ダム部は特撮部であり特撮部はダム部
*English translation below
あまた社の良いところは「それっぽい趣味」のスタッフがいるところであり、それをリアルで遺憾なく発揮できる場となるのは非常に良いことだと思う。
そんな社内でも特殊なサークル「ダム部」。
気になったダム情報、休日に訪れたダムのレポートを投稿するクソマイナーサークル。
さっと書いてみたところで「クソつまんなそうだな」と自分で思うくらいに地味なサークルだと気づく。
メンバーも休みになるとすぐ山に登る副社長と、旅先でダムがあれば寄ってみるおっさんたち数人というまったくもって色気もなにもないメンツであり、これもまた地味である。
メンバー募集を主立ってしているわけではないが、増える気もしない。
社内SNSで副社長がサークル例としてダム部の名前を挙げたものの、ダム部メンバーが増えなかったのは人徳ではなくダム部が地味だったということなのであろう（知らないけどきっとそう）。
前置きが長くなったが、そんなダム部として初の社内活動をまだ寒さの残る4月に実施してきた。
題して「特撮ダムツアー」。
「例のプール」ほどではないものの、仮面ライダーファンには「例のダム」といえばギリ思いつく埼玉県秩父は「浦山ダム」とその近辺の滝沢ダム、二瀬ダム、及び特撮聖地を回ろうという企画である。
新設ながらも社内SNS屈指の投稿数を誇る「特撮部」との合同企画とし、あわよくばダム部員を増やそうという魂胆だ。
ツアープランはこうだ。
早朝都内出発→ダム1 滝沢ダム →ダム2 二瀬ダム →ダム3 浦山ダム→秩父ミューズパーク と巡る。
各ダムの距離が近く、ダム3箇所とも土日にダムカードの配布を行っているというナイスダムエリア。
かつ、仮面ライダー撮影でお馴染みの秩父ミューズパークがあり、これもまた特撮ファンにはたまらない。
ダム部、特撮部のためにあるといっても過言ではないレベルの配置。
秩父ありがとう。
今回のメンツは以下の6名。
・自分：嫁の影響で平成ライダーを一緒に見る。デザインは響鬼が好き。
・サウンドデザイナーH氏：特撮部発起人。ウルトラ、ライダー、戦隊と各方面を網羅する特撮部長。娘息子をダシに各種特撮イベントへ乗り込む。
・デザイナーS嬢：「私なんてリアルタイムで平成ライダーを全部見てるだけです」という謙遜が逆にガチを感じさせる特撮部女子エース。
・デザイナーY嬢：中高生時からのブランクを取り戻すために「私もダムでダムダムしたいです」と桜木花道以来のダムダム発言参加を表明。
・うちの嫁：ジュノンボーイ俳優には目もくれず、高岩成二をはじめとするスーツアクターが大好きなニッチ特撮ファン。鬼嫁。
・うちのせがれ：1歳。尋常じゃなくかわいい。
当日、朝7時。
練馬駅集合、それだけ決めており信頼なのか雑なのか細かい集合場所、我が家の車種も共有しないままに時間を迎えるが「それっぽい車があった」という勘の鋭さで無事全員合流。
※車を探して階段付近をウロウロするY嬢（階段上 手摺付近）
今回は秩父ということでそのまま練馬駅から関越道へ。
車内は早速遠足特有の高いテンションに包まれる。
あーだこーだ話している中、H氏が「スッ…」とスマホを出す。
H氏「シャバドゥビタッチのマッシュアップを作ってきました。」
一同「なんだってー！！！」
確かに以前「（仮面ライダー）ウィザードのMAD動画が流行った時期があったねぇ」という会話の流れから「Hさん、シャバドゥビタッチのマッシュアップ作って！」とノリで言ったのは記憶に新しい。
注：ｼｬﾊﾞﾄﾞｩﾋﾞﾀｯﾁﾍｰﾝｼｰﾝ!!とは、仮面ライダーウィザードの黙ると死ぬベルト変身ベルトであるウィザードライバーの変身待機音である。(ニコニコ大百科より）
「マジカヨ」「正気ですか！？」という感情が多少交錯しつつも再生。
スマホ「シャバドゥビ！ シャバドゥビ！シャッシャッシャバドゥビタッチ！ シャバドゥビタッチ！」
沸いた。
深刻な素材不足をものともしない華麗なBGMに車内が沸いた。
ここでしか披露する機会がないであろう音源をわざわざ作ってくる大人に感動した。
関越道を走ること約1時間、花園ICを降り秩父方面へ向かう。
そこから更に約1時間、最初の目的地滝沢ダムに近づく。
山間に突如現れる巨大建造物に興奮する一同。
自然と人工物のコントラスト、とにかくデカイ、有機物と無機物、ウッチャンに対するナンチャン。
見た瞬間に沸き起こる感情、これがダム巡りの醍醐味である。
今回の目的地① 滝沢ダム。
春先とはいえまだ寒さが残る秩父の山奥。
