Fast legs, inspirational feats and most importantly joyful running We received more than 60 nominations the past month for the 6 runner and volunteer awards, and our panel of 20 respected judges narrowed it down to the following worthy finalists.   We deliberately did not set specify definitions for the awards. Trailrunning has a different meaning for each person. Some might enjoy longer ultra runs, some prefer shorter and faster courses, and some perhaps like to go for elevation gains. For example, what does “best” mean? Should we consider based strictly from a ability perspective? Are ultra distances or faster races or super technical courses a better representation of Taiwan trail running? And should “best” include contribution to the Taiwan trailrunning community? Or should we only judge athletic accomplishments. There are no correct answers and hence, we would like to leave room for interpretation.  Without further ado, here are the finalist class of 2017 Taiwan Trailrunning Award. Please give them a big round of applause！！！！ The Best Trail Race Volunteer 歐欽濱 (Ou QinBin): Known for his passion and dedication when working the aid stations, 歐欽濱 also loves going deep into the woods with his camera to capture the images of runners at their happiest state. Races volunteered: 

• Beast Trail, 
• 過山蝦入門林道酥湖越野、
• CCT聖母山莊登高賽 
• CCT終極礁溪越野
• Compressport – ULTRA Maokong 、 
• Formosa Trail

李國韶 (Li GuoShao): As an experienced trail runner, he truly understands what runners need at aid stations. An expert in setting up check-point locations and SOP for servicing runners coming through, you are always in good hands.

• Dragon‭, ‬Tiger‭, ‬Pheonix‭ ‬Trail Running
• Ultra Trail Guguan
• 眠月水漾
• 萬里長城越野賽

吳志濰 (Wu ZhiWei): Aid stations run by 吳志濰 are guaranteed to be a well-oiled machine, and a great place for runners to hang and recover. In addition to perfecting all the basics, he is known to go above and beyond to ensure runners’ safety and comfort. 

• Beast Trail
• Explore Your Backyard 3.0
• Run Though the Jungle
• Formosa Trail
• 虎豹雙棲越野挑戰賽 
• Action Asia Maokong
• Action Asia Shimen 

潘秀玉 (Pan XiuYu): For those that participated in races by the Taiwan Beast Runners, a tasty hot plate prepared by 潘秀玉 at the finish or aid stations was definitely part of your fond memories. In addition, she doesn’t mind getting her hands dirty to ensure everything is properly recycled post event. 

• Run Thru The Jungle
• Explore Your Backyard
• De loop
• Beast Trail
• Formosa Trail

Most Prolific Runner 王印財 (Wang YinCai): Participated in over 20 trail races in 2017, from shorter distances to over 100Ks, and that’s only counting races defined as trail races, but lets not forget all the training runs he did on his own.  邱文孝 (Qiu Wen xiao): Traveled and ran in many different parts of the world in 2017, including legendary races such as The Hong Kong Four Trails and Barkley in Tenessee, USA.  周青 (Zhou Qing): No wonder he had a break out year in 2017, becoming an elite trail runner in the Asia circuit. He averaged 130-160km per week, as well as participated in 20 races around Asia.  Most Inspirational Trail Runner Maggie Ku: Toeing the line at TDG is already badass. The extra “interesting” thing in her case is that her previous longest race was only a 75km ran at Deloop in mid-2017. She completed 287km of the 330km race and climbed 26,700 meters.     吳有家 (Wu YouJia): Over 60 years old and still whooping runners half his age. When we grow up, we all want to be just like him. 江晏慶 (Cliff Chiang): Without question, one of the best runners on the island, yet very humble, always with a smile, enjoys leading trail runs and sharing his experience at workshops. Petr Notvotny: A foreigner that knows Taiwan’s mountains and trails better than most local runners. It’s safe to say that the many races he organized are reasons for the rise of a trailrunning culture in Taiwan.   Best single performance 周青 (Zhou Qing): Shattered multiple course records including Ultra Trai Tai Mo Shan 50km in Hong Kong.  Maggie Ku：Took on the challenge of TDG  邱文孝 (Qiu Wen Hsiao)： Completed Hong Kong Four Trails under 60 hours, the youngest runner to do so.   Best Male Trail Runner Petr Novotny Often busy with organizing races (5 total), scouting new routes and cleaning courses, Petr was not a prolific racer in 2017 and never had time to train properly. However, when he did toe the starting line, he showed everyone that he is still a force to be reckoned with. 

