First Ride 乗り初め

Note: The 2024 installment of this event has already taken place.

The First Ride is an event held at Miura Harbor in Tako Bay each year on January 2, to pray for safety and bountiful yields for the local fishermen. Fishermen stand in boats moored in the harbor and toss candy, mandarins and paper-wrapped money into the crowd.

The candy and other items represent bait, and the people that gather around them represent large groups of fish. The fishermen use their fishing rods to "catch" members of the crowd. In the past, the event was called "mikanmaki" (scattering mandarin oranges) because mandarins are part of the "bait."