China | Badwater

Category: China

LIVE TRACKING FOR MT. GAOLIGONG ULTRA IN TENGCHONG, YUNNAN, CHINA

Nov 13, 2016 - by Chris Kostman

Oak Park, CA / Tengchong, China – BADWATER®, the world’s toughest brand, is pleased to announce the inaugural Mt. Gaoligong Ultra in Tengchong, Yunnan Province, China on November 18-19, 2016. The Badwater Race Director, Chris Kostman, is serving as the Co-Race Director and is involved with every aspect of the race. The 104-mile (168km) challenge – with a 36-hour time limit and and 29,000 feet (8800m) of elevation gain – is a mountain trail race through history and time. Live tracking of the competitors will be available both here on this page, as well as on the official website for the race at this link: MtGaoligong.com. The full race roster is below, and the field includes seventeen Badwater 135 veterans, many of whom are featured on the official race website at this link. Also below is the course map (which includes a 124km / 77mi “short cut” route with alternate awards and results), elevation profile, and outline of the checkpoints.

For our full race announcement, including a remarkable promotional video, click here.

Roster By Bib #: (scroll down for roster by first name)

Bib	Name	M/F	Nation	Age
2	Michel Pierre Poletti	Male	France	61
3	Mick Thwaites	Male	Australian	42
5	Nathan Montague	Male	United Kingdom	36
6	Jiang Tao	Male	China	39
7	Tu Dan	Male	China	38
8	Kerri Kanuga	Female	Grand Cayman Island	46
10	Frederic Asseline	Male	France	47
11	Andrew Glaze	Male	U.S.A	38
12	Jared Fetterolf	Male	U.S.A	28
13	Dai HongFei	Male	China	39
15	Bogdan Onyschenko	Male	Ukraine	41
16	David Tan Tian Wee	Male	Singapore	40
17	Cheryl J. Bihag	Female	Phillippine	43
18	Yang SuQi	Female	China	41
19	Lv ZhongLin	Male	China	42
20	Oksana Riabova	Female	Ukraine	28
21	Bai YuQiu	Female	China	45
22	Pu GeWen	Male	China	42
23	Luo CanHua	Male	China	24
25	Yuan KaiHong	Male	China	28
26	Hua ZhaoHong	Male	China	30
27	Shi HongXia	Female	China	38
28	Wei Chao	Male	China	32
29	Xie Peng	Male	China	32
30	Li Qiang	Male	China	30
31	Chen Kun	Male	China	39
32	Wang XiJun	Male	China	40
33	Jimmy Dean Freeman	Male	U.S.A	40
35	Sun Jian	Male	China	32
36	Joshua Holmes	Male	U.S.A	38
37	Stacey Shand	Female	Canada	37
39	Su ZhenLei	Male	China	34
40	Mauro Chasilew	Male	Brazil	47
41	Ray Sanchez	Male	U.S.A	49
42	Yu YanMeng	Female	China	27
43	Hiroyuki Nishimura	Male	Japan	46
46	Qin JunPing	Male	China	40
47	Andrea Kooiman	Female	U.S.A	41
48	Shi Feng	Male	China	30
49	Wu ZeNan	Female	China	26
50	Yuan Yuan	Female	China	35
51	Catra Corbett	Female	U.S.A	51
52	Gong MingCheng	Male	China	48
53	Li RenLi	Male	China	39
55	Luigi Dessy	Male	U.S.A	38
56	Yang Xiao Bo	Male	China	16
57	Huang YanBo	Male	China	38
58	Dion Leonard	Male	United Kingdom	41
59	Li GuoZhi	Male	China	64
60	Marcia Zhou	Female	U.S.A	28
70	Bob Becker	Male	U.S.A	71
84	Danny Westergaard	Male	U.S.A	57
87	Dan Lawson	Male	United Kingdom	43
93	Breeze Sharma	Male	India	42
99	Greg Pressler	Male	U.S.A	49

Roster by First Name:

