Hello! I’m Baki, and I’ve been a part of the Circles crew for six months now!
Time really flies...
Now, as the title suggests, this is a race report.
The 22nd Mt. Fuji Hill Climb—I participated!
The Mt. Fuji Hill Climb is a public road cycling event held on the "Subaru Line," a toll road closed off for the occasion as it winds its way up to the 5th station of Mt. Fuji.
8,000 riders race to an altitude of 2,305m. It’s arguably the premier event in Japan, in more ways than one.
I wanted to write down the experience before it fades from memory!
Why I decided to participate
Hill climbing is fun.
The results of your day-to-day riding are clearly visible, and there’s less risk of the crashes common in other races. It’s an event where you can truly face yourself!
What makes Fuji Hill especially interesting is the "finisher ring" you receive based on your finish time!
The categories are:
- Platinum: Under 60 minutes (1 hour)
- Gold: Under 65 minutes (1 hour 5 minutes)
- Silver: Under 75 minutes (1 hour 15 minutes)
- Bronze: Under 90 minutes (1 hour 30 minutes)
- Blue: For everyone who finishes
- Pink: For every woman who finishes
The ring color is determined by your finishing time.
It’s said that only the top 30% of participants earn the Bronze ring. Naturally, to get the higher-tier rings, you have to hit even faster times.
Whether you’re just aiming to finish or training hard to chase a specific ring, it’s an event that offers a sense of achievement to every participant, not just the winners!
Actually, I participated last year too.
Back then, I rode as a pacer for my partner, who wasn’t used to these kinds of events.
The result was a Blue ring, and that was the moment I started to wonder where I stood and how far I could push myself.
So, this year, I decided to enter to test my true potential. My goal: the top 10%, the Silver ring!
Why did I choose to ride a chromoly Sycip?
Ever since I joined the company, Tanaka-san (Kyutai-san) had told me, "You're welcome to ride my Sycip."
Borrowing a custom-made bike felt like a big responsibility, so I had declined until now, but then I started thinking right before the event, "What would happen if I tried a hill climb on a chromoly Sycip?"
Once that thought took hold, there was no stopping it.
When I asked Tanaka-san, he graciously agreed.
Honestly, I was pretty anxious.
"Can I get used to it in just a week?"
"Aren't hill climbs and chromoly a bad match?"
That’s what I was thinking.
But those anxieties were proven wrong.
On the fourth day of having it, I took it to Amigasa Pass. When I rode it, the time difference compared to my usual bike was only 10 seconds.
Now it was all down to me on race day.
That was the moment I felt a pressure I’d never experienced before. haha
The Event Experience
Fuji Hill is a two-day event.
You actually have to check in on the day before, or you can’t participate!
The main venue is a massive sports park at the foot of Mt. Fuji.
It’s like a mini-festival, bustling with booths and vendors! Once you finish registration, you can try local food or stock up on supplies.
I also stopped by the POC booth and got to try on their new AMIDAL helmet. Getting to check out gear I wouldn't normally get my hands on is one of the joys of big events!
Race Day
Right, finally, the big day.
When you arrive at the assembly area, you see a breathtaking sight of thousands of cyclists moving according to the marshals' instructions!
I blended into the crowd, waiting for my turn. My heart was pounding with nerves.
With that adrenaline racing, it was almost time!
Fuji Hill uses a "rolling start," where you don't start timing the moment you leave the gate, but rather start the clock once you reach the official timing point while still in formation.
I found a good spot before the timing point and prepared to jump forward as soon as it began.
I spotted the timing line... and we’re off!
1st Station
The stretch to the 1st station is a bottleneck in the race.
It's one of the steepest parts of the Subaru Line, so I made sure to hold back a bit to avoid burning out later.
I usually try to control my pace by keeping my heart rate in the right zone, but... my nerves had already sent my heart rate way up, so it wasn't a reliable metric at all!
Looking back, I think I pushed harder than I planned. haha
At this point, the results speak for themselves!
2nd Station
After the 1st station, I kept a steady rhythm.
Passing other riders, getting passed myself.
