The Hong Kong Trail Rockers Podcast!

Show Notes:

* Who is Chang in his own words?* Where is he from?* Is there anything in his past that lead him to running / trail running?

Humble beginnings:

* when did he start hiking/running? (what year) Humble beginnings: where it all started* Did he start off as a road runner? Does he enjoy both road running and trail running?* Does he have a coach? Who is it? When did he get the coach?

Questions for Chang:

* Intro – when did he start hiking/running? (what year) Humble beginnings: where it all started* Did he start off as a road runner? Does he enjoy both road running and trail running?* Why does he run? What is more fun – running for fun or racing? * In his journey so far (both running and racing) – does he have any unforgettable experiences? If so what are the top two experiences he can never forget?

* Walk us through the 4 trails in 2020 (we are going to pick 4 Trails and delve into it)* What was the plan?* How did he organize support?* Please describe your goal for the race in your own words* Walk us through the journey. What was it like?* Did he put a lot of pressure on himself to complete? What was the “outside” pressure like on him? * What were the up and down moments of this race? Describe the race to us and what more impressed you about the race

Training: (physical)

* How often does he train and how? Does he have a routine?* What’s his weekly training plan / mileage?* Has his training resulted in injuries and if so how does he deal with them?* How competitive is Chang? How important is it to him to best himself? Would he risk injuries in order to achieve certain goals? * What’s his philosophy on team runs like the OTW? Would he push his team to do better or would they do it “just for fun” ?* Does Chang take any painkillers during runs? What’s his philosophy on that? What’s been his most painful run?* Talk to us about injuries, what he learnt from it. Does he believe in the needle guy?

Training (mental)

* How does he do so many races / such long distances during painful moments? What’s been his most painful mental moment?* What is his philosophy on pain? When does he know when to persist and when not to?* What does he tell himself mentally when he has to persist through pain and continue to the finish line?* During long distance runs, does he listen to music? How do you maintain your focus?* Does he miss family when running?* Is he scared he will even run out of challenges?* Is he scared he will someday lose his passion for running? What keeps him passionate about running?* When he is running, does he view competition as targets he has to overtake? Are there people he wants to overtake and be ahead of?* What are his downtimes in running? When he didn’t want to run and felt miserable?* Which is more fulfilling? Work or running?   

Nutrition / Gear strategy:

* How does he do his long runs? Is his cold weather strategy significantly different from his hot weather strategy?* Does he swear by certain gear? 

Philosophies:

* Does he believe in taking medicines? If so, when and how? Has he taken medicines before during a race in order to finish the race?* What does he think about DNF-ing? 

Personality:

* If he could not run, what else would he do?* Does he have any strategies for mental training?

Goals:

* As far as running is concerned what are his goals for 2021?

My guest today needs to introduction. The COVID situation hasn’t deterred him from running self-created “races” which are even more insane compared to the original races. For example, running Lantau 70 and Translantau for fun. He also completed the 4 trails this year while running at 4 minutes Ks in the final stretch. He does all this being a family man with 3 children and a demanding job! So let me extend a warm welcome to the one and only Chang! Welcome Chang!

Show Notes:

* Who is Chang in his own words?* Where is he from?* Is there anything in his past that lead him to running / trail running?

Humble beginnings:

* when did he start hiking/running? (what year) Humble beginnings: where it all started* Did he start off as a road runner? Does he enjoy both road running and trail running?* Does he have a coach? Who is it? When did he get the coach?

Questions for Chang:

* Intro – when did he start hiking/running? (what year) Humble beginnings: where it all started* Did he start off as a road runner? Does he enjoy both road running and trail running?* Why does he run? What is more fun – running for fun or racing? * In his journey so far (both running and racing) – does he have any unforgettable experiences? If so what are the top two experiences he can never forget?

