Hokkaido Horse Racing Story.

Chapter 222 Under the Rain and Above the Rain
The mud is the second army of the grass—

This proverb, which was still widely circulated in the 21st century, is now completely ignored.

[Local and central geniuses stir up the dust of a new era, as if announcing the dawn]

"Isn't that a bit too corny?"

Kitano tried hard not to complain and quickly looked away from the promotional poster.

On the track of the reviewing ground, the noisy sounds of stable attendants calming down the panicked racehorses could be heard one after another.

For new dirt track riders who are not used to night light racing, and those who simply dislike rainy days...

Among three-year-old horses, not many can overcome similar difficulties.

"So the New Horse Race and the Classic Year event are really interesting."

"Yes, watching these children trying to take clumsy steps always feels like something is being born."

There was a continuous discussion among the horse fans gathered at the front of the railing.

It seemed that even bad weather could not dampen their enthusiasm.

On the other side, Takeshi also finished his pre-match greetings with Dr. Kobayashi.

Then he lowered his head, adjusted his hat, and walked towards his racehorse in the rain.

Passing by Kitano, the rider stopped and bowed solemnly.

Without waiting for a response, the figure quickly disappeared behind the rain.

Turning around, Kitano saw Dr. Kobayashi waving at him by the railing.

"I was worried that the hot weather might affect my performance, but I didn't expect it to rain before the game."

Dr. Kobayashi smiled and pointed to a silhouette on the reviewing field.

"The trainer has been complaining that this kid doesn't want to run properly when he gets hot. He lost badly in his last race even though he still had plenty of energy left."

"Even among human athletes, there are some with similar personalities."

Kitano took over the conversation and nodded with some emotion.

"So after hearing the rain forecast, I felt a bit relieved. At least the kid can cheer up a bit."

"I thought the Doctor would say something like pray for rain."

"Hahaha——I'm just an ordinary architect."

The sound of raindrops hitting the umbrella gradually became louder.

The two people, holding only small umbrellas, fled back into the room before the parade ended.

The electronic screen in the owner's room showed that the field conditions had changed from "slightly heavy" to "heavy field".

At this rate, it is highly likely that the emperor will be rewarded in an unfavorable situation.

After standing by the window and gazing out for a while, Kitano quickly returned to his seat.

"I can't see anything—"

The rain was getting heavier and heavier, and it was even difficult to make out the riders' winning uniforms.

Thunder rumbled faintly above the dark clouds, seemingly drowning out the sound of the gate opening.

After a somewhat chaotic start, cheers could be heard from the stands through the rain.

The Tokyo Derby, known as a "derby," eventually developed into a chaotic battle similar to last year's Kentucky Derby, with several horses crossing the finish line almost indistinguishable.

This includes the racehorses owned by Dr. Kobayashi.

The two who had been shouting and yelling throughout the entire match quickly looked eagerly at the bulletin board where the discussion was being conducted.

"I still lost—"

After seeing the Roman numeral "IV" followed by the number lighting up, Dr. Kobayashi showed a somewhat disappointed expression.

However, he soon smiled again.

For a horse whose popularity was outside the top ten before the race, such a result was an unexpected surprise.

Putting his bowler hat back on, which had been squeezed until it was slightly deformed, Dr. Kobayashi patted Kitano on the shoulder. "Now it's Kitano-kun's turn, so do your best!"

After temporarily bidding farewell to Dr. Kobayashi, Kitano returned to the reviewing ground in the pouring rain.

Wearing the white and green deciding suit, Takeshi Yokoyama trotted out of the preparation room and was discussing the strategy for the game with Huangshan.

Kitano took the opportunity to observe the situation on the reviewing ground.

Looking along the blue mask wet by the rain, Mikito, known as the "heavy tank that never overturns", will slowly pass by from sight.

Looking at the huge horse body that was almost like armor, he couldn't help but shook his head.

"Another opponent with a larger tonnage..."

Although, Mejiro Sakuya's weight is not light.

While he was thinking this, the owner's deer-hair horse came up to him at a leisurely pace.

A racehorse further ahead seemed to have lost its temper, so Ogawa Katsuya pulled the leash and stopped.

Mejiro Sakuya raised her head and stood there staring blankly at the rainy sky.

Then, he opened his mouth and curiously caught the rain.

Xu Hesheng couldn't help but sigh and preach, but Lumaoma just stuck out his tongue as if nothing had happened.

Kitano couldn't help but smile after witnessing this scene.

As expected, it’s still that Mejiro Sakuya—

After shaking his head, he left the crowd that was taking photos with their phones and approached the trainer and rider.

The conversation seemed to be coming to an end.

The camp had a similar discussion at a meeting a week before the game.

However, the consensus reached at that time was a somewhat vague one: "Try to get the lead in the early stages as much as possible, or go around to the outside lane in advance to ensure that the advance is not blocked."

But now, the trainer's tone was extremely firm.

“Try to get ahead whenever possible.”

Clay court events are inherently more difficult to form close-combat explosive competitions than grass court events, and generally speaking, they tend to be more of a "front-end" situation.

This trend is particularly prominent at the Oi Racecourse. Once the track conditions deteriorate, the advantage of running ahead will become more obvious.

The Arashiyama Division, which had used Ooi as its base since the days of the Cavalry, was naturally well aware of this.

"clear."

Takeshi nodded to indicate that it was no problem.

This time, for the Emperor's Prize, Mejiro Sakuya drew the twelfth position among the twelve running horses.

That is the starting point of the Great Outer Dao.

Although it can be regarded as an unlucky gate position that will almost deprive you of the championship in a grass event, it does not seem so pessimistic when it comes to the clay.

Especially considering that you are about to take the front run, the wide outside lane that can avoid the fight at the gate may actually become an advantageous gate position.

Of course, we won’t know the actual situation until we start running.

"There's not much else I can say. I'll leave the competition to you."

The trainer and rider bowed to each other with these words.

Only after the two finished their discussion did Kitano come forward with an umbrella.

"I'm counting on you, Takeshi-kun."

After folding the folding umbrella and tucking it under his arm, Kitano bowed to the rider in a hoarse voice, then smiled and patted Takeshi's shoulder.

"You are very kind."

After responding with the same bow, Takeshi scratched his head uncomfortably.

Just as the rumors say, Mr. Kitano is indeed an "old-school" horse owner.

　Chapter 2: Late
　　
　
(End of this chapter)