Keirin: Bicycles and Motorbike on the Ed Rudolph Velodrome!

The keirin is an eight-lap endurance race, with riders starting out behind a motorbike. Six riders jostle for position behind the motorbike for the first five-and-a-half laps before it leaves the track and the riders then battle it out for the final two-and-a-half laps. This is a short history of this exciting - and exotic – race debuting September 5 at the Ed Rudolph Velodrome at Allvoi Pursuit Series!
The Rules of Keirin

Jenette Lanning, an alum of San Francisco State University & author of Japanese Keirin Couture : The Art Of Japanese Track Bikes describes Keirin racing as a track cycling event in which 6 to 9 sprinters compete at one time in a race with a paced start. Riders draw numbers to determine their starting positions and the race begins as the motorized pacer approaches. The riders are required to remain behind the pacer, which starts at the deliberately slow speed of about 16 mph, gradually increases speed, and leaves the track approximately 600-700 meters before the end. With a speed of often more than 40 mph, the first racer over the line is the winner. Keirin races are only about 2 kilometers long, or about 1.25 miles.

The History of Keirin

Keirin racing originated in Kokura City in November 1948. It has since become a Japanese social institution attended by around 57 million spectators every year. It is also Japan’s most popular sanctioned betting sport. Japanese Keirin fans place bets amounting to 1.15 trillion Yen annually. In regard to public perception, Keirin compares most closely with greyhound or horse racing in the West. Races are held nearly every weekend at 50 tracks throughout Japan. The entry costs only 100 yen (one whole US dollar) and there are 11 races per night. There are seven different types of bets, combinations of the placing of two or three racers. The background of each rider, his blood type, astrological sign, thigh measurements in addition to starting position and seasonal form are a few factors taken into account when placing a bet. In 1957, the Japanese Keirin Association was founded to establish a uniform system of standards for the sport in Japan. The racers typically do not compete as international medal contenders for this event, largely due to the fact that the Japanese Keirin circuit is much more lucrative and prestigious for the Japanese than world championships and even the Olympics. Koichi Nakano was one of the first Japanese Keirin riders to compete outside Japan.

How to Become a Keirin Racer

So, you want to become a professional Keirin racer in Japan? You will need to compete for entrance into the Japan Keirin School. If you can ride a kilometer in under one minute and fifteen seconds, and if you have no Yakuza (Japanese mafia) ancestor, then you’re eligible for admission. If you make it in with the 10 percent of applicants who are accepted, then you’ll undergo a strict 15-hours per day training regime. Those who pass the graduation exams, and are approved by the Nihon Jitensha Shinkokai (NJS) become eligible for professional Keirin races in Japan.
Keirin has become a globally recognized measure of strategy and strength on the velodrome and is now an integral part of every national and international track racing event. Furthermore, urban centers around the world are filling up with imported retired or damaged NJS Keirin bicycle frames which spend the rest of their days rolling around cities as brakeless means of transportation.