* Walk us through the 4 trails in 2020 (we are going to pick 4 Trails and delve into it)* What was the plan?* How did he organize support?* Please describe your goal for the race in your own words* Walk us through the journey. What was it like?* Did he put a lot of pressure on himself to complete? What was the “outside” pressure like on him? * What were the up and down moments of this race? Describe the race to us and what more impressed you about the race

Training: (physical)

* How often does he train and how? Does he have a routine?* What’s his weekly training plan / mileage?* Has his training resulted in injuries and if so how does he deal with them?* How competitive is Chang? How important is it to him to best himself? Would he risk injuries in order to achieve certain goals? * What’s his philosophy on team runs like the OTW? Would he push his team to do better or would they do it “just for fun” ?* Does Chang take any painkillers during runs? What’s his philosophy on that? What’s been his most painful run?* Talk to us about injuries, what he learnt from it. Does he believe in the needle guy?

Training (mental)

* How does he do so many races / such long distances during painful moments? What’s been his most painful mental moment?* What is his philosophy on pain? When does he know when to persist and when not to?* What does he tell himself mentally when he has to persist through pain and continue to the finish line?* During long distance runs, does he listen to music? How do you maintain your focus?* Does he miss family when running?* Is he scared he will even run out of challenges?* Is he scared he will someday lose his passion for running? What keeps him passionate about running?* When he is running, does he view competition as targets he has to overtake? Are there people he wants to overtake and be ahead of?* What are his downtimes in running? When he didn’t want to run and felt miserable?* Which is more fulfilling? Work or running?   

Nutrition / Gear strategy:

* How does he do his long runs? Is his cold weather strategy significantly different from his hot weather strategy?* Does he swear by certain gear? 

Philosophies:

After a very long hiatus, we are back with a very different kind of episode. This episode will focus on a runner’s journey which took her from the corporate office into the world of trail running, volunteering and charity.

To find out, let me welcome a well known figure in the Hong Kong trail running circle for her contribution to our sport, our very own Agnes Cheng. Welcome Agnes!

We will attempt to cover various topics in this conversation. We will start off with how Agnes got into running and then we will let the conversation take its own course by talking about philanthropy, causes that Agnes supports and tidbits of stories from her trail running and volunteering experience that are quite touching! 

The journey into running:

* Please tell our audience your backstory in your own words. How would you describe yourself today and how did you get into running?* What made you volunteer at the Gobi March race in 2012?* You said you discovered the reason why people run when you were volunteering at Gobi March. What pattern (if any) did you find in these answers from people?* Can you think of some runners who made an impression on you when you were volunteering? Did you meet Hutch during this time?* You’ve done several races since: the Gobi March (China) 2013, the Sahara Race (Jordan) 2014, and HK100 2015. Which race made the biggest impression on you and why?* Why do you run? You seem to enjoy runs outside of your usual environment (Hong Kong). Is that true? If so, why?

The journey into philanthropy:

* You must have been asked this many times but please tell our audience why you left being a successful commercial lawyer in 2004? What sparked that?* Did you know what your purpose was when you decided to leave? * Do you every wonder what would have happened had you not found your dream job back in 2004?

The places where this philanthropy took you:

* Let’s talk about some of the places you were involved in with your new job at Esquel. Let’s go to Myanmar. What kind of relief work did you do there?* Talk about the donation you made to that temple in the village. How did that come about?* What did the monk do with your donation?* What impression did this episode have upon you?* What did you learn from it?* The monk who pocketed your donation had his leg broken by a fallen Buddha statue. Do you think he deserved it?

Volunteering stories:

* You volunteered at the Country of Origin race in 2017 as a sweeper. Tell us about your encounter there with the “slowest” lady* What were your thoughts after hearing this story?* Tell us about RUN* Tell us about what Virginie is doing

Some of the causes:

* Tell us about the social enterprise you started to enable ladies to continue sewing after Esquel shut its factory in 2012

HK’s trails

* Please tell our audience about the Government’s plan to add more concrete to our country park trails and your action with Stone to stop this* Why is this cause important to you?* How did you galvanize the community to rally for this cause?

HK’s Trail Running Association:

* Tell us about your role as the VP of the Trail Runners Association of Hong Kong. What is your role?

Closing comments:

* In your journey through life and its adventures so far what are the thoughts that have predominantly occupied your mind?* Are there questions you ask yourself to which you are still seeking answers?* I’d be remiss if I didn’t ask what...