Bib	Full name	M/F	Nation	Age
47	Andrea Kooiman	Female	U.S.A	41
11	Andrew Glaze	Male	U.S.A	38
21	Bai YuQiu	Female	China	45
70	Bob Becker	Male	U.S.A	71
15	Bogdan Onyschenko	Male	Ukraine	41
93	Breeze Sharma	Male	India	42
51	Catra Corbett	Female	U.S.A	51
31	Chen Kun	Male	China	39
17	Cheryl J. Bihag	Female	Phillippine	43
13	Dai HongFei	Male	China	39
87	Dan Lawson	Male	United Kingdom	43
84	Danny Westergaard	Male	U.S.A	57
16	David Tan Tian Wee	Male	Singapore	40
58	Dion Leonard	Male	United Kingdom	41
10	Frederic Asseline	Male	France	47
52	Gong MingCheng	Male	China	48
99	Greg Pressler	Male	U.S.A	49
43	Hiroyuki Nishimura	Male	Japan	46
26	Hua ZhaoHong	Male	China	30
57	Huang YanBo	Male	China	38
12	Jared Fetterolf	Male	U.S.A	28
6	Jiang Tao	Male	China	39
33	Jimmy Dean Freeman	Male	U.S.A	40
36	Joshua Holmes	Male	U.S.A	38
8	Kerri Kanuga	Female	Grand Cayman Island	46
59	Li GuoZhi	Male	China	64
30	Li Qiang	Male	China	30
53	Li RenLi	Male	China	39
55	Luigi Dessy	Male	U.S.A	38
23	Luo CanHua	Male	China	24
19	Lv ZhongLin	Male	China	42
60	Marcia Zhou	Female	U.S.A	28
40	Mauro Chasilew	Male	Brazil	47
2	Michel Pierre Poletti	Male	France	61
3	Mick Thwaites	Male	Australian	42
5	Nathan Montague	Male	United Kingdom	36
20	Oksana Riabova	Female	Ukraine	28
22	Pu GeWen	Male	China	42
46	Qin JunPing	Male	China	40
41	Ray Sanchez	Male	U.S.A	49
48	Shi Feng	Male	China	30
27	Shi HongXia	Female	China	38
37	Stacey Shand	Female	Canada	37
39	Su ZhenLei	Male	China	34
35	Sun Jian	Male	China	32
32	Wang XiJun	Male	China	40
28	Wei Chao	Male	China	32
49	Wu ZeNan	Female	China	26
29	Xie Peng	Male	China	32
18	Yang SuQi	Female	China	41
56	Yang Xiao Bo	Male	China	16
42	Yu YanMeng	Female	China	27
25	Yuan KaiHong	Male	China	28
50	Yuan Yuan	Female	China	35
7	涂丹(Tu Dan )	Male	China	38

168kmcoursemap 168kmcp 168kmelevation

BADWATER announces Mt. Gaoligong Ultra in Tengchong, Yunnan Province, China

Oct 03, 2016 - by Chris Kostman

China

Held in “China’s Colorado,” Mt Gaoligong Ultra is a Mountain Trail Race through Time and History

Oak Park, CA / Tengchong, China – BADWATER®, the world’s toughest brand, is pleased to announce the inaugural Mt. Gaoligong Ultra in Tengchong, Yunnan Province, China on November 18-19 of this year. The 104-mile (168km) challenge – with a 36-hour time limit and 29,000 feet (8800m) of elevation gain – is a mountain trail race through history and time.

As befits anything that Badwater is developing and backing, the Mt. Gaoligong Ultra is extremely difficult, with well over 29,000 feet (8800m) of cumulative elevation gain, and a corresponding loss of more than 29,000 feet. It will be held primarily on mountain trails, including single track, double track, jeep roads, and some cobblestone paths. The start line will be at the Yin and Yang Gates in WenZhi-GuangChang Square in Tenchong – allowing the racers to balance their energies as they embark upon this epic challenge – but quickly disappears into the Mt. Gaoligong National Park and mountain range in all its green grandeur covered in trees, bamboo, ferns, and the occasional rice paddy.

Sections of the route traverse the 2400-year-old Southern Silk Road, while the Stillwell Road, a critical supply line built by the Americans during World War II, is also part of the race route. (Americans are particularly appreciated in Tengchong, in part because of the Stillwell Road, and also because the Flying Tigers – American pilots who volunteered to fly for the Chinese during WWII – were based here. (A large sculpture commemorates them outside the Tengchong Airport.) The finish line will be in 600-year-old HeShun Town, the ancient, cobblestone part of Tengchong, providing a historic and exhilarating final few miles for the racers as they complete their historic tour.

