Bastille's Story｜Where Mountains Become Mentors: TTR Foundation Redefines Education Through the Great Outdoors

Known as "Mr. Trail Walker," KK Sir has conquered countless mountain trails and claimed multiple championships, including the Oxfam Trailwalker. In 2010, he founded the TTR Trailwalker Teaching Room Charity Foundation, Hong Kong's first charity dedicated to nurturing talent in trail running and road running, with the hope of channelling his skills into education.

KK Sir, Photo by Bastille Post

TTR Foundation offers trail running classes at various levels, allowing participants from age six and above to progressively learn hiking and trail running skills, including many children. When asked why he adopts the element of "mountains" for education, KK Sir smiled and said: "Mountains are excellent teachers. Regardless of one's background, they teach focus, respect, and perseverance. This is precisely the message that TTR Foundation wants to convey to its students through every step and every stretch of road."

TTR Foundation offers trail running classes at various levels. Photo source: FB@TTR Foundation

At TTR Foundation, children and volunteers often wear bright smiles. However, KK Sir admits that not every child comes voluntarily. Some are arranged by their parents, some are referred by their schools, and some are sent by parents who struggle to manage their children and simply "give it a try."

Regardless of the initial reasons, KK Sir feels that children today bear a heavy burden of pressure, yet few are willing to stop and listen to their inner voices. He hopes that every child who enters the foundation can be "seen" and "affirmed."

KK Sir hopes that every child who enters the foundation can be "seen" and "affirmed." Photo by Bastille Post

When KK Sir mentions each child, he unconsciously recalls their nicknames, as if each child's appearance, personality, and story are deeply imprinted in his mind. One child, nicknamed "Big Guy," initially said, "I can't do it" and always kept his head down. Once, KK Sir asked him to try being a leader, and he hesitated, clenching and unclenching his fists. With KK Sir's encouragement, he finally said "okay." Despite his soft voice, KK Sir immediately praised him loudly: "That's how you should be! From now on, speak up!"

Unexpectedly, a few years later, "Big Guy" not only became the fastest runner in the foundation's youth team, but even his parents noticed that he was no longer the child who constantly said, "I can't do it."

TTR Foundation teaches children more than just hiking skills or running speed; it also instils discipline, character, and life skills. Photo source: FB@TTR Foundation

TTR Foundation teaches children more than just hiking skills or running speed; it also instils discipline, character, and life skills.

Zeon Cing, Photo by Bastille Post

Zeon Cing, now 25, is one of the foundation's volunteer instructors. Like many children, he was initially forced to join. He said he preferred playing video games: "On Saturdays and Sundays, I just wanted to stay home and didn't want to go out." Later, encouraged by family and friends, he joined the hiking activities with a try‑it‑out attitude.

Although Zeon Cing said he "didn't want to come," he never missed a training session. At the age of 18, under the guidance of an instructor, he and his companions completed the 100‑kilometre Oxfam Trailwalker challenge. Sharing this experience, his eyes sparkled with confidence: "I walked 100 kilometres in about twenty hours, and by the end, I was practically sleeping standing up!" It was this perseverance that led TTR Foundation to invite him back as a volunteer instructor, training younger children.

Zeon Cing admits that he initially didn't like communicating with people, but after becoming an instructor, he gradually found unexpected rewards in working with children. "I see them once a week, and they greet me proactively, sharing different things with me during hikes." Zeon Cing remarked that he always feels joy when children take the initiative to share with him, as it reminds him of his own childhood. He also discovered that coaching isn't just about giving; it's also about receiving a lot from the children.

Coaching isn't just about giving; it's also about receiving a lot from the children. Photo source: FB@TTR Foundation

Besides making him "energetic," hiking also gave Zeon Cing the courage to face uncertainty. He joked that after finishing his DSE exams, he had no idea about the future, even admitting he was "thinking of just giving up." However, after each hike, his fellow hikers would check on him, asking: "Did you eat well?", "How's your studying?", "What are your plans for the future?" These seemingly casual questions, like seeds, were planted in his heart. He drew a blank on every question at first. But when even the kids in the foundation began asking him the same things, he finally started to think hard about one question: what did he actually want to do with his life?

