crime

43-year-old bosozoku biker arrested for reckless driving

31 Comments
By SoraNews24

In Japan, being a biker known as a bosozoku is largely a young person’s game. Gang members typically range from 15 to 20 and then eventually grow out of it, moving on to other things.

That’s not true for everyone, however. On January 17, the Kanagawa Prefectural Police arrested 43-year-old Akira Kakinuma for reckless driving. The incident occurred on July 24 last year along a stretch of highway between Chigasaki City and Fujisawa City in Kanagawa where Kakinuma was riding with a group of about 20 people on 15 bikes.

These people were known as a kyushakai which literally means “old-car club” but differs from an actual club of classic vehicle enthusiasts in that the last kanji character for kai is rendered in the old-fashioned and more complex kyujitai form preferred by biker gangs.

This type of kyushakai is a group of former teen bikers who have moved on from the more delinquent aspects of riding and have gotten regular jobs, but still get the itch to climb on an obnoxiously loud motorcycle from time to time. In this incident, Kakinuma was riding with a kyushakai known as the Yokohama Rengo who arranged the ride on social media.

Kakinuma, however, is not a member of a kyushakai because he never quit being a biker in the first place. Riding since he was a teenager, he had gotten a reputation as a “master” of riding over the past 30 years, particularly in the area of dako or “meandering” on the road. This is where the rider causes the bike to make exaggerated swerves from left to right without losing control.

▼ A video of Kakinuma meandering which led to his arrest

In fact, in 2016 Kakinuma even released a DVD titled "The Dako" (The Meandering) which taught how to do the technique for 3,000 yen a copy. Granted, dako does have a slightly cooler construction in Japanese with kanji characters for “snake” and “move” – similar to the English word “serpentine” – but has the same basic meaning of swerving side to side rather than moving straight ahead.

It is unclear whether last July’s meeting was an instructional one or just having fun, but Kakinuma is accused of “repeatedly swerving and driving too slow,” in a manner that could impede the orderly flow of traffic, along a 7.9-kilometer stretch of highway.

Kanagawa Police already arrested one member of the kyushakai last November, fined him 300,000 yen, and are still searching for the other members. Meanwhile, Kakinuma is denying the charges against him, telling police: “I have no idea.”

Context really is everything. In biker circles, being the “Master of Meandering” is probably a really good thing, but outside it’s really hard to ignore the oatmeal-thick irony of giving a 43-year-old biker that nickname, as illustrated in online comments.

“Master of Meandering, lol!”

“Doesn’t he have anyone in his life to tell him what he’s doing is lame?”

“This is that ‘Peter Pan syndrome’ isn’t it?”

“How embarrassing.”

“I guess if I had people around me calling me ‘master’ I wouldn’t stop what I was doing either.”

“A life of meandering…lol.”

“Are there really people out there going, ‘Wow! Awesome meandering!’?”

“He’s getting close to becoming a senior biker.”

“A legend lives in Yokohama… And his name is Meandering Master Kakinuma.”

Sources: Mainichi ShimbunFNN Online PrimeItai News

Read more stories from SoraNews24.

-- Japan’s most sensitive bikers busted for Valentine’s Day rowdiness

-- Japan’s lazy, free-wheeling youth can’t even be bothered to join biker gangs anymore

-- Biker assaulted by iron bar-wielding Nara innkeeper, not the other way around

© SoraNews24

©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.

31 Comments
Login to comment

Should be an Olympic sport. Very skilled rider.

-9 ( +4 / -13 )

let me guess.... unemployed?

6 ( +10 / -4 )

Whenever I see bosozoku I have to point and laugh. I’ve seen many in their 40’s.

6 ( +10 / -4 )

I can't say I'm a fan of the people or their culture. I had a Kawasaki 750 stole by bosozoku. The bike was abandoned 2 month later with an additional 10,000 kms on the odometer and the Japanese naval battle flag painted on the gas tank.

13 ( +13 / -0 )

He should be made a road traffic cop with skills like that!

