What is a Speedhunter? If you’ve been living under a rock, you might assume it may be a gun-toting poacher hunting savannah cats with an assault rifle. Perhaps it’s the guy you met in a seedy pub bathroom at 2am asking you where he can score some ‘medicine.’ Or for the more informed: it’s a dedicated car enthusiast with an eye for style and quality. Thankfully for the big cats’ sake, it’s the latter.
I met with Dino Dalle Carbonare, Japan Editor for Speedhunters the morning I was due to depart Japan on my most recent trip there. Coincidentally Dino was due to pick up his R34 GTR that day too, so we decided to meet up at Do-Luck Racing Service in nearby Yokohama for a chat and to check out his famous Project GTR.
Being one of the key figures of Speedhunters means that Dino is usually behind the camera and the one asking the questions. I decided to turn the tables on him to get a bit of insight from the man who was instrumental in forging the automotive phenomenon.
Like many of us, Dino’s obsession with cars started early, albeit in Italy where his father would take him to hill-climb and rally events at age 3. He fed his automotive obsession with his father’s car magazines, admiring futuristic concept cars such as those created by Pininfarina, and of course; the Italian national treasure: Ferrari. It’s no surprise that his favourite car was – and still is the mighty Ferrari F40, something I could definitely agree with.
At age 17, he moved to Japan with his parents to finish school, and then moved again to England to commence his Economics degree, spending his study breaks back in Japan. Having lived in so many places Dino understandably speaks 4 different languages, yet ever modest – doesn’t consider himself a Japanese speaker. He then went on to converse with the staff at Do-Luck in fluent Japanese while I hid in the shadows quoting Tokyo Drift to myself. Wabaki.
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Words and Photos – Luke Greensill