Now, Zeon Cing has successfully graduated from the Hong Kong Polytechnic University and become an engineer. Looking back, what changed him were perhaps those who never found him annoying and always helped him find solutions time and time again. However, he also frankly admits that the foundation is not a "magic bullet": "Coming here won't make you very rich, nor will it give you many opportunities." But he believes that it gives him the possibility of changing himself.

TTR Foundation gives Zeon Cing the possibility of changing himself. Photo source: FB@TTR Foundation

Zeon Cing's return is naturally the biggest encouragement for the foundation. But when talking about operational difficulties, KK Sir still chokes up. He admits that doing this work is "easier said than done, yet we still have to persevere," and resources and manpower are the most challenging issues. However, he believes that as long as he perseveres, he will find like‑minded companions. "Just like Tang Sanzang's journey to the West, he started alone. He didn't immediately find Sun Wukong, Zhu Bajie, and Sha Wujing; he met them gradually along the way, slowly assembling his group."

Running a charity is never easy, but TTR Foundation never hesitates to invest resources where they matter most. The foundation serves students with special learning needs, including those with hyperactivity, social anxiety, or introversion, so instructors are required to pursue continuous professional development and tailor their teaching accordingly. KK Sir emphasises that they do not like to label children as “normal” or “abnormal”; instead, they teach with heart and with love. Instructors must also learn to identify and respond to different types of children, so he encourages them to enrol in relevant courses, with the foundation offering tuition support. “The better you teach, the more you learn from your students,” he said. “When you try to understand them, you’re actually growing yourself and becoming better at what you do.”

Zeon Cing (left) and KK Sir (right), Photo by Bastille Post

KK Sir extended his heartfelt gratitude to the volunteer instructors, fellow students, and event volunteers who have stood by TTR Foundation over the years. They have given not just their time and energy, but have embodied the very spirit of trailwalking, upholding the foundation's belief that “geese in flight support one another across the skies.”

He also expressed his hope that the foundation's mission of “sustained health and good deeds” will be passed down through generations, and that one day, someone will carry it forward even better than today. “Let’s not settle for the status quo,” he said. “I hope the foundation can keep improving, so that more people around us can benefit.”

This coming October, TTR Foundation will host the "TTR Trailwalker Charity Run," featuring parent‑child, individual, and team categories to suit participants of all levels. Whether you are a first‑timer or a seasoned trail runner, you are welcome to join this event filled with laughter and sweat. If you are interested, please click the link to sign up: https://ttr.hk/2026-ttr-charity-run/

HONOLULU (AP) — An anesthesiologist accused of trying to kill his wife during a cliffside hike near a popular scenic lookout in Hawaii struck her so hard with a rock that pieces of it broke off in her scalp, a prosecutor told jurors before they began deliberating Tuesday.

EDITOR’S NOTE: This story includes discussion of domestic violence. If you or someone you know needs help, please call the national domestic violence hotline: 1-800-799-7233 in the U.S.

Gerhardt Konig, 47, had a plan and backup plans for murdering his wife, Arielle Konig, during a weekend trip to Honolulu for her birthday in March 2025, deputy prosecutor Joel Garner said. He tried to push her off a cliff, and when that didn't work he tried to stab her with a syringe filled with an unknown substance.

And when that didn't work, he grabbed the rock, Garner said.

“Every backup plan ends in Arielle’s death,” Garner said, displaying the rock and photos of her injuries.

The doctor's lawyer told jurors Tuesday there were no such plans, and he repeatedly sought to cast doubt on Arielle Konig's account. Gerhardt Konig has pleaded not guilty to attempted murder, and he insists he was defending himself from his wife, who he says attacked him with the rock first.

If Gerhardt Konig had wanted to kill his wife and had access to a syringe in a remote area, attorney Thomas Otake suggested, wouldn't he have drugged her and then thrown her from the cliff, rather than having started a scuffle before attempting to fill the syringe as he was wrestling with her?

