Uma Musume: Become a Legendary Trainer

Chapter 237 Abnormal Running Style

After completing the baton handover, Kitahara discovered some abnormalities in the performance of the second stage only after he had explained the starting conditions.

"The second leg of the relay race is 3000 meters long and the venue is the beach."

"This kind of track will consume more energy than grass or mud, but... the participating horse racing ladies did not deliberately slow down their speed."

In fact, when he said this, he felt something was not right.

During the preparation process for this relay race, neither he, Komiyama, nor Yusuhara directly participated in the specific training.

Relay races are somewhat different from formal competitions. The guidance of trainers is very important, and the cooperation between horse girls cannot be ignored.

The contestants are all talented and many of them have rich practical experience.

Rather than repeatedly emphasizing technical details, tacit cooperation within a team of this level is more important.

However, Kitahara and the others were not completely unaware of the situation.

From what I observed during the tour, the overall arrangement of the horse racing ladies is still very ordinary.

For example, as we learned before, the second runner will take into account the physical exertion of the venue and will try to adopt a slower pace in actual combat.

The surface structure of the beach is much looser than grass or mud, so the force of your footsteps is more dispersed.

Soft sand is like sticky mud after rain. Although it will not wrap around or stick to the soles of your shoes, its dispersion effect will be more obvious.

This requires the toes and forefoot to exert more force every time you step down, while other parts of the body such as the legs and torso should be as relaxed as possible.

Only by running in this way can you keep running and not stall easily.

The price that comes with it is a slower pace.

In other words, if you run the second stage on the beach normally, it would seem that the team's progress would be much slower.

But in Kitahara's eyes at this moment, this was obviously not the case on the track.

"...After the beautiful handover, the first one to rush to the first place...has now become the Tamamo Cross player!"

"The last player, Maruzenski, passed the baton first, followed by Mejiro-gamine."

"At the beginning, the Oguruma player was in front and Tamamo Cross player was behind."

"But perhaps out of strategic considerations, Oguri Hat quickly allowed Tamamo Cross to pass him, and he took the second place."

"But surprisingly..."

Kitahara paused and frowned slightly.

"After the position change, the player in the Oguruma hat did not choose the first position that he is best at."

"She is now following Tamamo Cross closely on the inside. Compared with the past, her decision-making is quite proactive now."

"The next locations are Super Cove and Mejiro Aldan."

"The last one is Inariichi."

"The positions of these three horse racing girls are very consistent with their previous competition habits. They can better play their advantages in the middle position and the chasing position."

"It seems that, like their predecessors, the horse girls in the second stage also adopted a different running strategy from the past."

Commenting on this stage, listening to the cheers from the audience below the helicopter, Kitahara could only think so.

The longer race compared to normal events did not dampen the enthusiasm of the spectators.

On the contrary, perhaps due to the wonderful performance in the first stage, the cheers at this moment not only did not weaken, but became more intense.

And as if it was pre-arranged, the vast majority of the audience shouted the name "Oguruma".

The uniform sound gave people the illusion that what was going on was still the race that Luduo had symbolically finished.

This is not difficult to understand. Anyone who follows Uma Musume knows that the Classic Triple Crown is the top event in the URA Shining Series.

If he could win a game, it would be enough to prove his own strength, and at the very least, he could use it to become one of the most popular people of the generation.

For this reason, each game in the Classic Triple Crown is very intense and not something that can be won easily.

Surrounded by strong opponents, winning all three games will not only prove one's strength, but also make it a part of history and attract everyone's attention.

Not only the horse racing ladies themselves, but also the audience are looking forward to such deeds.

So, just as they were enthusiastic about the undefeated triple crown symbol of Ludo back then, it is natural that the audience is as enthusiastic about the Ogurho as they are now, who is closest to that pinnacle.

Kitahara's thinking also follows this popular idea.

Perhaps the level of the relay race itself is not high, or even because it is not in the Shining Series, it actually has no level to speak of.

But Oguruma and the others must have seen the wonderful performances of their predecessors.

There are screens along the track that broadcast live races. While waiting for their turn to race, they will not miss the races of their predecessors.

Luduo symbolized that their performance was obvious to all, and it was not at all as intense as an ordinary relay race should be.

With such intense stimulation and the audience being so enthusiastic, it is not surprising that there will be more active and proactive performances.

This is what Kitahara thinks.

What he didn't know was that the five horse racing girls galloping on the track were thinking about nothing at all related to the previous stage.

Although this isn't the first time I've run ahead of Xiaoli, but...

Rushing in the front, with his ears blown by the wind, he listened to the heavy footsteps coming from behind. Tamamo Cross vaguely felt that there seemed to be some cold sweat on his forehead.

