Hysan Trail Run - Hong Kong

I can finally call myself a trail runner! 

After running only on paved roads for basically my entire life, the amazing landscape of Hong Kong (and some great new friends) have inspired me to discover the joys of trail racing. I found out about the Hysan Half Marathon and thought it would be the perfect event to test my novice skill level.

Race day morning was pretty typical, with an early alarm and a carb-filled breakfast. When I stepped outside, I was surprised to feel a light rain that was not in the forecast. Normally, this wouldn't be a big problem, but the unpredictable terrain made me nervous about slipping on the rocks and leaves - particularly since I did not get a chance to buy trail running shoes in advance.

The race organizers arranged shuttle buses to the starting line, which was convenient since it was all the way up in the mountains of the New Territories (Tai Lam). The bus ride was really entertaining because people kept yelling at the driver in Cantonese, which I can only assume was because he was getting lost. Eventually, we got to the park where the race was set to begin. I found my group and we quietly prepared ourselves for the race. 

Great representation from the Out in HK group!

The starting line was so different than a typical road race. There were no corrals, no seeding by pace group, and random picnic tables serving as roadblocks. Suddenly we were off, and it was like a free-for-all to get to the road.

Race staging area - including picnic table roadblocks!

Starting line mayhem

I started the race with another friend and we kept a relaxed pace, but still managed to pass quite a few people. Had I known that the entry into the trails would be a bottleneck staircase, I would have probably pushed even faster. Anyhow, the wait was not too long and the first trails were relatively wide. I had never run in this area before, but there were some amazing views from this part of Hong Kong. 

Beautiful views throughout the course

The next section was a steep downhill on a winding road, which allowed us to let gravity do most of the work. By the bottom of the hill, I looked behind me to find my running partner and he was oddly not there. I figured we would not be running together for the entire race anyhow, so I just forged ahead and used the opportunity to really pick up my pace.  

Shortly after, the course got much harder because the trail almost disappeared entirely as we climbed a steep hill. I found myself pushing through branches and leaves, while also looking down to make sure I was not falling in a pothole or veering from the course. I found the uphill section to be somewhat fun, but the downhill section was more stressful because I was afraid of slipping without any good footing. It almost felt like skiing down a really narrow double black diamond. 

Each new section brought new challenges and exciting elements to overcome, but I found myself feeling like it was the race that never ended.

Another candid shot from an easier paved section

A runner forges ahead through the rocky trail

Two runners focus on the trail

At the last checkpoint, I was sure that we must be close to the end, but I asked the volunteer and she said that we still had 5km remaining. My legs have never been so tired in a half marathon before, and the elevation was really taking a toll. Soon after this checkpoint, we merged with the slow runners from the 13k race. On one hand, the slow runners added yet another set of obstacles to the course, but on the other hand, it was encouraging to whiz past so many people.

The end of the race came seemingly out of nowhere, and it brought us right back to the park where we began. I enjoyed being cheered by the other members from my running club when I came through the gate, and I felt accomplished from the challenge that had just been completed. 

Even though this race was only a half marathon, the huge elevation gains/losses made it feel like a lot longer. I love trail running because it requires a lot more mental focus. In these races, it is not possible to turn off your brain because you must constantly be aware of the terrain. I found myself much more stressed on certain parts because I was nervous about losing my footing or holding back the people behind me. However, the thrills of the course far outweighed the negative elements. 

Looking back on the elevation and route maps, it was cool to see the distance that we covered: 

Elevation Chart for the 21k course

 

Overall course map

Throughout the race, I did not pay any attention to the number of people in front of me, nor did I bring a watch to track my own time. I had no way of even predicting my goals, but I finished with the feeling that I pushed almost as fast as I could have gone. 

I was happy with my overall placement of 30th out of 635 runners in the half marathon. For my first trail race, finishing in the top 5% was very satisfying. The race organizers did a great job at arranging the course and managing the logistics. It was much more rustic than any other race I have done in the past, but I think that is the biggest appeal of trail running.  

Bangkok Half Marathon

All obsessive runners will have stories about the time(s) they had to wake up early for a race. For me, the Bangkok Half Marathon set a new standard with its 4AM start time.  If that isn’t early enough, the full marathoners actually started at 2:30 – which also happened to be the same time that my alarm went off. I did not enjoy being jolted out of a sound sleep in the middle of the night, but I convinced myself that the feeling of accomplishment at the end of the race would supersede my desire to sleep a few more hours. After only one snooze, I peeled myself out of bed and set off for yet another half marathon.

I was feeling good after my rock star carb loading the night before, with some tasty green curry and mango sticky race for dessert.

