Deep Japan Ultra Review: One Runner’s Experience in Rural Japan & an Exclusive Interview with Founder Matsunaga-san
By TrailRunAdvisor Ambassador Alex Schubach
There are trail races that take you into the mountains, and then there are races that take you somewhere you probably never would have discovered otherwise.
For me, Deep Japan Ultra was very much the latter.
Travelling from Tokyo to the rural mountains of Niigata Prefecture, I came expecting a challenging 80-kilometre ultra marathon. I left with something much more meaningful: a deeper appreciation of rural Japan, its people, and a race that is built around far more than simply reaching the finish line.
After the event, I had the opportunity to speak with Deep Japan Ultra founder Matsunaga-san, and many of the experiences I had during the race suddenly made sense. His philosophy perfectly explained why this event feels so different from many trail races around the world.
My Deep Japan Ultra Experience
The 80K course covers approximately 80 kilometres with 4,000 m+ through the mountains surrounding Uonuma.
My race itself was far from perfect.
I got lost twice. My stomach completely fell apart. I injured my calf during the night. For long stretches I found myself completely alone in the mountains, surrounded by darkness, rain and thick mist.
After 14 hours and 18 minutes, I crossed the finish line in 13th place overall. Almost nothing went according to plan.
And yet, I finished more satisfied than after almost any other race I have ever run.
More Than Just a Trail Race
What makes Deep Japan Ultra special begins long before the starting line.
Reaching Uonuma means leaving behind Japan’s famous cities and travelling deep into the countryside. After taking the Shinkansen from Tokyo to Echigo-Yuzawa, runners continue on a small local train through rice fields, traditional villages and quiet farming communities that very few international visitors ever experience.
Over the race weekend, I discovered family-run restaurants, neighbourhood bakeries, traditional accommodation and relaxing rural onsens. Everywhere we went, local people seemed genuinely happy that runners had travelled so far to discover their region.
The race became much more than a sporting event.
It became a way of experiencing a side of Japan that most tourists never see.
Why Deep Japan Ultra Feels Different
Late in the race, I found myself completely alone.
It was dark.
It was raining.
Visibility had disappeared into dense mist.
My stomach had given up.
My calf was injured.
For nearly four hours, I barely saw another runner.
Eventually, everything else faded away.
There was no finishing time to chase. No position to defend. Only one simple decision: keep moving or stop.
That moment reminded me exactly why I had signed up for my first ultra marathon.
Looking back after my conversation with Matsunaga-san, I realised that perhaps this was precisely what Deep Japan Ultra had been designed to create.
Not simply a difficult race. A meaningful experience.
Final Thoughts
Trail running has always been my favourite way to discover new places, and Deep Japan Ultra may be one of the finest examples of that.
Without the race, I would probably never have visited Uonuma, travelled through rural Niigata, explored its villages, eaten in local restaurants or met the people who call this region home.
But the race also gave me something much more personal.
Before the start, I promised myself that no matter what happened, I would keep moving until I reached the finish.
Everything went wrong.
And I kept moving.
After speaking with the organisation, I realised that this wasn’t separate from the Deep Japan Ultra experience at all. It was the experience.
A journey into one of Japan’s most remote regions.
A journey through beautiful mountains.
And, if you’re willing to go far enough, perhaps a journey a little deeper into yourself as well.
But one question stayed with me.
Why did this race feel so different from every other ultra I’d run?
After the race, I sat down with founder Matsunaga-san to understand the philosophy behind Deep Japan Ultra.
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Five Questions with Deep Japan Ultra Founder Matsunaga-san
To better understand the philosophy behind Deep Japan Ultra, I asked founder Matsunaga-san five questions about the race, its origins and what he hopes runners take home from the experience.
Q1. What are the unique attractions and characteristics of this trail-running event?
The opportunity to experience Japan’s deep, untouched nature and to travel into the real Japan that almost nobody knows.
Deep Japan Ultra takes runners Deep Inside Japan, into places they may never have the opportunity to visit during their lifetime if this race did not exist.
It also gives participants the opportunity to create deep connections with the local Japanese people who live there and to taste the food those communities genuinely eat themselves through the race’s aid stations.
But the concept of the race goes beyond nature and food.
We want participants to have an absolute experience that helps them think about questions such as:
Why do I live?
What am I living for?
What kind of life do I want to lead?
Through that experience, perhaps they can begin drawing a map that helps guide the life they want to live.
Q2. How did this event begin?
I have been active as a professional athlete for more than 20 years and, during that time, I have travelled around the world, including competing in World Series events.
Through those experiences, I became convinced that the local mountains where I train are absolutely worthy of the world stage.
These mountains contain the real, deep nature of Japan that the rest of the world still does not know.
I wanted people from around the world to discover the appeal of these mountains that I call home.
Deep Japan Ultra began because I genuinely wanted to share Japan, Niigata and the place where I live with the rest of the world.
Q3. What kind of runners is this event intended for?
Anyone from around the world who is interested in Japan.
For people who may have already visited Japan but want to discover the country’s deeper natural environment and experience the encounters that come from travelling through local communities.
It is for people who want to experience a Japan that almost nobody knows.
It is also for people who want to change something in their lives, challenge themselves or live a life that feels more authentic to who they are.
Perhaps they are currently questioning why they live, what they are living for or what kind of life they want to lead.
Deep Japan Ultra is for people who want to challenge themselves and begin drawing their own map towards a life that feels true to them.
Q4. What kind of experience or memories do you hope participating runners take home with them?
Through an absolute experience that encourages them to consider why they live, what they live for and what kind of life they want to lead, I hope runners can begin drawing a map towards their own answers.
From the moment they reach the finish line, or immediately after the race, I hope they leave with greater confidence and the determination to challenge themselves and live a life that is more authentically their own.
Q5. Is there anything about the local area or community that you would especially like international runners to know?
I want international runners to discover the people living in this part of Deep Inside Japan, the food they eat and even the language they speak.
The Irihirose area can receive more than five metres of snow, making it one of the deepest inhabited snow regions on Earth.
Living in an environment like this creates a deep respect for the power of nature and for things that humans simply cannot control.
The patience required to live alongside such enormous snowfall has also helped create the warmth, kindness and consideration found within these communities.
This is part of the culture that has continued through generations in the deepest parts of Japan.
I believe visitors will feel it intuitively, through something beyond even the five senses.
And perhaps being here can help people rediscover some of the genuinely important things that are easily forgotten in everyday life.