We have the honor of talking to the winning team of the Oxfam Trailwalker 2018. 11 hrs 53 minutes is what it took the winning team and the team members are (a) The famous John Ellis (b) Michael Scoobydoo (c) Brain McFlynn (d) Jeff Campbell. The aim of this podcast is to understand a bit about the team members, the training they did together before leading up to the day and of course, we will do a debrief of the race as well. So, let me welcome John, Michael, Brian and Jeff to the podcast!

Questions:

*

I guess you guys need no intro but let’s go around and ask you to do it anyway. Could you please tell our listeners your name and what you are most well known for? Could be anything!

Rapid fire round:

*

Let’s go around and we can only have one name from each of you:

*

Most handsome guy

*

Strongest guy mentally

*

Strongest guy physically

*

Natural leader

*

Guy with the most charm

*

Who would have won had it been an individual race from checkpoint 8?

Training:

*

What kind of prep did each of you do individual to prepare? What did an average training week look like?

*

Group

*

How did you get together? Who recruited each of you?

*

What was your individual ambition going in?

*

What about as a group? How many months of prep went into it and what was the prep like?

Support:

*

Support is an important part of the OTW. What was your strategy for support and when did you start recruiting your support crew?

*

How were you able to find running crew who are fast enough to keep up with the 4 of you?

*

What were the logistics like? Did you have a whatsapp group on the day and an big Excel spreadsheet like what other teams have?

Strategy for the race:

*

What was your outcome? To win or to hit a particular time?

*

Time  to reveal your secret sauce. Let’s start spilling the beans. Did you have a secret strategy like going all out on the tow ropes from Stage 1?

*

John is viewed as the master of pacing – how did you come up with that optimal pacing strategy?

*

What about nutrition for each of you? What was your idea there?

*

What was your view of each other? Was any of you thinking… damn I am running with Jeff who has won like 10 races in a row?

*

What was the team camaraderie like going in?

Getting in to the race:

*

John Ellis

*

John had a big of a traumatic experience that week. Let’s talk about that if John doesn’t mind. Tell our listeners about the fainting and the hole in the leg

*

Were you determined to to the OTW no matter what? Did you have a backup runner in place in case you had to abort?

*

Was your wife supportive of your decision to run anyway? If so, what’s the secret of being able to convince your wife?

*

Jeff Campbell

*

Your first 100km event! Were you nervous?

*

Brian McFlynn

*

Did you feel strong after the MT performance?

*

Michael

*

First time in such a fast group – what were your thoughts going in?

The actual race:

*

Who was leading the team and was that already decided?

*

Talk about each stage – what were the ups and downs?

*

For Milos

Questions:

*

why did you want to sponsor this team?

*

Talk about the logistics of sponsoring them, how hard were the visas to enter Hong Kong, etc

For the team:

Preparation:

*

What was the desired outcome for you in this Trailwalker ?

*

Did you already have teams in mind that you saw as competition?

*

Talk about preparation, specifically:

*

Training plan

*

Nutrition given it was a humid day

*

Pacing

*

Do you have any plan for adverse scenarios, example:

*

What if one of you was injured and couldn’t walk?

*

What about rain or a very hot day?

*

How hard was the stress on you ad you were traveling all the way to Hong Kong and had to perform for supporters back home, sponsors here and so on?

The day:

*

what was going through your mind between 7am and 8am?

*

How nervous were you before the race? What did you do to deal with the anxiety?

*

Did you start off viewing the Joint Dynamics team as your toughest competition?

*

Talk about each stage and how it went:

*

What did you do for nutrition?

*

Did you feel you were running at   the right pace?

*

What went well and what didn’t?

*

Joint Dynamics seemed to close in on your time around stage 8 and passed you on stage 9. When they passed you, what was going through your mind?

*

Did you think you’d manage to overtake them again?

*

Your time was fantastic and the team effort was amazing. How pleased are you with this result?

*

Let’s summarize the race:

*

What were the top things that went right?

*

What didn’t do right?

*

How could you have made the race better given the benefit of hindsight?

*

Is there anything else you’d like to say that I haven’t asked?

