As before, they scheduled a set of pace-running drills for both early morning and evening.
A slight disappointment was that Yamato Akagi had officially become an administrator, so she couldn't come to every training session like before. Only Vodka was available to help with the evening drills.
Fortunately, Yamato Akagi's help before the conditions race had already achieved the initial results they'd hoped for. There was still room to improve further, of course, but there was no need to rush.
Besides, when it came to adapting to opponents and the race as a whole, it was better to practice with opponents who used different running styles.
Vodka happened to be one of the best choices, so in a sense, this Uma Musume's help had arrived just in time.
Yasui Makoto didn't waste this precious opportunity. After the evening special training ended, he took the chance to review the race and explain his training approach to Hokubu Genkoma in the dance hall.
"I told you that, in the conditions race you just ran, you were the only Uma Musume who debuted this year, and one of only two with just a single Debut Race under her belt.
"You might not have had a concrete sense of it before, but you should've realized by now: the opponents in those two races were very different."
"Mm-hmm! That's right."
Hokubu Genkoma nodded repeatedly. "Especially when I ran alongside Satono Diamond, it was a lot easier than the Debut Race.
"In the Debut Race, I followed the Trainer's instructions and started out running alongside the opponent next to me.
"Before long, I felt like her pace was strange, so I switched to a different opponent.
"It was the same after that. Everyone's pace felt all over the place, so I just ran at my own pace.
"That happened to be the position the Trainer had told me about, so I went all out and surged ahead. Then I won."
Before Yasui Makoto could respond, Vodka, who had tagged along out of curiosity, looked surprised.
"Hey, seriously? I know you're amazing, Anzai-kun, but getting results like that without any experience giving instructions... isn't that a little ridiculous?"
"I suppose... it's not that ridiculous?"
After thinking it over, Yasui Makoto smiled. "I've compared a lot of Debut Races, and rookie races like these tend to go this way.
"Lots of Uma Musume train brilliantly, but that doesn't mean they can show all their ability in a race.
"So when you want to win this kind of race, the less you think about, the better.
"Xiao Bei happens to be pretty straightforward, so I gave her two simple tasks.
"She just had to use her sense of pace to find someone suitable to run alongside. That was all she needed to focus on for most of the race.
"But I'd looked into the opponents in her Debut Race, and none of them had a better sense of pace than she did.
"By the time she realized that herself, it was just about time to sprint.
"Then she had an even simpler task: go all out until the finish. Her opponents couldn't react in time."
Hokubu Genkoma looked enlightened.
"So that's how I won? It sounds so easy."
Vodka said nothing, but her thoughts had grown even more complicated than before.
What Yasui Makoto had said sounded simple, even easy.
But as one of the strongest active racers in her day, she knew how difficult it was to understand a race that thoroughly.
Especially before the race even started.
Uma Musume looked just like human girls, and much of their psychology was similar, but they weren't the same species.
In general, Uma Musume were more straightforward in their daily lives. But when it came to racing, they were more sensitive to their surroundings, and their minds became more complex in turn.
That was why accurately judging the mental state of both a Trainer's assigned Uma Musume and her opponents had always been a major challenge in the industry.
Preparations the night before, quality of sleep, pre-race meals, the atmosphere at the track, the opponents' temperaments and compatibility, the weather, temperature, humidity, even the feel of the track...
All of these could affect a racer's condition.
At their worst, negative effects could make an Uma Musume refuse to race.
Over the years, Vodka had seen this happen plenty of times.
It didn't matter if they were seniors, contemporaries, or juniors. Many Uma Musume had refused to enter the Starting Gate—or even to race—because they felt unwell, whether the cause was obvious or not.
If their Trainer couldn't calm them down, they might even withdraw from the race altogether.
And if they weren't properly reassured, then even if they could be coaxed into the Starting Gate, their condition would suffer to some extent, and they wouldn't be able to show their full ability.
She remembered that was what had happened to senior Air Groove in the Shuka Sho.
Before that race, the senior's record had been three wins and two second-place finishes. One of those victories was the G1 Oaks, and she'd been riding a wave of momentum.
But before the Shuka Sho, she'd been startled by camera flashes, and her condition had completely collapsed. She finished a disastrous tenth, and after the race, doctors discovered a fracture in her right leg. She had to spend eight months recovering.
Because of situations like that, Trainers who could read an Uma Musume's temperament well during an actual race were invariably top-notch.
If they could also read their opponents' condition and do so before the race, they were beyond outstanding.
So how had someone as young as Anzai-kun developed such a keen eye and judgment? Surely it wasn't all due to what he'd been taught at home.
While Vodka marveled to herself, Yasui Makoto continued reviewing the previous race with Hokubu Genkoma.
"...I specifically mentioned Satono Diamond before the last race because of her excellent adaptability."
As he spoke, Yasui Makoto pointed out the data on the laptop and indicated that his Uma Musume should pay attention.
"Before the race, I told you that her first three races were in Sapporo, after which she raced in Chukyo and Kyoto.
"Sapporo is in Hokkaido, Chukyo is in Nagoya, and Kyoto is in Kansai. The differences between those tracks are obvious.
"Besides that, her first three races were 1,800 meters, while the last two were 2,000 meters. They were respectively a mile and a middle-distance race, so the running styles and tactics differed quite a bit, too.
"Yet her results improved with every race, which was proof enough of her adaptability.
"Of course, some of that came from natural talent. She also debuted earlier and had more training, and the Satomi Family likely invested a lot of resources in her.
"The opponents in the last race were a complicated bunch. Besides someone with excellent adaptability like Satono Diamond, there were others who were used to 1,400 meters and would unconsciously speed up their pace, as well as racers with powerful Final Speed.
"You only had one race under your belt, Xiao Bei. You weren't experienced enough to adapt on the spot to changes in a complicated race like that.
"That's why I told you to follow Satono Diamond through the middle of the race. After that, as long as you accelerated before she did, it wouldn't be easy for her to close the distance and pass you.
"You should've felt that for yourself."
As Yasui Makoto explained, Hokubu Genkoma nodded repeatedly, her face bright with understanding.
By the time he finished, she was looking excited.
"If this approach can win races, can I use it again in the future, Trainer?"
To her surprise, Yasui Makoto smiled and shook his head.
"It's not that easy, Xiao Bei.
"Strictly speaking, neither of those two races was at a particularly high level. The opponents were only relatively strong and experienced.
"The farther you go, the stronger your opponents will be.
"The opponents you've beaten so far will improve, too. It's possible they'll beat you in the future.
"So handing control of the pace to your opponents can only be an occasional surprise tactic. You must never rely on it as your main strategy.
"Your next training goal is to establish your running style step by step, and gradually learn to lead the entire race yourself."
Before you continue