Pre-race carb loading

The hotel also arranged a chauffeur-driven Mercedes to transport me to the starting line at Royal Palace. As I rode through the city at 3AM, it was funny to see all the people coming out of the bars after a long night of partying. As if there was ever any doubt, I am far from the typical tourist.  

When I arrived at the assembly point, it was very quiet. People gradually filtered in – already dressed in full race attire and looking like they were ready to go. They sat patiently on the curb or stretched alone in silence. The adjacent field had a few booths set up for people to win Standard Chartered merchandise, and some vendors were selling race shirts from prior years. Unlike some other races, which have more of a party atmosphere at the starting line, this one was much more focused and serious. 

Bangkok Half Marathon starting line...at 3:08 AM

To avoid feeling sleepy, I walked around aimlessly and scoped out the other runners. Each race bib was printed with the runner’s name, age, and an image of the flag from their home country. I entertained myself by trying to predict everyone’s nationality based on how they looked.  The vast majority of runners were from Thailand, but there was a good number of international runners as well. I was clearly not the only person playing this game because I got a lot of strange looks when people noticed my bib; not because I am American, but because I was running as the HR Director - a 53-year old Thai man named Xuwat. I like to think I could pass as several different nationalities, but Thai is certainly not one of them!

About 10 minutes before the race start, people began lining up and I noticed that I was one of the tallest people around. There was one other runner around my height, who also happened to be an American. I took a picture of him to illustrate how much taller we were than the rest of the crowd. 

Height difference between Americans and Thai people.

The pre-race announcements were in both Thai and English, which I appreciated. I was surprised to hear that this race would be the largest half marathon in Thailand's history, with around 4,500 runners. Just as a frame of reference, the race I ran in Perth earlier this year had ten times as many runners. Between the humidity and the busy streets, I am not surprised that Thai people have yet to embrace a running culture!

I was actually impressed with the course, which took runners on an elevated highway, across a cable bridge, and past several palace-looking structures in central Bangkok. Unfortunately, there was very little crowd support (as can be expected at 4AM). Even though I was running under another person's name, I still pushed myself to finish with a respectable time. Why am I unable to grasp the concept of a "fun run" with a relaxed pace? 

My biggest critique about the race is that the kilometer markings were completely messed up, so I don't really know how far I actually ran. In the middle of the race, the half marathon and full marathon courses merged. From that point on, we followed the same course, yet the mile markers didn't increase at the same pace. For example: 
- sign #1: Full marathon, 32km; Half Marathon, 11km
- sign #2: Full marathon, 34km; Half marathon, 12.5km
How is this possible?

I never run with a Garmin watch, but always I rely on the mile markers as a gauge for how much energy I should be using. I may be crazy, but that last kilometer felt like it would never end.  When I crossed the finish line, my time was a respectable 1:30:13, but it's hard to tell if I really ran 13.1 miles or some other distance!

The end of the race was admittedly pretty exciting because there was a decent amount of crowd support cheering us to the finish line. The sky was still completely dark, but the trees along the road were lit up with white lights. Unlike most half marathons, there were no medals given out at the finish line because they were actually provided at packet pick-up. I literally could have skipped the entire race and still ended up with a medal, which just seemed strange to me. 

2014 Bangkok Half Marathon medal

The sky was completely dark throughout the entire race, but I still managed to work up a sweat (thanks to the humidity). I can't even imagine what it would have been like if the race was scheduled during the daylight hours. Once I crossed the finish line, I really didn't have much reason to hang around, so I just took a quick selfie in front of the marathon poster, found my driver, and returned to the hotel. 

2014 Bangkok Half Marathon Selfie

It is certainly atypical to finish a half marathon and return home before 6AM, but Bangkok is anything but typical. I am grateful to the HR Director for giving me the chance to participate in the event and I am excited to add yet another country to my list of places where I have completed a race. The Bangkok Half Marathon may not have been the most exciting or best organized race in the world, but it was absolutely worth the early morning wake-up call. 

Bellingham Bay Half Marathon

Regardless of location or distance, every race has a similar feeling of anticipation before the starting gun goes off. A few overly eager people loosen up their legs with a light jog along the street. The stragglers squirm in their lines at the portable toilets, debating whether they really need to go. Most people line up tightly in the corrals, doing their final stretches or chatting with those around them. I have been in each of these groups at one point in my life, but races are becoming so routine that I am usually just relaxing in the corrals and observing the sights around me.

