The First-Year Welcome Race is an annual event held by the Sohoku High Bicycle Racing Club. It's suggested that it is scheduled about three weeks after the club starts up for the school year. The welcome race is used to test the first-years skills and to probe possible Inter High regular members. The senior members of the club follow along behind the competitors in the Kanzaki family van, and if they judge a member unable to continue the race, they will pick him up. The winner is usually designated by the club captain to manage the rest of the first-years.
Course Format[]
There are two courses that are rotated annually, despite the route being the same and involving a run out of the city, over Mount Minegayama, past Kazakami Tunnel, and around the Kameishi Dam, making it a 60km race.
The first course that is shown during the story is divided into four distinct stages after the racers exit the city. The first stage is a 12km speed race in the flat countryside. The second stage is the climb in the Minegayama Hill, which turns into a battle of endurance. The third stage is the descent down the mountain, where again speed is important. The fourth and last stage is the 18km portion that runs around the dam. This final stage is on uneven ground, so it tests the competitors' skills in that situation.
The second course is held at the same location, but the route is reversed and the participants also goes through the same four distinct stages. After leaving the flat road outside the city, the first stage is the 18km portion around the dam. After this, comes the second stage that is the climb in the Minegayama Hill from the reverse side of the school's location, which turns into a battle of endurance. The third stage is the descent from the mountain and the fourth and last stage is the 12km race in the countryside, moving towards the school.
Known Events[]
2 Years Pre-Series[]
Spoiler
This race used the first course, starting at the countryside and ending in the dam, and was competed by the seven first-years who joined the cycling club, Shingo Kinjou, Jin Tadokoro, Yusuke Makishima, Shimizu, Komura, Setozaki and Motoyama. Right in the first stage of the race, Jin sprinted off on his own and separated from the first years. However, Shingo managed to catch up with Jin and offered an alliance that they take turns during the stages and in the end they battle in a sprint to the goal. Although he liked the plan, Jin declined the offer as it was not his style and kept speeding up towards the goal. After reaching the Minegayama Hill stage, Jin speed has dropped drastically and he was passed by all of the first-years, including Shimizu who was a beginner. At the end of the race, Shingo was the winner of the first year race and Jin placed in last.
1 Year Pre-Series[]
This race used the second course, starting at the flat road to around the dam and ending in the flat road after the countryside section, and was competed by the ten first-years who joined the cycling club, with only four of them being known so far, Junta Teshima, Hajime Aoyagi, Kimitaka Koga and Taniguchi. How the race unfolded is still unknown and so far it is only known that Hajime placed in last.
Year 1[]
This race used the first course, starting at the countryside and ending in the dam, and was competed by the six first-years who joined the cycling club, Sakamichi Onoda, Shunsuke Imaizumi, Shoukichi Naruko, Terufumi Sugimoto, Takuya Kawada and Gou Sakurai. The race began right after Sakamichi, Shoukichi, and Terufumi join the club. Shunsuke thinks to himself that Sakamichi joining today of all days is a terribly unfortunate bit of timing, perhaps worried that he might become discouraged and drop out of the club because of the race. After the six first-year members are assembled, the club's captain, Shingo, announces that the race will begin in 40 minutes. Jin hands Sakamichi a spare racing helmet in Sohoku's colors, which he wears. On Shingo's verbal prodding, Terufumi, Takuya and Gou rush out to get ready. Sakamichi tells Shunsuke that he's happy he gets to ride with him again so soon, which Shunsuke recognizes as an honest reaction. Shoukichi on the other hand immediately gets into a strong rivalry with him.
Outside, the first-years warm up by riding stationary. As most are using rollers, Sakamichi wants to do the same and asks Kimitaka if he could borrow one of them, but the second year tried to convince him not to. Kimitaka points out Takuya and Gou using stationary turbo trainers to elevate and secure their rear wheels instead; using a roller is like riding on ice, and after three weeks both still fall from rollers. However, Sakamichi says it's okay because he's used to falling anyway; he mounts up and to Kimitaka's surprise he demonstrates excellent balance, successfully riding the rollers on his first try.
