Ami Kurata

**Ami Kurata** (倉田 亜美, *Kurata Ami*) is the main protagonist of *Long Riders!*. She is a slightly clumsy college student who develops a keen interest in road cycling. She is the founder of Team Fortuna.

## Character

Ami describes herself in Episode 12,

“I’m dense, and I’m bad at physical activities. No matter what I’ve tried, it hasn’t gone well. “
She suffers from lack of confidence. She is hesitant to try new things, and needs encouragement and a slow approach towards getting started. She may be lacking somewhat in judgement, which can lead to bad outcomes, and tends to easily panic when things go awry. Pretty much every episode has her making a panicked face over something that she is struggling with. Episode 2 when struggling to get up the hills; Episode 5 when she gets lost on the way to Enoshima; Episode 10 when the storm comes through.

She explains to Aoi in Episode 1 how it would give her confidence to have a cute little bicycle,

“I was just thinking, if it were yours, it’d be impossible, but if it were that folding bike, maybe I could ride too…
“When I see you riding a bicycle, I’ve always thought it looks fun and like it feels good…
“I look like I’ll fall, so I was always scared and couldn’t really commit…
“But I think it’ll work out somehow if I use that bicycle.”
Her success with the folding bike leads to the road bike. Being able to take longer and more challenging rides on the road bike fills her with confidence. This leads to her personal revelation by Episode 12, that she can do great things with the support of her friends,

“I’ve been able to come to a place like this with everyone. Saki-san, Yayoi-san, Hinako-san, Aoi-san, I’m so glad I encountered cycling and met all of you. “
This isn’t just an expression about cycling, it is a recognition that in spite of her failings, she can accomplish things if she has the right support. Her symbol of this spirit is her wings. As she gains confidence with riding, she feels like she has wings, which she makes into the central element of her jersey designs.

## History

When she started University, she got a folding bicycle, primarily as a way to spend time with her best friend Aoi, who was riding a lot. With the increase of self-confidence which she got from that bike, she went on to acquire a road bike, so she could go on longer adventures with the experienced cyclists whom she had met.

## Bikes

Her first bike is the Pontiac Firebird FDB166, which is a steel frame on 16 inch wheels.

Ami's road bike is the Focus Culebro SL 3.0, an entry-level aluminum bike.

### Shoes

For Episodes 1 through 11, Ami wears red and white lace-up street shoes. In Episode 12, she has bike shoes with their characteristic velcro closure. In Episode 5 when she gets her road bike, there are several shots from beneath her feet showing that it came with Shimano SPD-style clipless pedals, which is generally considered a mountain-bike pedal. The distinction is that they are reversible, so that the shoe can attach to either side of the pedal, whereas road-bike pedals by Look and Shimano hang vertically when not clipped in, so that the shoe can only attach to one side of the pedal.

## Etymology

* The name **Ami** means "second, Asia" (亜) (**a**) and "beautiful" (美) (**mi**).
* Ami's surname **Kurata** means "warehouse, storehouse, barn, treasury, granary, cellar, magazine, godown, depository, elevator, storage place, repository, supply shed, grain elevator, stockpile, arsenal" (倉) (**kura**) and "field, rice paddy" (田) (**ta**).

## Gallery

Episode 1Episode 2Episode 2Episode 3 Ami lifts Saki's bike. Note how the road-bike pedal hangs verticallyEpisode 4Episode 5Episode 10Episode 10Episode 10Episode 12*Long Riders! Vol 4*; Ami asks why the pedals are like that
## References

1. ↑ Pontiac Firebird on *Amazon*
2. ↑ Focus Culebro overview on *The Bike List*
3. ↑ Pedals on *Shimano* official site