Zeng Fanren,King of Car Racing in Asia

Planning by Xu Sen 徐森

Text by Liu Dongli 刘冬莉

Zeng Fanren,King of Car Racing in Asia

车神传奇——探访亚洲车神曾凡仁

Planning by Xu Sen 徐森

Text by Liu Dongli 刘冬莉

A man jumps from a speeding car, leaping through three rings of fire and continuing his stride–that’s a notable action made bySpider Man. A man makes an aggressive gear shift and narrowly escapes head-on collision with another car–that’s a classic scene inDie Another Day, a James Bond movie.

Stunts like these have surely impressed fans of Spider Man and James Bond. Yet probably few of them know that the stunt performer that substitutes for the super stars in these Hollywood movies comes from Wuhan, China. For a long time, this man has been the only Asian face on the Hollywood stunt actor scene.

This man is Zeng Fanren, born in Jiangxia District, Wuhan City, Hubei Province, in 1962.

人在急速行驶的汽车上飞身一跃穿过三个熊熊燃烧的火圈，这是蜘蛛侠的拿手绝活儿；两辆迎面开来的汽车在相撞前一秒急速飘移转向，这是电影《007——择日而亡》中的经典镜头……

相信看过《蜘蛛侠》、《007》等好莱坞大片的影迷们，对这些让人尖叫的特技仍记忆犹新。可你知道吗？这些在美国好莱坞专给大牌明星做替身的特技演员中，有一个来自中国武汉！他也是好莱坞特技表演队中唯一一名亚洲人。

●Photo by Zheng Guangsong郑光松 摄

The First Impression

●Photo by Zheng Guangsong郑光松 摄

On March 31st, we drove to his home in Jiangxia District to visit him and found out more about this legendary car-racing driver and stuntman.

When we reached Jiangxia District, we turned off the main street on to a muddy country road. We passed several blocks and several lines of houses, and finally approached a slightly worn house. We were perplexed where to go next when we suddenly heard dogs barking from the yard of this house. Zeng Fanren, in a racing suit, emerged from behind a door, smiling and waving to us.

Entering the yard, we looked around. It is an age-old yard, with a two-story house in the middle. In front of the house, there are several custom vehicles. On the wall of the yard, there are various license plates and photos of car races. The decor serves as a record of the glory of the owner of the house in his car-racing career. Over thirties years ago in 1981, Zeng Fanren placed sixth in the Asian Motorcar Cross-country Championship in Japan. In 2005, he became the champion of China Circuit Championship. In 2013, he got the gold medal in the Miracle Oil Cup Automobile Rally Race in Korea.

“I have rebuilt the house by myself.” Zeng Fanren told us. Several years ago, he came across this place and felt a strong attachment to it on first sight, so he bought it and moved here. Together with his two pupils, they spent a whole week redecorating it. This simple home has hosted many great figures in the motorsports circle, Michael Schumacher, Chinese car racer Han Han, Jimmy Lin, to name just a few.

As we were talking, a train came rambling behind the house. He explained the house was located near the Beijing-Guangdong Railway, so there were regular roaring trains passing by. We wondered that as Zeng Fanren had accumulated great wealth as well as fame, he would afford an expensive house in a downtown area or a luxurious estate in the countryside, but why did he prefer such a humble location?

Zeng Fanren didn’t respond to our question immediately, instead, he showed us his private collections. Among them, there were the helmet sent by Li Ming, a popular HongKong singer, as a token of friendship; an F1 racing suit signed by Michael Schumacher; a Spiderman suit, a James Bond suit, and so on. Each piece of the collection had a memorable story behind it.

The First Man Ever Driving through Kekexili

In 1978, when he was 16 years old, he joined an automobile platoon in the army on the Qinghai-Tibet Road. Quickly he fell in love with the automobile. One year later, he was recommended by the army to learn advanced motorcar driving in Japan because of his excellent performance in the army. He began to learn car stunt skills and became crazy about it.

In 1981, there were some Chinese people who attempted to drift by canoe from the origin of Changjiang River (in the Three–River-Source Region of Qinghai) down to the sea. Among them, some were army soldiers and some were the local residents—some of them died due to a lack of protective equipment and the rescue teams even couldn’t find their bodies. Their bold and brave actions had greatly inspired Zeng Fanren. He understood, they did it because they wanted to conquer the origin of the Changjiang River before foreign expedition teams did so and set the records. In the same province, there was another place that had not yet been conquered by any human being—Kekexili, or Hoh Xil—which then became Zeng’s target.