As we are trying our best to accomplish various things in life like climbing up the career ladder or trying to run the next ultra marathon or planning the next awesome vacation, we sometimes tend to take life for granted. We assume we will continue to be hale and healthy, we assume that nothing will rock the boat of our lives until someday, unfortunately, some unexpected event does indeed rock the boat big time and then it becomes up to us to not just recover from it but to come back stronger. And, this is a lot easier said than done.

Today on the podcast I have with me my friend Nic Tinworth whose reputation precedes him. He is a well known figure in the Hong Kong Trail Running community. He is also the Race Director of some popular races in Hong Kong like the Country of Origin race in Lantau. All was going well for Nic until one day, he was suddenly admitted to hospital for mysterious reasons. I’ll let him tell the story but before anything else, I want to thank Nic for willing to do this podcast with us. It’s not easy to talk about such an experience much less to share it with so many listeners of this podcast. He is probably too humble to admit this but I know that he is doing this because he is a very kind person who wants to help people in any way he can. So, first of all, thank you Nic and welcome to the podcast!

Before any of this:

*

Introduce yourself in say 3 sentences or less

*

Talk about your ultra experience

*

What lead you to hiking / running?

*

When did you start hiking / running?

*

Talk about some of your races and running adventures

*

Talk about the races for which you a director

*

How solid was your fitness like in general?

The experience: 

*

When did you have the feeling that something could potentially be wrong with you physically?

*

What was the feeling like to know that something might be wrong?

*

Talk about the experience of having been sent to the hospital

*

What did it feel like to not know what could be wrong with you?

*

Were you afraid?

*

Walk us through the decision to do the biopsy – how difficult was it to make it?

*

How painful was the “biopsy” experience?

*

Talk about the procedure

*

While recovering you sent out frequent updates of your progress. How important was it to engage with the community during the process?

*

Which aspect of this ordeal was the hardest on you?

*

Is there a bright side to this whole experience? If so, what is it?

*

How did you deal with all of this mentally? Did you have negative thoughts?

*

Contrasting this to the hardest 100km race you’ve done, how much harder was this physically and on the body and the mind?

*

How did the biopsy go?

Road to recovery:

*

You had to learn to walk better again after the brain biopsy. What did it feel like to know about this?

*

Talk about the road to recovery. What does that look like and what’s the prognosis?

*

When do you think you’d be ready for another 100km run?

*

Can you name a few people who really helped you get through this?

Show Notes:

* Who is Jeff?

* Where in France is he from?

* Is there anything in his past that lead him to running / trail running?

*

What is his day job?

The ten rapid fire icebreaker questions to delve into the way you think:

* What is your favorite trail in Hong Kong and why?

* What is your most favorite race and why? (can be local or overseas)

* What accomplishment are you most proud of in running?

* What accomplishment are you most proud of in life?

* Who has played the most influential role in your life as a person?

* Who has played the most influential role in your life as a runner?

* Why do you run?

* What would you do if you could not run?

* Which book or resource has had the most impact on your life? 

* If there’s only one piece of advice you could give your 20-year-old self what would it be?

* From Tim Marchant: What is your most memorable wildlife encounter in HK? Could be boar, snake, hornet, monkey, porcupine, spider, wild dog etc.

*

From Tim Marchant: Do you monitor the pollution level in HK and, if so, do you adjust your running accordingly?

Humble beginnings:

* when did he start hiking/running? (what year) Humble beginnings: where it all started

* Did he start off as a road runner? Does he enjoy both road running and trail running?

*

Does he have a coach? Who is it? When did he get the coach?

Questions for Jeff:

* Intro – when did he start hiking/running? (what year) Humble beginnings: where it all started

* Did he start off as a road runner? Does he enjoy both road running and trail running?

* Why does he run? What is more fun – running for fun or racing? 

* In his journey so far (both running and racing) – does he have any unforgettable experiences? If so what are the top two experiences he can never forget?

* Walk us through the top 3 races, the preparation, the training, the nutrition

* What was it like?

* Walk us through the journey. What was it like?

* Did he put a lot of pressure on himself to complete? What was the “outside” pressure like on him? 

*

What were the up and down moments of this race? Describe the race to us and what more impressed you about the race

Training: (physical)

* How often does he train and how? Does he have a routine?