Shingo had asked the Kanzaki family's shop to supply Sakamichi with a road racer, but the van gets stuck in traffic and does not arrive before the race begins. This means that Sakamichi must ride his utility bicycle, which is not made for races. Shingo also explained the rules of the race; since the first 13km are inside the city where there are traffic lights, the first-years are supposed to stay in a group behind Shunsuke. However, Takuya grows restless and overtakes him. Shunsuke sticks to the rules when Gou and Terufumi object, explaining to them that the ride through town is meant to be a warm-up section and he's going slow for their benefit. Once they exit the city he and Shoukichi, to the shock of the others, will accelerate to 20km/hr. Shoukichi falls back to advise Sakamichi to endure the sections he's not good at to give his all on the part he excels, and thus he will catch up. Back at the school Toji Kanzaki and Miki Kanzaki finally arrives to pick up the third-years, explaining that there was an accident he got stuck behind.
Once out of town Shunsuke and Shoukichi speed on ahead while the others increase their pace, but Sakamichi falls behind because as Terufumi explains, his bicycle only has two gears and is much heavier than the average road racer. Desperate to catch up, he pedals too fast and derails his chain. The van catches up with him, causing him to panic at first, but finds out that he is being supplied with a road racer. Five minutes after this intervention, Sakamichi's spirits are lifted and he has the means to compete with the others. Climbing the mountain he passes Gou, Terufumi and Takuya in order to catch up to Shunsuke and Shoukichi.
Though Sakamichi is now determined to catch up to the two in front, Yusuke does not believe that he can do it. As the team's ace climber, Yusuke points out the eight-minute difference between Sakamichi and the other two and calculates that he would need to increase his cadence from 90 to 100 if he wants to reach the top. Jin comments that Sakamichi should already be reaching his limit since 90 rpm on a slope is already impressive enough. Shingo leans out of the van to give Sakamichi the water bottle he forgot earlier and to lay out his options. He can either continue at his current pace and finish the race in third place, a quite respectable placing, or increase his cadence and catch up to Shunsuke and Shoukichi before running out of steam and not finishing; however, instead of the increase of 10 that Yusuke calculated, to the surprise of the others Shingo tells Sakamichi he must increase his cadence by 30. Sakamichi immediately chooses the latter option and increases his cadence accordingly to 120.
In the meantime, Shunsuke and Shoukichi have been using the race to scope each other out. Each of them knows that the other is talented, but not to what extent. Shunsuke does not want to lose even a casual batter after his loss to Midousuzi. Shoukichi made a promise to his friends that he would make a characteristically flashy debut in his new home, so naturally, he also wants to take first place. As the two are climbing Mount Minegayama, they pass an odd spectator who appears to be a Caucasian foreigner. After the man falls over for the second time, the two dismount their bicycles and go to his aid. The man tells them to continue their race, then surprises them with some professional advice on how to improve their performance, and then informs them that someone is catching up. He found out this last bit of information because Shingo called him, so Shunsuke and Shoukichi infer that he is the club's coach.
Sakamichi manages to maintain his 120 cadence on the climb. Miki admires his straightforwardness and willpower, which allow him to do what others think is impossible, like a miracle. Shunsuke and Shoukichi have different reactions to the information the unknown spectator gave them; Shunsuke runs through the list of all the first-years competing and isn't sure who could be their pursuer, while Shoukichi believes that Sakamichi is definitely the one coming to catch them. Not long after, Sakamichi finally catches up to them. He is happy to the point of tears, and Shunsuke and Shoukichi both get a motivation boost from seeing him.
Shoukichi decides to pull ahead, revealing his "sprint climb" technique that he would have preferred to keep hidden for longer. He shifts his body weight forward, holds on to the lower handlebars, and shifts to a heavier gear to sprint despite being on a slope. Not wanting to be left behind, Shunsuke also decides to make his move, though he plans to read the rhythm of the slope and use gear shifting strategies to climb. Sakamichi accelerates to keep up with them, smiling as he usually does.
