<Mad Dog of Hama> Kodai Kuroishi's favorite car is back! Release of "Aikoku Japan Style Book (VOL.02)," a magazine dedicated to old cars Breaking Down

2024.04.30 09:30

一般社団法人全日本ヤンキー青少年保護協会

The All-Japan Association for the Protection of Yankee Youth, which operates "i-Q JAPAN," a web media specializing in old cars and motorcycles, has started selling "Ai-Japan Style Book (VOL.02)" in stores from April 25, 2024 (Thu.). Amazon will begin accepting pre-orders on Thursday, April 25, and sales will begin on Wednesday, May 1.

Aicho-Japan Style Book" is a specialized magazine featuring only Zakka-spec motorcycles, and is a book version of "Aicho-Japan," a web media specializing in old cars and motorcycles.

The second issue of the magazine features an article by Takahiro Kuroishi, aka "Mad Dog of the Hama," a martial artist and actor who has attracted attention at fighting events such as THE OUTSIDER and BREAKING DOWN, on the revitalization of his motorcycle. While conducting research at an old car club store, it was discovered that Kuroishi had once owned a motorcycle that had been left in the same condition as it was.

Kuroishi reported his reunion with this bike through SNS. Some of you may have heard about it as it was reported on the web news at that time. This time, the GS400 has been completely revived.

The URL of the YouTube video is also published in the magazine.

In addition to the above projects, the magazine also features the specially selected vehicles of the Kawasaki Palace Gundan, the largest old car club team in Japan today, and the female old car riders in the team in the front cover. In addition to vehicles recommended by leading stores nationwide, vehicles from Yokosuka, Shizuoka, Okinawa, and other areas are carefully selected for inclusion in the magazine. With 20 more pages than the previous issue, the contents are more powerful and attract more attention.

<Sale Schedule

April 25 (Thu): Available in stores and on Amazon pre-order

May 1 (Wed): Amazon sales begin

Aikoku Japan Style Book (VOL.02)We are not a motorcycle gang!

Special site for purchasing "Aikoku Japan Style Book (VOL.02)

URL: https://i-kyu.com/stylebook02/

Amazon purchase page for "Love Old Japan Style Book (VOL.02)

URL: https://amzn.asia/d/3VJZObe

The motorcycle of Takahiro Kuroishi, the "Mad Dog of Hama" of Breaking Down fame, has been restored to its original form!

A moving reunion with "Kuroishi," the bike of Takahiro Kuroishi, the mad dog of Hama, when he was active on the show. !!!!

Kuroishi's GS400 was left in a dusty state at the back of a store's garage, and this was the bike he used to own, and he remembered that he had left it at this store.

However, he did not sell it, nor did he fix it up and ride it. "I couldn't sell it as a memory of my youth, and as I was thinking about what to do with it, I just left it as it was.

He met Kuroishi once, with the car covered in dust, the paint peeling off, and the key not turning. The scene at that time was reported on the web news, so some of you may have heard about it. This time, the GS400 has made a complete comeback.

It has won the No. 1 sales position on Amazon, a ■mail-order site! A great leap forward for a magazine dedicated to kyushu-kai!

Mr. Kenichiro Iwahashi, manager of Okinawa's "RED STAGE" Yoshimoto store and a leading figure in the Yankee world

The first issue of "Aicho-Japan Stylebook" has been a hot topic of conversation ever since its release in March, and it has maintained the top position in the sales ranking of vehicle-related books on the online shopping site Amazon since the first week of sales. The fact that the book has been ranked No. 1, ahead of the "powerhouses of the competition," has caused a stir in the publishing industry.

The reason is that the "Ai Old Japan Style Book" was self-distributed and did not go through a publisher.

In order to publish a book, it is necessary to obtain a "magazine code" or "book code. Although it is now possible for the general public to obtain these codes, until recently the only way to obtain them was from the publishers or wholesale distributors such as Tohan and Nippan.

In the publishing industry, wholesalers such as Tohan, Nippan, and other so-called "distributors" acted as intermediaries between publishers and bookstores, and the existence of distributors was considered essential for the sale of commercial magazines.

It would have been unthinkable to sell a commercial magazine without the involvement of either the publisher or the wholesaler.

Why did you take this approach and what were your prospects for success? Our independent sales approach depends largely on the industry we deal with and the staff we have in place. The main target audience, old motorcycle users, are not originally associated with bookstores. Unlike magazines that can be purchased at convenience stores, data showed that they would have to search for bookstores that pinpointed where to find them, resulting in more frequent use of mail order.