However, Kekexili is a world famous area for its wretched weather and harsh environment unfit for survival. There is a saying, “In Budongquan (Non-Freezing Spring) region (in Kekexili), one can see hail in the morning, lightning in the evening, and snow and storms even in the sunshine.” It is a vivid description of Kekexili’s dangerous geological conditions.

The annual average temperature is 4-10 degrees Celsius below zero, the lowest recorded temperature is 46 degrees below zero. Before Zeng Fanren, no one had conquered the Kekexili. However facing such terrifying conditions, Zeng Fanren had a simple plan, “I will bring five tanks of gasoline, each bucket will last 400 kilometers, five buckets will make 2000 kilometers, on the condition that the car is still working, with sufficient supplies,iwill make it.”

In 1986, Zeng Fanren started his journey to conquer Kekexili at the age of 24. His equipment included four barrels of gasoline, four boxes of tools, clothing, two clocks, a shotgun and compressed biscuits. Because of the high altitude in Kekexili, the lack of oxygen in the air, the car can’t be left not running too long, otherwise it won’t start again. Due to the lack of oxygen, the motorcar seemed much heavier than usual, and it would be hard to lift the motorcar if it were to fall in a ditch. There was one time, when going through the swamp, the motorcar stalled and fell in the mud. He narrowly escaped the death. There were other dangers like threats from Tibetan antelopes, bears, wolves, and so on. At night, he could not sleep too long, because if he did, the lack of oxygen might make him unable to wake up, so he set two clocks to wake himself up after 20 minutes’ nap.

After five nights and six days of trekking, he had succeeded inpassing through Kekexili. When he showed up at the exit of Kekexili, the awaiting media cheered welcome. Zeng Fanren was very proud to be the first recorded human to conquer the forbidden area of Kekexili, home or abroad.

Since then, Zeng Fanren has become known for his courage. In 2006, when the Beijing Olympic Games selected mascots, the Qinghai Provincial Government wanted to arrange a group of journalists to take photos of a Tibetan antelope in Kekexili. As a guide to the group, Zeng Fanren escorted the 70 journalists into Kekexili, to start a shooting journey of Tibetan antelope, which lasted 19 days. After the shooting, he escorted the journalists out safely.

Asian Motor Racer in Hollywood

●Photo by Zheng Guangsong郑光松 摄

Opportunity is always reserved for those who are prepared. In 2006, the Hollywood Fermat Stunt Team came to China to give a show—people were fascinated by the performance. After Zeng Fanren watched the show, he realized he could also do these stunts. He went to the team manager and expressed his willingness to join the team. The manager wasn’t impressed by his plain appearance and questioned him: “What can you do?”

“I can do all the stuntsisaw in the show,” his answer surprised the team manager. He proved himself with a 540-degree high-speed drift in a car that silenced the stunt team. Thus, he joined the Hollywood stunt team.

In Jackie Chan’s movie Rush Hour III, there is one scene where he is fighting against an opponent in a car sliding along the ground on its side. It was Zeng Fanren who was driving that car. Because of this, he won the title of “King of car racing in Asia.”

One of his friends told us, when he was in Hollywood, his superb stunt skills aroused many fans’ attention, and some asked him: “Are you Japanese or Korean?” Zeng Fanren explained politely each time: “I am Chinese.iam from China.”

He grew tired of explaining again and again, so he coordinated a stunt performance where he jumped out of a moving car holding the national flag of China in his hands. In this way, he was telling the world “I am from China.”

Even though he only studied in primary school for three years, Zeng Fanren has been to over 70 countries and he is capable of speaking five foreign languages. He shows profound love for his motherland of China.

On the top of his trophy shelf, there is a small worn flag that Zeng Fanren cherishes dearly. “This is the very flagihad on my car, wheniwas on my Silk Road Journey three years ago.” This journey traversed the entire ancient Silk Road and took two months. After the journey, he took it from the car and put it here, as a reminder of the good memory.” He said proudly.

In 2015, the Chinese Ministry of Culture launched the One Silk Road One Economic Belt Expedition.” It was sponsored by the Chinese Society of Social Art, CCTV, Central New Group, the Devon Lida Group, and the Belt and Road Construction and Cooperation Committee. It is the largest and most influential cultural exchange and economic and trade promotion activity covering the most countries and lasting longer than any other event of its kind, and involves almost every aspect of life in the countries along the Silk Road.

On August 8th, Zeng Fanren, leading the team, started the expedition from Shanghai, left China from Horgos, passed through over ten nations, such as Georgia, Russia, Turkey, Greece, and others. After 73 days, covering 16,000 kilometers, they reached the Milan World Expo on October 19th, the final destination of the journey.