Things turn sour for Shoukichi when they reach an increase in incline, and as his sprint climb technique can't handle incline changes, he falls back. Concerned, Sakamichi slows down to ride beside him, but Shoukichi tells him to continue on ahead. He also encourages Sakamichi by telling him that his strength lies in climbing and that he should use that strength to overtake Shunsuke, in Shoukichi's stead. The third-years in the van also notice Sakamichi's natural climbing talent. Jin thinks that Sakamichi might "do the impossible" and beat Shunsuke, but Shingo says that Sakamichi lacks skill as a climber. However, it turns out that Shoukichi taught Sakamichi an important climbing skill, though the identity of the technique is not revealed yet. Shunsuke recognizes that it doesn't really matter if he takes the "King of the Mountains" title because there are still two stages left afterwards, but he is determined not to lose any race.
Shunsuke himself recognizes how pumped up he is getting, and even chooses to ignore the heart rate monitor on his cyclocomputer. He pulls ahead, only to have Sakamichi catch up to him fairly quickly. Sakamichi realized the only way he has to close the distance was to increase his cadence, so he did so by another 30, totaling 150. Sakamichi is motivated both by his own desire to win and by the promise he made to Shoukichi. With 300m left until the summit Shunsuke begins using his dancing technique. Sakamichi then reveals what Shoukichi taught him earlier; he increased the gear by two and stands up on the bike, preparing to use his own form of the dancing technique. Yusuke, who had previously refused to believe in the possibility of Sakamichi winning, cheers for the first-year loudly after seeing this. Putting in a last burst of strength, Sakamichi yells some of the lyrics to the Love Hime song he usually sings while climbing. With this, he passes Shunsuke and makes it to the top first, earning the "King of the Mountains" title. The spectators in the van are shocked and marvel at Sakamichi's victory.
However, this climbing battle took a lot out of Sakamichi, and he falls off his bike by the side of the road shortly after. Jin tries to encourage him to continue despite his fatigue, but Shingo comes over to help Sakamichi up, praises him for a job well done, and retires him from the race. Shoukichi passes by and gives Sakamichi a high five, telling his friend to leave the rest to him. Pierre, the coach, offers Sakamichi a clean jersey and asks if he had fun. Sakamichi puts on the jersey and replies that it was tough, but he had fun in the race. Unbeknownst to him, the jersey he was given is the spotted King of the Mountains jersey. While Shingo made it clear that Sakamichi would not have the energy to finish if he raced for the summit from last place, he and the other third-years consider Sakamichi's feat the greatest accomplishment in the Welcome Race history.
Storing Sakamichi's road racer in the van, they take off to catch up with Shunsuke and Shoukichi, which they do as the shadows lengthen from late afternoon to early evening. Sitting beside Shingo, Sakamichi is told to take this opportunity to watch them carefully so he can learn how to improve his riding and get stronger. Riding as hard as they can to the finish line, Shunsuke edges out Shoukichi to take the win and they allow themselves to collapse in the adjacent parking lot, gasping for air. Shingo, Jin and Miki check up on them while Sakamichi hangs back, feeling discouraged that his best wasn't anything like the finish he just witnessed. However, Yusuke recognizes the look on his face and gives him some encouraging words. The difference in skill is only natural because he hasn't had nearly the same amount of training or experience. Yusuke, a climber, also understands that he may feel like he got left behind in the mountains. In any case, Sakamichi just has to keep riding and training, and the more he pedals the stronger he'll become. Sakamichi decides to himself that he'll greatly increase his riding and that he will increase his skill level so that he'll be on equal footing with his friends.
