Chapter 311: If You Want Me to Admit Defeat, You're Far From It!
This practice race had been arranged on a whim, so Makoto hadn't brought the usual equipment he would use for formal training.
But with over a year of experience and constant study—and a deep understanding of Kitasan Black—he was certain that what he was seeing was correct.
From a professional standpoint, the biggest difference between turf and dirt racing for Umamusume lies in the ratio between stride length and stride frequency. In theory, there's a "golden ratio" for this.
On turf, the optimal ratio is about 1.6 to 1. Kitasan Black had trained almost exclusively on turf, and with her excellent rhythm, she could maintain this ratio in most situations unless something unexpected happened.
On dirt, however, the ideal ratio is closer to 1.9 to 1. A longer stride reduces the number of times the feet contact the ground, thereby minimizing the unique "sticky resistance" of dirt tracks.
But Kitasan Black's stride ratio was still instinctively leaning toward her turf habits.
Even though it was difficult to reach the ideal 1.6 ratio on an unfamiliar surface, her current ratio was still smaller than what was optimal for dirt.
This undoubtedly increased the load on her body—especially her muscles.
Makoto didn't need data to estimate that the shear force on her muscles was at least 20% higher than during her usual training.
There were other differences as well—such as the mismatch between her breathing and stride frequency.
Ideally, the ratio between breathing and stride should be 1 to 1.
But judging from the way her mouth opened and closed, the movement of her nostrils, and the rise and fall of her chest, her breathing frequency was nearly double her stride frequency.
If it increased by another 50%, it would match the ratio used during a final sprint on turf.
In other words, not only were her muscles under heavy strain, but her internal organs and circulatory system were also under significant stress.
These conditions had visible signs.
Makoto could clearly see that Kitasan Black's shoulder blades were rising higher than usual during training or races.
From a professional perspective, this indicated that her chest muscles were compensating for breathing—meaning her internal respiratory muscles alone were no longer sufficient to meet the demand.
There were other signs as well, such as her core positioning and body tilt.
But Makoto didn't have time to analyze everything in detail, because he also had another Umamusume to observe.
The moment he shifted his attention to California Chrome, he immediately sensed just how naturally suited she was for dirt racing.
For example—her foot placement.
Whether on turf or dirt, maintaining a stable cruising pace is essential to winning.
Kitasan Black excelled at this. Her natural sense of rhythm was outstanding, and her cruising speed showed almost no fluctuation.
But California Chrome not only matched this level on dirt—she might even surpass it.
This American Umamusume was slightly taller than Kitasan Black, with well-balanced proportions. As a result, her legs were longer.
From a side view, each of her strides appeared significantly more coordinated than Kitasan Black's.
"Stable triangle."
The term instantly came to Makoto's mind.
It referred to the pattern of cleat prints left on the ground after a run.
This distribution depends on factors like stride frequency, stride length, and leg length. Ideally, when connecting every three adjacent foot prints, they should form nearly perfect equilateral triangles.
Achieving a "stable triangle" is one of the hallmarks of a top-tier Umamusume.
The longer it can be maintained, the higher the level of ability it indicates.
Makoto had, of course, analyzed Kitasan Black's foot print patterns before.
She could produce perfect equilateral triangles—but only during the middle cruising phase of a race.
At the start and the finish, too many variables came into play—cutting into the inner lane, exiting corners, final sprints—resulting in different patterns.
But now, just past the opening phase and entering the mid-race segment—from what he could see, California Chrome was already maintaining a continuous "stable triangle" at this stage.
Beyond that, there were factors like dynamic center-of-gravity control, muscle recruitment efficiency, stride length and frequency, and the synchronization between breathing and stride…
This Umamusume executed all of them flawlessly—virtually without a single fault.
So this is the level of America's very best— no, even the world's very best?
As he analyzed silently, Makoto couldn't help but think that.
At that thought, he held his breath and looked back at his black-haired girl.
…It's true, challenging her on her opponent's strongest surface is incredibly difficult. Did I… push her too hard?
Just as Makoto began to feel a faint sense of worry and self-doubt, on the track—
In Kitasan Black's eyes, the first corner rapidly expanded before her.
Without hesitation, relying on the inside position she had secured right out of the gate, she switched to her cornering stride, leaned inward, and charged into the turn.
She could feel her cleats digging deep grooves into the unusually soft dirt—far softer than turf.
At the same time, the moment she exerted force, she felt a resistance unlike anything she had experienced before.
This sensation had been there since the start.
It wasn't that she had never run on dirt before.
Many of her pre-debut training sessions had been on dirt, and even after debuting, she had occasionally trained on it to adapt to heavy track conditions.
But even among dirt tracks, this one was clearly different.
It felt as though countless invisible hands were grabbing at her feet with every step, trying to hold her back.
Running on this kind of surface, every bit of forward progress required 10–20% more strength and stamina compared to the dirt she was used to.
She hadn't felt exhausted yet, but she could already sense that if this continued, by the final stretch, she would likely lose power and slow down—perhaps even struggle to finish.
But she had no intention of giving up.
The spray of dirt kicked up on this track was far heavier than on turf. Even though she was running at the front of the pack, she could still see a curtain of mud like falling rain off to the side.
That was the spray created by California Chrome, who was running on the outside.
Kitasan Black didn't understand why her golden-haired opponent wasn't trying to cut into the inner lane—but she could tell one thing clearly:
California Chrome was running far more easily than she was.
It was as if the other girl didn't feel the resistance of the dirt at all—or even the pull of gravity.
Her movement was smooth, fluid, and incredibly fast.
…She really is amazing. But if you think that's enough to make me give up—
Not even close!
For the first time, just as she entered the mid-race phase, Kitasan Black declared her challenge in her heart.
But the very next moment, the direction of the "rain" of mud from the outside suddenly changed.
The golden figure changed as well.
With an incredibly smooth, seamless acceleration—sprint, cut inside—
California Chrome… had overtaken her!
Kitasan Black's eyes widened instantly.
But in the next second, she couldn't help but squint and turn her head.
The curtain of mud that had been off to her side—kicked up by California Chrome—was now directly in front of her.
As her opponent moved ahead, that brown "rain" came crashing straight toward her.
She narrowed her eyes and turned her face away—because wave after wave of mud was now pelting her head-on.