Race Report - 2011 Hong Kong Trail 50K (Self-Supported)
7/02/2011 10:14:00 PMThe Hong Kong Trailhead at the top of "The Peak" |
After getting a fantastic "pre-race meal" at the Ruth Chris Steakhouse (filet and red wine) here in Hong Kong on Friday evening, I had set my alarm for 6AM on Saturday morning. After getting up, getting dressed and making myself a quick cup of instant coffee, I headed out of the hotel and waved down a taxi. 40 Hong Kong dollars later, I arrived at Victoria Peak (or "the Peak", as it is locally referred to), Hong Kong Island's highest mountain peak at 1811 feet. The first thing I saw was the "rice bowl", a large building who's architecture resembles a rice bowl. The next thing I needed to do is get my bearings with the assistance of a little hand-drawn map. I had visited the local running shop of "Racing The Planet" who's headquarters are located in Hong Kong and an extremely helpful employee and fellow runner at the shop had provided me with some very helpful trail info before I picked up some energy gels for my run.
The aptly named "Rice Bowl" as seen from the trail |
Large sections of the Hong Kong Trail are paved |
Views like this greet runners all along the Hong Kong Trail |
Skyscrapers as far as the eye can see |
Hong Kong Trail and Distance Markers |
Bridge crossing one of the many creeks along the trail |
One of the may trail intersections |
Another amazing view from the trail |
Trail climbing Hong Kong style |
Trail switchbacks Hong Kong style |
Aberdeen Reservoir as seen from the trail |
The views are spectacular from any spot on the trail |
Free foot massages along the trail |
All along the trail, there were little picnic areas and rest spots for locals to relax. I also noticed a sign stating "Foot Massage". That was really confusing to me. Was there actually someone giving foot massages to weary hikers and runners? What a great concept, I thought, but how would that work in the middle of nowhere?
One of the many pebble parks along the trail |
Self-portrait near the end of my run at marker 48 |
Maybe I will get the opportunity in the future to run the second half of the trail. While this report is more of a photo album than an actual race report or training log, the pictures in this blog only scratch the surface of the pictures I took. The entire collection of pictures I took during my run is located here.
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