* What’s his weekly training plan / mileage?

* Has his training resulted in injuries and if so how does he deal with them?

* How competitive is Jeff? How important is it to him to best himself? Would he risk injuries in order to achieve certain goals? 

* What’s his philosophy on team runs like the OTW? Would he push his team to do better or would they do it “just for fun” ?

* Does Jeff take any painkillers during runs? What’s his philosophy on that? What’s been his most painful run?

*

Talk to us about injuries, what he learnt from it. Does he believe in the needle guy?

Training (mental)

* How does he do so many races / such long distances during painful moments? What’s been his most painful mental moment?

* What is his philosophy on pain? When does he know when to persist and when not to?

* What does he tell himself mentally when he has to persist through pain and continue to the finish line?

* During long distance runs, does he listen to music? How do you maintain your focus?

* Is he scared that someday he might not be able to defend his top spots?

* Is he scared he will even run out of challenges?

* Is he scared he will someday lose his passion for running? What keeps him passionate about running?

* When he is running,

Summary:

Today on the podcast, I have quite a distinguished person. Dave Bedford is an ex 10km world record holder. On 13th of July 1973 he broke the world record for 10,000m at Crystal Palace by running it in 27 minutes and 30 seconds. His PB for 5km is 13.17 and for 10km it is 27.30. He did that wearing a pair of red socks! AVOHK brought him to HK for the China Coast Marathon as the guest of honor for the 35th year. He was also the Race Director of the London marathon for about 10 years. Let me welcome David to the podcast.

About Dave as a person:

* How old is he (67)

* Family situation

* What was he thinking when he said ‘yes’ to this invite by the AVOHK group? Why did he say yes?

One of the events he is best known for:

* At the age of 23, he knocked 7 seconds off of Lasse Viens previous WR setting a time that would stand for four years. Talk about that event

* Did he train 200 miles weekly for it?

* Can you talk about the best places you have stayed at while representing GB? (German hosts)

* London marathon

*

* His involvement

* How he got into it

* Why he retired

Questions:

* How he got into running (the bet and the curry)

* Why did he choose to run?

* Why did he run using red socks?

* What would you have done had you not been able to run?

* Would it be fair to say that breaking the world record was the accomplishment are you most proud of in life? What did it feel like to break the record?

* The world record for 10k is faster now by almost a minute. Is it because humans are faster now or have better resources?

* Who has played the most influential role in your life as a person?

* Who has played the most influential role in your life as a runner?

* Which book or resource has had the most impact on your life?

* Favourite place to run and why

* Those days there was a balance between Europeans and Africans but these days the African nations seem to dominate.

* Advice for 20-year-old self

* **Don’t ask about 118!**

Training: (physical)

* How often did he train when he was running and how? Did he have a routine?

* What was the training / diet like?

* How does his training compare to modern day training? (Nutrition, social media, sponsorship)

* What do you think about running in pollution? Running in Beijing, etc?

* What was his weekly training plan / mileage?

* Did his training result in injuries and if so how did he deal with them?

* Why was he so competitive? How important is it to him to best himself? Would he risk injuries in order to achieve certain goals?

* Talk to us about injuries, what he learnt from it

Training (mental)

* What is his philosophy on pain? How did he know when to persist and when not to?

* What did he tell himself mentally when he has to persist through pain and continue to the finish line?

* Was he scared that someday he might not be able to defend his top spots?

* Was he scared he will someday lose his passion for running? What keeps him passionate about running?

Issues that are important to Dave:

* London marathon fund raising

*

* Talk about the London marathon. How did he end up as the RD?

* He did the first marathon in 1981. Talk about that and the curry experience

* Alcohol and running – is that a good combo?

* Why did he retire as the London Marathon RD 10 years later?

* London marathon most memorable moments

* Hendon football club: passionate supporter

* Goals going forward

To subscribe to this podcast, please go to iTunes and search for The Hong Kong Trail Rockers Podcast

(https://itunes.apple.

