“This is only the beginning,” Wong said. “We constantly think of ways to improve and become more inclusive. We can fail – but you have to fail fast, learn, and go again.”
The Wazup name stems from Wong’s childhood in Canada, and a measure of onomatopoeia. With his brother and three cousins, he became fixated on the greeting, ‘what’s up?’ A Budweiser advert amplified the term and “it became our fun phrase”.
“Asking how somebody is doing, fits our empathetic culture,” Wong said. “We tweaked the spelling, because it was shorter and had a buzz.”
Wong, a veteran of 16 marathons and six ultra-marathons, began running to address an “unhealthy lifestyle” and, after encouraging his brother and cousins to follow suit, settled on the idea of a club in 2020.
Covid threatened to trample Wazup underfoot, but Wong recognised the need for “people to connect”, and created an Instagram account to publicise the family’s Saturday runs.
“People were scared, they were locked in their own homes,” Wong said. “We were operating in a grey area, but we ran in our masks, had a rule about leaving nobody behind, and became a real community.”
Jeff Yu, one of the club’s longest-standing members, is charged with expanding the brand. An accomplished endurance runner, unrecognisable from the puffed-out figure who turned up three years ago, Yu “found a collective empathy” in the group.
“I am working on spreading the message about our culture of camaraderie and support,” Yu said. “That we are not all about speed and distance.”
As numbers climbed, Wazup introduced the Wednesday night urban run that would become its flagship event. A cosmopolitan throng gathers in the shadow of The Hong Kong Observatory Wheel, on Central Harbourfront, before the runners string out between Golden Bauhinia Square and Sun Yat Sen Memorial Park.
Many stick around for the post-run beer, when bonds are formed and conversation zips between myriad topics. A meticulously planned Tuesday morning ‘track session’ – Wong and fellow captain Rob Sue, the first non-Wong member of the ‘Wazup family’, are certified running coaches – attracts the hardcore trainers, while large numbers join Saturday’s trail run. Those up with the larks embark on a long Sunday run.
A 320-strong WhatsApp group acts as an events diary, advice hub and support network.
Wong, a senior figure in the tech industry, remembers his wife’s exasperation over an obsession with harnessing the embryonic Wazup’s momentum.
“It was not about me, or about running anymore, and if I did not go, even once, it would have died,” he said. “So many people told me that the club got them through their darkest moments.
“We do not have all the answers, we are not therapists, but we are here.”
Organisations including The North Face, Lululemon, Lane Eight, and Compressport noticed Wazup’s enterprising, intrepid spirit, married its members’ loyalty, and negotiated collaborations.
“We have grown from nothing to this in three years, why us?” Yu, a product developer, said. “Hong Kong is a competitive environment, we offer something that is non-consequential.
“We navigated Covid, people see we can figure out a way. Building a brand alongside our day jobs is difficult, but a lot of us have worked in startups and are part-time hustlers.
“We have learned about connecting people, and want to take this outside Hong Kong.”
The 17 Wazup ‘captains’ – volunteers who assume leadership roles – are drawn from varying backgrounds and cultures.
“How could we serve a diverse community, otherwise?” Wong said. “We have disagreements, but if we did not, we would not be transparent, or challenging ourselves.”
Wong’s own running has been stalled by rheumatoid arthritis, something he said was tough “mentally and physically”.
“But every week, I see the guys running, this community growing, and I feel so much gratitude,” he said. “I am grateful for everything that has happened, and that we are building something we believe in.”
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