あまりの寒さに車に積んだ毛布に包まりながら、管理のおっちゃんをインターホンで呼びダムカードをゲット。
さらに今年は10周年ということで限定ダムカードもゲット。
ささっと次のダムに向かおうと思ったが、管理のおっちゃんからダム堤内の見学ができるとのこと。
中央にあるエレベーターに乗り、下がること100m、外へ出ると真下からダムを見上げることができた。
でかい。
麓が公園風に整えられていたので、直接ダムに触ることができた。
※ダムに触る嫁
思いがけず時間がかかってしまったが、第二のダムへ向かう。
今回の目的地② 二瀬ダム
山と山の間にズドンと作られたアーチ型重力式ダム。
ダム脇に展望エリアがあり、息を切らしながら登って撮影。
ダムの天端は両脇の道をつなぐ交互通行の橋になっており、信号待ちがめちゃくちゃ長い。
管理事務所は土日無人だが、入り口のみ開放されておりダムカードを自由に持っていっていいタイプだったので人数分いただいた。
管理事務所内に置かれていた治山治水のオブジェがたまらない。
予定よりも時間がかかってしまったが、ダムツアーといえば外せないのがダムカレーである。
必ずしも特筆する味になっているわけではないが儀式として個人的に食べることにしている。
上：滝沢ダムカレー
下：二瀬ダムカレー
二瀬ダムはアーチ型のライス、卵とカニカマが放水を表し、さらにダムの左右に配置されたミートボールが山の岩盤に見立てている。
とてもわかり易いナイスダムカレー。
一方の滝沢ダムカレーわかりにくいので省略。
ダムカレーを食べるといよいよ今回のメイン、浦山ダムへ。
今回の目的地③ 浦山ダム
まぁでかい。
重力式コンクリートダムとしては2番目のデカさ。
という部分はさておき、とにかく特撮撮影に使われまくっている。
駐車場脇にある資料館「うららぴあ」にはロケに訪れた俳優のサインがこれでもかと展示されており、特撮部の面々はこのようになる。
ガラス越しにサインの写真を取りまくり、都合10分はいたのではないだろうか。
と、ひとしきりサインを見てからやっとダムの天端へ。
まぁ長い＆でかい。
しかも浦山ダムはエレベーターで降りての堤内見学ができる以外にも、ダム階段を登ることができる。
ダムの高さ156mを下から上までダム脇に設置された階段で登ることができる。
その数500段。
よくある3m/1F 換算で50Fの高さ。
さすがに泣いてしまいそうなのでそそくさとエレベーターへ戻ろうとすると、
「私行ってきます」
とY嬢。
「マジカヨ」「正気ですか！？」という感情が沸き起こるも意思は固く、一人500段に挑戦。
さすがWalk＆Run部の部員だな、と思いつつ見守ることにした。
※あまた「Walk＆Run部」の活動はいつかどこかで誰かが書いてくれると信じて割愛。
※孤独に登るY嬢
20分超をかけて天端にたどり着いたときには脳内でロッキー、もしくは炎のランナーのBGMがながれていたことであろう。
そして管理事務所でダムカードを受け取るといそいそと次の目的地に向かう。
今回の目的地④ 秩父ミューズパーク
仮面ライダー電王でとにかく使われた公園。
特にステージは各シリーズで使われているので「例のステージだな」というレベルの既視感。
それだけに実際に訪れると、いい大人なのに謎の感動があった。
ちなみに展望台の近くにあった長い滑り台をいい大人が滑ったところ、ローラーとの摩擦でケツが熱くなってしまった。
その後、カフェでおやつを食べて撤収。
20:00に練馬に到着し解散。
13時間に渡るダム・特撮ツアーは無事終了した。
特撮ロケ地を巡りつつ、巨大なダム、雄大な自然を感じることができたのではないだろうか。
きっと今回参加のメンバーがあらたなダム部員として活躍してくれることだろう。
が、ツアーから1ヶ月以上が過ぎた現在、ダム部員は増えていない。
（ご飯の人）
The Dam Club is a Special Effects Club, and the Special Effects Club is the Dam Club
One good part about working at AMATA is that whatever it may be, there are staff members who “like that sort of thing.” I think it’s really great that this is a place where people can put their interests on display without fear.