One thing that was refreshingly unique about the Bellingham Bay pre-race was the amazing announcer. He picked people out of the crowd at random and made up stories about their credentials and goals for the race. If anything he said came to be true, I would have been in the presence of world record holders and other running celebrities! It's always nice to laugh in an otherwise tense environment. 

I had not really looked at the course map in advance of the race, but I was really surprised by the diverse terrain covered. It took runners through many twists and turns, including a few unpaved paths, and even a long deck that stood over the water. If it weren't for the many wonderful volunteers, we would have surely gotten lost (like the recent Bangalore marathon, where the leading runners went off-course and had to borrow money to take public transport back to the finish line)!

The most scenic part of the course

The weather ended up being a little cooler and mistier than the forecast predicted, but it was perfect for running in Washington State. I used to love the autumn for football season, but now, I love it for the crisp running weather (and football). 
 

Misty weather and Native American art

The crowd support was actually better than I anticipated for such a small city. In fact, I could barely find parking before the race in the downtown area but I appreciated the decent crowd support near the end. 

The finish line had a good party atmosphere, complete with live music and food trucks. The band was also quite good and a lot of people stuck around just to listen to their music. Another unique element of this race was the selection of candid pictures, already printed and displayed for anyone who wants to pay $10 on the spot for a nice souvenir. 

Live entertainment at the finish line

Candid photos for sale at the finish line

I am curious how many more purchases they get when the picture is already printed. In my experience, most people just screen shot the copyrighted photos and shamelessly post them all over social media with the watermark clearly visible across the picture. Kinda like this: 

Here I am crossing the finish line

Yes, I know my shirt is hideous.

I have purchased a few good pictures in the past, but my typical modus operandi is to just save the copyrighted version. I was, however, tempted to buy this one gem - taken of the man behind me who clearly was not camera-ready at this point in the race: 

One of my competitors

Running is a hobby that can become routine and dull very quickly. For me, racing is one way to keep me motivated because I get to discover new places and fulfill my competitive drive. I found the Bellingham Bay Half Marathon to be a very interesting course and with some entertainment that exceeded my expectations.

Bellingham Bay Half Marathon Medal

Run to the Rock Half Marathon - Plymouth, MA

The 20th annual Run to the Rock allowed me to race in soaking wet conditions...and it didn't even rain a single drop! Autumn in New England is known for having unpredictable weather, but I did not expect to find 87-degree weather in September.

Despite the near-record heat, the race was well-organized and showed a lot of community spirit. There were 3 different distances (5k, 10k, and half-marathon), plus a BBQ afterwards for both spectators and runners. I opted to run the half-marathon, which started in the Myles Standish State Forest and ended at the Plymouth Rock. These point-to-point races are always more fun for me because I can say I actually ran somewhere (as opposed to the more-common "loop" courses, where racers literally finish in the same place they started). 

 The half-marathon field was small (only around 500 people), but as everyone assembled in the starting corral, I could tell that they were mostly "real runners".  They chatted with each other about past marathon experiences, their favorite gear for training, and what to expect from this course.

The first six miles were solitary and peaceful, as we ran along the deserted road and barely saw anything besides trees. I was a little surprised by the large number of hills, although they do help to break up the monotony as I pep-talk myself up to the top of each one. 

Candid photo from the race

Once we got into the residential area, we were running alongside some traffic and only saw occasional spectators to cheer on the runners. To be honest, I don't remember much other than working hard to maintain my pace behind the guy in front of me. I knew I would never pass him, but he was a good anchor to keep up my personal effort. 

The last mile of the race felt like it would never end. In retrospect, my slow finish time did make me wonder if we had run longer than 13.1 miles. Maybe it was just my body slowing down to compensate for the heat. Either way, I was proud of my effort and my placement. 

It was great to see my parents cheering me along at the finish line. Once the race ended, I grabbed some food and we sat around - mostly to enjoy the atmosphere, but also to await the age group results. When they were finally posted, I was happy to see that I had finished 2nd in my age group. I picked up my trophy and we celebrated with an ice cream before heading home.

2nd place in the 30-39 age group!

Despite having grown up so close to this historic town, I only remember coming down to Plymouth once before. "America's Hometown" is a popular place for school trips to learn about how the Pilgrims lived when they first arrived here in 1620. A replica of the Mayflower still sits in the water near Plymouth Rock, and I was amazed that the Pilgrims could have made it across the Atlantic ocean in this top-heavy, wooden structure. 

A replica of the Mayflower sits in Plymouth Harbor

One of the many reasons I love to race is because it gives me an excuse to visit places that I otherwise would not take the time to see. If anyone is considering a small race in a city with historic relevance, Run to the Rock is a great choice.