Minami Kamakura Girls Bicycle Club Miura Peninsula Touring Report
Um...
What do you think?
It's very good.
Without wasting any club funds, you bought packing bags and went touring.
You did very well.
Right?
We worked really hard to come up with ideas
for how the bicycle club could produce results.
Results, huh?
That's right. It wasn't just this touring trip, either.
We raced in the Night Criterium, and, um...
We went orienteering, too.
Our race against Azuma-senpai... doesn't really fit the bill.
What do you think?
With all we've achieved,
surely you'll recognize the bicycle club as an official club now.
Well...
I don't think I can.
N-No way.
Aren't you forgetting something?
What?
Forgetting something?
Are we?
Yes, something important.
Something important?
Oh, come on!
What is this "important thing"?
#12 The Road Keeps Going
What do you think it is?
I'm not sure.
But the principal said...
That's something for you to think about.
Remember?
Yeah, but...
I wish she'd given us a hint.
Hot, hot!
What was that for? You surprised me.
Is something wrong?
It's this.
"Minami Kamakura High School Student Rules"?
Read this section.
Let's see...
"Should students desire to form a new club,
they must gather at least five club members
and submit the designated application to the school."
What does it mean?
In other words, in order to form a new club, we need at least five members.
So what? There's five of us.
That's right.
There's me, Tomo-chan, Natsumi-chan, Fuyune-chan, and Sandy.
Yes, me.
Huh?
Something doesn't feel right.
Right?
Give me a second. I'll replay my mental video.
I don't remember Sandy becoming a member.
That's right.
She temporarily joined the club during the orienteering activity,
and we haven't followed up on that since then.
Y-You're right!
That's it! This must be the important thing my grandmother was talking about!
Wrong.
We were wrong!
Maybe there's something missing from our achievements.
Like what?
Like distance?
Maybe she's telling us to go on a longer tour.
How long are we talking?
We rode 40 kilometers the other day.
Then why don't we try for 100 kilometers?
100 kilometers?
I don't think we can ride that far in a day.
Oh, maybe that's it.
What?
An overnight trip.
Maybe she's telling us to spend at least two days riding our bikes.
Does that mean riding with tents?
Oh, like camping?
I don't like tents.
Maybe we could stay at a youth hostel instead.
They're cheap and all over the place.
Come to think of it, the principal said she used to do that when she was younger.
We can have a pillow fight!
Something important, huh?
Oh, it's already so late.
I have something I need to do at home today.
Should we call it a day, then?
I wish we could talk a little more.
Then let's go somewhere else.
The change of pace could inspire some good ideas.
You're right.
Is Flat okay?
Yeah.
See you tomorrow.
The problem is we don't know what this important thing the principal mentioned is.
It always comes back to that.
It's an emergency, girls.
Shiki-sensei?
What?
Sandy's going back to America?
Yeah. I just heard about it at school.
Yeah, I know.
I'm going home now and will pack my stuff.
It's all right. I already talked to the school.
Sandy?
Tickets and everything's ready.
Anyway, how's grandma doing?
Is she eating? I'm so worried.
She's talking about her grandmother.
I heard she's lost a lot of weight.
Don't worry. I'm okay.
And I'm coming back real soon.
Sandy's grandmother...
She was supposed to stay for a year.
It must be really bad if she's going home before her time's up.
When is she going back?
I checked with her homeroom teacher.
She's going to America next week.
Next week?
Then when she said she had to go home...
She must be getting ready to go back.
That's kind of standoffish, isn't it?
What?
Don't you think so?
She could've at least mentioned it to us.
I thought we were friends.
Maybe it's because you're friends.
What do you mean?
It must be hard for Sandy, too.
Maybe she didn't mention it until the last minute
because she didn't want to make things gloomy.
I see.
Maybe.
We knew she'd go back to America eventually, but...
Hey, let's make memories for Sandy in Japan.
Memories?
What are you thinking?
Touring. Let's ride with Sandy.
That's a good idea.
