At Laji Mountain Pass, the mountain winds howled.
Huang Chong had set out from the Doba National High Altitude Training Base. After a grueling two-hour climb over 74 kilometers, maintaining an average speed of about 32 km/h, he finally navigated a series of massive hairpin turns and reached the summit.
At the highest point of the road, a blue highway sign hung overhead.
To the left of the road stood an important landmark of Tibetan Buddhism: the Zongkala Temple.
Huang Chong glanced back at the winding mountain road he'd ridden up from Doba. It coiled like a great dragon through the rolling mountains, which were carpeted in a thin layer of green grass. The sight was truly magnificent.
However, he didn't stop at the summit, nor did he get off his bike to visit the temple or the scenic overlook.
He went straight around the massive U-shaped bend of the Laji Mountain Pass and began his advance toward Guiding County on the other side of the mountain.
