Barefoot runners keep streak alive

“Mike” Chang Whan Jang finished the 41st Annual Christmas Island Relay race barefoot in under three hours, keeping his tradition of running the race solo and barefoot, last Dec. 24.(Leigh Gases)

Running is hard enough in itself, and when paired with running barefoot—then you’ve just upped the level of difficulty—but that’s exactly what two runners did during the Northern Marianas Athletics 41st Annual Christmas Island Relay race last Dec. 24, 2022.

“Mike” Chang Whan Jang, an eighth grade physical education teacher at Hopwood Middle School, and “Charles” Chong Nam Lee, who is retired, cruised barefoot from the Pacific Islands Club in San Antonio to the Last Command Post in Marpi

For Jang, he continued his Christmas tradition of running the grueling 13.7-mile course on his lonesome, forgetting the relay part of the race. Since his first Christmas Relay Race in 1982, he has run the entire course by himself—and barefoot.

Run Saipan Pacemakers, from left, “Charles” Chong Nam Lee, Jessica Ortizo, Matthew Furan, and Rosemarie Chisato. Lee ran the 41st Annual Christmas Island Relay in 1-mile increments barefoot through the 13.7-mile course from Pacific Islands Club Saipan in San Antonio to the Last Command Post in Marpi last Dec. 24. ()Lao Zhang)

As usual, the intrepid 71-year-old started the course at 5am—an hour before the other racers to ensure he had ample time to finish it. This year, his time was 2:59:00

Jang said that he enjoys running the course by himself because he gets to stop on his own time and snap some photos of the Christmas lights and decorations that donned the Christmas village in the Garapan Fishing Base.

“I just enjoy this atmosphere—everyone cheers me on. I like it because of the friendly atmosphere,” said Jang.

Although he doesn’t run everyday now, he continues to support the benefits of running barefoot; and to stay fit, he plays tennis, pickleball, and does high-intensity interval training or HIIT workouts of running and walking at the beach during the weekend.

He said he will definitely join this year’s relay race again and is looking forward to 10 more years of running it.

The 64-year-old Lee, who was inspired by Jang to run barefoot, took turns with his Run Saipan Pacemakers team running 1-mile increments.

His team, which is the oldest team in the race with all their ages combined, included Run Saipan members Ann Bang, Jessica Ortizo, Matthew Furan, and Rosemarie Chisato. They finished the course in 1:45.20, proving that age did not matter.

Lee, a Run Saipan member who always runs barefoot in their races, has run barefoot for three years now.

“The first time I tried to follow Jang to run barefoot, I failed because it was so painful. But he advised me to do it slowly, so everyday, little by little, I walk barefoot, then run barefoot little by little. Then finally, after three months, there was no problem. After six months, I could run anywhere barefoot.”

Lee, who is also a Dolphin Swim Club member, said the secret to staying fit is being stress-free and staying physically active. “I don’t want to stress. I always just want to relax and have good relationships with people. It’s a beautiful world. Everyday, I wake up at 4:30am, run for one hour and then swim in the ocean for one hour.”