China Daily Online, October 15 — "Our route this time was the Everest East Slope-Kama Valley Trekking Circuit. This is a newly developed trail with complex conditions along the way, so far very few people have completed the full journey," Zhang Xiaohui, who just finished a 12-day high-altitude endurance trek, told China Daily.
Starting on September 30, Zhang Xiaohui, an eight-year veteran of outdoor hiking and climbing and a graduate of the sixth CMDI class of high-altitude guides, led the 2014 Gore Dream Women’s Mountaineering Team on a 12-day high-altitude snow mountain trek from Lhasa to Shigatse along the Everest East Slope.
(Photo by Hai Qing)
This activity was not only innovative in terms of the route, but also marked the first time a domestic professional outdoor energy food underwent such high-altitude, high-intensity endurance testing. Zhang Xiaohui and over 60 members of the women’s mountaineering team transported cookware, vegetables, and dry rations via yaks to provide three meals a day. Meanwhile, "WildRunner Energy Bars" were used for trail meals and to replenish energy during the toughest stretches of the snowy trek.
"Trying a domestically produced professional outdoor energy food for the first time during the trek, the most noticeable aspect was the taste, especially the moderate level of sweetness, which suits Chinese palates," said Zhang Xiaohui. "Many imported energy bars on the market today simply provide energy without much consideration for taste, making them overly sweet and very dehydrating."
Zhang Xiaohui explained that he and many hiking enthusiasts have long discussed the issue of energy replenishment during extended treks. In the past, when hiking or climbing, they would opt for imported products like energy gels, because in extreme environments, these foods weren’t designed with nutrition or taste in mind but purely to deliver energy.
"The nutritional content in energy bars is crucial, especially the vitamin levels, which is a major reason why I was particularly impressed with the WildRunner Energy Bars during this trip. During long hikes and climbs, the body loses a lot of vitamins and salts, requiring the food to be rich in these nutrients to replenish them. Otherwise, issues like mouth ulcers or hangnails can arise, which significantly affect trekking performance."
He has been involved in hiking and climbing since 2006, totaling eight years now. He said that before this Everest East Slope trek, those who had completed the route were mostly photographers for national-level publications. For ordinary hikers, very few had tackled this newly developed trail. Completing the trek was a significant challenge for the team, especially in terms of endurance, where WildRunner Energy Bars played a crucial role at key moments, providing excellent sustained energy replenishment.
Wang Lifeng, head of the WildRunner division at Compeit Group, closely monitored the progress of this activity. After its successful completion and positive product testing results, he said excitedly: "Domestic outdoor energy food has long relied on imports. This high-altitude endurance test of the WildRunner Energy Bar shows that domestic professional outdoor energy food can not only ensure high-load energy replenishment but also provide more suitable nutrition and taste for the Chinese physique compared to imported brands."
According to Mr. Bai Houzeng, General Manager of Compeit, the company has been dedicated to the field of professional sports nutrition for over a decade, serving competitive athletes including Olympians. It is a pioneer and standard-setter in China’s sports nutrition products. With nearly ten years of R&D and production experience in the nutrition bar category, Compeit's professional energy bars dominate over 90% of the domestic market. The launch of the WildRunner Energy Bar, specifically tailored for outdoor enthusiasts, responds to the vast demand within China’s professional outdoor food market.