青山 Gakuin University runner Kuroda Asahi, who delivered a "New Mountain God"-level performance at this year's Hakone Ekiden , has kept fans buzzing about his insane uphill speed long after the race.
Over on Japanese X, a netizen dropped a challenge: "How to personally experience Kuroda Asahi's speed." This immediately kicked off a wave of attempts and hilarious (or painful) confessions, with many exclaiming, "Can't keep up at all, instantly dead!" The post quickly went viral.
The original challenger suggested that to simulate Kuroda Asahi's pace and conditions on Hakone Ekiden's grueling Section 5, you should hit the gym and set your treadmill to 18 km/h (11.2 mph) with a 10% incline or more. But he didn't mince words, warning that most people "won't even last 10 seconds before face-planting." He advised mental preparation, or "you'll seriously regret it."
The same netizen also pointed out that if you ignore the incline and just run at 17-20 km/h (approx. 3-3.5 min/km pace) on the treadmill, trying to power through with high cadence will quickly lead to a wall. Eventually, you'll have to lengthen your stride. That's when it suddenly clicks: running is all about converting the ground's reaction force into propulsion.
After the post blew up, tons of netizens actually tried it and reported back their results, with the comment section almost universally declaring "total annihilation." Many shared stories of giving up within mere seconds, some even tumbling off the treadmill. One person wryly joked, "Those trying this at the gym, please be considerate, or you'll be seen as a total weirdo."
Even netizens with regular athletic habits or track and field experience chimed in, admitting that 15 km/h with an incline is their absolute limit even on their best days, let alone the brutal combo of 18 km/h and a 10% incline. Some gym rats even pointed out that many treadmills don't even *go* as fast as 18 km/h, making it "impossible to even set the speed."
Meanwhile, past comments from the sports world about Kuroda Asahi have resurfaced. A rival school's coach flat-out stated in a post-race interview, "It's not a matter of whether you can catch up with effort; it's a completely different league." The truly mind-boggling part isn't Kuroda Asahi's short bursts of speed, but that he maintained this intensity for a full 1 hour and 7 minutes. And don't underestimate the other runners in Section 5 either; it's just that Kuroda is *that* terrifying.
This just goes to show why the Hakone Ekiden is dubbed "the stage that births monster-level runners." If you're brave enough to try this challenge, make sure you do it safely and see for yourself how Kuroda Asahi pulled off such a monstrous performance in Section 5!
via： togetter