Chongli 168 (Part 3) | Four People I Got to Know During 44 Hours on My First 100-Mile Trail Race

Hello everyone,

After finishing Chongli 168, I found myself with far more thoughts than I expected. I've already shared two previous reflections about the race, and this is another one that stayed with me.

This time, I want to talk about something that surprised me: the podcasts I listened to during the race.

Ten Hours of Podcasts

I don't usually listen to anything while racing. During training, however, I listen to a lot of podcasts.

On race day, I normally prefer to stay present—taking in the scenery, the atmosphere, and the people around me. But Chongli 168 was different. The official cutoff time was 48 hours, and although I finished in 44 hours, I had prepared mentally for the full 48. I knew I would need something to help me stay focused during such a long effort.

So, before the race, I downloaded several podcast episodes and ended up listening for nearly ten hours.

Recently, I've enjoyed the interview series Lu Yu's Slow Conversations (鲁豫·慢谈), so I selected several episodes.

I listened to an almost four-hour conversation with Jiang Sida. I also started the interview with Gong Linna, but after a little more than an hour, the discussion shifted toward her personal relationship history, and I decided to move on. Then I listened to Dai Jinhua's episode, which I found excellent. Finally, I listened to Zhang Xiaohui's interview, and that became one of the biggest surprises of the race. Her perspective resonated with me far more than I had expected.

Altogether, those conversations filled about ten hours of my run.

Podcasts and Books Offer a Similar Experience

Why am I sharing this?

Because I used to think of myself as someone who learned primarily through books.

For many years, I read between 50 and 100 books annually. Over the past couple of years, however, podcasts have gradually taken up more of that time. I sometimes wondered whether I had become less disciplined or drifted away from the reading habit that had shaped me for so long.

But after spending ten uninterrupted hours listening to long-form conversations, I realized something.

The format may be different, but the experience is remarkably similar.

One of my favorite books is Personal History by Katharine Graham, the Pulitzer Prize-winning memoir of the former publisher of The Washington Post. Reading it felt less like studying history and more like sitting across the table from someone who was honestly sharing the defining moments of her life—her family, her marriage, profound personal loss, and the difficult decisions she faced.

That's always been the appeal of books for me.

I'm not naturally drawn to social gatherings. When someone invites me to dinner, I sometimes catch myself wondering: would I rather spend the evening chatting casually, or spend those same hours listening to someone like Katharine Graham tell the story of her life?

Very often, I'd choose the latter.

After this race, I realized that great podcasts can create much the same feeling.

In everyday life, it's rare to spend several uninterrupted hours listening to someone speak candidly about their experiences, values, fears, successes, and mistakes. Long-form interviews make that possible in a way ordinary conversations often cannot.

Jiang Sida: More Than I Expected

Before listening, I actually knew very little about Jiang Sida.

Many people around me were familiar with him, but I wasn't.

After listening to him speak for nearly four hours, I came away with a much clearer picture of who he is—his personality, his thought process, and even moments of vulnerability when he became emotional during the interview.

Out of curiosity, I later looked up more about him and discovered that he has completed a marathon in under three hours.

That immediately caught my attention.

My own marathon personal best is around four hours, which is relatively modest among many of the runners I know. Endurance has always been my strength more than speed.

Anyone who runs a sub-three-hour marathon has invested years of consistent, disciplined training. Learning that added another dimension to how I understood him.

It's a reminder that public impressions often capture only part of someone's story.

If someone offered to spend five hours simply telling me the story of their life—and they had something meaningful to say—I would almost certainly accept.

I enjoy meeting people with distinctive perspectives. Long-form podcasts provide exactly that opportunity.

Dai Jinhua and Zhang Xiaohui

I was already familiar with Gong Linna as a singer, although I knew relatively little about her personal experiences. The first part of her interview was engaging.

One thing that stood out across all of these conversations was courage.

These guests have all made unconventional choices at different stages of their lives. In that sense, they are much bolder than I am.

Interestingly, Lu Yu once described herself as someone who generally prefers staying within her comfort zone, while being deeply fascinated by people who live differently.

I relate to that.

I'm not particularly unconventional myself, but I appreciate a world where people pursue different paths. Diversity of experience makes life more interesting.

Dai Jinhua was another remarkable guest.

She spoke with a combination of intellectual depth, honesty, and calm self-awareness that I found deeply compelling. She discussed difficult periods of her life, including moments when she came close to death, with remarkable openness.

Before hearing the interview, I knew very little about her. By the end, I felt I had encountered an extraordinary thinker.

Then came Zhang Xiaohui.

To my surprise, I knew almost nothing about her beforehand. Her interview became one of my favorites.

People sometimes ask what kinds of podcasts I listen to, and I occasionally hesitate because many of them feature female guests. But that's simply because many outstanding long-form interviews happen to do so.

Why Sex and the City Came to Mind

During the conversation, both Lu Yu and Zhang Xiaohui mentioned Sex and the City.

Many people from my generation grew up watching Friends. Among my male friends, Friends tends to be the favorite.

I've watched Friends as well, but Sex and the City is the series I've returned to many times over the years.

Some scenes remain vivid in my memory, especially those involving Carrie Bradshaw and Mr. Big.

As I listened to Zhang Xiaohui, I couldn't help thinking that parts of her life reminded me of Carrie Bradshaw—not because their stories are identical, but because they both approached life with curiosity, resilience, and a willingness to learn from imperfect decisions.

At 62, Zhang Xiaohui still speaks with remarkable elegance and energy.

After finishing the interview, I even searched for her on Xiaohongshu (RedNote) and followed her account—a rare event for me, since I hardly ever use the platform. I simply wanted to learn more about someone whose perspective I had found so engaging.

Trail Running Connected the Dots

Looking back, I no longer see podcasts and books as competing with each other.

They both allow me to spend meaningful time with thoughtful people.

During those ten hours on the trails of Chongli 168, I felt as though I had genuinely come to understand Jiang Sida, Dai Jinhua, and Zhang Xiaohui, while also getting to know part of Gong Linna's story.

Ironically, I don't always have conversations that deep with many people I know personally.

How often do we sit down and honestly ask each other:

●  How have you really been?

●  What brings you happiness?

●  What values guide your life?

Those conversations are surprisingly rare.

Running Changed More Than My Fitness

I'm also grateful that running introduced podcasts into my life.

Many of today's interviews last two, three, or even four hours. Finding uninterrupted time to listen is difficult in everyday life.

Long-distance training created that time for me.

Whether running a half marathon or a full marathon on a treadmill during training, those hours can feel repetitive. Podcasts turned them into opportunities for learning.

Thinking about it now, I can clearly see how one habit led to another.

Trail running encouraged me to run longer distances.

Longer runs led me to English-language podcasts, which significantly improved my listening skills over time.

Later, I began listening to more Chinese podcasts as well.

As my training sessions became longer, the hours I spent listening also increased. Gradually, I found myself becoming calmer and more patient.

Life often works this way.

One decision quietly leads to another, and you rarely see the connections until you look back.

That's one of the reasons I find the process so fascinating.

A Small Realization

Writing these reflections helped me settle something I'd been thinking about for quite a while.

I no longer feel the need to choose between books and podcasts.

Both have become meaningful ways for me to learn from people whose experiences I would never otherwise have access to.

Today, there are many outstanding long-form podcasts available, and those are almost exclusively the ones I choose to listen to.

Looking back, it's a little unexpected that my third reflection on Chongli 168 turned out to be about podcasts rather than running itself.

But that's what stayed with me.

Thank you for reading.