If I found someone with a matching pace, I would have loved to ride with them, but it’s hard to find a perfect match!
I’d catch up with some, drift away from others.
Even so, hearing things like,
"What’s your goal?"
"Let’s ride together!"
That camaraderie is one of the best parts of the Fuji Hill experience!
3rd Station
I think this is where I took my only nutrition—a gel.
Since it's a race lasting over an hour, running out of fuel is your worst enemy.
From here on, the fog thickened until I couldn't see the course, and I lost track of where I was.
Stay calm and don't let it throw you off!
I focused on maintaining my heart rate and kept pushing forward.
4th Station
The latter half of the Fuji Subaru Line features several flat sections, especially between the 4th station and the finish.
Your speed goes up, and so does the wind resistance.
Finding a partner to share the load is crucial, but I was riding solo for a long time.
I really wanted to find someone to pace with before reaching the flats!
I was starting to get a little impatient.
5th Station
Actually, there was someone I’d briefly paired up with around the 1st station.
We’d chatted about our goals, both aiming for Silver, but our paces didn't quite mesh, so we drifted apart.
Right before reaching the flats, I saw a familiar back.
It was him! The guy from the 1st station! It was the most exciting, happy moment of the race.
"We meet again!" "Shall we work together?"
I think I almost yelled it. haha
We started working together for the second time.
One takes the wind, the other rests in their draft. By rotating like this, our pace picked up significantly.
We rotated until the final stretch, where I let him take the lead.
He was absolutely hammering it in the final sprint.
Even though I was drafting him, I got dropped on the final climb right before the finish...
In the end, I gave it everything I had left, grinding the pedals.
And then—cross the finish line!
Results
The time: "1:13:13".
Silver achieved!!
We weren't the only ones—another guy had been drafting off us too.
The three of us who made it under the Silver time shared high-fives, thanks, and photos—the joy was electric.
Even days later, just thinking about that final burst of adrenaline makes me giddy.
Maybe that’s exactly why I keep coming back to Fuji Hill—for those kinds of encounters.
How the Sycip handled
I felt the quality of the Sycip during my Amigasa Pass time trial.
I usually struggle to push through the very end, but on the Sycip, I was able to keep powering through to the finish.
Whether I was sprinting or just grinding it out. It seemed to have the uncanny ability to accept my power and turn it into efficient, rhythmic speed.
I think that’s a big reason why I nearly hit my personal best after only four days on the bike!
During the actual race, it performed flawlessly, letting me keep pushing from the 4th station all the way to the end. The Sycip really helped me by never wasting my energy.
It’s definitely not light. My previous aluminum/carbon bike was way lighter.
The frame size wasn't even perfect, and I'd only had it for a week. haha
But I was able to keep pushing until the end.
Beyond just the aesthetics or the passion that went into it, it proved to be a machine that could push me to my limits.
It was a memorable race where I really understood the significance of choosing a handmade chromoly bike as my racing partner.
I’m starting to really want a Sycip now...
I’m currently consulting with my wallet.
How did you prepare for it?
My pre-Fuji Hill preparation was mostly:
- A test run on the Subaru Line two weeks before
- The Sycip Amigasa time trial 4 days before
- Diet management the day before (a failure)
That was about it. Other than that, I was just out riding my bike as usual!
For diet, I wanted to try carb-loading, but there was a Chinese restaurant in front of my hotel, so that plan didn't last long...
The greasy food was just so delicious.
A race like a once-a-year festival.
That was my Fuji Hill Climb experience. I got my Silver, so I’m feeling pretty good.
But I want to see what my limits really are, so next year I’m going for Gold!
I’ve decided to burn my bridges by declaring it publicly.
I chased a time, but it’s a fun event even if you just look at it as a festival to see the results of your daily training!
Another great thing is that you can have fun no matter what kind of bike you bring.
Still, my recommendation is a road bike! I hope you all get to experience the thrill of having your power translate directly into speed!
It’s just one of many ways to enjoy cycling.
Whether you’re after that exhilaration, meeting new people, or pushing your own boundaries—why not go out and meet these experiences yourself!