Hokkaido Horse Racing Story.

Chapter 73 First and Last

"Oh--"

Until the next horse came, the horse fans in the stands were still shouting Mejiro Sakuya's name.

When entering the gate, many racehorses showed varying degrees of resistance.

The racehorses from the central government need to overcome the unfamiliar environment of night racing, while the local racehorses feel uneasy about the big scene ahead.

Mejiro Sakuya entered smoothly.

The traction rope was loosened, and he stood firmly in the gate.

His eyes looked a little dull, just like usual.

"How about it?"

With his hands on the railing, Tanaka leaned forward slightly and asked Kobayashi.

"No problem, it's the same attitude as usual!"

Holding the helmet with one hand, Xiaolin shouted as he jogged.

The same attitude as usual——

Tanaka had a somewhat subtle expression on his face.

But, it should be fine.

The guy riding on the horse is Genta.

Even under great pressure, he is able to seize winning opportunities in the ever-changing game.

Tanaka admired his courage.

On the field, the number of racehorses outside the gates is decreasing.

He watched this scene unfold and slowly exhaled.

My palms unconsciously became damp.

The starting tower slowly rose in front of my sight.

The final game is about to begin.

The rider named Genta Ochiai was in a state of "nothingness" at this moment.

All distractions outside of the game disappeared at this moment.

In front of my sight, the gate popped open.

Mejiro Sakuya took a step forward, a step behind the others.

Almost at the moment the game started, he fell to a significantly backward position.

He controlled the reins quite easily and led the horse slightly to the inside.

It wasn't a route right next to the inner rail, but rather a position explored before the race, about two or three tiers outwards.

As early as when I was inside the gate, I had already planned the next route in my mind.

Then, the initial game unfolded.

He passed by the other opponents and locked his sight on the colorfully dressed back of Ebi.

He did not move forward too aggressively, and seemed to be planning to stay in the middle.

The two riders approached the inside at about the same time.

Mr. Caesar was slightly ahead, and Mejiro Sakuya was slightly behind, and neither horse was involved in the fight for the lead.

While a fierce competition was going on ahead, Mr. Caesar and Mejiro Sakuya each arrived at the good position chosen by the rider.

It is said that as riders and horses get along, their temperaments will tend to converge.

But when it comes to Ochiai and Mejiro Sakuya, it is hard to say who started to influence whom first.

The flying sand and dust hit their faces, and the man and the horse silently endured the pain.

Most racehorses will feel anxious to some extent when faced with similar situations.

But Mejiro Sakuya is such a dull horse in every sense, and she will not be easily shaken even when facing harsh environments and challenges.

While most of her opponents were forced to make adjustments in order to avoid the rising sand, Mejiro Sakuya was able to firmly maintain her original route.

Of course, the reverse position advantage brought by the late exit also made it much easier for Ochiai to choose the route than his opponents.

This is how the initial stages of the match unfolded.

Before entering the first bend, the horses were in a relatively compact formation.

"The pace was pretty fast when I left the gate."

In the horse owner's room, Kitano made this judgment.

I'm vaguely looking forward to a more intense rhythm.

However, he soon noticed the line stretching out noticeably, with a significant gap forming between the leading horse, Kobayashi Eidan, and the last horse entering the second bend. Once they had taken their positions, the riders decisively moved away from the competitive atmosphere of the initial round.

"Slow down."

After completing the countdown for the curved section, Ochiai noticed a change in the rhythm on the field.

Back into the straight line, the already cramped vision becomes even narrower.

In this case, reading the rhythm of the game becomes even more important.

Looking up and forward, all I could see was a mass of indistinguishable butts of people and horses.

I vaguely caught a glimpse of the inconspicuous color of shrimp.

Holding the reins firmly, Ochiai felt more and more calm.

There is no reason to seek immediate change, as this position is sufficient at the current pace.

As a "latecomer" behind Mr. Caesar, he does not intend to rashly change the positions between the two parties.

Steadily passing through the front part of the straight line, the rhythm remains unchanged.

Mejiro Sakuya was ranked seventh or eighth in the herd, while Mr. Caesar was ranked fourth or fifth, closer to the front.

Although the distance does not seem too far based on the data on paper, Mr. Caesar actually maintains the leading group of the herd, while Mejiro Sakuya is in the back of the middle group.

The gap between the two sides was about eight horse lengths.

Ochiai pursed his lips tightly.

Having come this far, from now on you must devote all your energy to capturing the unfolding of time.

"Here" does not refer to a specific landmark or mileage, but is simply based on his intuition.

The nerves, which were already stretched into a straight line, began to be stretched to the point of breaking.

Every second becomes longer.

Beads of sweat mixed with grit slowly slid down his face.

His somewhat awkward eyes were still fixed on the front.

Then, the shrimp-colored winning suit moved.

"It's now."

Without any hesitation, after an almost imperceptible delay, Ochiai also raised the whip in his hand.

The decisive moment has arrived.

One in front and one behind, the two horses started almost at the same time.

Before entering the curve, Mr. Caesar successfully got a position with a view of the sky.

Then, he entered the third turn in the lead.

One, two, three horses passed by.

In front of my sight is a scene of three horses standing side by side.

Further forward was the figure that Mr. Caesar was beginning to shake off.

Can't let him escape—

The Kawasaki's final straight is a fairly short section of road.

If you delay in the curve, it will be more difficult to catch up after entering the straight.

With this thought in mind, Ochiai pulled the reins to the side without waiting for the gap created by the three parallel horses slowing down.

They bypassed the horses running alongside them from the outermost edge of the track.

There is only one opponent left in sight.

My breathing became heavy unconsciously.

In the stands, boxes, and owners' rooms, countless eyes were focused on the two horses.

First up is Ochiai.

While still at the bend, he started pushing hard.

Then it was Sakai who turned around.

He turned his head back to the front and urged forward with a more violent attitude.

The distance between the two horses began to close, and then suddenly maintained a certain distance.

The moment they rushed out of the straight line, they were greeted by a huge roaring noise.

The red and green figures began to approach the stands.

　Thanks to the moon in the sea for the 200 starting coins reward,
　　Thank you for your support

　　Ciallo～(∠ω<)⌒★
　　
　
(End of this chapter)