• Dragon Tiger Phoenix Trail Running 35km 1^st
• Trail Running of Beiyi 50km 1^st
• The Most Beautiful Thing 50km 50km, Malaysia 1^st
• Action Asia Shimen 50km 1^st

邱文孝 (Qiu WenXiao) It was both a fun and legendary running year for 邱文孝. Known for his prowess in high mountains, he went to Hong Kong in early 2017 and placed fourth at The Hong Kong 4 Trails, a self supported 298km ultra. He is the youngest runner to complete this challenge. He then traveled to Tennesee, USA for the infamous Barkley Marathon. Although he did not complete it, he became the first Taiwanese runner to attempt the Barkley, which many consider the toughest race on earth. He also competed against the world’s best in Columbia, Iceland, Greece, Turkey and China. 

• Donhai Grand Canyon 50km, China 2^nd
• Sky Ercyes Ultra Sky Trail 64km, Turkey 1^st

 江晏慶 (Cliff Chiang) Though still relatively young, 晏慶 is one of the more experienced trail runners in Taiwan. Blessed with explosive speed, he is widely considered the top short-to-mid distance and vertical racer, yet still possesses great endurance for ultra distances. He is also a well-respected coach, introducing newbies to the world of trails as well as helping seasoned runners to reach new heights. 

• Beast Trail 25km, 1^st
• 聖母山莊登高賽 Vertical Race 1^st
• Ultra Yilan 50km 1^st

周青 (Zhou Qing) It was an epic year for this youngster, and everyone in the trail community saw his massive improvements. He competed in more than 20 trail races, won a fair share of these events and shattered three course records along the way both in Taiwan and Hong Kong.

• 柴古唐斯-括蒼山越野賽 62km, China 1^st
• 虎豹雙棲越野挑戰賽 33km 1st
• Super Race極地超級馬拉松新疆站, China 1st
• Action Asia Maokong 26km 1st
• Ultra Maokong 50km 1st Course Record
• Formosa Trail 38km 1st Course Record
• Ultra Trai Tai Mo shan 50km 1st Course Record

Best Female Trail Runner Sally Luo Sally is one of the best in Taiwan in high altitudes, and known for her love to go far in some of the island’s toughest mountains. Go on a single-day summit trip with her, and you will see her sprinting at 3000m+ without breaking a sweat, that is if you can keep up. Her 2017 race results also speak for itself. 

• TUR谷關越野UTMG 50km Female1^st
• 虎豹雙棲越野賽 33km Female 1^st
• Action Asia X-Trail TAIWAN 26km Female 1^st
• TUR萬里長城越野賽 50km Female 1^st
• Formosa Trail 104km Female 2^nd 

何若君 (Jill He) 何若君 specializes in trail ultras and is rapidly improving in the 100km distance. 2017 saw her completed 3 100ks as well as gaining invaluable experience in international races against the word’s best in China, Japan and UTMB’s 100km sister race CCC. In addition to racing, she is also active as a volunteer, group trip organizer and blogger.

• UTMB CCC 101km, Europe 24hr 8sec
• 柴古唐斯100km, China Female 24th 
• Formosa Trail 104km Female 6th 
• Donhai Grand Canyon 50km, China Female 1st 
• 叢林野跑34km Female 5th 
• Beast Trail 50km Female 6th 
• AAE Shimen 50km Female 3rd

Stella Haarring Prior to 2017, Stella specialized in shorter distance trail races. In the second half of the year, she through her hat into the ultra scene and still dominated, proving that she is a versatile runner with speed, endurance and technical skills. She is also active in the hash community, enthusiastic with organizing events to share the happiness of trail running.  

• Gongliao Trail Race 18km Female 1st 
• EYB 3.0 Trail Race 16km Female 1st 
• Deloop 25km Female 2nd 
• Beast Trail 25km Female 2nd 
• Ultra Maokong 21km Female 1st 
• AAE Shimen 50km Female 1st