Uma Musume: From Being Knocked Ten Meters Away

Chapter 573 Training with the intention of knocking her away

After confirming the key points of the subsequent training, Yasui and others did not delay and immediately decided to take advantage of the last special training opportunity before the competition to focus most of their energy, time and venue on the Tokyo venue.

This is also a common practice or privilege of the high-reward races. As the race approaches, the corresponding racecourse will be opened to the participating racehorses to a certain extent. Trainers will also apply in advance and arrange the training order to improve the riders' adaptability and enable them to deliver more exciting races.

Once this stage is reached, it means the competition is just around the corner.

So, on the morning after the meeting ended, the Tokyo stadium was still shrouded in a thin layer of fog. The track lights illuminated the track brightly, and the air was cool, yet a tense focus permeated the atmosphere.

Standing at the edge of the track, Kita Genko stepped on the track, which had become noticeably harder. He wondered if it was due to what he had heard at the meeting or if the Tokyo track had indeed been adjusted.

In short, after stepping on it a few times, she felt that the feel of the horseshoe was completely different from that of the training ground, with a more direct and harsher feedback.

However, she wasn't too nervous. She just took a deep breath, focused her attention, looked around, and nodded.

Beside her, Yasui Makoto and the others were already on high alert. Besides them, there were also racehorse girls such as Golden Ship, Lady, and East Japan Jordan, and further away were similar figures.

These racehorse girls weren't just there for Kita Genko; they were there as seniors to train alongside him, as suggested by the student council. Apart from Kita Genko, almost all the racehorse girls who were about to enter the Japan Cup were present, making preparations in various parts of the venue.

In this atmosphere, even the usually playful and joking Golden Ship looked very serious, and after confirming the Northern Black Horse, training quickly began.

As the first round of sparring partners, the Golden Ship and the Noble Lady stood at the starting line with the Northern Black Steed. When the signal sounded, the three figures shot out like arrows.

As they approached the planned bend, the Northern Black Horse subconsciously glanced to one side.

The key objective of this training session was the "high-frequency shuffling steps" that she had repeatedly mentioned last night, and the side she was looking towards was the lady who had skillfully used this technique in the Japan Cup and won the victory.

Although she hadn't undergone special training yet, "high-frequency shuffling steps" was actually one of the daily training exercises. After judging the distance, speed, and cadence of the noblewoman, several thoughts flashed through her mind. She held her breath and increased the strength she poured into her arms and thighs.

She wanted to take advantage of the lady's lack of reaction time, adjust her stride frequency in advance, lower her center of gravity, and take the turn first.

"Hey yo~"

A familiar teasing voice accompanied a figure suddenly closing in, and Golden Ship's shoulder bumped into him without warning, with a force that was both sharp and heavy.

Caught off guard, the Northern Black Steed felt its body sway, and the rhythm of its carefully adjusted steps instantly became chaotic, causing its speed to slow down involuntarily, almost pushing it to the outside of the lane.

Having only just begun training, the Golden Ship was clearly bursting with energy. After letting out a strange cry, it even dared to risk choking, winking at the somewhat astonished Northern Black Steed and teasingly saying:

"You can't handle this, Xiao Bei? This level of competition in the Japan Cup... is just the beginning."

Golden Ship's mouth remained nonsensical, but its eyes, usually playful, were now fixed with intense scrutiny, intently watching every reaction of the Northern Black Steed.

In an instant, Beifang Xuanju understood the other party's intentions, but before she could fully adjust, the noblewoman's even more imposing figure was already approaching.

Her collision wasn't as agile and sudden as the Golden Ship's; it was more like a solid, heavy wall crashing down with undeniable force.

Northern Black Horse gritted its teeth, its core muscles tensed, barely maintaining its pace, but its breathing became rapid in an instant, and the difficulty of the struggle was clearly written on its face.

She had experienced this level of competition before. Although she did not register for the competition while in Dubai, she met friends such as California Shining, Frostfall, and Reunion by chance, and participated in many friendly matches.