And it should not be overlooked that the most prominent influencer in the industry, Kenichiro Iwahashi, a leading figure in the Yankee world, is the general supervisor of the magazine. By announcing the release of such a book about old motorcycles, Mr. Iwahashi was able to make it known to more than 90% of the demand.

Of course, with the gathering of on-site staff who know the past, such as Toshiyuki Akimoto (photographer), the famous former editor-in-chief of Champ Road magazine, Tomoyuki Ueno, a writer who knows the underground, and Masaki Miyairi, the former ace reporter of Champ Road magazine, who is "the most knowledgeable editor about old group car bikes in Japan," the editor in chief One of the reasons for the success of the magazine is that it was created with the satisfaction of the members of Kyuusha-kai who were on the scene.

Following the first issue, the second issue will be available only through a special website, Amazon, and at participating stores. If you do not have an Kyusha-kai store near you, you can purchase it from Amazon.

The term "Kyusha-kai" mainly refers to motorcycles with up-hands, group mufflers, and three-stage seats, reminiscent of the motorcycle gangs of the past, but it is recommended that mufflers be kept within legal standards by installing silencers and other measures.

Also, although it is not widely known, 80% of these motorcycles can be inspected as long as the necessary documents are submitted. Although there are minimum rules to follow as an kyusha-kai, such as obtaining a license, wearing a helmet, and complying with laws and regulations, there are many kyusha-kai members who have passed vehicle inspections and are running with zero illegal elements.

That is why every active owner is concerned about the parts and paintwork of other people's motorcycles. We have carefully selected about 200 such "interesting" bikes from all over Japan. The magazine provides information on modification points and other points of interest for each bike without leaving any details out.

The magazine is packed with noteworthy contents, such as Japan's largest old car club feature and the largest-ever volume of carefully selected vehicles from Okinawa!

Group photo of Yokosuka Ichimon motorcycles

The opening feature is on Japan's largest old car club team, the Kawasaki Miyagun-dan. It features specially selected vehicles and the female old-car riders in the team. How did Japan's largest old car club come to be? And how are the bikes tailored? We also interview "Miharu-tan," who has recently become a hot topic on TikTok and is featured on the cover of this issue, and introduce the bikes of female old-car riders, who boast one of the largest numbers of members in the country.

In addition to vehicles recommended by leading stores nationwide, the magazine also features carefully selected vehicles from Yokosuka, Ibaraki, Shizuoka, Okinawa, and other regions. As you might expect, there are regional differences in the customization tendencies of the bikes in Kyusha-kai-shisetsu. These bikes are more prominent in these regions, so it will be fun to look at them while imagining the characteristics of each region.

Due to the great response to the first issue, the volume of the magazine has been increased to 20 pages from the previous issue. The contents are more powerful than ever, and are attracting more and more attention.

Masaki Miyairi, editor-in-chief of the magazine, explains the high level of attention to this issue as follows.

Seven years have passed since the Champ Road magazine ceased publication, and the orientation of motorcycle customization has changed since then, so it is clear that people want to know what is going on in the old car club style.

However, the genre of Kyusha-kai is one in which the "status of being published in the print media" is even more deeply rooted than that. Even as we were planning the second issue, we received numerous requests for coverage, some of which we had no choice but to decline.

From my point of view, there are still many motorcycles that I would like to show off, and there are plans in the future that could become the centerpiece of the magazine. I don't see this booming activity abating in the foreseeable future. We will continue to work hard to spread the word and improve the image of the industry as a whole.

Although the Old Vehicle Association tends to be the focus of criticism due to compliance and other issues, it is true that there is a gap between the reality of the industry and what is reported in the media. In the future, it will be essential for us to make ourselves more open to the public and to promote awareness of our activities.

We hope you will continue to pay attention to whether the "Aichi-Japan Style Book" will play a role in this regard.

List of stores selling the book

Bike Factory Kittan (Hyogo Prefecture)

K-STYLE (Shizuoka Prefecture)

BF-F (Kanagawa Prefecture)

Kyu-kyokai.com (Miyagi Prefecture)

Double Seven (Kanagawa)

TOP MODA (Aichi)

Senbatsu (Aichi)

RED STAGE (Okinawa)

CANDY LIFE (Kanagawa)

FLEX (Yamanashi)