Leading the Entire Race by Yourself

As before, one set of paired training sessions was scheduled for early morning and another for the evening.

It was a bit of a shame that Yamato Akagi had officially become an administrator and couldn't join every training session like before; only Vodka helped with the evening training.

Fortunately, before the condition race, Yamato Akagi's assistance had already reached its initial expected level. While there was still room for improvement in the future, those weren't urgent matters.

Moreover, for adapting to opponents and the overall situation, it was better to practice with opponents who had different racing styles.

Vodka was precisely one of the optimal choices, so in a sense, this Uma Musume's help was a lifesaver.

Yasui Makoto didn't waste this precious opportunity either. After the special evening training session concluded, he took the chance to begin training explanations and race reviews with Hokubu Genkoma in the dance hall.

"As I mentioned to you, in the condition race that just ended, you were the only one who debuted this year, and also one of only two Uma Musume with just one debut race experience.

"You might not have felt it very concretely before, but you should realize now that the opponents in the two races were vastly different."

"Mhm! That's exactly right."

Hokubu Genkoma nodded repeatedly. "Especially when I ran with Satono Diamond, it was much easier than my debut race.

"During my debut race, I followed the Trainer's instructions and initially ran alongside the opponent next to me.

"I quickly felt that her rhythm was strange, so I switched opponents.

"It was the same afterwards; I felt everyone's rhythm was chaotic, so I just ran at my own pace.

"Coincidentally, it was the position the Trainer mentioned at that time, so I just charged forward all at once, and then I won."

Upon hearing this, Yasui Makoto hadn't spoken yet when Vodka, who had followed out of curiosity, expressed some surprise.

"Hey, hey, seriously? I know you're amazing, Anzai-kun, but to achieve this level without any prior coaching experience... isn't that a bit too unbelievable?"

"It's... not entirely unbelievable, is it?"

After thinking for a moment, Yasui Makoto smiled. "I've compared a large number of debut races; these kinds of beginner races are always like this.

"Many Uma Musume perform excellently in training but don't necessarily show their full strength in races.

"So, to win these kinds of races, it's actually better to think less.

"Coincidentally, Xiao Bei is quite straightforward, so I gave her two simple tasks.

"Find a suitable opponent to follow based on rhythm; she only needed to consider this for most of the time.

"However, I investigated her debut race opponents, and none had better rhythm sense than her.

"By the time she discovered this, it would be almost time to sprint.

"At this point, her considerations become even simpler: just go all out and sprint to the finish. Her opponents won't be able to react in time."

Hokubu Genkoma suddenly understood.

"So that's how I won? It sounds so simple."

Vodka remained silent, but her thoughts were more complex than before.

What Yasui Makoto described as simple also sounded easy.

But as one of the strongest racers in the past, she knew how difficult it was to grasp a race to that extent.

Especially before the race started.

Uma Musume and human girls might look the same, and many of their psychological states are similar, but they are not the same species after all.

Relatively speaking, Uma Musume are generally more straightforward in their daily lives, but when it comes to races, they become more sensitive to external stimuli, and their psychology becomes more complex.

Therefore, accurately grasping the psychology of their contracted partner Uma Musume and their race opponents has always been a major challenge in the industry.

The preparations the night before, sleep quality, pre-race diet, racecourse atmosphere, opponents' temperaments and compatibility, weather, temperature, humidity, and even track texture...

All of these affect race performance.

If the influence is negative, the mildest consequence is resistance to racing.

Over the years, Vodka had seen this situation many times.

Her seniors, peers, and juniors alike, many Uma Musume refused to enter the starting gate, or even participate in the race, due to obvious or subtle discomfort.

If the Trainer couldn't appease them properly in such situations, the Uma Musume might even withdraw directly from the race.

Furthermore, if not appeased well, even if they reluctantly entered the gate, their race performance afterward would decline to varying degrees, and they wouldn't be able to exert their full strength.

She remembered how Senior Vodka's Shuka Sho had been.

Before that race, this senior's record was 3 wins and 2 second places, with championships including the G1 Oaks, showing immense momentum.

As a result, before the Shuka Sho, she was startled by the flash photography, lost all her race form, not only lost badly by finishing 10th, but was also diagnosed with a fractured right leg after the race, forcing her into an 8-month hiatus.

Because of such situations, Trainers who could manage the temperament of their Uma Musume in practical situations were, without exception, top-tier professionals.

If they could even grasp the condition of their opponents and achieve this before the race, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call them super-elite.

So, for Anzai-kun at this age... how did he develop such insight and judgment? It must be more than just family teachings, right?

While Vodka marveled inwardly, Yasui Makoto continued to review previous races with Hokubu Genkoma.

"...I specifically mentioned Satono Diamond in the last race because of her excellent adaptability."

As he said this, Yasui Makoto gestured for his Uma Musume to pay attention to the analysis data on the laptop.

"I mentioned before the race that her first three races were all in Sapporo, and then she went to Chukyo and Kyoto.

"Sapporo is in Hokkaido, Chukyo is in Nagoya, and Kyoto is also in Kansai. The difference in track conditions is considerable.

"Besides that, her first three races were 1800 meters, and the last two were 2000 meters, which are a mile and middle-distance respectively. There are also significant differences in racing style and tactics.

"However, her race results improved with each race, which is enough to prove her adaptability.

"This is partly due to talent, but also because she debuted earlier, trained more, and the Satomi Family has likely invested a lot of resources.

"The opponents in her last race were complex. Besides those with excellent adaptability like Satono Diamond, there were those accustomed to 1400 meters who would unconsciously speed up their pace, and those with a strong final sprint.

"Xiao Bei, you only have one race experience, which is not enough to immediately handle such complex race schedule changes.

"That's why I had you run with Satono Diamond until the middle stages. If your acceleration timing was just slightly earlier than hers, it wouldn't be easy for her to close the gap and overtake.

"You should have already experienced this."

As Yasui Makoto explained, Hokubu Genkoma nodded repeatedly with a look of realization.

Hearing the end, she said excitedly, "If this method can win races, can I do it again in the future, Trainer?"

Then, to her surprise, Yasui Makoto smiled and shook his head.

"It's not that easy, Xiao Bei.

"Strictly speaking, the level of your last two races wasn't very high, and the opponents' strength and experience were only relatively outstanding and abundant.

"The further you go, the stronger your opponents will become.

"The opponents you defeat now will also grow, and it's possible they could defeat you in the future.

"Therefore, handing over the pace to your opponents can only achieve occasional surprise victories; it must not be relied upon as the main strategy.

"Your next training goal is to gradually establish your racing style and slowly learn to lead the entire race yourself."