Sorry for the double post, but I forgot that yesterday, despite the registration number for the race not being very high, it was quite an eventful (and emotional day).
Last year, a Japanese cyclist came to participate in the same event and unfortunately, due to heavy amounts of rain and a shit ton of bad luck, he got hit by falling rocks in the gorge and passed at Tzu Chi hospital in Hualien.
This year, his dad came to participate in the race to commemorate his memory. He thanked the hospitality and warmth from Taiwanese cyclists that he and his family received after the death of his son and gave a short speech before we got on our way.
It wasn’t the first thing I want to hear at 5:30AM, but it was good to see that the organization did go out of their way to invite (or accommodate?) the father to come and speak.