Year 2[]
This race used the second course, starting at the flat road to around the dam and ending in the flat road after the countryside section, and was competed by the twenty one first-years who joined the cycling club, with only eighteen of them being known so far, Issa Kaburagi, Ryuhou Danchiku, Sadatoki Sugimoto, Gorizou, Sawada, Haraguchi, Tokumoto, Hirata, Shimoyama, Akai, Morimizo, Oshiba, Tomisugawa, Hirotoko, Aiba, Komisaki, Koichi Hara and Daisuke Taira, and the second-year Terufumi Sugimoto who asked the new Sohoku captain Junta if he could participate in the First-Year Welcome Race along with the new club members. As Sakamichi watches the first-years around him, he reflects on his own experiences in the race and the friends he has made since then. He remarks that, though he is not participating, everyone else’s nervousness has spread to him. Shoukichi said that they should pass on the feelings they got from their seniors to the freshmen in the club. However, Sakamichi has a bit of trouble figuring out how to do this. He approaches some of the first-years with good intentions, but accidentally ends up scaring them. After Sakamichi makes several failed attempts to reach out to his freshmen, Junta approaches him and asks if he wants to announce the start of the race. Sakamichi refuses at first, saying something like that is the captain’s job, but Junta tells him that he became something of a living legend after last year’s race. Junta and Shunsuke manage to convince Sakamichi to start the race, and Shunsuke tells him to get his feelings across to the new members. Sakamichi decides to go around and shake the hand of each first-year, telling him to do his best in the race. After Sakamichi announces the start, he notices Terufumi among the crowd and calls out to him. Terufumi reveals that he received permission to race from Junta, and that they did an agreement that if Terufumi wins the race, he will become an Inter High regular. When Sakamichi asks Junta about this, Shunsuke remembers when Terufumi came to him for advice. The third-years and second-years, get in the Kanzaki family's van to follow along behind the racers.
Terufumi quickly makes his way to the front of the pack, where he announces the rule about staying together until they leave the city. He also copies Shunsuke’s line from last year's race and tells the first-years that, once they leave the city, he plans to increase his speed by another 20 km/h. He thinks about how he cannot place third like he did last year. He needs to go after first place, something he has not accomplished before. Shoukichi comments to Sakamichi and Shunsuke that Terufumi will have some enemies in the race. Sakamichi asks who these enemies would be and Shoukichi mentions Sawada and Gorizou, who are according to him unrefined sprinters. The two first-years approached Terufumi and said that increasing by only 20km/h seems too slow. Gorizou says that Terufumi should raise his pace and the two freshmen then pass Terufumi, who speeds up and tries to call them back. Just then, the traffic light color changes, so the rest of the first-years have to stop. Terufumi and the two of them continue ahead, while the second-year keeps trying to convince them to stop. The sprinters turn it around and try to convince Terufumi to go ahead with them. Terufumi refuses, saying that he is a man who will not break rules. It seems that Terufumi was able to convince Sawada and Gorizou to go back, as they are later seen among the other cyclists. Later, they are surprised at Issa and Ryuhou, who decided to leave the other first-years and go at an even higher pace than they were.
Shortly after Issa and Ryuhou moved, the pack becomes scattered. Shoukichi and Junta reach out to help some first-years as they pass in the van, such as Tokumoto and Haraguchi. Shoukichi calls out to Sawada and Gorizou, asking why they’re not doing better in the race. They tell him about Issa and Ryuhou pulling ahead. When Sakamichi hears this, he remembers when Issa apologized for not recognizing him at first and, with Shunsuke suggestion, tells him to apologize by showing how he rides in the Welcome Race. The other first-years are shocked at how far ahead Issa and Ryuhou are going, but then notice that one person intends to catch up to them.
Back in the Kanzaki van, Sakamichi seems to think that the race has already been decided and both Issa and Ryuhou will be the winners. Shunsuke says that Sakamichi himself surprised everyone in last year’s race, so he shouldn’t count Terufumi out yet. Of course, the person wearing the Sohoku jersey that the first-years previously noticed is Terufumi. The second-year is determined to place first in the race and become one of the six regular members, so he does his best to keep up with Issa and Ryuhou. The van follows behind the three competitors in front, and Shunsuke surprises Sakamichi and Shoukichi by smiling and saying that Terufumi has not shown his true strength yet. After Shunsuke says this, Terufumi passes Issa and Ryuhou.
As Terufumi pulls ahead, he thinks back to his talk with Shunsuke before the race. He also reflects on how he knew of Shunsuke even before entering Sohoku, and thought of him as someone far beyond his own level. However, they ended up going to the same high school and joining the same club. Terufumi dreams of working together with Shunsuke during the Inter High as his assist and being able to carry him to the finish line. In order to achieve that dream, he must place first in the current race. Though Terufumi has gone far ahead of the first-year pair, Sakamichi feels that Issa and Ryuhou still haven’t given up, and Shunsuke affirms this idea. He says that, in a race, positions can change quickly.