This is the first time I have experienced this terrible pressure...

Is it because of what Xiao Haiwan and Aldan said before...

Especially the little bay...

After we arrived at the starting point to prepare, what did you say to Xiaoli?

Although he didn't look back, Tamamo Cross had already outlined the situation behind him in his mind.

The soft sand was kicked backwards by the powerful footsteps, forming a sandstorm-like curtain behind the agile silver-gray figure.

Displayed before the curtain was a monster recognized by the world.

This monster seems to be running the weirdest race ever.

I didn't run the same way as before, nor did I run the same way as I usually do in training.

She was originally very simple and didn't think too much.

This time was even more so. She gave people the feeling that she had given up everything else and had only one thought left in her mind.

To win.

This game...must be won!
...So, Xiaowan and Aldan, what did you say to Oguri...?
This is a relay race. Is it necessary to care so much about the outcome of this section before everyone has finished running...?
A trace of helplessness emerged in Tamamo Cross's heart, but in the doubts she asked herself, she felt that she still knew some answers.

She herself missed the chance to participate in the Classic Triple Crown.

That was actually just last year.

At that time, her trainer was not Katsumi Komiyama, but Mr. Sanye, whom she often mentioned.

During the old man's career as a trainer, he did not receive much professional training, nor did he have any experience of studying abroad or receiving further training.

Even among the horse girls I have coached, there are not many who are particularly outstanding.

But Tamamo Jushi believed that among the people in the world who knew him best, Komiyayama could only rank second, and the old man was first.

The old man said long ago that her peak period was not in the classic years, but in the ancient horse years.

Now that I think about it, the old man might have realized that due to malnutrition in childhood, her physical fitness was not actually very strong.

This is indeed the case. She feels that she has gradually become stronger since the Year of the Ancient Horse.

She even thought that if she had not encountered the accident on the field last year and had not developed any mental illness as a result, she might still not have achieved outstanding results when participating in the Classic Triple Crown or other events of the same level.

In short, she did not participate in the Classic Triple Crown for various reasons.

But that doesn't mean she doesn't know what this once-in-a-lifetime battle front means to all the horse girls.

For example, she is now in the same state of winning streaks as Oguruma.

Even just looking at this year's events, her consecutive match rate is exactly the same as Oguruma's.

In many reports, she is indeed called "the strongest active player in the Year of the Horse".

But in more public opinion, the focus of discussion is still Oguruma, not her.

She didn't feel jealous or anything about it.

From the moment she stepped onto the field, her dream was to help her father take care of her younger brothers and sisters.

The specific method, of course, is to win one game after another and get more bonuses.

In her opinion, the most realistic thing is to improve the lives of her younger brothers and sisters through tangible bonuses so that the sisters who also want to enter the arena can have the same opportunities as herself.

Today, this dream has been well realized.

As for fame and popularity beyond that, she doesn't really care. Deep down and in her daily life, she also congratulates and wishes Oguruma everything she has now.

She also felt that the jealousy that Aldan mentioned was not the original meaning of the word.

She must be very envious. She thought that this was how Ardan felt about Oguruma.

And her feelings towards Oguruma were more...excited.

This was also discovered after I realized that the bonus I received was more than enough.

It must be due to the horse girl's own instinct that she is extremely eager to compete with a strong opponent.

Sometimes, she would discover with a sense of guilt that when she ran for her younger brothers and sisters in the past, she was actually more eager to compete with a stronger enemy.

In the Gu Ma battle line, her most recognized opponent is naturally Inariichi.

She felt that this annoying friend of hers was definitely her most powerful rival.

Even though she has defeated her opponent many times, she still dares not let her guard down every time they meet again.

As for the classic year, including all the classic year horse girls of this generation, the only one she recognizes is Oguruma.

This doesn't mean that she looks down on other classic horse girls, nor does it mean that she looks down on Super Kobayashi and Mejiro Aldan from the same team.

But she felt that she was very practical. In her daily training and observation, she had discovered that the only one who could really threaten her was Oguruma.

More importantly, she had a vague feeling.

So far, she has not really met Oguruma in a competition, that is, the Shining Star event.

Perhaps, if there is another world, Oguruma there must be his real rival in the top competitions.

She didn't know why she felt this way, but she did.

All these things made her very clear that what Mejiro Aldan and Super Bay said to Oguruma before the game undoubtedly aroused something in the latter's heart.

She also had a similar feeling to the former, thinking that Oguruma was not more determined.

This powerful horse racing girl in the eyes of the world has actually always run very "easily" in the competitions.

For the same reason, she really felt that the little chestnut hat at this moment gave her unprecedented terrifying pressure.

