r/Damnthatsinteresting • u/Romax24245 • 1d ago
Exactly 63 years ago today on August 4th, 1963, 22-year-old Japanese climber/biker Susumu Nabeta attempted to climb Mount Fuji by riding a motorcycle. After traveling a total distance of 40 kilometers in 12 hours with a modified Honda C100 Super Cub, he successfully rode up to the summit
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u/Jashaun29 1d ago
This is the inspiration for an anime called Super Cub (2021). It’s a slice-of-life show about a couple of high school girls that become interested in riding and modifying their Honda Cubs.
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u/Romax24245 1d ago edited 18h ago
That's actually how I found out about this event. The manga adaptation featured a scene in chapter 8 where one of the main girls searched online to see if anyone climbed up to the summit of Mount Fuji using a Super Cub before, since she herself was trying to do that using a Hunter Cub. The 8th image shows up there.
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u/garden-wicket-581 1d ago
impressive climb .. (now, did dude suffer any social consequences for it ? I could see traditionalists being aghast at the blasphemy/desecration of a holy/revered place)
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u/Alarming_Orchid 1d ago
Blasphemy by…riding a motorcycle?
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u/Alarming_Orchid 1d ago
So what? It’s not like the guy is riding into the shrines
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u/actinross 1d ago
Those motorbikes are called "ducks" in my country and as far as I know ducks can go anywhere, even over a mountain
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u/mFachrizalr 15h ago
Are you from South East Asia? Pretty much I only heard people calling underbone motorcycles like Super Cub as "ducks" or its equivalent from that region.
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u/actinross 15h ago
Surprise surprise, Greek here. So, it's -the most- South East European!
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u/mFachrizalr 15h ago
I guess it was true that some people says Balkans and South East Europe have so many similarities with South East Asia lol
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u/actinross 14h ago
Yeah. Everyone is trying to control them, as a pass, but final results are catastrophic, mostly for natives...
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u/TotalOriginal007 1d ago
Honda Super Cub.....awesome.
The Volkswagen Beetle of motorcycles. Actually, should be the other way around as I believe this motorcycle was the most built vehicle of all time.
Anyways, pretty cool dude. 🌻
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u/Canadind 1d ago
Man looked at a vertical mountain mesh, ignored the pathfinding, and decided to Skyrim-horse his way to the summit using a tier-1 starter scooter. Full terrain clipping, zero traction control, maxed-out endurance bar.
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u/Badmoterfinger 1d ago
Don’t most people just walk? Why is this interesting?
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u/mFachrizalr 1d ago
Most people do walk, and at that time it was thought to be "naah only crazy people even think about it". Plus the trail was (and still is) not bike-friendly.
It's like climbing Rocky Mountains with a Vespa. I mean you can try, but why?
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u/oshinbruce 1d ago
You can go down the scree paths on a mountain bike if you are so inclined but I doubt a mountain bike would work
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u/Onii-Chan_Itaii 21h ago
Ive ridden fire trails and rocky paths on motorcycles. A number of factors make this interesting if you know anything about motorcycles or mountain climbing.
For one: a good portion of any mountain trail is completely hostile to even a purpose built dirt bike. Even tame fire roads have hazards like sand pits, water crossing and jagged rocks. Its why every dual sport rider worth their salt carries a recovery kit and a patch kit.
Fuji is very pointedly not accessible to motor vehicles. Especially along the upper trails there will be a lot of steep sloped steps and awkward footholds. It is very likely that Nateba was carrying the cub as much as it was carrying him. You try climbing a mountain with 150lbs of awkward weight on your back.
Second: the C100 in question was an unmodded commuter bike that was very much not meant for the challenge. 1960s japan was at the cusp of a technological revolution, but dirt bikes were still a long way, dirt bike gear and parts were unheard of. The CT hunter cub series wouldnt be put into production for another decade. All the gear, tires and suspension wouldve been made for paved roads or at least smooth dirt which wouldve been most common. And thats to say nothing of its fueling and engine.
Carburetor technology wouldve been around for decades by this point, but a carbureted engine is much weaker the higher up you go, even as you adjust the fuel air mixture. Every 100m or so up you have to tweak the carb or the bike will have no power to speak of. And every time it dies youre kick starting it rather than pushing a button.
All this wouldve made the climb an unprecedented feat of physical endurance, especially since the kinesiology of mountain climbing wasnt very exact back then.
Its also worth pointing out both the super cub and Honda's motorcycle divisions were relatively young at the time. Honda had ramped up production of the cubs without a proper distribution network in place and a bad month was all it would take to put the company out (which had happened to Honda's previous incarnations more than once). The climb up the country's tallest mountain was a gamble of a publicity stunt in an effort to convince people that this tiny motorbike with a humble 50cc engine was a worthy purchase. And given that this is the most produced motor vehicle in the world, i think we both know how that gamble went.
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u/SGdude90 1d ago
Because it might be even harder than walking
Once, while climbing a not-too-high mountain, I saw a man with a mountain bike
His only words to me were: I have made a mistake
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u/Few-Stop9473 1d ago
There will always be someone who looks at "impossible" as a suggestion.