The couple that cannot imagine running without each other take on 23km Lantau 2 Peaks trail race
Husband and wife might be faster when they run on their own, but taking part together brings them joy so they are happy to slow down for each other
Fred Fung Wing-yuen and wife Ling Lee Kam-ling started trail running together and found it helped them forge a strong bond. Now, even as their insistence on sticking together slows their individual times, they cannot imagine taking to the trails alone.
“We’ve only run together for the past few years, but it is joyful for us both,” said Fung. “We run together even when we do not enrol as a team.
“So we have to adjust our pace to match each other and the overall result may be slower than running individually. My wife dislikes rainy conditions and we will withdraw from those events together.”
Fung said he performed poorly in the heat or on steep climbs, so it is tit-for-tat on who outperforms who and in what conditions.
The couple are running the Hoka One One Lantau 2 Peaks race on Sunday. The 23-kilometre course starts in Tung Chung and takes runners up the two imposing mountains, Lantau Peak and Sunset Peak, before heading back to the finish line.
They ran the shorter 15km course at last year’s Lantau 2 Peaks so are feeling confident, as long as the weather holds out and is not too hot or wet.
“We are average runners but have joined trail events for about two years,” said Fung. “We are busy at work during weekdays and have no special training plan. We only aim to complete the course.
“We do not care too much about the finishing time. We adjust our pace whenever the other becomes slower. It is probably slower than running separately.”
With the hundreds, if not thousands, of steps leading up Lantau Peak it sounds like his wife will be adjusting her pace to allow her husband to keep up.
“I have to run harder to catch her up,” he said.
