The 100km hike, one of the three major events at Waseda, is a two-day hike over a distance of 100 kilometers from Honjo Campus, in Saitama, to the Main Campus, with participants disguising themselves in costumes. As I was attending this event, held on May 10th-11th this year, for the first time, the impression I had made me wonder "How high is one's limit?"

So cold, painful, and harsh...I kept walking, thinking many times in tears that I could no longer stand it and feeling my legs claiming their limit with pain. But I just kept walking on to Okuma Hall -- it was like pushing above my limit all the time. Such an extreme situation, which we never face in our daily lives, provided me with lots of valuable experience. I was astonished that the senior I was walking with could manage to pay attention to what was around him, while I was so tired that I could barely think straight. During the night hike, a hike in the darkness, I had to face myself by questioning myself over and over. I was so impressed with the mental strength of people who were putting themselves through an especially tough ordeal by walking in geta or carrying heavy baggage, even though just walking along in sneakers was almost unbearable.

What was most impressive was the sight of Okuma Hall when I finally arrived at the goal. Along with a great feeling of accomplishment, that magnificent vista of the hall— more magnificent than I'd ever seen before—brought tears to my eyes. Even though I was thinking of never taking part again while I was walking, the vista made me determined to participate again in the future. The hike which so many take part in—although it's basically just a hard walk—will surely create lots of drama again next year.