Hike in Hong Kong!

HKTR’s Annual Plover Cove Championships

Battle for love
We’ve seen this so many times in the movies — the classic love story plot. Two guys fall for the same beauty and, after an arduous fight, only one of them emerges victorious and the disappears forever into the sunset!

Well, that’s just the movies. Real life is very different. In real life, you can actually slice up the “beauty” so that both men came partake in the victory. Yes, that’s right, and that’s exactly what happened last year when Hannes and I fought tooth and nail for our beloved Plover Cove. The fight was worth every kilometer of the 18km long trail which remains Hong Kong’s most beautiful trail by a wide margin.

Last year, after several rounds of heated exchange, Hannes and I settled for co-owning this beauty. The agreed split was 60/40 (60 to Hannes and 40 to me). It was the best I could negotiate at that point in time in that Thai restaurant. (It was hard to concentrate while savoring some delicious eggplant curry). But, in all fairness, I’ll have to give Hannes some credit. You know how if you really like someone intimately, you’ll invariably end up learning more about their parents and their background, etc, etc? Well, much to his credit, Hannes does seem to know his stuff about Plover Cove and her background. For instance, did you know that:

- Plover Cove was the first “reservoir in the sea” all over the world
- The King of the Hills Tai Po marathon went around Plover Cove from 1984 – 2006
- The highest point of Plover Cove is about 5 minutes away from the main trail and has a trigonometric station on it

I didn’t know any of this until he told me. Now, that doesn’t mean I don’t love Plover Cove enough, let’s say it just means that “love is blind”, so I can chalk up my ignorance to true love!

Read about the actual event and the results up ahead

King of the Hills (Hong Kong) — 2013 Edition

To “pee” or not to “pee”
In the last King of the Hills, i.e. KOTH Lantau, Michael heroically demonstrated how the sport of trail running has the unique ability to eliminate the need for a dump. Yes, he showed us that having a heavy + full bowel at the start of the race can still be fun, if you run! However, today, he didn’t practice the same philosophy. As Giuseppe pointed out with a wide smile on his face, Michael arrived at the starting point in Repulse Bay 30 minutes earlier, specifically, to do his business! So, don’t get rid of the toilets just yet! However, I know what all of you are thinking. Does the same philosophy apply to peeing as well? Can one do a 30km race with a stomach full of liquid content from the start? The person (read: lab rat) who tested this theory at the start today was none other than the famous Jogger J. As Keith, the race organizer, did a T-10 minute race countdown akin to a NASA rocket blast countdown, there was only one question that kept echoing in Jogger J’s mind — to pee or not to pee. Shakespeare was obsessed with “to be or to be”, well, change “be” to “pee” and there you have it — a man’s greatest dilemma at the start of a race. I know I can relate to it because I have been there myself! I blame it all on those websites that advocate hydrating very well before the start of race. What they don’t tell you is that if you go overboard with the hydration, you end up facing the wrath of excess water in your stomach, much like the hardship that Jogger J faced today. In fact, he was still in two minds at T-1 minute but at “blast off”, he simply started running.

Will we discover something about our own bodies from Jogger J’s experience? Read on to find out.

To pee or not to pee? Read on to unlock one of life’s mysteries

I violated the unwritten golden rule of Trail Running — “thou shall not get up late!” As a result, I couldn’t make it to Repulse Bay in time to join the gang who were going to do a recci of the King of the Hills Hong Kong route. But, I still wanted to run. So, I ended up going to Pak Tam Au. The idea was that I’d start the run at Mac 3 and would stop whenever I got tired and/or bored.

Start of the run: 10.16am
Time taken to run Mac 3: 1 hour and 16 minutes
Time spent at the vending machine to refuel: 1 minute 55 seconds
Time taken from end of Mac 3 to Gilwell Camp: 1 hour 43 minutes
Time taken from Gilwell Camp to Sha Tin Pass: 21 minutes 24 seconds
(for the first time, I didn’t stop at Sha Tin pass for refueling, I just continued)
Time taken from Sha Tin Pass to end of Mac 5: 56 minutes 53 seconds

Total distance: 31.62km
Elevation gain: 2,343m
Total time: 4 hours 20 minutes

I was then torn between continuing to run vs stopping at the end of Mac 5. I still felt relatively fresh and fit but continuing would have meant a 7 hour 45 minute+ Double Au which would have put me at the end of Mac 8 at 6pm. I visualized experiencing the runners’ high on Grassy Hill and almost made up my mind to continue but then I remembered that continuing would have also meant a horrible MTR ride out of Tsuen Wan. That was a deal breaker. I really didn’t want to take the MTR, so I stopped.

I was thinking to myself that, strangely, a couple of years back Mac 3-5 in itself would have been a hard run that would have most definitely ended at Mac 5! These days finishing at Mac 5 simply leaves me feeling lazy and guilty. That I-should-have-continued guilty feeling lingers on for several hours post the run. By the way, I read a quote somewhere — “insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result”. I’ve realized that in the world of running, ironically, if the result you are after is to get faster, you *have* to do the same thing over and over again, i.e., to run and keep the mileage up! That isn’t insane, on the contrary, that’s the main requirement!

