PCCJ Season Opener

On Saturday and Sunday, April 13th and 14th, the Porsche Carrera Cup Japan (PCCJ) 2019 season opener will be held at Okayama International Circuit. While the main event is the Super GT, the FIA-F4 Championship and the first and second rounds of the Porsche Carrera Cup Japan 2019 will also take place simultaneously.

Two years ago, we left our kids with their grandparents and my husband and I went to watch PCCJ in Okayama just the two of us. This year, since the kids have grown a bit, we thought it would be okay to bring them along, so we planned to go as a family of four well in advance.

The tickets we purchased are PCCJ Lounge Passes. These tickets include circuit admission, access to the paddock area, use of the PCCJ lounge (with meals included), pit walk, grid walk, pit tour, and some fan merchandise.

Surprisingly, the regular price is a whopping 41,000 yen (；ﾟДﾟ)

Though the ticket price is high, when we watched the race with these tickets two years ago, it was a truly valuable experience. That said, for us, it wasn’t about wanting to relax and watch from a VIP lounge (we barely spent any time in the lounge two years ago anyway, lol)…

Right in front of the lounge are the pits for all the competing cup cars, where you can see the teams strategizing until the last minute on whether to go with wet or dry tires, maintenance work being done, and the entire process of the cars heading out to the race, all fully visible.

Cup racers come and go in the lounge, chatting with staff, and you can even feel the racers’ breathing just after the race… The sense of being right there was truly thrilling.

Also, when I watched the WEC at Fuji Speedway from the Porsche staff lounge, there were overseas racers, interpreters, and managers who probably travel the world — people I would never normally meet — all naturally present in that space. At that moment,

I thought, “There are jobs like this in the world… If I had known about this world when I was little, my career options would have definitely been much broader when deciding my future.”

(The lounge during the WEC I attended in 2017)

It’s not that I specifically wanted to work in the automotive industry, but rather that the world I usually see isn’t everything. The world is incredibly vast. Feeling that firsthand at a young age helps you become aware of overseas and different environments, greatly expanding your life’s possibilities.

That’s why both my husband and I strongly want to expose our children to this kind of world from an early age, and at this year’s Okayama International Circuit, we planned to watch the race together with the kids using the PCCJ Lounge Pass.

When we went before, there were also families with children attending.

About Child Ticket Pricing…

Until now, we had always asked our dealer representative to arrange PCCJ and race tickets, so we didn’t think much about it this year. But recently, we learned that the ticket purchasing method changed and we had to apply online ourselves.

When my husband tried to apply online, he noticed there was no explanation about child pricing, so he inquired and was told by the representative that children have to pay the same price as adults. Hearing that,

I felt a bit disappointed because for Super GT tickets, passes that allow paddock access are free for kids under elementary school age, and even elementary school kids pay about two-thirds of the adult price. (Admission only is free for middle school age and younger)

However, later that same day, we received a correction from them saying that preschool children do not need to pay!

Oh, that’s a relief… Thank you, Porsche Japan! lol

Regarding this, my husband said,

Looking at the long term, it’s quite possible that kids who watch here will become Porsche owners in the future. Taking steps now to refresh the user base is definitely a good thing, I think.

“Car Raising”

Recently, Porsche seems to be running campaigns targeting younger buyers, especially for models like the Cayman and Macan, aiming to broaden their customer base.

That said, telling people in their 20s today to “buy a Porsche!” is a bit difficult because Porsche has an image of a luxury car with a high barrier to entry, so it’s not easy for them to consider it as an immediate purchase option.

That’s why this is similar to education… Just like the terms “food education” and “beauty education” exist, if children don’t get exposed to, experience, and absorb something from a young age, it won’t easily take root. Especially in a country like Japan, where motorsports culture isn’t deeply rooted and the impression of cars is often “cars = hobby” or “cars = geeky,” it’s even more important.

On the other hand, I’ve heard many stories of racers who said, “I became interested in cars after watching F1 at Suzuka Circuit as a child” or “My father loved cars, so I grew up around them and became a car enthusiast myself.”

Childhood experiences have a huge impact on life decisions later on. That’s why giving kids opportunities to experience Porsche from an early age and leaving a good impression increases the chances that they’ll become car enthusiasts and consider Porsche when they buy a car in the future.

So, creating an environment where children can easily watch races, like with Porsche’s efforts this time, will definitely help foster Porsche fans in the long run.

On the other hand, companies need to make profits every year, so investing in long-term strategies that don’t generate immediate returns isn’t easy. But whether you give the impression that “children are welcome and the doors are open” or the opposite, that “children are closed off,” will make a huge difference for the future…

Having led the sports car industry for 70 years, I hope Porsche can take on a role like “car raising” in Japan, and this experience has made me feel that even more strongly.

Let’s All Watch PCCJ Together!

Finally, my husband, who works in IT, said,

When I tried to apply on this site, I could only select up to two people, and there was no explanation about payment or post-purchase procedures, so it felt a bit uncertain. If it were me, I’d make it easier to buy tickets… lol

Well, since IT is his profession, it’s natural he’d notice that (￣ー￣)

Anyway, I’m really looking forward to the Porsche Carrera Cup Japan season opener! By the way, here is the link to purchase Porsche Carrera Cup Japan guest passes.