Tai Mo Shan Kiosk, run by the popular Lin Jie, recognised by 55km trail race as an ‘iconic landmark’ of Hong Kong
- Connie Kong For-lin, or Lin Jie to her friends, has been operating the kiosk for 24 years and has seen the changes in the outdoor community, while faithfully serving trail runners
As trail runners and hikers romp up and down Hong Kong’s highest mountain, dripping in sweat, cramping and desperate for somewhere to relax, they know they can depend on the Tai Mo Shan Kiosk. For 24 years, the shop’s operator, Connie Kong For-lin, or Lin Jie to her friends, has tirelessly served the community.
Hordes flock to the kiosk for drinks, frozen pineapples and dumplings. And now, a 55km race, The Wonders of Tai Mo Shan on December 7, wants to honour her contribution to the running community. Race organiser Wyan Chow Pui-yan called her and the kiosk “iconic” and a “landmark”.
“We wanted to support her because Lin Jie has the spirit to stir us all. We want to bring it to the public eye through her efforts, her thinking and her spirit,” she said.
The humble Jie said she likes working in the outdoor environment and share in the experience of the trail runners. She won the right to operate the kiosk through a bidding process, but had no plans to be there for 24 years. When she started, the only race was the 100km Oxfam Trailwalker, and there weren’t many hikers either.
“There is a big contrast,” Jie said. “It is because people are now more health conscious after Sars [a 2002 Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome epidemic]. In 2003, people started coming to Tai Mo Shan for hiking, trekking and running.”