Hokkaido Horse Racing Story.

Chapter 210 Chaos in the Mansion

Even the cheers couldn't cover up the rapid heartbeat—

"How are you feeling today?"

The trainer raised his head nervously, and the stable boy beside him gave him the same look.

"Next up is the Oaks Tournament."

This was an unquestionable order from the horse owner.

Under the pressure of popularity, trainers and riders initially formulated conservative strategies as if they were afraid of making mistakes.

On the horse owner's side, Kitano spoke again—

"How about trying to trust Atalanta a little more?"

The road ahead gradually became clear amid the sporadic sound of hooves.

"No need for any more tricks. Just use Atalanta's full strength."

When he raised his head again, the rider's expression had turned into calm.

Take a deep breath, and the stress and anxiety will melt away at this moment.

"no problem."

The bond between man and horse, connected by body temperature, is the bond that has lasted from the beginning, through thick and thin.

So much for the uneasiness.

"Keep doing your best today, Ata-chan."

He stroked his hand across his neck, comforting his timid partner as usual.

however--

Despite the constant sounds of shutter clicks and cheers ringing in her ears, Atalanta's pace remained the same.

There have been fears and there have been fears.

The desires of man and horse resonated in the gradually overlapping heartbeats.

Want to win this game.

Even Master Majima, who was holding the leash, breathed a sigh of relief and muttered, "It seems to feel even easier than usual."

The support of 50,000 horse racing fans turned into a torrent, and 18 young mares of different coat colors and bloodlines stepped onto the racetrack of the racecourse one after another.

Among them are strong players who have already been baptized by classic competitions and are carrying expectations and pressures;
There are also rising stars who have just emerged from the qualifying competition, looking up at the glory but taking firm steps.

The scene seemed no different from that day.

That was eleven years ago.

The first time he watched a derby match, he witnessed Harvest Festival holding off the attack of Satomi Hikarizumi from behind to win the derby amidst the cheers of thousands of people. The young Sasakawa made this resolution:

We must win a game like that in Tokyo!

However, fate always likes to mock pious wishes.

The young rider who never gave up his dream received another cold notice of "failure".

It seemed like the beautiful dream about Tokyo was coming to an end.

For local riders, even winning a race in Tokyo is a luxury.

"Maybe I'll never have that opportunity again in my lifetime."

Sasakawa had thought of this more than once.

And on that day ten years later——

"I have a very cute child here. How about you, Ayi, be the main rider?"

The gears of fate, which had been stagnant for a long time, slowly turned at this moment.

After the myths of "the unbeaten cherry blossom viewing" and "the return of Heseck" were shattered, visitors from Oi still stepped onto the highest stage of the palace without fear.

The early summer afternoon sun hadn't yet brought much heat, and the band conductor, dressed in a white military uniform, calmly raised his wrist. The trombone of the Kanto Grade 1 competition sounded, followed by deafening applause and cheers from 50,000 people.

"Tokyo Horse Racing, race 11."

"Excellent mare, international Grade 1 race, the 88th Oaks Stakes, 2,400 meters on the grass course, three-year-old filly, eighteen runners."

"The highest stage for three-year-old fillies, the best mare—"

Inside and outside the gates, the riders of the eighteen runaway mares tried to calm their restless partners.

Mares are more sensitive and delicate physically and mentally than stallions, and it is not uncommon for them to be unable to perform to their full potential and fall into a slump due to various reasons.

Even a trivial factor like "being disturbed by noise before the game" may become the fuse of a defeat.

"All eighteen have entered the gate—"

Instead of the straight line more common in Grade 1 races, the young mares starting from the front of the stands started out in a somewhat chaotic manner.

"Game start!"

The accident of the day happened at the beginning of the game.

Bakhta, who was considered the only favorite to win the championship besides Mejiro Atalanta, and had a good chance of shining on the Kashiwa stage based on his pedigree and past performance, was slow to start despite not having an advantageous gate position.

Part of the cheers turned into wails at this moment, and the snow-white horse tickets floated early into the sky above the mansion.

But Sasakawa, who started from the fourth gate on the inner lane and exited smoothly, had no time to pay attention to the commotion from behind.

At the urging of the rider, who still had some strength left, Atalanta leaped and rushed to the front.

This was not a deliberately arranged lead, but a running posture that came naturally to her.

Although Atalanta showed signs of speeding up at first due to the cheers, the rider quickly managed to calm her down by using the reins.

"Ah—Bakhta is late!"

"Mejiro Atalanta is leading the way, just as expected. Even before we reach the first bend, the team is already quite scattered!"

Whether they were horse racing fans on site or away, not many people noticed that the commentary by the live broadcast host was more than a beat late.

At this moment, there are only two questions left in their minds -

Can Atalanta escape successfully?
Or, can Bakhta still catch up?

"It seems easier than I thought."

At the beginning of the race, in order to seize the position, Sasakawa pulled the reins sideways and took the route slightly to the outside.

But after taking the lead with almost no effort, he tried to bring Atalanta closer to the inner rail than he had expected, to about the second or third tier.

Even in the second and third tiers, which still appeared to be a large, messy area, Atalanta's movements did not seem to be significantly disturbed.

"Then let's run around here and see."

Then, the rider puts all his energy into controlling the rhythm.

For a runaway horse and its rider, the biggest enemy is themselves.

Even if there is no opponent as a reference and the situation behind is unknown, you must maintain your own rhythm, otherwise you will not be able to cope with the offensive from the latecomer in the second half of the game.

"one two three four"

The rider calculated his pace like a kindergarten student, but his face was frighteningly serious and tense.

His decision at the moment was to maintain the most average pace possible under the actual heavy track conditions.

There is no need to play any tricks with pace anymore, but to win or lose fairly.

The tips of her hooves skimmed across the wet grass, and as if humming a song, Atalanta ran towards the straight road opposite with a light step.

"The kilometer mark was completed in exactly one minute, and the leader is the popular Atalanta!"

　I'm a bit busy today, only one chapter

　　
　
(End of this chapter)