Long periods spent indoors during the COVID-19 pandemic have left many anxious to go out and get some vigorous physical activity in. More than 1,000 have signed up for an upcoming military-style obstacle course race in the outlying Matsu Islands.
As the COVID-19 pandemic eases up across Taiwan, athletic types are finally able to get out of the house and start pushing themselves to the limit once again.
Only seconds after registration opened, 1,300 people had signed up for a military-style obstacle course race, set to take place on an outlying island with deep military roots.
The Military Trail Challenge is taking place in Dongyin Township on the Matsu Islands, a chain that sits directly next to China and is on Taiwan’s first line of defense.
The entire island where the event is held will be closed off just for the race.
The course is grueling. Contestants must get past the same kinds of obstacles that professional soldiers—like those stationed on nearby islands—must overcome in their training.
The views and the sites the island has to offer, though, make overcoming these challenges especially rewarding. Those taking part will get to see a granite stone geo-park and the Zhongzhu Tunnel, a former military tunnel now open to the public just once a year. At the end of the race, all contestants will be rewarded with a feast of the local specialties and Dongyin Township’s special sorghum liquor.