Issa has a bad feeling about letting Terufumi go ahead, and he expresses this to Ryuhou. In response, Ryuhou is freed from his figurative "shackles" and begins to pull Issa along. Issa admits that Terufumi is probably a lot faster than he thought, but remains confident that he and Ryuhou are even faster. Junta brings up the mark on Issa and Ryuhou’s jerseys that reads "Team SS." He says the team started out small, but eventually gathered strong members. The team has members ranging from middle school students to adults and developed into a powerhouse team. The "SS" in the team name stands for "Speed Shot." Sakamichi is worried about Terufumi after hearing this, and just as this discussion is finished, the first-years catch up to and then pass Terufumi.
Terufumi appears to be losing hope as he watches the two first-years pass him, but Shunsuke yells to him, telling him to give chase. He leans out of the van as it pulls up beside Terufumi and offers him words of encouragement, saying he hasn’t lost yet. Shunsuke places his hand on Terufumi’s shoulder and says that, when you’re in a tight spot, just think that your opponent must definitely be in a tight spot too. Terufumi continues on with renewed passion, grateful for Shunsuke’s support. Back in the van, Shoukichi teases Shunsuke about losing his cool and shouting. Sakamichi expresses his feelings in a more innocent way, saying that Shunsuke’s words made him happy too. Shunsuke appears flustered, and just says that it seemed like the time to offer support. Toji thinks that Shunsuke’s actions exemplify the Sohoku spirit, while Miki thinks that Shunsuke has always been a pretty passionate person. Shoukichi asks Shunsuke if he thinks Terufumi will win the race, and he answers that he doesn’t really have any special expectations of him, he just wants the team to become stronger.
Terufumi has taken Shunsuke's words to heart, and he tells himself to focus on catching up. He thinks that when he rounds the next curve, he will be able to see the first-years, but they went farther ahead than he thought. He momentarily doubts himself again, but recalls Shunsuke's words and reminds himself that his opponents are also in a tight spot. Back in the van, Toji and Junta agree that they should pass Terufumi to follow the first-years up front. Sakamichi protests, but Junta says that, realistically, Terufumi cannot catch up to the first-years. Terufumi calls out for the van to wait as it passes, but it continues ahead. Confused and hurt, the second-year stops riding altogether. Sakamichi notices that Terufumi stopped, and asks Junta if they could stop the van to lend a hand, but the Sohoku's captain reminds him that this is a race. Sakamichi turns to Shunsuke next, but he just says that he thought Terufumi would be able to do a bit more. Shortly after, Terufumi's younger brother, Sadatoki, catches up to him and calls out a greeting with high spirits. Sadatoki says that he heard Terufumi was in the race too, but he was fast and pulled ahead quickly. Terufumi asks if Sadatoki came alone, and he answered that he came because he wanted to ride together.
Issa notices the van has come up behind him and Ryuhou, so he exclaims that there is no longer a threat from behind. Ryuhou says that Issa seems like a kid because he’s so excited, and the first-year responds that of course he’s excited in this situation. He even loudly declares that he is a kid. Issa looks forward to seeing what kind of people are in the Inter High. He remembers his father inviting him to the 40th Summer Inter High two years ago. He initially wasn’t that interested, but he was shocked at the speed and strength of the competitors. It was then that Issa decided he would definitely compete in the Inter High when he entered high school. His current goal is to dominate the upcoming Inter High along with Ryuhou.
Issa falls back and calls out to Junta, making sure the third-yeat didn’t forget their promise that if both him and Ryuhou take first and second place in the race, they will both join the Inter High team. Shoukichi and Sakamichi are surprised to hear of this promise, because if both first-years are allowed on the Inter High team, one of the upperclassmen will be kicked off. Sakamichi assumes he would be the one kicked out, so he tells everyone to do their best without him. Issa calls out to Sakamichi and tells him that he watched last year’s Inter High and was so impressed by the race for the final goal line that he can't express it in words. Issa also declares that he plans to surpass Sakamichi in this year's Inter High. He then asks what Sakamichi's goal is for the upcoming Inter High, prompting him with the idea of complete victory. Sakamichi responds by saying it’s alright even if he doesn't win as long as he gets to ride together with his teammates and give a good report to Yusuke, who graduated last year. Shunsuke and Shoukichi approve Sakamichi's idea and Junta tells Issa that Sohoku's policy is just to never give up. He also warns the first-year that if Terufumi has decided not to give up on victory, he will catch up. Issa doesn’t believe him, but still decides to stop talking and ride seriously. However, just as Junta said, Terufumi and Sadatoki are close to catching up.
