The 6th Yoshikawa Catfish Marathon Race

Date: Sunday April 1, 2002 Weather: Fine

Location: Yoshikawa City, Saitama Pref. (10 minutes by bus from JR Musashino-Line Yoshikawa station)


Details of Race

Race	Half	Time Limit	2 hours 30 minutes	2000 runners
	10 km		*	500 runners
	5 km		*	500 runners
	3 km		*	300 runners
	2 km		*	300 runners
Entery Fee	Yen 3,000
Contact	342-0017 1-58-1 Kamisasazuka, Yoshikawa city, Saitama Pref. Secretariat of Yoshikawa Catfish Marathon Race TEL:0489-82-6800
Gift	T-shirt
Free Service	Hot Soup, Supplement Drink
Remarks	Free shuttler buses available from JR station. Staring time of harf marathon is 8:50 AM in 2001!

IMAGES

 
Reception Ad balloon T-shirt(Small catfish)

Records & Impression

• On the day before the marathon race, it started to snow in the morning. It was really mid-winter although calender day was March 31!
• I was surprised when I waked to see outside. Everything was white covered with frost and ice. The temperature was below the freezing point! Was it really April 1?
• This time, no running mates joined me. Thus I asked my wife to join as a gallery for the first time. I am of a opinion that a runner must have an understanding from his family for running or joining the race. ( I hope my wife understood about joining a marathon race this time.)
• We left home at 6:30 AM in the chilly morning. Although the scenery was winter, we could hear a Japanese nightingale singing!
• We arrived in the site around 8:00 AM.
• I looked around the site with my wife before start. My wife found that the supplement drink was being served free of charge. I was given 3 bottles! I drank one bottle before start. There were some other boothes where noodles, rice balls, catfish cookies(!) were available at cost.
• The half-marathon race started at 8:50 AM. The starting time was advanced by 50 minutes in comparison with that of last year.
• The course was the same as that of last year. A row of cherry trees, located approx. 1 km away from the starting point, was full bloom.
• It was fine and the maximum temperature was expected to be 13 degrees Centigarade. However, the wind was cold at the initial stage. I felt cold with half-sleeve T-shirt.
• This year, I saw the runner with dog again. (According to my wife, they successfully completed the race!)
• I could see that the snow slightly remained in the shade.
• Split time: 5 km---26 minutes, 10 km---53 minutes, 15 km---1 hour 19 minutes, 20 km---1 hour 45 minutes. (Lately the time is almost the same at every race.)
• I was forced to use toilet at the 8 km water supply point. I went into the building of the pool. However, there was a warning sign saying "Don't enter with one's shoes on"! I had to take off the shoes to enter the toilet and to take on later. I lost almost 2 minutes! In case of half-marathon race, 2-minute loss is serious!
• I could see hazed Mt. Fuji on the rice field at the 13 km water point. (I did not recognized it last year.) I love to see Mt. Fuji! I had to use toilet again here. (1-minute loss!)
• During the middle of the course, there was only rice field! I felt as if I were running in my home country (Okayama Pref.) and I felt calm.
• I could hear a skylark singing in the sky. And a smell of manure and pigsty! (The following two are not acceptable!)
• I thought I could not reach the goal within 1 hour 50 minutes, however, the goal time was 1 hour 49 minutes 23 seconds since I rushed last 1 km.
• After the goal, I tried to get supplemnt drink again, but to my regret, they were completely out of stock.
• Instead, I drank a canned beer! Then we took on the shuttle bus.
• The group of old-aged runners were talking about the after-race party. They would meet again with beer, sake and food. They must have a flower viewing.
• When we arrived in the JR station, it was almost lunch time. Thus we entered into the Japanese restaurant . Almost all quests were runners. Each group had an after-race party.
• I also drank a cooled Japanese sake deliciously.
• Since the staring time was early, it was only 2:00 PM when we arrved in our home.

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