Soichiro Honda at the Asama LodgeIn July of 1955, Honda entered the 3rd All-Japan Mt. Fuji Race for lightweight motorcycles. Domestic racing was now firmly established, and Yamaha would be making its first entry in this race. The Honda team was led by Soichiro Honda himself, and the team took up lodgings at the venue one month before the race. The hard work paid off; Honda’s new 250cc OHC Dreams finished 1st, 2nd and 5th, the first win for Honda. But in the 125cc class, the main class for the domestic market, race regulations forced Honda to change their 4-speed Benly to a 3-speed on site, resulting in a 2nd place finish.In November of that year the first All-Japan Motorcycle Endurance Road Race (the First Asama Highlands Race) was held. This race was a true test of a machine’s performance and was an important development opportunity for Japan’s manufacturers, nineteen of which entered motorcycles in the event. Honda won the 350cc and 500cc races, but lost to Yamaha due to engine trouble in the 125cc race and, after various troubles, finished 2nd to Lilac in the 250cc race.In the smaller displacement classes, the 4-strokes were clearly at a weight and performance disadvantage when compared to the 2-strokes. Everything possible was done to increase the rpm and horsepower of the 4-strokes and to reduce their weight. And although similar performance to the 2-strokes was achieved, the highly tuned nature of these engines and chassis adversely affected their durability.It was through these efforts to improve performance and reliability that Honda began to develop high-precision high-rpm engines that came to be called ‘precision machines.’ In an effort to nurture racing riders, HSC (Honda Speed Club) was formed, and work began on building the team for the Isle of Man.The Second Asama Race, held in October of 1957, saw the first appearance of factory racers, production models specially tuned and modified for racing. The new engine featured geardriven cams and produced 100 horsepower per liter at 10,000rpm. Motorcycles were entered in each class, but the lightweight 2-strokes still held the upper hand. Honda again won the 350cc class, but finished 3rd in the 125cc class and 4th in the 250cc class.“All I could think about was the TT,” said Soichiro Honda. For him, the Asama Race was merely a testing ground for his motorcycles’ performance. As a result, the motorcycles suffered various ills, and their performance was uneven. On top of that, there was a huge difference between the rough road surface of Asama and the smoothly paved roads at the TT. The machine regulations were also very different.Accordingly, development of Asama machines and TT motorcycles proceeded on a parallel path, each benefiting the other. Still, if the motorcycles couldn’t win in Japan they had no hope on the world stage. Not enough time. Not enough horsepower. Too little information from abroad. Since making the declaration, the team had been plagued by a seemingly unending series of mistakes and problems.In the midst of all this, the 1958 Asama Race was cancelled due to requests by the manufacturers, who were overwhelmed with developing new motorcycles every year and operating their race teams. Fortuitously, this allowed work on Honda’s TT motorcycles to progress, with performance and reliability improving remarkably. The new engines featured technology seldom before seen in motorcycles, boasting an output of more than 120 horsepower per liter. The time for excuses was over. The decision was made to race the Isle of Man.