But such pressure only further fueled her long-standing excitement.

Oh my... It's so scary, Oguri is like this...

in this way……

It's a living monster...

but……

Isn't this just perfect?!
This way the game will become more exciting!
It’s only 3000 meters. The Emperor’s Spring Viewing Trail at 3200 meters is even longer than this.

It just happens to be a beach venue that everyone is not familiar with...

Then let's see, you are stimulated by Aldan and the Little Bay...

How scary is this, Oguri!
Tamamo Cross was not the only one who noticed that something was a little strange about his companions in this game.

Perhaps because he was at the end and his running style was more leisurely, Inari thought more.

She felt that she had such a relaxed feeling because she was influenced by her senior, Representative Qianming, who was in the previous round.

It's not just that they are both good at the chase method, what's more important is their personality.

Inari felt it was very strange. He actually seldom interacted with Representative Chiaki, but he vaguely felt that if he talked more, he would be able to get along well with the other party.

In her eyes, Qianming and herself seemed to be different types of horse girls.

She believes that she is always very serious and positive whether in training or in competition.

Although I don’t understand much about the profession in theory, as long as I am obedient and try my best to do what Alang says even if I don’t understand, that’s enough and that’s myself.

But in her eyes, Qianming represented something different.

In my memory, whether he came to the Yongshi team to assist, or was occasionally seen on campus or in the student union, this senior always looked lazy and uninterested in anything.

With such a personality, it is hard to imagine that he would give his all in training and competition.

This impression changed unconsciously when she watched the live broadcast of the previous stage.

It turns out that even such a lazy and indifferent senior would show an unstoppable and amazing momentum when he meets an opponent he recognizes or a competition he is interested in.

She didn't think there was anything wrong with calling a legendary senior a salted fish.

I don't even think there's anything wrong with comparing myself to Qian Ming's representative symbol.

She really thought so.

She didn't think she was much worse than Representative Qian Ming. Even though she had never participated in the Classic Triple Crown, her performance in the future would not be bad.

As for Tamamo Cross...how can that annoying guy compare to President Ludo?

Although it seems that just like Senior Qianming and Senior Luduo, I have never really defeated that guy...

But how can it be the same?

In short, no matter what kind of competition it is, I will definitely beat you, Tamamo Cross.

Even this relay race!
only……

Maintaining the familiar rhythm of chasing, looking at the backs of the four companions and now opponents in front of him, his gaze gradually focused on one of the silver-gray backs, and Inari frowned slightly.

Xiaoli, she runs like this...

Is it really okay?

Like Tamamo Cross, she also heard what Aldan, Little Bay, and Oguruma said.

She also knows very well what the Classic Triple Crown means to Uma Musume.

In previous competitions and training, the team’s schedule was very tight.

It doesn't mean that we train all the time, but we do it in moderation.

When to train, what to train, and when to rest and relax, all are arranged perfectly according to very scientific principles.

It can even be said that it is too perfect because there is absolutely no time to consider other things.

However, perhaps because this training camp was considered a long summer vacation, everyone had the opportunity to think more and feel more.

For example, after Oguri returned to Kasamatsu, he felt supported by his friends and wanted to have a better performance in the competition.

Another example is the independent attempts and voices of Little Bay and Aldan in previous competitions.

Perhaps it is in these subtle details that a lot has changed in this not-so-formal relay race.

In the past, everyone knew that one day they would all stand on the same playing field and fight hard for the only championship, but it was never mentioned deliberately and directly.

This time, this matter was brought to light.

Then it is only natural that some things will change.

For example, the words before Little Bay and Aldan.

For example, Xiaoli's running style is a bit abnormal at the moment.

In fact, Inari felt that he should be more aware of this change and be mentally prepared.

After all, she has always been competing with Tamamo Cross.

Moreover, Xiao Haiwan and Aldan seemed to have this awareness, otherwise they would not have taken the initiative to say so this time.

But, Oguri...

Still staring at the silver-gray figure, Inari's brows furrowed even more tightly.

Are you going to try it this time, like Aldan and Little Bay...

Just as she thought of this, her eyes suddenly changed and she realized that she had no chance to think.

She kept her eyes on Oguruma, but her peripheral vision did not ignore the other opponents.

At this moment, the other two figures changed their running style.

The next second after she realized this, a scream came from the radio on the makeshift fences on both sides of the runway.

"The match has now ended in the early stages and has reached the middle stage."

"The leader is still Tamamo Cross, followed closely by Oguri Hat."

"And Super Cove and Mejiro Altan..."

"At the same time, they adopted a more aggressive strategy and chose to speed up without any prior agreement!"

(End of this chapter)