“You would use the syringe first,” Otake said. “It makes no sense.”

The trial started last month, nearly a year after Gerhadt and Arielle Konig went on a hike on the Pali Puka trail in Honolulu that ended with her bloodied and screaming that he had tried to kill her.

Their two young sons stayed home on Maui while the Konigs were on the trip. Near a lookout offering sweeping views, Gerhardt Konig — upset about his wife's relationship with a coworker — attacked her, Garner said. It was only because two other hikers interrupted the assault that he stopped, Garner said.

The trial, with testimony livestreamed by Court TV, has aired the couple's marital problems leading up to the hike, along with their versions of what happened on the trail.

Gerhardt Konig testified that his wife was having an affair, which he confirmed by unlocking her phone while she slept. The relationship, which Arielle Konig characterized as an “emotional affair” involving flirty messages with a coworker, came up during the hike.

Arielle Konig testified that her husband grabbed her and moved her toward the cliff's edge but she threw herself on the ground in an attempt to hold on. He straddled her and had a syringe in his hand, she said, but she batted it away. She bit his forearm and squeezed his testicles in attempt to get him off her, she said.

Her husband denied pushing her toward the edge and testified that she hit him with a rock on the side of his face. He wrestled the rock away and hit her with it twice in self-defense, he said.

“He reacted, and then he felt horrible about it,” Otake said. “He never wanted to hurt her.”

But the prosecutor told the jury that all of the blood found on the rock and on clothing belonged to Arielle Konig, not her husband.

Gerhardt Konig also denied having any syringes on the mountain, or trying to stab his wife. His defense attorney said no syringe was found at the scene because he never had one.

Otake said Gerhardt Konig was not someone who would try to commit murder, but someone who was struggling with infidelity and trying to do his best. Otake quoted from a heart-shaped birthday card Gerhardt Konig had written to his wife, calling her “the heart of our family” and saying, “The kids and I hit the jackpot with you.”

Gerhardt Konig testified that as he watched his wife crawl away, he believed his marriage and career were over, and he decided to jump to his death. But first, he called his adult son from a previous marriage. The son told authorities that his father said he “tried to kill your stepmom” — a confession Gerhardt Konig denied having made.

During that call, the defendant made no reference to having struck his wife in self-defense, Garner said.

He spent about eight hours hiding on the mountain before deciding to come down, and even then he tried to flee when confronted by police, Garner said.

His wife has since filed for divorce.

Associated Press writer Gene Johnson in Seattle contributed.

Defense attorney Thomas Otake delivers closing arguments during the attempted murder trial of Gerhardt Konig, in a courtroom, Tuesday, April 7, 2026, in Honolulu. (AP Photo/Mengshin Lin, Pool)

Gerhardt Konig, left, talks to his defense lawyer Thomas Otake after closing arguments in his attempted murder trial in a courtroom, Tuesday, April 7, 2026, in Honolulu. (AP Photo/Mengshin Lin, Pool)

Deputy Prosecutor Joel Garner holds a rock as evidence while presenting closing arguments during the attempted murder trial of Gerhardt Konig in a courtroom, Tuesday, April 7, 2026, in Honolulu. (AP Photo/Mengshin Lin, Pool)

Gerhardt Konig appears in court before closing arguments in his attempted murder trial, Tuesday, April 7, 2026, in Honolulu. (AP Photo/Mengshin Lin, Pool)

Defendant Gerhardt Konig, left, talks to his defense attorney Thomas Otake before closing arguments in his attempted murder trial, Tuesday, April 7, 2026, in Honolulu. (AP Photo/Mengshin Lin, Pool)

Gerhardt Konig appears in court before closing arguments in his attempted murder trial, Tuesday, April 7, 2026, in Honolulu. (AP Photo/Mengshin Lin, Pool)

FILE - Hawaii doctor Gerhardt Konig appears before a judge via video during an arraignment hearing after being indicted on allegation of attempting to kill his wife, April 7, 2025, in Honolulu. (AP Photo/Marco Garcia, File)