Impression:
Stage 2, Mountain Climb!
You have to love Sakamichi’s sheer determination and enthusiasm to catch up to his friends. He was so in the zone when he bypassed the other three first years that he didn’t even greet them. In fact he is relishing everything about the rider, from how light it is, how fast it is, feeling the wind, he is so caught up in the moment. I found it both hilarious but interesting how Green-Kid pointed out that when he was climbing the bike felt twice as heavy, where as oppose to Sakamichi who considers it extremely light. I have a feeling that it’s because Sakamichi up till now always been using a Mommy-Bicycle that weighs twelve kilogram more than a Rider. So take away that added weight he is used to and it seems to make sense as to why it would feel lighter to him compared to Green-Kid who is used to using a Rider. Also it was quite funny how Sakamichi didn’t even notice that his pedals were hitting the ground. He was basically singing his head, “Just keep pedalling, just keep pedalling~!”
He didn’t even blink when Kinjou told him to make a choice to either maintain his pace and finish third place, or raise his cadence by 30 rmp which would allow him to make up the ten minutes gap between him and Naruko/Shunsuke with the risk of dropping out of the race due to running out of stamina. While I do appreciate Sakamichi’s enthusiasm and his willingness to take the risk without even thinking about it, it does concern me a little bit because more than anything I’d hate to see Sakamichi drop out of the race. However seeing how Kinjou is keeping a close eye on Sakamichi and leaving the other three first years behind, regardless of whether Sakamichi succeeds or not, I think it’s pretty darn clear that Kinjou knows that Sakamichi is a diamond in the rough just waiting to be polished.
On the other hand, we witnessed a bit of a nasty side from Makishima, but I do wonder if he actually has the guts to say it in the riders’ face since he was taken aback when Kinjou had straight up gave Sakamichi that cold reality check that Makishima was talking about. However Kinjou despite his tough appearance, manages to balance the cold slap of reality with words of encouragement and provided Sakamichi an opportunity to make a decision on his own. As the race goes on, I do hope we will learn more about the senior’s characters and personalities since it does provide a great opportunity to see how the react to grim or shocking situations, along with their opinions on the matter.
The old man who both Naruko and Shunsuke were very confused about and constantly stopped every time he had tripped and fell on his face turns out to be their club’s coach. He has a sharp eye and pointed out to both boys how they can improve their form. He had advised Naruko to use the muscles on his back of his thighs more, and then gave Shunsuke a heads up that his upper body shakes which causes him to lose power and focus more on pedalling. That being said, I do wonder whether Sakamichi will get a piece of advice or not, but I suppose that ultimately varies whether he stops or whether he will be simply observed over.