Even within a company like this, there is a special group, the “Dam Club.”
It’s a crappy little circle that posts threads about literal dam information, and where the members report about their dam visits on their days off.
I realized after quickly writing this what a seriously sombre group it really is; as I wrote this, even I thought to myself, “this sounds fucking boring.”
The members include the vice president of the company, who heads to and the climbs the nearest mountain as soon as he gets a day off, and a few middle aged guys who will check anything out if there’s a dam at the destination; there is really no sex appeal in this club, another sombre point.
I’m not mainly trying to recruit new members or anything, and I don’t feel like our numbers are set to increase anyway.
When the vice president mentioned the Dam Club by name as an example of a circle on the in-house SNS and our membership STILL didn’t increase, it wasn’t because people didn’t trust the vice president’s taste in clubs, it was because the Dam Club is so sombre (I don’t know for sure, but surely it’s true).
That was a long introduction, but anyways the Dam Club had our first in-house activity in April, with the cold still lingering.
It was called, “The Special Effects Dam Tour.”
Although not as famous as the “famous pool,” Kamen Rider fans might have a vague recollection of some “famous dams,” such as the “Urayama Dam” in Chichibu, Saitama Prefecture, or the nearby Takizawa and Futase Dams; the plan was to visit these sites sacred to the world of special effects.
Though newly established, the “Special Effects Club” boasts the highest number of in-house SNS posts, and with a joint event plan in place, we had an ulterior motive to increase the Dam Club’s membership if luck was on our side.
The tour plan was as follows.
Early morning departure from Tokyo → Dam 1: Takizawa Dam → Dam 2: Futase Dam → Dam 3: Urayama Dam → Chichibu Muse Park → return.
The dams are all close together, and they even have a weekend dam card for all three; it’s a nice dam area.
Plus, for those familiar with Kamen Rider, there’s the Chichibu Muse Park, which special effects fans go nuts for.
It is no exaggeration to say that this level of arrangement made the trip for both the Dam Club and the Special Effects Club.
Thank you Chichibu.
The following 6 members took part this time.
– Myself: Thanks to my wife’s influence, we’ll be checking out the Heisei rider together. I like the design of Hibiki.
– Sound Artist Mr. H: Special Effects Club organizer. The Special Effects Club President whose knowledge encompasses everything from Ultra, Rider, Sentai, and beyond. Dashes around to all kinds of special effects events with his son and daughter.
– Artist Ms. S: “I just want to get a look at all of the Heisei Riders in real time,” says the Special Effects Club lady ace whose humble words have the opposite effect of expressing her good taste.
-Artist Ms. Y: To regain the blank from her junior and senior high school days, “I also want to dam dam at the dam,” she declared in a Dam Dam utterance not heard since Sakuragi Hanamichi.
– My wife: Eyes unclouded by Junon Boy actors, a niche special effects fan whose first love in suit actors is Seiji Takaiwa. Demon bride.
– Our brat: 1 year old. Unusually cute.
ーーー
It’s 7am on the day. Nerima Station is set as the departure point; whether it is reliable or sloppy, we decided only that without any details, and without sharing the make and model of our family car. Despite this, everyone arrived safely, guided by the sharp intuition that, “he has a car that would work for this sort of thing.”
* Ms. Y wandering around the vicinity of the stairwell, looking for the car (near the handrail at the top of the stairs)
As we were heading to Chichibu from Nerima station, we went on to the Kan-etsu Expressway.
The interior of the car was immediately enveloped in the excitement that is a peculiar characteristic of excursions.
While chatting about this and that, Mr. H gave out an ”ahem” while taking out his smartphone. “I made a mashup of Shaba Doobie Touch.”
Everyone: “What?!?”
Certainly, it had been said previously that “Remember when MAD videos of (Kamen Rider) Wizard were popular?” And in the heat of the conversation that followed, I remember saying, “Mr. H, make a Shaba Doobie Touch mashup!”
Note: “Shaba Doobie Touch Transform!!” is the special transformation sound made by Kamen Rider Wizard’s transformation belt, which will die if it falls silent. (according to Niconicopedia)
“Are you serious?” “Are you sane?”…we were all dumbfounded that Mr. H actually went through with making the mashup.
The smartphone heated up to the sounds of, “Shaba Doobie! Shaba Doobie! Shashashabadoobie Touch! Shaba Doobie touch!”
The magnificent BGM filled the car, and really emphasized our club’s lack of serious subject matter.
I was touched by this adult who went out of his way to make this mashup, which he would only have a chance to share here.