With racing suits, car models, calligraphy scrolls, paintings, and various tea sets collected from all over the world, Zeng Fanren’s house is like a small museum, packed with precious treasures and fascinating stories, arousing our curiosity and attention, so much so that we completely lost track of time...

At sunset, we bid our farewells. A train was roaring through. Zeng Fanren explained finally, “Wheniwas young,ilived by the railroad, at that time,ilived a very poor life, starving everyday. Now,iam rich, butiwill not forget my past life. So living by the railroad reminds me of the past constantly.”

Zeng Fanren said this peacefully, but with great force.

The road ahead is long and has no ending, yet Zeng Fanren will persue his passion for car racing with an unbending will. Now, he is engaging himself in turning his car racing career into a business model and establishing a club named Celebrity Car Racing (Hubei). It is a cultural and tourism investment club. In combination with many top sportsmen, celebrities, and car racing fans from all walks of life, Zeng Fangren wants to share his love for cars, his car racing stories, and explore car racing with more enthusiasts.

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车神初印象

他叫曾凡仁，1962年出生于武汉江夏。

2017年3月31日下午，记者根据车神曾凡仁提供的地址，驱车前往武汉江夏，专程拜访这位赛车界的传奇人物。

车至江夏，从城区宽敞的大道转入泥泞的小路，转过几道弯，穿过几排民房，眼前所见是一个略显破旧的民房。当记者正在迟疑是否走错路时，只听一阵狗吠，紧接着，穿着赛车服的曾凡仁笑着出来迎接。

进入院子，记者仔细端详四周：这是一个古朴的院子，一座两层的木质小楼略显破旧，院里停放着几辆改装过的汽车；两旁的墙上挂满了各式车牌、赛事现场的照片。这一切，都默默地记载着房屋主人曾经的辉煌：1981年，曾凡仁在日本获得亚洲摩托车越野锦标赛第六名；2005年，获厦门全国场地锦标赛冠军；2013年，他在韩国奇迹润滑油杯汽车拉力赛揽冠军奖杯入怀……

“这个房子是我自己动手搭建起来的。”曾凡仁告诉记者，几年前，他在乡下发现了这个房子并“一见钟情”，当即花钱买下并整体搬到这里。随后，他和两个徒弟花了整整七天时间重新搭建。谁也想不到，就是这样一个简陋的宅院，甚至接待过舒马赫、韩寒、林志颖等大牌赛车手、明星。

说话间，一阵轰隆隆的火车声传入耳畔。原来，院子旁边紧邻京广线铁路，不时有往来的火车呼啸而过，不胜其扰。记者不禁疑惑：车神曾凡仁名利兼有，以他的实力，无论是在繁华都市内购置房产，抑或是在清幽之处修建住宅，都并非难事，他为何偏偏选择这样一个地方定居？

面对记者的疑问，曾凡仁并没有正面回答，而是热情地向大家一一展示他收藏的“宝贝”：这里不仅有天王巨星黎明送的头盔、舒马赫送的亲笔签名F1赛车服，还有蜘蛛侠、007替身穿过的原版道具服……每一件物品的背后，都有一段值得回忆的故事。

独自穿越可可西里第一人

1978年，16岁的曾凡仁参军去了青藏的汽车排，从此爱上了车。1979年，因表现优秀，他被部队推荐前往日本学习摩托车，开始接触汽车特技动作，并痴迷其中。

1981年，为了抢在外国人之前，在中国人自己的母亲河长江源头即三江源漂流成功，部队战士和一些当地人用皮划艇漂流。但因为没有任何保护设施，很多人牺牲了，甚至连尸体都找不到。这件事给曾凡仁很大触动，让他产生了抢在外国人之前穿越可可西里的想法。

然而，可可西里是著名的生命禁区，恶劣气候条件是出了名的。有民谚称：“不冻泉、不冻泉，气候一日三变化；朝砸冰雹暮落雨，照着太阳飘雪花。”这就是可可西里一天气候变化的真实写照。

可可西里的年均温度零下4～10℃，最低温度零下46℃。恶劣的环境让人望而生畏，可曾凡仁的计划却简单得惊人：“我带五箱油，一箱能跑400多公里，这就是2000多公里；只要方向不错、车不坏，带足物资，就一定能穿越。”