The race will be fully supported, with a marked trail, 14 fully stocked aid stations, drop bag service, and more; personal support crews are neither necessary nor encouraged due to the remoteness of the route. Though the main event will be the full 104-mile route, a 77-mile (124km) “short cut” route will be offered mid-race for those not on schedule to finish the entire route within the 36-hour time limit.

Registration for the event is already open, and many well-known Badwater race veterans have already registered. These include Americans Bob Becker, Catra Corbett, Jimmy Dean Freeman, Jared Fetterolf, Joshua Holmes, Andrea Kooiman, Greg Pressler, Ray Sanchez, and Danny Westergaard, plus Luigi Dessy of Puerto Rico, Mick Thwaites of Australia, Dan Lawson of the United Kingdom, Mauro Chasilew of Brazil, Stacey Shand of Canada, Breze Sharma of India, and Hiroyuki Nishimura of Japan.

This new race is not a Badwater® race, per se, but it is a “Badwater Presents” event which Chris Kostman, the Badwater Race Director, is helping to develop and for which he serves as co-race director. Kostman’s Chinese partners, XingZhi Yunnan Co. Ltd, are absolute professionals and extremely enthusiastic to host a world-class event this November, and annually thereafter. Kostman’s Chinese co-race director, Lin Ma, is rock solid and Kostman’s nickname for him is “Mr. Cool.” Even though his English is minimal and Kostman’s Chinese is even more non-existent, they both speak the same language when it comes to developing and hosting incredible, life-changing sporting events. Another of the principals from XingZhi, Margaret King, recently attended the STYR Labs Badwater 135, which Kostman directs. She and her colleagues work for XingZhi, a China-wide event production company helmed by Xiangdong (Ben) Qu, with over a decade of experience hosting scores of multi-day endurance events with up to 2000 entrants. All their events emphasize the crossroads between sport, culture, and tourism.

Hired as a consultant because of this 32 years of developing world-class – and world-famous – ultra events, Kostman spent eight days in Tengchong in June consulting on every aspect of the race, from routing to start line and finish line, trail marking, aid stations, medical support, communications, marketing, and more. Said Kostman, “I literally spent a full week teaching ‘the Badwater Way’ of creating, hosting, directing, managing, and marketing events. Fourteen to eighteen people shadowed my every move and took about a hundred pages of notes! On top of that, I was absolutely blown away by the entire route, the historic setting, and even more so by my Chinese partners!” Since June, Kostman and his Chinese colleagues have been having regular WeChat video conferences to work together to develop the race. In November, Kostman will be spend a full month in China to help host and direct the race. Further collaborations there and elsewhere in China are already in development.

For 2016 Mt. Gaoligong Ultra race results and live GPS tracking, click here.

Co-Race Directos Chris Kostman and Lin Ma exchange gifts during the Contract Signing Ceremony at Tengchong City Hall on June 13, 2016.

Co-Race Directors Chris Kostman and Lin Ma exchange gifts during the Contract Signing Ceremony at Tengchong City Hall on June 13, 2016.

Kostman is a lifelong historian who speaks several languages, has traveled extensively in over 50 countries, and worked for ten years as an archaeologist in the Middle East and South Asia. As such, the historic setting and deep multi-cultural opportunities of this event intrigue and inspire him on many levels: “I couldn’t be more thrilled about the race, the route, the history, and my partnership with the team at XingZhi. Bringing together my love of history and culture, with ultra sporting events, is a dream come true for me. But beyond that, I truly believe this race will be quickly recognized as one of the world’s top ‘Must Do’ ultramarathons. Plus, ultra running is relatively new to China as they have only about ten ultramarathons, so I’m excited and privileged to help bring this sport to the Chinese mainstream!”

The official website, including registration link, is http://www.mtgaoligong.com/

The race is also featured here on the Badwater website.

For Further Information, Contact:

Race Management: Margaret King of XingZhi Co. Ltd. at jindoudou “at” exploring.cn

Runners / Participants Contact: Ms. Zoe Qianzhao of XingZhi Yunnan Co. Ltd. at zhaoqian “at” expewise.com

Race Director / International Representative: Chris Kostman of AdventureCORPS at adventurecorps “at” gmail.com