My guest today is a handsome looking French trail runner who makes long distance running look so easy. I saw him during the Lantau 70 race in October 2016 when he was lying down on a bench during the 30th kilometer mark. He told me he was tired and was going to quit. I passed him at the 30th km mark feeling strong and I thought I was going to beat the great Baptiste Puyou on a trail running race! Alas, my condition deteriorated and true to his form, Baptiste finished 2nd overall. What I love about the way he runs is his smile, he seems happy at all times during the race even when he is supposedly suffering. So, let me welcome Mr. Baptiste Puyou to the Hong Kong Trail Rockers Podcast!

Show Notes:

* Who is Baptiste?

* Where in France is he from?

* Is there anything in his past that lead him to running / trail running?

* What is his day job?

The ten rapid fire icebreaker questions to delve into the way you think:

* What is your favorite trail in Hong Kong and why?

* What is your most favorite race and why? (can be local or overseas)

* What accomplishment are you most proud of in running?

* What accomplishment are you most proud of in life?

* Who has played the most influential role in your life as a person?

* Who has played the most influential role in your life as a runner?

* Why do you run?

* What would you do if you could not run?

* Which book or resource has had the most impact on your life?

* If there’s only one piece of advice you could give your 20-year-old self what would it be?

* From Tim Marchant: What is your most memorable wildlife encounter in HK? Could be boar, snake, hornet, monkey, porcupine, spider, wild dog etc.

* From Tim Marchant: Do you monitor the pollution level in HK and, if so, do you adjust your running accordingly?

Humble beginnings:

* when did he start hiking/running? (what year) Humble beginnings: where it all started

* Did he start off as a road runner? Does he enjoy both road running and trail running?

* Does he have a coach? Who is it? When did he get the coach?

Questions for Baptiste:

* Intro – when did he start hiking/running? (what year) Humble beginnings: where it all started

* Did he start off as a road runner? Does he enjoy both road running and trail running?

* Why does he run? What is more fun – running for fun or racing?

* In his journey so far (both running and racing) – does he have any unforgettable experiences? If so what are the top two experiences he can never forget?

* Walk us through the top 3 races, the preparation, the training, the nutrition

* What was it like?

* Walk us through the journey. What was it like?

* Did he put a lot of pressure on himself to complete? What was the “outside” pressure like on him?

* What were the up and down moments of this race? Describe the race to us and what more impressed you about the race

Training: (physical)

* How often does he train and how? Does he have a routine?

* What’s his weekly training plan / mileage?

* Has his training resulted in injuries and if so how does he deal with them?

* How competitive is Baptiste? How important is it to him to best himself? Would he risk injuries in order to achieve certain goals?

* What’s his philosophy on team runs like the OTW? Would he push his team to do better or would they do it “just for fun” ?

* Does Baptiste take any painkillers during runs? What’s his philosophy on that? What’s been his most painful run?

* Talk to us about injuries, what he learnt from it. Does he believe in the needle guy?

Training (mental)

* How does he do so many races / such long distances during painful moments?

Happy New Year to all the listeners! Hope 2017 turns out to be fantastic for you. Just to remind ourselves how important our health and exercise is in our lives, I have a quote from Jim Rohn and here’s what he says:

“Take care of your body. It’s the only place you have to live” – Jim Rohn

Today on the podcast I have something special. I listen to quite a few podcasts and the hosts for a podcast called Waves of Sound Hong Kong reached out to me because they wanted to learn more about the Oxfam Trailwalker. I want to give a big shout out to John and Sean from the Waves of Sound podcast.

The podcast features beautifully presented stories from all over Hong Kong. For example, have you guys ever visited the Wong Tai Sin temple and observed the pracitces inside? John and Sean will make you see the Hong Kong you never knew existed. I strongly recommend subscribing to their podcast. I will include the link in the show notes.

And for today’s episode, we are going to reproduce the latest episode from the Waves of Sound podcast featuring none other than yours truly! People tell me that I speak fast but I had no idea I spoke that fast! Here it is. Enjoy. And, a big thank you to John and Sean. You guys rock!

Waves of Sound podcast

To subscribe to this podcast, please go to iTunes and search for The Hong Kong Trail Rockers Podcast

(https://itunes.apple.com/hk/podcast/hong-kong-trail-rockers-podcast!/id994423166)