So, after several years of mindless running covering 1000s of kilometers, I think today has been my best ever Mac 3-5 time!

Garmin.

HKTR (Hong Kong Trash Removers) clean up Mac 2 and Sharp Peak

Hong Kong Trail Runners put on their Samaritan hats to become Hong Kong Trash Removers. The idea was to restore the beauty of Sharp Peak by getting rid of all the garbage on the peak. Prior to the hike, I received intelligence reports stating that a recent cleanup crew had already cleaned up Sharp Peak, so I only wanted about 10-15 Samaritans instead of the 25+ people who had volunteered. However, what we realized on this cleanup hike was that no amount of helping hands can ever be too much to clean up our trails! Maclehose 2 was one heck of a dump yard! Here, take a look:

Hong Kong Trail Runners preparing to become Hong Kong Trash Removers

Read more about Hong Kong Trash Busters’ achievements up ahead

HKTR’s first annual Summit in Sipalay plus capture of Mt. Kanlaon in the Philippines

All photos here.

Leaders to meet and discuss economic affairs of the world
We’ve all heard of the APEC Summit, Kyoto Summit, United Nations Summit and blah, blah, blah. Forget all that — an event far more important and exciting than any of the above –The Hong Kong Trail Runners’ Summit– was to be held in Sipalay, Philippines in February 2013. Key world leaders Martijn, Vivien and yours truly were expected to meet there to solve the problems of the world over some beers. And, all this while looking over the beautiful sunset from the bar stools of Artistic Diving Resort, Sipalay in The Philippines.

Leaders very busy at work solving world problems

Read about the Summit Achievements up ahead

King of the Hills – Lantau (2013)

To go or not to go
The usual KOTH runners assembled at about 9.15am in Nam Shaan. Michael showed up a little late and told us that he had forgotten to take a dump in the morning. That began an interesting conversation. I offered my “expert” advice and told him that trail running would automatically get rid of the “dump” in his body as he could easily fart it away. Jogger Joel, who stood there looking all engrossed in the conversation, just said one thing: “Can I be please in front?”

The full marathon was supposed to start at 10.10am and at 10.07 Michael wondered again if he had time for the loo. To go or not to go was the million dollar question. I told him that he was out of time and with that we decided to change the topic of conversation.

Nam Shaan to Tung Chung
At 10.10am, we got climbing to the top of Sunset Peak. I decided to take it a little easy at the start and wasn’t bothered by the runners who were overtaking me. Soon, I saw Martijn and Hannes taking photos in the corner. They were sweeping the trail. “Hurry up, Michael and Jonathan are in front of you!” Martijn yelled out as I was slowly climbing up Sunset Peak. In about 45 minutes, I reached the turning to Lin Fa Shan and turned on my gentle running mode. I began overtaking a few people on the technical bits, starting with Jogger Joel. Eventually, I overtook AJ and Alger. Then we climbed up Pok Toi Shaan and some other Shaan (I can never remember this Shaan’s name) and then came one heck of a bushwhack back down to Tung Chung.

That was one hardcore, steep and long downhill bushwhacking section. I was going at my optimal “no injury” speed while turning back every now and then to see who was behind me. Not because I didn’t want to be overtaken, but more because I didn’t want to be run over by someone on such a narrow trail! I badly missed by Anti Knee Protection (TM) invention. Should have worn them. My knees could have done without the scratches from those overgrown shrubs. Well, shoulda woulda coulda. Anyway, I was thinking up another clever invention while running down that narrow trail. Picture this: a headband with two rear-view mirrors attached to either side of it so you can actually see who is behind you without turning back. Perfect for observing “traffic” on such narrow trails. Don’t be surprised to see me wearing this marvelous invention on the next KOTH.

On the last downhill stretch, Aya ran past me like a rocket looking all fresh and energetic. “Well done Aya”, I shouted out as she passed me and, within a blink of an eye, she was gone.

Eventually, I reached the flat concrete bit, relieved to be out of that steep downhill stretch, and started running at a consistent pace. I saw Michael there who said he was having trouble on the downhill bits and contemplated quitting. I advised him against it and told him the worst was already over. Then we overtook the fast Pig Chan who was wearing a tee shirt that read “I am very, very slow”. Hmm.. Imagine a Ferrari with a number plate that reads “slow”. Just not possible. I overtook Pig but knew that he’d overtake me again at some point. Then I saw the superfast Denvy who seemed to be pacing herself quite well. She said “Go Vince” as I overtook her.

Tung Chung to Pak Kung Au
The climb to Ngong Ping from Tung Chung was very steep! The bushwhacking was getting to me. Each time I tried to whack the shrubs back by increasing pace and stomping on them, the shrubs would get back at me by coiling around my leg, attempting to trip me and delivering more scratches. I was right behind Michael who shoelaces were undone. As he stopped to tie them, I overtook him. I also overtook Aya during the climb — she was beginning to look tired. Denvy somehow gathered an immense amount of energy and stormed her way up and overtook me with ease. I didn’t even bother trying to keep up with her.