It's a good way for us to send her off.
But where will we go?
We know a place that's perfect for Sandy.
The Next Day
We're going to bike up Mt. Fuji?
Yeah.
Not to the peak, though.
There's a road called the Mt. Fuji Skyline that goes up to the fifth station.
Although riding to the fifth station would be tough for us.
After all, it's 2,400 meters above sea level.
Wow.
We were planning to travel to Gotenba,
but even then we'd have to climb close to 2,000 meters.
So our destination this time will be the second station.
That's still a twenty-five-kilometer course ending at 1,600 meters above sea level.
That's about one mile.
There are a few parking areas along the Mt. Fuji Skyline,
so we're asking Shiki-sensei to drive along.
We'll be covered even if we drop out partway.
What do you think? You'll come, right, Sandy?
Of course.
Then let's meet next Sunday at 7:00 AM at Kamakura Station.
Okay. I'm excited to go to Mt. Fuji.
We made it to Gotenba.
It's already 9:30 AM, so I guess we'll be leaving at 10:00 AM.
It seems so close, since we see it all the time,
but Mt. Fuji's actually pretty far away.
Wow! Mt. Fuji looks huge.
Hey, there's still snow on the top.
Of course. It's 3,776 meters above sea level.
According to the Köppen climate classification we studied in geography,
it's a tundra at the summit.
Tundra?
Even during the summer, the lowest temperatures can reach below freezing.
Mt. Fuji is not to be underestimated.
Girls.
It's huge. What is this car, a bus?
It's a camping car.
Nice, right? We rented it.
We'll support you today using this car.
Thank you.
The two of them aren't the only ones providing support.
The manager?
Indeed. I am Hooji Korone, Manager of Cycle Flat.
Closed
Today's course is all uphill.
It may be short, but brace yourselves.
Okay.
Let's head for Mt. Fuji.
Yeah!
America, huh?
That's really far away for a high school girl.
Make some good memories, girls.
First, we'll be riding through the city of Gotenba.
The hills are pretty gentle here, so think of it as a warm up.
Roger that.
Okay.
Wow, Mt. Fuji's right in front of us.
Once we pass the Self-Defense Force drill field, it'll start getting steeper.
Yikes.
Wow.
This is the old toll booth, huh?
Until about twenty years ago, this was a toll road.
It's a place where noble soldiers once dreamed a dream.
That means something totally different.
Tomo-chan, how much farther are we riding?
Well, it's about three kilometers to the second station.
We'll be climbing about 150 meters.
We're almost there.
Shall we go, then?
H-Hey, don't you think we're going too fast?
Yeah. Fuyune-san can't keep up.
Sandy, let's go a little slower.
No.
What?
I'm excited. This is where the battle begins.
Let's race to see who reaches the second station first.
What?
I accept your challenge!
If you don't hurry, I'll leave you behind!
You won't beat me!
They're full of energy.
In that case...
Let's race, too.
Yeah.
Elevation
Feeling Great! Mt. Fuji
Second Station
They're here.
Hey, seems like they've turned it into a race.
They're hopeless.
But...
Yeah.
It's the last spurt!
They seem to be having fun.
Goal!
I lost.
We made it.
That was tough.
Sandy, you really are fast.
Your power's on a different level.
No, you were all very fast.
Even though I rode as hard as I could, you kept up with me until the end.
Now that you mention it, you're right.
We dropped out so early during the criterium.
Have we...
Gotten faster?
Good work, everyone.
Have some cold water.
Thank you.
Second Station
Elevation
Feeling Great! Mt. Fuji
We're at 1,600 meters.
I can't believe we really came here.
Two horizontal lines form the character for "two."
We're still only at two out of ten.
Sandy?
Someday, I'll ride my bicycle to the fifth...
No, the tenth station.
I'd like to go to the peak.
Yeah. Wait, the peak?
That's not possible.
But...
It would be nice if we could go together someday.
I'm sure we will someday.
Hiromi?
But Sandy...
Sandy, you're...
