PHILOSOPHY
RACE PHILOSOPHY
Look Deep Into Yourself - Let Nature be Your Guide
Mountain running, including trail running, can be said to be a modern version of mountain worship.
The time to go through the mountains with no end in sight is exactly the time of Gyo and the time of Zen. Listen to your own voice, which is usually drowned out, and create opportunities for your life to become richer.
We are most alive in the natural environment. One of the attractions of this sport is that you can get into touch with that feeling of truly feeling alive.
As we move through the mountains, we are reminded of the feeling of being embraced and becoming one with nature. Take a deep breath, sip the spring water, and embrace the offerings that mother nature has to offer. Cultivate a heart and spirit that values and appreciates this wonder.
Purpose of the race
This race is operated as part of a project to create the future of mountainous regions nationwide. By holding this race our aims are as follows:
To make local residents aware that their hometowns are stunning places that attract people from all over the country and the world.
The objective is to provide both participants and local residents with an atmosphere resembling international races. To allow all involved the opportunity to engage in new exchanges, new experiences, and make new friends, while still being in Japan. We want to give locals a sense of the vastness of the world, as if they had traveled overseas, thereby broadening their exposure to the charm, culture, and environment of the host region and revitalizing it.
In addition:
We aim to establish Deep Japan Ultra as one of the world's leading international competitions with an atmosphere far removed from Japan (our intention is to have participants from more than 20 foreign countries within 5 years, with more than 50 top foreign athletes participating, etc.)
Implement dream classes at local elementary and junior high schools to teach students how to live and work doing what they love while living in their hometowns.
Implement regular trail maintenance so that the more this event is held, the easier it is to use the surrounding mountain trails.
Through various projects such as these, we will contribute to human resource development, community development, and future development in mountainous areas, which account for 80% of Japan's land mass. We will provide participants, stakeholders, and locals with opportunities to change their lives for the better. For more information, please see the National Mountainous Area Future Creation Project below.
What makes Deep Japan Ultra special?
Point 1
We created the DEEP JAPAN ULTRA 100 as a trail race journey that allows you to experience the harshness and excitement comparable to famous international races, while still being uniquely Japanese. In order to offer a course that provides the ruggedness and challenge of the world’s best, DEEP JAPAN ULTRA features three elevation differences of over 1,000 meters. This feature is one of a kind for a domestic 100-mile race in Japan.
Point 2
The Echigo Three Mountains Tadami Quasi-National Park was the focus of our efforts to showcase the beauty of the DEEP JAPAN course. Its ‘special protection area’ is usually an extremely difficult place to set up a course from the viewpoint of protecting rare plants and animal species. Our plea directly with the local area and park authorities were, "We have travelled the world, and these places surrounding Mt. Sumon and Mt. Asakusa deserve to be on the world stage.” After countless discussions with the relevant agencies, the utmost consideration was granted, and a full-scale 100-mile mountain race was born.
Point 3
One athlete who participated in 2022 told us. “The harshness of the three 1000m climbs certainly stands out, and in fact, the third mountain is a wall that is not like a course, but is truly an enemy or end boss to be defeated.”
At first glance, it is easy to focus on the harshness of these three 1,000m mountain climbs, in reality though they make up a cumulative total of more than 5,000m.
Furthermore, the course and terrain is so similar that you lose track of where you are running, giving you a taste of déjà vu.
In other words, it is possible that you can enter into a state of trance and inner meditation. Enter the deepest part of Japan (DEEPJAPAN) and journey through untouched nature, look into your deepest self and have the absolute experience of drawing a map that will answer the question of why you are alive.
Why start on weekdays (Friday for both 160km and 80km)?
The reason is that the course passes through a quasi-national park [special protection area]. Special protection areas are usually avoided as being used as a competition course in principle. For this tournament, the utmost consideration was given after innumerable countermeasure discussions with related organizations. As one of the considerations for holding the event on this course we decided to avoid crowded weekends, so we chose to start on Friday. The organizers' wish is to provide a sense of accomplishment and excitement comparable to that of overseas races, while still being in Japan. This is only possible on this world-class and spectacular section of the race.
Why stick to 160km (100 miles)
Japan is geographically about 10,000 km away from Europe and the United States, and the flight time is more than 10 hours. There are many athletes around the world who would find it difficult to travel to Japan for a 5km or 10km race, but would be willing to travel for a full 160km race. One of the appeals of a 100-mile race is that it is possible to experience the depths of Japan as if you were living there, rather than just seeing the country on the surface. This extraordinary experience will be transmitted to the world through social networking services, and the attractiveness of the host area will spread throughout the world. We believe that this will be a catalyst for people living in mountainous areas to become aware of the charms of their hometowns.
Future vision of the race
Our goal with this event is for it to be one of the world's leading international races. As we touched on before, our intention is to have participants from more than 20 foreign countries within 5 years, with more than 50 top foreign athletes participating. We will strive to allow all involved the opportunity to engage in new international exchanges, have new experiences, and make global friends, while still being in Japan. We want to give locals a sense of the vastness of the world, as if they had traveled overseas. We want to use this race as a catalyst to spread joy, to change lives and to connect the world with the true, the real, the deepest part of Japan.