After an hour on the Kan-etsu expressway, we exited at the Hanazono interchange and headed towards Chichibu.
From there, after about an hour we drew close to our first destination, Takizawa Dam.
Everyone was excited about the huge structure that suddenly appeared in the mountains.
The contrast between nature and human work…anyway, it was huge, both organic and inorganic materials, Ucchan against Nanchan.
The feeling that wells up at the moment of seeing it, this is the real thrill of visiting dams.
Destination 1 for this trip, Takizawa Dam.
Though it is the beginning of Spring, deep in the mountains of Chichibu the cold still lingers.
While bracing ourselves against the cold by wrapping ourselves in blankets we’d loaded into the car, I called the old man who managed the site on the interphone and got our dam cards.
In addition, this year is the 10th anniversary, and so we got special limited edition dam cards.
I had thought we would quickly move on to the next dam, but it turns out the manager guy was able to serve as a tour guide to the dam.
We rode the central elevator, dropped down 100m, and when we exited we could look up at the dam from below.
It’s huge.
The base was set up like a park, so we were able to directly touch the dam.
* My wife touching the dam.
It took longer than expected, but we headed to the second dam.
Destination 2, Futase Dam.
Slammed in between two mountains, its an arch-type gravity-style dam.
There was a viewing area beside the dam, and we took pictures while catching our breath from the climb.
There is an alternating traffic bridge at the top of the dam connecting the roads on both sides, and the wait for the signal was really freaking long.
Although the management office is unstaffed on weekends, only the entrance was open, and it was the type that allowed you to take dam cards freely, so we got them for all members.
I couldn’t stop looking at the conservation and flood control objects that were placed in the management office.
It took longer than expected, but one thing you cannot do without on a dam tour is dam curry.
It isn’t that a flavor that is necessarily noteworthy, but I personally eat it as a ritual.
Above: Takizawa Dam curry
Below: Futase Dam curry
The Futase Dam is an arch made of rice, with egg and crab meat representing the water drainage, and on top of that it has meatballs arranged on the left and right sides to serve as the mountains.
It’s a very easy-to-understand, nice dam curry.
On the other side, the Takizawa Dam curry, which is hard to understand, so I’ve omitted it.
After eating our dam curries, we are at last on our way to the main attraction, Urayama Dam.
Destination 3, Urayama Dam.
It’s freaking huge.
As a gravity-style concrete dam, it ranks 2nd largest.
Aside from that, it’s been used for tons of special effects shooting.
At the museum next to the parking area, “Urara Pia,” the autographs of actors who have visited the locations are displayed like “this one, too,” and the members of the Special Effects Club are like this.
We took tons of photos of the autographs through the glass, and were there around 10 minutes or so.
And, after checking out the autographs for a while, we were at last on our way to the top of the dam.
Freaking long and huge.
Plus, aside from being able descend by elevator and study the interior, you can also climb the dam staircase.
The entire 156m height of the dam can be climbed from a staircase installed in the side.
It has 500 steps.
According to the oft-used 3m/1F conversion, it has a height of 50F.
Obviously, I was about to cry, so I headed for the elevator, when Ms. Y said, “I’m going for it.”
“Seriously?!” “Are you crazy?!” Tension rose, but her intention was rock solid, and she challenged the 500 steps alone.
A proud member of the Walk & Run Club, I thought, but decided to watch over her anyway.
* I don’t want to give up my belief that somewhere, sometime, someone from the AMATA Walk & Run Club will write a post about their activities.
* Ms. Y climbing in solitude.
When she at last reached the top after more than 20 minutes climbing, the theme song to Rocky or Chariots of Fire must have been playing in her head.
After getting our dam cards at the manager’s office, we headed to our next destination.
Destination 4, Chichibu Muse Park.
At any rate, its a park that was used in Kamen Rider Den-O.
Especially, since this stage has been used in every series, it is at the deja vu level of being “That Stage.”
When you actually visit, even though we are proper adults, the place leaves a mysterious impression.
By the way, when this proper adult finished thoroughly enjoying a long slide that was set up near the observatory, his bum got hot due to friction from the rollers.
After that, we had some snacks at the cafe, and made our exit.
We arrived back at Nerima Station at 20:00, and went our separate ways.
After 13 hours, the Dam and Special Effects Tour was finished.
Though we toured around special effects locations, I think we were able to feel the power of the huge dams and the grandeur of nature.
Surely the people who joined this time will become active new members of the Dam Club.
However, it’s already been more than a month since the tour, and the numbers of the Dam Club haven’t increased.
(The Rice Man)