I finally reached Ngong Ping where Dabera was the checkpoint volunteer giving out water. I asked her to refill my water bottle as I was gulping down some Pokari.

Then came the touristy jog to Wisdom Sticks — it’s amazing how these tourists take pictures of anything and everything. Many of them took photos of me running — not exactly what you would want in your family vacation album! I saw this one Chinese guy running ahead of me and overtook him on this stretch.

I started climbing up to Lantau Peak, one steep stair at a time. As expected, the “slow” Pig Chan overtook me on the climb. I tried to keep focus and didn’t even bother to look up to see how many stairs were remaining! I overtook someone on the climb who asked me if we were at the top. “Not yet”, I told him as we were at the first “false” top. About 10 minutes and several stairs later, we were at the real summit of Lantau Peak.

I ran pretty fast from the peak down to Pak Kung Au but was overtaken by two even faster runners on the downhill bit.

Eventually, I reached Pak Kung Au where Hannes and Martijn were waiting and providing me with some intelligence. “You got chicked”, Hannes said and encouraged me to go catch Denvy. “No can do”, was my response. She was just way too fast for me. After refilling my water, I set off for the last bit back to Nam Shan.

Pak Kung Au to Nam Shan
A long and mostly boring 8km run is what we had to go through to get back to the finish. I found my rhythm and was running this trail at about 8-10kmh. There were many small creeks to cross and one such creek almost had me falling into a mini gully. The trail turned left all of a sudden while I was still running straight. I saw the death trap and applied my emergency brakes just in time as curious half marathoners were watching. Then I picked up my rhythm again and saw one full marathoner in front of me. He was getting his second wind and accelerating really fast. I wanted to try to keep up with him but decided against attempting that. Finally, my Garmin read close to 30km and I could smell the finish but not before hitting the last round of stairs which I tried running up but eventually ended up walking up.

And finally, there it was — the finish! I finished in 4 hours and 14 minutes. 13th overall and 8th in my category. Last year, I finished in 4 hours 29 minutes and came 19th overall.

Michael came in about 5 minutes after me and Denvy finished 6 minutes ahead of me — in 4 hours 8 minutes. Very impressive. The winner (some new Chinese guy) beat trail running legend Jeremy Ritcey by just 11 seconds. The competition in these races is reaching new levels!

Oh, I forgot to ask Michael about his “not going” experience. I suppose one can after all run and fart his way out of a full bowel!

Garmin.

Clinching a Greenpower victory by 12 seconds

It was Hong Kong Trail Runners’ first ever sponsored event. Lafuma was the sponsor and some simply awesome French-designed backpacks were at stake. (Well, the other “usual” things were at stake too, like sense of glory and achievement, etc, etc but the backpacks, I tell ya, were alone worth that 50km run!) But, in order to truly earn them, the objectives were twofold:

1) To break the current prevailing record of 4 hours and 45 minutes on the 50km Hong Kong trail
2) To win the Corporate Category under the Lafuma HKTR name

Vic, Vivien and I were going to represent HKTR as runners and we had at least a total of 15 people supporting the 3 of us! That’s 5 supporters per runner. We even had a motorbike crew which was available “on demand”. That’s not 1, not 2 but 3 BMW motorbikes supporting us — Hannes, Olivier and Romain. We neither depended on the organizer’s food stops not did we stop anywhere during the race. It was like a military operation planned by Generals Romain and Martijn. The army of 15 included Martijn, Michael, Jonathan, Gilles who were our pacers/mules (more about that later), then we had Hannes, Phoebe, Olivier who were our “mobile” support team and finally, we had Alice, Sunny, Janice, Maria, Philip, Billy and Nick who formed our “fixed” support team. Now, if this isn’t being pampered, I don’t know what is! The effort that went into coordinating the fixed/mobile and pacer teams was just mindboggling. Excel spreadsheets, whatsapp chat-rooms, briefing meetings, etc, etc. All done by Romain and Martijn to whom we owe a lot of gratitude. The three of us, Vic, Vivien and I, had the easiest job — to just run!

Speeches and races
We got to the start by 7.40am and found Romain and Phoebe already waiting for us! Romain began helping us from the get-go. Phoebe was testing her photography skills by using her new Canon camera on me. (She should have picked a better looking target). About 20 minutes before the start of the race, the three of us, Vic, Vivien and I, hit the toilets for that mandatory pre-race pee and gathered at the starting point by 8.20am. Then we had to bear listening to a long and boring speech by some special guest. I thought to myself that they should have been playing some live rock music instead. I told Vic to take it easy in the beginning and he repeated the same advice to me. Then I relayed that onto Vivien. We are all in agreement. Finally and thankfully, that boring speech was done and we were awoken by the countdown, 10, 9 .. 3, 2, 1 and off we went at 8.30am. Within a blink of an eye, Vic zoomed off and put us in the #1 position in our category by 8.31am. I reminded him of our “take it easy policy” and reigned him in.

Continue reading about the sponsored Greenpower race up ahead

Two (clean) Trails Are Better Than One

Choosing is a lot easier than you think
Do you want a delicious slice of pizza with some extra cheese on it OR do you want a cup of mouth melting ice cream with some extra dark chocolate on it?