Those matches also featured physical contact of the same level, but the intensity... was on a completely different level.

In contrast, the friendly match in Dubai was truly only "friendly," with everyone backing down immediately after any collision.

And now... the golden ship and the noblewoman were almost deliberately trying to knock her away!

As expected, Senior A-Fun was right, the Japan Cup... seems to be more complicated than it appears...

As usual, the training session was divided into several groups. After the entire session was completed, the Northern Black Horse stopped panting, his temples were already a little damp, and he had obviously exerted a lot of energy.

Both the Golden Ship and the Lady were panting, with beads of sweat on their foreheads. Being a sparring partner is no easy task. Unlike other training or some competitions where you can run however you want, you must work with the training partner to complete predetermined tasks, requiring strong control and actually expending more energy.

Yasui Makoto and Alice Soko immediately surrounded them with tablets, while Alimee and Yamato Akaki also brought towels, drinks, and thermometers to help the three racehorse girls relieve their training fatigue.

"Look here," while Kita Genko and the others were rehydrating, Alice pointed to the data and mechanical models flashing on the screen and gestured to Kita Genko first:
"At the moment of impact, the activation level of your core muscles decreases by 8%, especially on the left side."

"Comparing the data of the Lady and the Golden Ship, their core stability in confrontation is not significantly higher, but it is enough to create a gap in the game."

"So your question just now wasn't purely about the difference in strength, but about the technique of exerting force and anticipation."

The Northern Black Steed paused in its drinking motion, blinked, and its crimson eyes quickly turned in surprise to the golden ship and the noblewoman:

"I understand! So, you two seniors... planned to crash into me in advance?"

"Oh? Your reaction is pretty good, Xiao Bei."

Wiping away his sweat, Golden Ship smiled and nodded: "In a competition, on-the-spot judgment is definitely not a problem, but many times there is no time for that."

"The other thing is..."

She nudged the noblewoman with her elbow with a grin:
"This guy has always been unconvinced by me, and he's probably wanted to compete with me for a long time. As for me, I have the same idea. Unfortunately, this is for you to practice, so our competition can only fall on you, Xiao Bei."

With a slight dodge, the noblewoman avoided the golden ship's playful antics. She then glanced at the ship indifferently, tilted her head with a hint of helplessness, and fanned herself with her hand.

"Excuse me, could you please not compare me to a boring guy like you?"

Then, she looked at the Northern Black Horse with a hint of approval:

"But she's right, and you're right too. Of course, to be more precise, it's actually instinct. When you've practiced that kind of situation enough, it's easy to react in advance."

"Yes! I understand, thank you, senior!" Knowing that the noblewoman was instructing him, Beifang Xuanju nodded gratefully.

Meanwhile, after Alice finished speaking, and after confirming some things with her in a low voice, Yasui Makoto leaned closer and gestured with his hands as he spoke:

"Both the Golden Ship and the noblewoman are right. Besides that, they are good at explosively tightening their core the moment they make contact, rather than continuously resisting, which would consume too much energy."

"So you should consider using leverage. When a collision occurs, don't just think about resisting. Try to absorb some of it and then bounce back instantly to find a new balance."

"Do you remember what I taught you? It's about 'tightening and fine-tuning your waist and abdomen in the moment of imbalance'?"

"The next training session will use those extreme techniques for dealing with sudden imbalances."

The Northern Black Steed paused for a moment, then suddenly realized:

"Ah! That's it! When you're about to lose your balance, don't panic. Quickly contract your core and use minimal movement to pull your center of gravity back..."

"Correct!"

Admiration shone in Yasui Makoto's eyes:
"For example, in the front of the third straight line, when you dealt with the collision with the boat, you managed to stabilize yourself at the last moment, which was quite impressive. You used it subconsciously, but it wasn't skillful or proactive enough."

"We need to turn this reaction into muscle memory."

He looked up at the sky; it was still early, but he quickened his pace:
"Hurry up, let's do a few more rounds, and there will be targeted simulations later."

"The Japan Cup is just around the corner..."

(End of this chapter)