Sadatoki is in front, pulling his older brother along, something that surprises the spectators in the van. Shoukichi and Shunsuke take note of how well the brothers are synchronizing with each other. Terufumi thinks about how grateful he is that Sadatoki appeared at that time because he might have given up otherwise. When Terufumi asked Sadatoki to help him catch up to Issa and Ryuhou, Sadatoki immediately agreed, saying he would overcome any mountain for his older brother’s sake. Sadatoki remembers that Terufumi has always helped him and taught him things, so he wants to do his best to grant the first favor Terufumi has asked of him. Sadatoki also says that he thinks Terufumi looks cool in the Sohoku jersey. Terufumi thinks to himself that Sadatoki was always quick to cry and didn’t have confidence, but he can do anything now.
The Sugimoto siblings catch up to Issa and Ryuhou with 50m left until the summit of Minegayama. Both pairs speed up as they get closer to the goal line. Issa and Ryuhou pull ahead when they come out of a turn, but the Sugimoto siblings stay on their heels. Issa is shocked because he didn’t think much of Terufumi and wasn't even aware of Sadatoki presence in the team, yet they pass him and Ryuhou. Everyone watching in the van is excited, and they start to think about Terfumi winning the race. Ryuhou notices Issa is distracted and punches him, telling him to focus. Ryuhou assures Issa that he doesn’t have to worry because he is fast, and calls him a genius. Issa laughs and says he knows, pulling ahead of Terufumi again. The second-year knows he is bad with sprints, but he must overcome that weakness in order to win.
Pierre is waiting at the goal line, and after reading a text that says there are four people competing for the goal, he says that Sohoku appears to have a passionate team again this year. Sadatoki falls behind the other three during the final sprint, and Ryuhou tells Issa to go ahead. When Ryuhou sees Terufumi passing him, he tells Issa not to worry about him. As he rides, Terufumi thanks Sadatoki and Shunsuke for their support and thinks that he hasn’t done anything yet, which is why he wants to take first place. Issa and Terufumi remain neck and neck until they get close to the finish line, where the first-year gets ahead and crosses it first, winning the race.
Terufumi was looking down and falls off his bike afterwards, so he is under the mistaken impression that he won. The other Sohoku members are at a loss over what to do. Shunsuke embraces Terufumi, telling him he worked hard. When Terufumi notices how serious everyone else looks and sees Issa and Ryuhou celebrating, he figures out that he’s not the one who won. Sakamichi and Shoukichi praise him for an amazing race, but Terufumi breaks out laughing and makes a big show of being okay with losing. When Sakamichi protests to Junta about deciding the Inter High members on the Welcome Race and wait until the Training Camp, Terufumi stops his teammate and tells him that he entered the race prepared for the outcome.
When Terufumi says that he didn’t manage to do anything, Shunsuke cuts in and says that he should take pride in this race, as he competed at his strongest. Terufumi thanks Shunsuke and apologizes before riding off alone to cry.
Shoukichi chides Sawada and Gorizou for finishing the race in 12th and 13th place, saying that they finished 20 minutes after the leaders. Junta and Hajime approach Issa and Ryuhou after the race, and Junta tells them that only Issa will be joining the Inter High team, as their agreement was that they would both join if they finished in first and second place. After the race, Issa built a respect for Terufumi and decided to thank him for the good race. Terufumi then goes after Issa and ask him to push Shunsuke's back during the Inter High. Despite not understanding what he means, he agrees to this request.
Warning!! Proceed with caution!!
Part of the following is not yet in the anime. If you're not reading the manga, be careful.
Year 3[]
This race used the first course, starting at the countryside and ending in the dam, and was competed by the eleven first-years who joined the cycling club, Renta Rokudai, Tsugunao Kinaka, Keisuke Hinoki, Kyotaro Amigoe, Yuichi Furuya, Toyoka Murakami, Yuki Koshiba, Nogaki, Tomihiro, Omihata and Kodai Kasu.