1986年，24岁的曾凡仁带上四桶汽油、四个工具箱、衣服、两个闹钟、一把猎枪和压缩饼干就出发了。由于可可西里无人区海拔高，氧气稀少，车子不能熄火太长时间，在缺氧的环境下，车子显得很重，车子倒下后一个人很难扶起来。在过一个沼泽地时，摩托车倒下熄火了，使他面临很大的危险。还要面临藏羚羊、熊和狼等动物的威胁。第一个晚上，他有点害怕，又不能睡太长时间，因极度缺氧，睡长后就起不来了。困了，他就用两个闹钟定时，一般只休息20分钟。

6天5晚之后，他终于走到可可西里的出口。在那里，他受到青海当地媒体记者的热烈欢迎。震耳的欢呼声中，曾凡仁激动万分，因为中国人终于在外国人之前成功穿越可可西里无人区！

曾凡仁从此红遍全国。2006年，北京奥运会征集吉祥物，青海省人民政府组织媒体深入可可西里，为藏羚羊拍照。作为第一个成功穿越可可西里的人，曾凡仁受命护送境内外70多名媒体记者进入可可西里，进行为期19天的拍摄活动。拍摄结束后，他再把记者们安全地送了出去。

亚洲车神勇闯好莱坞

机会总是留给有准备的人。2006年，好莱坞费姆卡特技表演队来华表演，精湛的车技引得现场一阵阵惊叹声。而这些项目正是曾凡仁平时爱玩的动作。他找到车队经纪人，请求加入车队。对方看他其貌不扬的样子，不屑地说：“你会什么呢？”

“他们做的这些我都会。”曾凡仁的回答让对方不可思议，然而，随后他的一招“飞车空中旋转”一圈半彻底征服表演队。就这样，曾凡仁被吸纳成为队员。

在成龙电影《尖峰时刻3》中，有一个镜头是成龙和搭档坐在右侧着地、左侧腾空的面包车中和对手对打。这个和地面呈45度角的汽车特技镜头，就是曾凡仁表演的。“亚洲车神”名号从此不胫而走。

他的一位朋友告诉记者，曾凡仁刚到好莱坞时，精湛的车技就吸引了很多人的注意。很多人见他是黄皮肤、黑头发，都问他是不是日本人、韩国人。曾凡仁每次都要向他们解释：“我是中国人。”

后来，在一次车技表演中，他灵机一动，从侧边腾空的汽车车窗翻到车顶，将一面五星红旗高高举起，他用行动告诉观众：“我是一名中国人！”

虽然只上过小学三年级，但曾凡仁却去过七十多个国家，会说五国语言。而且，他内心充满浓浓的爱国情怀。

在曾凡仁的陈列柜上，有一面已经十分破旧的小国旗，但曾凡仁爱护有加。

“这面小红旗在前年一带一路万里行中，一直插在我的车上，风雨兼程两个多月，一直陪在我身边，就像战友一样。所以我会一直把它保存下来。”言语中，亚洲车神的骄傲之情溢于言表。

2015年，由中国文化部主管，中国社会艺术协会、中央电视台中央新影集团、德丰利达集团、“一带一路”项目建设合作跨国圆桌会组委会共同举办“一带一路”万里行。这是国家“一带一路”建设倡议下行程最长、跨度最大、涉及领域最广的一项大型丝绸之路沿线文化交流经贸推广活动。作为领队，曾凡仁带领队友于8月8日从上海出发，经霍尔果斯出关，途经格鲁吉亚、俄罗斯、土耳其、希腊等十余个国家，历经73天，行程逾16000公里，于10月19日到达米兰世博会。

赛车服、汽车模型、字画，还有从全国各地搜罗回来的各种茶器……在车神曾凡仁的家中，满屋子的“宝贝”，满屋子的故事，犹如一个小型博物馆。我们沉浸其中，不觉忘了时间的流逝……

夕阳西下。临别时，又一辆火车呼啸而过。伴着列车的轰鸣，曾凡仁终于向记者揭开那个关于铁路的谜底：“我小时候家就住在铁路旁。那个时候家里穷，连饭都吃不饱，现在条件富裕了，但我不能忘记自己的根本。所以，我特地选了这个靠近铁路的地方，让轰鸣的火车声时刻提醒我，不能忘本。”

曾凡仁的话很朴实，但铿锵有力。

结束语

路漫漫其修远兮。曾凡仁一生对车的追求已达到痴迷成瘾的地步。如今，他正迈步把自己的喜好当作一种产业去打造。

据悉，曾凡仁己联手各行各业多名高手、名人和热爱汽车的发烧友，共同成立“名人名车(湖北)文创旅业投资俱乐部”，让更多的人共享车情、车事、车趣！

（本文图片除署名外，均由曾凡仁本人提供）

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