-5 ( +4 / -9 )

Get a life...

6 ( +9 / -3 )

Don't quit your day-job bro.

No one buys DVDs any more.

0 ( +4 / -4 )

And yet, every single TV show about the police celebrates them doing exactly the same thing on their bikes.

You didn't happen to notice that badge on the cop's chest, did you?

That would be a clue that one of them is allowed to drive as such in order to maintain public safety and one is just being a jerk.

1 ( +3 / -2 )

Middle-age crisis!

1 ( +4 / -3 )

Bosozoku are a real nuisance. They race around making noise at night during summer, and the cops don't do anything about it. It would be great if they'd crack down on them, instead of randomly catching people for minor violations from time to time.

7 ( +9 / -2 )

43 years old is still young. Don't let were blanket naysayers tell you when to feel old.

I know a lot of bikers in their 70s who put lots of miles on their rides daily, rain or shine,!

0 ( +5 / -5 )

Good! I live in Shonan and these bozos are a PITA! Just yesterday there was a whole lot of em, swerving and revving their annoying sounding hairdryer engines as they trundled along on their garish bikes at Southern beach in Chig.

7 ( +8 / -1 )

Lock these idiots up. Wouldn't blame anyone for throwing things at them when they make so much noise at 1am. We shouldn't give guys like this any media coverage.

7 ( +9 / -2 )

Even the Bosozoku are ageing in Japan. What a geriatric country this place is becoming.

6 ( +7 / -1 )

Have you ever seen these types really close?

90% of them either have big lips, weird shaped faces or very small eyes, you dont find any average looking japanese male in these groups.

I'd say inferiority complex plays a great role here, taking pride in waste time being obnoxious while doing absolutely nothing!

1 ( +5 / -4 )

These people are cockroaches. I don't know how this country tolerates so much noise pollution, whether it's hot-rodders, music blasting out in supermarkets, noisy politicians with megaphones, or pachinko parlors.

2 ( +7 / -5 )

They create global nuisance but they arrest a single bosozoku rider and make an article ...

I must have been 7 or 8 when I was "snaking "on my bike last time.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

If these dorks are allowed to roam the streets and disturb the public while the police do nothing about it, as usual.

Then the public should be allowed to throw things at them or lay road spikes in front of them without punishment as well.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

Bozo clowns. Can't stand them.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

He is not a bosozoku, just a troubled adult.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

These bakazoku are pathetic, petulant cretins.

And now this clown will have more street cred because of this news article.

"See! I made the papers!"

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Some people just never grow up!

0 ( +1 / -1 )

LOL he was preparing for the the bosozoku senior citizens drivers education test under the influence of stupidity

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Bosozoku gangs are feeder organizations for yakuza recruitment.

If you're 43 and you still haven't been 'made', time to hang it up and go get a job wiping windshields at a gas station or something.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

"Kanagawa Police already arrested one member of the kyushakai last November, fined him 300,000 yen, and are still searching for the other members. Meanwhile, Kakinuma is denying the charges against him, telling police: “I have no idea.”"

This is what happens when you just let gangs rove about freely and don't arrest them. He "Has no idea"? There is a DVD he has made, which police could very easily use as evidence of past crimes and tie it to the present. Here's what they should do right off the top -- scrap the bike and take away any license he has. Fine him the maximum, plus any jail time if possible. Warn him that repeated infringements will lead to further penalties and every single time seize all his bikes and destroy them. Anyone caught helping him or doing it with him, do the same.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

These guys really don’t understand how uncool they are. Like, go and start a band or something.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

They are quite easy to locate.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

This article was clearly written by a very biased individual who does not like bikes.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Login to leave a comment

Facebook users

Use your Facebook account to login or register with JapanToday. By doing so, you will also receive an email inviting you to receive our news alerts.

Facebook Connect

Login with your JapanToday account

User registration

Articles, Offers & Useful Resources

A mix of what's trending on our other sites