streets of Osaka…

The headlight on the driver’s side has been replaced with a vent and LED headlight replacement to bring more air into the bay…

Bronze Volk Racing CE28N with Spoon Sports brakes under the Chargespeed wide fenders…

Both Civics run Volk CEs and a Sergeant front bumpers under their different liveries…

The No Good Racing Pink Shark EG6 Civic running Volk TE37 and Advan A050 rubber…

Vented FRP hood and yellow-tinted headlights…

Champ White EK9 Civic Type R running SSR Type-C up front and Volk TEs in the rear…

This black EK4 was once a show car wearing complete Mugen EK4 aero but has since been sold and now lives life as a street cruiser/weekend track car. It certainly showcased some of his cleanliness from its show car past but is now a little bit more edgy and rough around the edges…

This particular day was my first encounter ever with this EF9 Civic SiR wearing a one-off Superman NGR livery…

I always find it so interesting that they run USDM corner lights while we’re busy constantly looking to find JDM versions stateside…

No Good Racing pride…

Eventually after hanging out for a bit, we took off to the next rest stop to meet more NGR members who were cruising out to Okayama for the track day…

Phoenix Yellow Civic Type R running a center-exit straight-piped exhaust…

This was actually one of my first days trying out my new Camera body and I was quite happy with the results. I guess it helps to have really cool stuff to shoot as well…

I guess you can say this was a pretty rare sight to see, watching the Pink Shark rip through the highway during the day time…

One of the best looking No Good Civics, in my opinion, is the Yellow Shark. I just think it is the perfect blend of style and aggression. I found myself snapping photos of it all day because it just popped under the morning sun…

Of course, you can’t forget about the Red Bull EG6. Every time I see this car it makes me miss the old Red Bull EF9 though. That car was awesome and has now been completely redone…

For the morning sessions, the current owner, Yuki, swapped out the front CEs for a set of fresh Advan A050s wrapped around an Enkei ES Tarmac wheel…

I’m not the only one who was busy taking photos that morning…

Topping off the engine with some oil before the first session…

The front bumper of the black EK4 with the Mugen grille and OEM CTR lip. Love how they still run SSR Type-X wheels in Japan…

Cut rear bumper on this white EK9 CTR with a custom exhaust…

Also love how they still utilize the SSR Type-C wheel there, a wheel we don’t regularly see here at home anymore…

A little hard to see but this EK9 was running a full Saito roll cage…

If I remember correctly, this Civic used to run the Mugen EK4 front lip, sides, and had Annivery Edition Mugen MR5s…

Check out the carbon fiber roof….

There was a lot of time in the morning before the first session started so I spent it playing with the camera doing abstract things…

Cut rear bumper looks so good…

There were other cars at Nakayama Circuit that day, including this Honda Integra Type R running big Enkei NT03 wheels with a customized front bumper for air flow. It also featured a vented carbon hood that had a layer of blue candy over it…

Inside the interior were a set of Bride Low Max seats with the carbon kevlar backs and a full roll cage…

The most interesting thing about the Integra was this center-exit exhaust with angled tips…

While the cars were getting prepped, the rest of the guys were busy having a BBQ….

More of the Yellow Shark EG6….

Osaka-style represented well by the No Good Racing family…

Spoon Sports and Enkei Racing, a timeless combination…

This silver EK4 showed-up a little after us right before the first session started…

I think it might have had a B18C motor but here in the trunk you can see the fuel cell set-up…

CTR rear lip, LED taillights, and a custom center-exit exhaust…

I loved the chill vibe that day and how everyone was just out there to hang out and have a little bit of fun. Sure it was a track day but people didn’t seem too concerned with lap times and just wanted to drive…

Just another unique adventure and insight on a very private group of guys that was originally completely unplanned. I was just at the right place at the right time. More coming in Part 2. Stay tuned!!…