Wh-What's wrong, Hiromi?
Does your stomach hurt?
Sandy, do you like riding your bike?
You'll keep riding even after you go back to America, right?
Of course.
You taught me how fun bicycles can be in Japan.
Good. Then we'll be fine.
Did you know?
You can go anywhere in the world on a bike.
You're right.
As long as we keep riding...
Someday...
We'll meet again.
Let's not cry anymore.
Bicycles are fun. Tears don't suit them.
You're right.
Let's smile...
As we send off Sandy.
Well done.
Grandmother, what are you doing here?
I heard about your touring trip from Shiki-sensei.
I came here on my bicycle when I was young.
Getting old is no fun.
That's not what I meant. Why did you come here?
And what do you mean by "well done"?
You've realized what's important, haven't you?
What?
The most important thing is to enjoy riding your bicycles.
The important thing...
It was that simple?
Simple? Are you sure?
We were working hard to get the bicycle club recognized.
But actually enjoying our bicycles might've taken a backseat to that.
But if you'd just told us—
No, I couldn't do that.
You had to realize your enjoyment on your own.
And you did it.
So I'm officially recognizing the Minami Kamakura Girls' Bicycle Club.
We...
We did it!
It was a long road.
But we were finally recognized.
That's great.
We finally formed the bicycle club, but now we have to say goodbye to Sandy.
Um, what are you talking about?
Sorry, Sandy. We heard the news.
We know you were trying to hide it, but...
You're going home, right?
You knew?
We understand how you feel, but you could've told us.
Sorry, but I didn't think it was worth reporting.
What are you talking about?
You're going back to America, right?
Yes, for just one week.
One week?
Just one week?
Just one.
But your grandmother's not doing well.
Yes. She's feeling down because she misses me.
She's not sick?
No, she's healthy otherwise.
B-But she was talking about "grandma" and "loss," so I thought...
Sensei!
Sorry! I've always been bad at English.
So Shiki-sensei was just confused.
But I'm glad Sandy's not leaving us.
Yeah.
Yeah!
Hey, girls.
What?
Why don't we ride a little farther?
What?
After all, the road keeps going.
See?
Let's go.
Sure. We'll follow you as far as you want to go, Hiromi.
Yeah, let's go.
This is the bicycle club's first tour as an official club.
Sandy, are you coming with us?
Yes, of course.
Yes, the road keeps going.
So let's go, Unico.
With Tomo-chan, Fuyune-chan, Natsumi-chan, Sandy, and everyone else.
Let's ride far, far away to see sights we've never seen before.
The appeal of road bikes on full display makes you want to start riding tomorrow.
A-O-P: The first cycling club.
Kamakura Cycling
Enoshima
Shichirigahama
Inamuragasaki
Enoshima Line
Kamakura Station
Yokosuka Line
We're heading for Enoshima while making stops along the way
in our first cycling tour of Kamakura.
Last time we stopped at a popular scenic spot
and enjoyed a famous rice bowl in Enoshima.
This time we'll be heading for...
Now that we're full...
Yeah, that was good.
We're going to be finishing in Inamuragasaki.
Our first Kamakura cycling experience is in its final stage.
Enoshima
Shichirigahama
Inamuragasaki
We're heading for Inamuragasaki, our final destination.
Enoshima was fun.
It sure was.
We're leaving Enoshima.
Farewell.
* Filmed on pedestrian path
That went by in a flash.
Riding a road bike, riding through Kamakura,
and everything else was a new experience, but we had no idea it was so much fun.
When we rode alongside the Enoshima train,
it was exciting, like a scene out of an anime.
We've arrived at Inamuragasaki.
Inamuragasaki
All right.
We got to experience some great things like
the spectacular views of Kamakura and cycling.
How do you feel about today?
It was my first time riding a road bike, but I had a lot of fun.
Yeah. You can go all over the place so quickly on a road bike,
so we got to enjoy a bunch of different places in one day.
Why don't you give road bikes a try?
Yeah.